Dear parents, friends, staff and students,

In life, we sometimes experience events that are so positive and moving that we are overcome with excitement and emotion. The memory of this event will last with us for a long time, but because the event was so powerful, the positive energy can evaporate and what remains can appear depressing or fearful. In this Sunday’s gospel, we see such an event. This week we celebrate the Ascension of the Lord. This is the time where Jesus took Himself to heaven under His own power and authority. The apostles witnessed this and “then went back to Jerusalem full of joy” (Luke 24: 53). The Ascension is an important reminder that Jesus had the power over death and that this leads to an eternal joy. What the apostles were not prepared for was the sense of loss that would come over the next few days. As teachers, we often see sadness and struggles within our community and our families. Whilst we often travel the road beside people in these times, as a people of Christ, we are encouraged to know that Jesus is also with us and that joy will come if we continue to believe in Him.

As always there are many things occurring throughout the College that are contributing to our community and opportunities for the students. On Monday we had our Stage 6 electives for 2023 launch where students in Year 10 were given some initial information to begin the process of choosing subjects. On Tuesday we held our regular Parents and Friends’ meeting, on Wednesday we hosted the Yr 11 Parent/Teacher/Student meetings and tomorrow we will be holding our Staff Spirituality Day. Again, each of these things are used to develop a college where Christ is at the centre and students are provided with varied opportunities to gain excellence. Thank you to all parents and students for your support of these events.

At the P&F meeting, a new treasurer was elected for the remainder of the year. Congratulations to Mrs Patricia Wicks for taking on this important role. The position of president is still available. During the meeting, I outlined the suggestions that we have been investigating around a number of possible changes for next year. We discussed the possibility of changing our lesson length and number of periods within a day and the implications that this may have around slight adjustments to the start and finish times of the day. We also looked at the idea that we may restructure our pastoral system to include our Year 10 students in the role of seniors and what would need to be done to make this possible. Finally, we also discussed possible changes to the junior and senior girls’ uniforms to enable long pants to be introduced as an option for the juniors. There was some positive discussion in these areas, and I thank those present for giving their opinion and raising things to consider. As we get closer to making decisions, I will communicate this with parents as appropriate.

I would also like to thank the P&F for approving a number of requests for funds to be spent on our hall stage lighting and extra Catholic Care counselling days. They have also agreed to other funding around the purchase of a ground’s vehicle which will improve safety around the College. These will go a long way to making the students’ experience and environment more positive.

Tomorrow we are holding our scheduled Staff Development Day which is focussed on staff spirituality. As a Catholic school, this form of professional development is essential in assisting staff to explore their own faith formation which in turn enables them to assist students in theirs. As you would be aware from my letter earlier this week and subsequent emails, this day also coincides with a protected action day called by the Independent Education Union. Please be aware as previously advised, that this has always been scheduled as a pupil free day and there will be no supervision at the College tomorrow.

Ite in Veritate

Mr Steve Lo Cascio