Message from the Principal

Dear Parents and Carers,

Welcome to the 2025 school year. I hope all families enjoyed a wonderful Christmas and holiday period with family and friends. All students certainly appear well rested and ready for the busy year of learning ahead.

We welcome many new faces to St Michael's this year, including our Kindergarten class, children enrolled into other classes and two members of staff. A huge welcome to Miss Cassandra Lyall and Mrs Ellie Davis who have joined our teaching team. Cassandra is our Year 1 teacher and Ellie is teaching Year 3. We are very excited to have both ladies on board. Cassandra and Ellie will be available with other teachers at our Meet and Greet tomorrow night between 4.45 p.m. and 6.00 p.m. Please feel free to drop in during these times to say hello and be sure to bring along your children so they can show off their first days of learning for this year. If you cannot make the scheduled time tomorrow night, but would like to touch base with your child's teacher, please contact the school to make an appointment.

This year we have been able to allocate time, space and expertise for a Prep (pre Kindergarten) class. Today we have welcomed children who will commence Kindergarten in 2026. A huge thankyou to Mrs Amanda McNair who is coordinating this group. Amanda is our Inclusion Teacher and has previously enjoyed many years in Early Childhood Education, including Director of Long Day Care and Preschool Centres before joining the team at St Michael's in 2021. Our Prep class will be held every Monday during Term time throughout 2025 and we look forward to getting to know our students of the future. A special welcome to new families to St Michael's. If you have any questions regarding our Prep class, please contact the school or drop in on Mondays and join in the fun-filled play based learning.

Friday last week, we had our first award assembly for the year. A huge shout out to our School Captains Jack Kenafick and Michael Maughan. Although nervous, both boys embraced the occasion and lead the school with confidence and enthusiasm. The boys Acknowledged Country, prayed our School Prayer, presented awards to the children and lead the school singing Happy Birthday. Our Sporting House Captains - Jasper Lendon and Zandah Shorter have also displayed fantastic leadership, ensuring the sport equipment is accessible to everyone and things are left as they should. Well done boys. I look forward to a wonderful year ahead as your confidence in leadership grows. You are terrific role models to everyone. Our leaders will be presented with their leadership badges at our School Mass on Friday February 14 commencing at 9.30 a.m. in St Michael's church. We invite all families and friends to attend.

Wednesday last week, we were visited by Armidale Catholic Schools Leadership as part of their journey around the Diocese to welcome staff and students to the new school year. Director of Schools Ms Regina Menz, Head of Mission and Learning Mr Damian Roff and School Performance Leaders Ms Katie Hanes, Mr John O'Connor and Mr John Clery were all in attendance. The school's Leadership Team, Mrs Cathy Shepherd Assistant Principal, Ms Jacquelene Cronin Assistant Principal Mission, Mrs Amanda McNair Inclusion Support Teacher, Miss Leah Summerell Leader of Pedagogy and Mathematical Specialist Teacher and myself, met with the CSO team to discuss our Annual Improvement Plan and to undertake a tour of our school. The visitors were impressed by our calm classrooms, the friendliness of our students and were very complimentary of how splendid the students were looking in their uniforms. We chatted about things including a power upgrade and how to 'fix' the bottom playground and inspected our upgrade to the student play equipment edging, softfall and sandpit undertaken in the holiday break. They admired the upgrades already undertaken with ongoing internal and external painting and ducted air throughout. Our school environment is certainly a work in progress, but things are moving forward. During the holidays, two expansive gum trees were removed as both were deemed unsafe due to dry rot. We will receive a student toilet upgrade this year incorporating the construction of a disabled toilet accessible by students from the playground. We are presently in the quote phase with the scope of works completed.

This Wednesday, February 12 will be the first P&F Meeting for the year. The P&F will meet in the Year 4 classroom commencing after school at 3.15 p.m. All families are warmly welcome to attend. A reminder that our social event set down for this Friday February 14 has been postponed to a date to be set at this week's P&F Meeting. We apologise for any inconvenience caused.

Remember, if you have any questions please ask - phone, email, drop in. We are really looking forward to a fantastic year of fun, laughter and lots of learning. Thankyou for being a part of the St Michael's family. 

Enjoy a wonderful week,

Bronwyn