Newsletter Term 1 Week 8

2021 SCHOOL AGM

Dear Parents and Caregivers,

Last year we faced many changes due to Covid-19.  One of those changes was the creativity around the AGM.  A take-away from this experience is to build on that creativity and new ways of operating.

The School Board and will be using a newsletter based Annual General Meeting. AGM’s are held to give the opportunity for the Board to report to its community, giving an account of the tasks it has undertaken on behalf of the community.  We will be using a newsletter based AGM in an effort to report to all families.  The format this year will include the following:

AGM reports – all reports will be published in the newsletter during week 2 (Thursday May 6th).  This section consists of reports from the Chairperson, Principal, Parish, P&F and Treasurer/Bursar (including a summary of the budget for this year). 

Nominations – Included in this newsletter is a Nomination Form.  Please consider if you would like to take up this most important role.  Below is a description of the role of a School Board member.  If you wish to nominate, return the signed form after having someone in the community (ie another adult) sign to second your nomination.  Nominations close on Friday April 9^th.  In the event of more nominations being received than necessary, a system of voting will take place via the newsletter on Thursday May 6^th.  Click here to view the Nomination Form.

AGM – will be held on Monday May 24th at 7:00pm.  There will be no reading out of reports, this meeting is an opportunity for anyone in our community to come along to ask questions regarding the published reports (like a Town Hall meeting).  We anticipate this will be brief, once questions are concluded the current School Board will hold their last meeting and those who have come for questions will leave.

What do School Board Members Do?

The faith community has a responsibility for the maintenance and development of its Catholic school.  A practical way of accepting its responsibility is to appoint some of its members to use their gifts in working with the principal and staff in School Board ministry.

There are 5 elements of community responsibility that the School Board undertakes:

• Policy Direction – to guide the school
• Financial Management – to account for and administer all income
• Planning & Development – for the present & future
• Pastoral Care – is care for people (students, parents & staff)
• Evaluation – of the effect of policy decisions

The School Board meets monthly during the four school terms (on the Monday of weeks 5 & 9 at 7pm).  Meetings run for no longer than two hours, at which discussion is based around reports from the P&F, Principal, Parish, Staff, Treasurer/Bursar and other key groups.

If you require any further information please feel free to contact me.

Damian Weeks
Principal

“There is nothing so great as the Eucharist. If God had something more precious, God would have given it to us.”  Saint John Vianney

Our Sacramental Program 2021 will begin later in the year. You might have been wondering when our Parish, Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, and Star of the Sea, will celebrate these special milestones for our children. Archbishop Patrick O’Regan has asked us to be patient as the Church moves forward with restrictions still very much in place. Our Lady of the Sacred Heart has a maximum of 210 people at present.

 Information about First Reconciliation, Confirmation and First Eucharist will be distributed in Term Two, with celebrations held in Terms Three and Four. Our parish will welcome a new Missionary of the Sacred Heart Parish Priest over the coming months. Watch this space for further updates regarding this exciting news.

 If your child was involved in the Sacramental Program last year, I am sure you would agree with Fr Paul and me that our intimate liturgical celebrations were reverent and cherished by all. We successfully turned challenges into positives for our community. Fr Dennis Rochford, as our Acting Parish Priest, has written a letter to the Parish community regarding the sacraments. See link below.

May your weekend be blessed with harmony, as we celebrate Colours of the World for Children of the World and our Family Fun Day.

Stella

A Pastoral Letter from the Bishops of Australia to the leaders, staff, students and families of Catholic education in Australia.

The Year 1's travelled by bus to Belair National park for an exciting cubby building experience. We met Cameron and Lauren who explained what we had to do. We worked in teams using natural resources to build a cubby big enough for us all to sit in. Our parent helpers assisted us to move the really big logs. We had so much fun and we even got to eat our lunch in our cubbies.