Principal's News

Gracious God,

We pray for the people of Ukraine suffering from war.

May they be held in your loving care and protection and given

the strength to endure their suffering and hardship.

Transform the hearts and minds of those who perpetuate the 

violence and aggression.

Grant wisdom to world leaders in advancing efforts toward peace:

may they not be compromised by self-interest and blind indifference.

We ask all this through the intercession of Our Lady of Perpetual Help and in the name of your Son Jesus, and the Holy Spirit, now and forever. 

Amen

                                                                                                                                      07/03/22

Dear Families,

Last  week marked the beginning of the Season of Lent, which prepares us for Easter, the most important time in the Church’s calendar. By praying, fasting and giving alms, we are reminded of Jesus’ death and resurrection. Jesus brought the promise of hope to all people so that we may “Have life and have it to the full.” (John 10:10)

As we mark this important moment in the liturgical calendar, we hope to be able to open our doors and arms to our parent community.

SCHOOL ASSEMBLY

On Wednesday we will have an assembly on the back verandah near the Performing Arts Room at 2:30pm. Parents who are double vaccinated are able to attend (MACS Requirement), please remember to practise social distancing while attending assembly.

WELCOME BBQ 

You are all invited to St Kevin’s on Thursday 24th March at 5pm - 7pm to the annual Welcome BBQ.  Sausages and hamburgers will be provided with all the trimmings. Soft drinks and water will be sold for a gold coin. Please bring your own chairs and blankets. There will be sports equipment available for everyone to enjoy.  

Please fill in this short survey as an RSVP Please click on the link   https://bit.ly/welcomebbq2022

 or Scan QR code           

SUSTAINABILITY

Our goal to go paperless continues please ensure you complete RSVP for BBQ online.

BEFORE SCHOOL SUPERVISION

It has been noted by several staff that students are arriving early to school before 8:30am.  There is NO STAFF SUPERVISION on the playground before 8:40am so please ensure Before School Care is booked if you need to drop off before this time.

TUCKSHOP

Thank you to Suzanne Connelly and Gina Zammit for organising the Tuckshop roster.  Big thank you to all the volunteers who assist the running of the Tuckshop that includes the year 5 and 6 helpers.  The students have enjoyed this facility and many have bought ice poles and cold treats.

Can you please remind children to only buy one or two items as we do not continue eating in treats during learning time.  The Tuckshop will stop selling at 2:05pm.

FIRE CARRIERS

Congratulations to the FIRE Carriers for 2022. 

Sophia Z

Elliott H

Mira M

Diaz C

I look forward to working with you to build your leadership skills and knowledge. We will be supporting the staff and students to build RECONCILIATION in our community.

SCHOOL ADVISORY COUNCIL

We are delighted to report that our School Advisory Council for 2022 has now been confirmed. 

The School Council consists of

Julia Keenan (Chair)

Laura Mangiavillano (Secretary)

Glenn Cannon (New Council Member 2022)

Alex Young (New Council Member 2022)

Suzanne Connelly (PFA Rep)

Franca De Simone (Council Member 2021)

Sandra Tsiotinas (Council Member 2021)

Carmen Childs (Council Member 2021)

Eva Tomazos (Staff Representative - Deputy Principal)

Gabee Leone (Principal)

Fr Charles Balnaves (Parish Priest) 

Sincere thanks to the parents who I have chatted to over the last few weeks about participating in this Council.  Alex Young was nominated and interviewed.  He comes with experience in youth organisations and he is eager to learn about how he can share his skills to support the group.  Congratulations, Alex and we look forward to working with you.

Our next meeting is on Tuesday 8th March at 7:30pm in the Library access via the Administration Front Office.  I look forward to seeing Council Members everyone in person.

ANZAC DAY 2022

There will be a whole school gathering Tuesday 26th April 10:30am at the flagpole led by Vanessa and the Year 6 Students.  Parents

School Captains will accompany me to the ANZAC DAY Memorial Service at Templestowe Memorial Park on  Thursday 28th of April  at 11:30am. We will lay a wreath at the Memorial Service on behalf of the school and parish community.

RESEARCH LEAD

During 2020 and 2021 I worked as a Research Lead with the supported of  Shani Prendergast from MACS (Leader in Research and participant of Monash Q Project).  I participated in several Webex meetings and at the end of the project showcased achievements in a Reflection Paper.  This involved introducing the staff to Educational Research in different areas of the curriculum and setting up a research hub where resources were stored and shared with staff.  

We have been invited to continue this relationship and the Professional Learning  endorsed and funded by MACS. 

I have offered this learning to all staff and Eva Tomazos has taken up the opportunity to participate in this project. I have been asked to join Eva in the learning and support the implementation of a research team at St Kevin’s.  More information - https://www.monash.edu/education/research/projects/qproject

STORY, DRAMA &  MUSIC TIME, INFORMATION NIGHT FOR PARENTS

Last Friday we had our first Story, Drama and Music Time.   Eight children engaged in fun activities with Mrs Gerosolimo and Ms Swinburne.  The children got a taste of school life.  I highly recommend all families with kinder and Pre school age children to enrol in these sessions as I believe it is a great preparation to transition to school life.  The feedback from attendees has been so positive and parents are grateful for this opportunity.

There will be a Prep Information Night for all parents and carers on Wednesday 6th April at 7:30pm - 8:30pm Mingle with Educators and open days are 

           Our first Open Day   Friday 25th of March  between 11:30am and 1:30pm.

Followed by Open Day   Monday 2rd of May  between 11:30am and 1:30pm.

And then Open Day   Wednesday 25th of May  between 11:30am and 1:30pm.

Please come and collect an enrolment form if you have children of school age next year.

IMPLEMENTATION PLAN

School Closure Day 1 on Friday 11th March (student free day) the Staff are working with MACS staff John Corkill and Karlyn Gumley to formulate our Implementation plan. The Staff will reflect on work of 2021 and then use Simon Breakspear tools to formulate an annual action plan which will carry through to Review.  Staff will be onsite both days and I look forward to sharing our work in the next newsletter.  

REVIEW SCHOOL  CLOSURE DAY Tuesday 15th of March 2022

As mentioned in the last newsletter St Kevin’s will undergo a School Review through MACS (Melbourne Archdiocese Catholic Schools) in Term 2. On Tuesday 15th (student free day) of March the Staff will be working together to collect evidence which aligns with a School Improvement Rubric for each sphere.  The spheres include RE Dimension, Leadership and Management, Learning and Teaching, Wellbeing and School Community.

I invite any parent from the SAC or PFA to attend and participate in parts of the two Closure Days or all of these two days. Some School Leaders (students) will also be asked to join us in the learning. It is so important to hear the voice of all stakeholders. Please email gleone@sktemplestowelr.catholic.edu.au if you are interested.

WISH LIST and BUSINESS Manager NEWS

Teachers and Students have been asked to contribute to a School Wish List and any items that they feel we need at St Kevin’s by Friday 11th March.     Items such as more ipads, 3D Printer, Vegie garden etc

This will be an annual occurrence that will be under ongoing review.

The list will be collated and discussed with the Leaders and the Business Manager after our financial audit in April.

Our current Business Manager Alex Pettalino has just resigned from MACS. He announced he will be taking on an accountant position at Deakin University. We will have an interim  Business Manager  to support us through our Financial Audit in April and then a new Business Manager  will be appointed to St Kevin’s.

DISTRICT SWIMMING 

Congratulations Lennix!   Lennix is off to regionals later this month.  

We wish you all the best!

PARENT SUPPORT AND EDUCATION

This is a short article on ‘The Power of Positive Reinforcement’ by You Can do it! Education.  Trying to remain positive in all situations allows for optimism and power to think clearly in order to ensure the best outcome for all.

RAPID ANTIGEN TESTS (RATs)

It will be great to welcome parents back into the school site during the next few weeks. Our case numbers have varied considerably over the recent weeks with several days of no cases.  We cannot emphasise enough the importance of continuing to regularly administer the Rapid Antigen Tests twice a week. The next allocation of these tests are being distributed after school this week and you are welcome to pick them up from the office.

COMMUNICATION

There are some very important RSVP items in this newsletter so I really need everyone to let me know if you have read it.

Please scan QR code and complete very quick survey or click on link https://bit.ly/newsletter070322

Thank you for all your assistance and support.

Wishing you all a wonderful week ahead.   All God’s blessings,

Gabee Leone

Reminder - Camps, Sports, Excursion Fund

Who can apply

Families holding a valid means-tested concession card or temporary foster parents are eligible to apply. A Special Consideration category also exists. Schools can receive applications from families over terms one and two.

Families can list more than one student in the one application form if they are attending the same school.

Payments amounts for 2022 are:

• $125 per year for eligible primary school students

The Camps, Sports and Excursions Fund (CSEF) provides payments for eligible students to attend activities like:

• school camps or trips
• swimming and school-organised sports programs
• outdoor education programs
• excursions and incursions.

Please see application link below or call the school for a hard copy form.  Please submit the form to Robyn in the office.

https://www.education.vic.gov.au/Documents/about/programs/CSEF_application_form.pdf

Note:  Applications can be entered from 31 January 2022. Parents/carers wishing to apply for CSEF payments for 2022 must submit their application form to the relevant school by 24 June 2022.

However, a parent/carer will only be required to submit an application form to the school in the following circumstances:

• the parent/carer is applying for the CSEF payment for the first time – i.e. an application form was not lodged with the school in the previous year; or
• circumstances have changed – e.g. there has been a change in the care arrangement of the student, a change of name or CRN, or a new sibling has commenced at the school and the parent/carer wishes to apply for the CSEF payment for the new sibling.