St Marys Cathedral Catholic students reading a bookSt Mary’s Cathedral College Class of 2019 have achieved HSC results that are among the very best in the history of the College.

Students from the College appeared 99 times on the Distinguished Achievers merit list, which recognises students who score in the top band in a subject (a mark of 90% or better). These appearances were shared among 39 students in 25 courses. Expressed as a percentage of papers sat, this figure placed St Mary’s Cathedral College in 82nd place in NSW. This was a jump of more than ten places from last year and makes Cathedral College the best performed boys’ Catholic systemic school in the state.

Four students appeared on the All Rounders merit list:

  • Blaize Farah
  • Edward Ford
  • Anthony Haddad
  • Oliver Jackson

All scored Band 6 results in ten or more units of the HSC.

Among the uniformly excellent results of this quartet, Edward Ford finished 4th in the state in History Extension with a mark of 50/50 and Blaize Farah finished 8th in English Extension I with 49/50. These students joined Marcus D’Alessio and Andrew Stuart, who finished equal 7th in Construction Examination, on the Top Achievers merit list.

The tremendous results achieved by students were reflected in the ATARs, which are the means by which students are offered tertiary study places. While not all ATARs are currently available, at least 22 students received an ATAR of 90 or above.

The ATARs of the following students are particularly noteworthy and quite unprecedented for the College:

  • Blaize Farah (99.60),
  • Edward Ford (99.60),
  • Anthony Haddad (99.55),
  • and Oliver Jackson (99.35)

Many students received ranks far in excess of their expectations.

In addition to results connected with the formal examinations, many students have had their work acknowledged by nomination and selection in the various NESA showcases for practical works:

  • Perrin Ford’s composition for Music Extension will be performed as part of the Encore! showcase.
  • Ryan Cussen’s Visual Arts Body of Work will be exhibited at ArtExpress.
  • Edward Ford’s History Extension Personal Research Project was Runner Up in the HTA/University of Sydney History Extension prize.
  • Nine students had their Industrial Technology works nominated for inclusion in Shape and InTech.

None of the results achieved by the Class of 2019 would have been possible without the work of the College’s teaching staff. Both the teachers with HSC classes and those teachers that prepared the students in earlier years deserve commendation and recognition for their tireless efforts and their determination to help every student achieve the best possible result.

We congratulate all the members of the Class of 2019 on their successes, both collective and individual, and look forward to acknowledging the students at an Academic Assembly early in 2020.