Congratulations to John Matchett (Y11) who played for the  Ireland U15 Cricket team at the European Championships in Guernsey in August.

Congratulations to Chris Jordan who came 1st in Men’s Foil and Victoria Duxbury who came 2nd in Women’s Foil.

Congratulations to Matthew Allister, Connor Roberts and Michael Robson for representing Ulster in the U18 Boys Hockey Inter-ProsTournament on 18 – 20 November 2011 in Dublin.

80 IN 20 A group of teachers and friends of Sullivan Upper School will be walking 80km in 20 hours to raise money for a number of charities which have a strong Sullivan connection. Some people will be planning to complete the full distance and others will join us for part of the day. This will take place on Saturday 2 June 2012. Starting when the sunrises and hoping to finish before the sun sets.The idea came from reading an article about a woman who walked 80km to seek medical attention for her sick child. This distance resonates with those involved in the Duke of Edinburgh Award Scheme where the Gold candidates are required to cover that distance in 4 days in wild country. The charities we are hoping to raise a lot of money for are Work of John Turner in Vietnam – (John Turner is a former Technology teacher who along with his wife is working among the street children in Vietnam). UCCI – UCCI is an Indian charity focussed on the provision of schooling for the children of the poorest families of the Andra Pradesh in Eastern India. In addition we will be supporting a number of charities in memory of the following people (former pupils and parents of pupils in school) Rebecca Graham (former pupil) – Cardiomyopathy Association Andrew Drain (former Head Boy) – Leukaemia and Lymphoma research Andrew Campbell (former pupil) – Bright Red Rosi Kirker Millar (parent) – Bowel Cancer UK Malcolm Chisholm (parent) – Tear Fund We would encourage you to give as generously as possible – every donation helps, no matter what size it is. The fund raised will be split equally amongst the listed charities. If you wish to make a donation we have set up a webpage www.justgiving.com/80kin20 or send cash or cheques made payable to Sullivan Upper School in an envelope marked 80 in 20 to be left in at the school office. All money donated including that which is gift-aided will be divided equally between the 7 charities. Paul Whittington

Rory comes home to Sullivan. The pupils and staff of Sullivan Upper were delighted when former pupil, Rory McIlroy, visited school on Thursday, 30 June 2011.  The BBC’s Mark Simpson quizzed Rory about his school days and many pupils were able to have their photo taken with the US Open Champion. Many thanks Rory! Click on the links below to see the BBC’s news items http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-13983230 http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-13981397

Congratulation to Chris Cree (Yr11) who finished the tennis session as the number one player in Ulster at U14 level.

In September 2010, after a rigorous application and interview process the following Year 13 pupils were successful in gaining a place on the Belfast Saphara Team: Kirsten Beg, Kate Doake, Irma Hendry, Chris Jordan and Katherine Kinahan with Miss C Thomson (Teacher in Charge Sullivan). The aim of Saphara is to participate in a ‘journey with purpose’. Saphara is a registered charity which engages young people from all communities in Northern Ireland to work with impoverished children in India. We are part of the Belfast team of sixth form students and will be travelling to India in July 2011 with pupils from Methodist College and Aquinas Grammar. Team Training An important aspect of our year long commitment has been to team building and prepare for our trip to India. In November we had our induction meeting where we met our colleagues in the Belfast team from Methody and Acquinas. February’s team meeting outlined the challenges ahead and developed team morale. In March we attended a residential training weekend at Newcastle Youth Hostel where we explored cultural issues associated with our trip and considered the demands of teaching. By our final twilight meeting in May the theme of ‘The Environment’ had been selected as the focus of our teaching and we are embracing the challenges associated with creative lesson planning. Fundraising One of the most challenging aspects of this commitment has been raising funds to support the educational charity work we will be doing during our trip to India. The financial aspect of this trip involves £650 parental consultation to cover flights and insurance, £500 personal fundraising and £500 (per member) team fundraising. As this is a big financial commitment we have been keen to focus our efforts on some key events. Highlights We would like to thank Miss Martin for facilitating a non uniform collection on behalf of Saphara and to all those pupils who donated so generously. A big thank you to Sullivan Preparatory Department staff and pupils who donated an amazing £1000 – the result of collecting coppers and a toy sale. Their creativity and enthusiasm was a great motivation throughout our fundraising endeavours. In March, we undertook a challenge, not for the faint hearted, to Abseil down the Europa Hotel A great fundraiser which thanks to very generous support from Sullivan staff meant we couldn’t back out!!  Finally to those of you who attended; coffee mornings, wine and cheese evening, Jamie at Home Party, Table Quiz or donated to our used clothing collection – THANK YOU! Our fundraising target was £5000 and we have managed to achieve £10,883.36. All your support has been greatly appreciated and will make a huge difference to the schools Saphara supports in India. Click here to read Saphara Article by Lucy Pollock Click here to look at the Belfast Team July 2010 Click here to look at the Belfast Trip Schedule 2011 You can follow our progress while we are away in India (15-31 July 2011) by reading our ‘blog’ on the Saphara Website: www.saphara.org

Congratulations to Morag Stewart and Amy McIlroy. These Year 11 Home Economics pupils have recently had great success in 2 cookery competitions. On 29 March 2011 Morag came 1st in the Key Stage 4 section of the Dairy Council Young Cook of the Year. Amy travelled to Sligo on the 5 May 2011 for the final of the All Ireland Safe Food Competition. There were over 1000 entrants for this competition and Amy was delighted to be placed 1st overall, winning an Xbox and a voucher for a day at a Dublin Cookery School for herself as well as a range of appliances and vouchers for the Home Economics Department.

Charlie Roberts competed with the NI squad in Munich, Germany last weekend (24-26 January 2014) and  he is now World Karate Confederation International Open Cadet Champion in Wado Kata. In the Kumite event for Cadet heavyweight brown/black, he was knocked out in the second round by the narrowest of margins by the eventual champion who came from the USA. The whole NI squad performed excellently bringing back 17 medals with two Champions.

Congratulations to Jonathan Hill (Year 13) who came 3rd in the Senior boys triple Jump at the Irish schools final on Saturday 1 June 2013.

He did it! Congratulations to Stephen Chisholm who was revealed as the WINNER of the Great Irish Bake Off! His signature bake was a gingerbread Duncluce Castle. Stephen left Sullivan in June 2010 and is currently studying Business and Economics at Newcastle University.