Principal's Message

Dear OLA Families,

It is hard to comprehend that we only have 1.5 days left of the school year! This year has flown by. Every day we have hit the ground running with a full program, and there has been very little time to catch our breath between the many different activities that take place at our wonderful school. We can be so proud of all that we have enjoyed and achieved together, with the 'The Sound of Musicals' whole school production being a stand out memory just from last week. I wonder what you loved most about this year? 

With lots happening in this last week, we ask that families please be mindful of fatigue and try to keep solid routines at home. Importantly, let's all ensure we 'hold our line' and enjoy the remaining day and a bit before a well earned break over summer. 

'The Sound of Musicals' School Production

Thank you all for helping us bring together two terms of rehearsals to have our children perform on stage in front of a 800+ strong audience. It was just so wonderful to see each and every child shine on the stage.

A huge thank you to you Mrs O'Gorman for writing and directing this amazing production, 'The Sound of Musicals' - you inspired a love of performing and being on the stage and you did it with an incredible amount of experience and belief. Thank you Miss Siracusa for being such a huge support to our director and to all of us through your Stage Managing, program designing and set creation. Mrs Harrison, Mrs O'Gorman and Mrs McDowall your work with the OLA Choir saw a marvellous opening number that had volume and fun all mixed into one. Miss Lim your work on the slides and screen images was amazing and Miss Jones, Miss Summers and Mrs Taig your choreography work was a huge help to all involved and added to the energy and spark of the show. 

We thank the the City Of Kingston and Ventura Buses for partnering with us and for helping make the day such a positive and well organised experience. We also thank Jordyn, Kyle and Bree from Kinect2Dance for their choreography for each class - it was so supportive having you on our team and in our corner. Thank you Mrs McDowall and Mrs Arthur for your lead in the costume department - you helped bring all this area together. Thank you to our parents who supported with costume and prop creations and for sharing their creative skills - we appreciated all you did especially with the needle and thread. An extra special shout out to Claudelle Salter, Agatha Pawlowski, Peter Grose, Jacinta Thornton, Sandra Muscat, Laura Morel, Libby Federick. Thank you Georgia North, Maddy Gilbert and Miss Powell for the brilliant face paining. Mrs Hogan, Mrs Thompson and Miss Turner - thank you for your quick take up of learning the ropes of music operation, microphones and prompt with only days to spare. Thank you Mrs Taig for bringing all the sound and lighting desk team together and for helping coordinate timetables and all things that help to bring a show together like this. Thank you Mrs Reeder for being there and extra present for the wellbeing and support of each of our students. 

Thank you to all staff at OLA - thank you for being so AMAZING and thank you for all you did to bring 'The Sound of Musicals' to the stage! What a night! Thank you for believing in the children, setting high standards, being so flexible and so very encouraging of each other and of all the students. Thank you also for being so courageous and bringing your own number to the stage - what joy and what a special memory this is from the show. The stories of courage and growth in the children during this period has been well worth all the hard work. 

Special words from some of our proud grandparents

Dear Richard, Mrs O’Gorman and all the Wonderful Staff of OLA,

Oh what a night!!! A night full of stars where every child shone brightly, every member of the audience was mesmerised and everyone had so much fun!!! Congratulations to each and everyone of you; it was an absolutely amazing team effort! A huge thank you for all the hours upon hours of work, energy and time you put in. It definitely all came to fruition in such a polished and enthusiastic performance!!! We hope you all have a beautiful end to the year and our many thanks for giving our grandchildren another year full of personal growth, engaged learning and fun within a beautiful, caring school community. 

To Everyone at OLA!

Congratulations on a fabulous evening of entertainment. Our grandson (number ten of twelve grandchildren) experienced his first concert on the big stage last night and I must say, with all the school concerts we have been to over many years at different primary schools, this one stands out. Strong performances, voices and smiles. Everyone on stage looked like they were having as much fun as we were. Not many seven year olds can share Sound of Music songs with their 70 year old grandmother! Thankyou!!

Special words from our Director Mrs Trish O'Gorman

Thank you so much to the students of OLA for their incredible effort last Thursday night, performing in ‘The Sound of Musicals’. It was a delight for me to sit in the audience and take in the amazing dancing, acting and singing that took place on stage. It is no mean feat to get up there and ‘strut your stuff’ in front of 600+ people. Thank you to our audience who laughed, clapped and tapped their toes in all the right places. To all our OLA parents, thank you  for the support of your children - sourcing costume items, helping to learn lines and dance moves, settling nerves, encouraging them to be confident on stage. To the staff for their tireless efforts and a spectacular dance item in the show. What an evening! I loved working with the students on this project and look forward to more Performing Arts in 2026.              

DVD and Photo Orders

Encore Videography recorded our school production and is selling it in the form of DVD/USB/Digital Download.  The link for payment is:

https://encorevideography.com.au/w/store/#!/Our-Lady-of-the-Assumption-Parish-Primary-School-Concert-2025/p/603692973  

As our production is towards the end of the school year we will be aiming for this to be ready prior to Tuesday 16 December.  The link will be able to be emailed to all who purchase it as soon as it is ready and the DVD or USB will be handed out at school. The closing date for DVD orders will be TODAY Friday 12 December.

Photographs

YOUR OLA PRODUCTION PHOTOS ARE READY!

Your OLA Production 2025 images are ready to be viewed. Get your orders in by Monday 5 January. CLICK HERE TO VIEW

Password: Jcu6*

Postage or Delivery Print orders will be delivered to OLA in the new school year. For earlier delivery, you are welcome to pay for postage.

Our Photos Look Better in Print Our Australian Professional Lab partner brings your memories to life with vivid colour and stunning detail not available at consumer labs. Designed to last generations, these prints stay vibrant displayed in an archival frame or album. If cropping images, we recommend retaining 1/3 of the image for a quality print. Please check that your child is in focus before ordering.

Navigating the gallery Click on 'Gallery' and search for your child in the scene/s they starred in. Tag your favourite photos by clicking the heart icon. Then, head to the 'SHOP' menu to select your preferred product or package. Use the 'My Favourites' feature to quickly select images for your products.

Prints, digitals and packages Savings begin when you purchase 4 5x7” prints/digitals and get 1 free with further saving available. Or choose from one of our collections: 8x12” print with matching digital or [5] 5x7" prints with matching digitals.

Reminder - Please order byMonday 5 January. 

OSAC & P&F AGM

This week we held an AGM for our School Advisory Council and P&F. Thank you to our OSAC Co-Chairs - Lucas and Sally, and P&F Co-Chairs -Lauren and Del, for presenting their respective reports and leading these two very important groups in our community. It was a great opportunity for gratitude to be shown and to celebrate all we achieved together this year. What a great community we enjoy here at OLA. Thank you to all our many volunteers. Please see OSAC & P&F tabs for the Annual Reports.

Welcoming our new Preps for 2026

At Tuesday's Prep Orientation, it was wonderful to witness the big brothers and sisters proudly showing off their siblings who’ll be starting school next year! We have enjoyed celebrating the pure joy of our 2026 Preps and their families during the three orientations sessions and play at the park. Each child headed home last Tuesday with an OLA show bag packed full of excitement. A huge thank you to everyone involved in making these moments so fun and memorable.

We were also delighted to have a mini photo shoot with a handful of Prep students for 2026. They did amazing as did their parents and teachers. 

Sharing our story through marketing 

We have worked closely with Tserlin and Mark from School Presence to develop our new billboards for Centre Dandenong Road as well as our Kinder Flyer ready for the start of 2026. The words and concepts have come from feedback from our community. Thank you to everyone in our community for sharing our story and talking about OLA in the wider community.

Prep 2027 Enrolments

Enrolments for new and current families for 2027 are now open. We require all current families to please ensure they submit a sibling application for 2027 prior to Friday 27 March 2026 to ensure a placement in our Prep intake for 2027. The enrolment application form can be found on our website here. Please do not hesitate to contact the school office should you have any queries. 

2026 Student Leaders

We congratulate all children who nominated for the OLA Grade 6 leadership roles for 2026.  We will introduce our new leaders to the students across the school at the End of Year Prayer Service and Assembly on Tuesday 16 December at 9am and we will present their Grade 6 Leavers Jumper which we have ready to go!  Badges will be presented at the beginning of next year.

Secondary School Transition

We are so proud of our past students at OLA and we were honoured to have these great humans return to us after their first year of secondary school to pass on their tips and tricks to our Class of 2025. This is a great example of secondary school transition opportunities at OLA which was initiated by one of our very own parents. 

Reports

Yesterday parents received their child’s Semester Two Report and child’s Self Reflection on the Parent Portal. We hope that the Semester Reports along with the two sets of Parent/Teacher Interviews this year have provided you with a solid understanding of your child’s academic progress throughout the year.

2026 Classes

Yesterday we announced our full staff list for 2026 and students from Prep - Grade 5 had their Orientation session with their new classroom teacher. It was lovely to see the resilient faces of our students Prep - Grade 5 accept the joys and challenges presented to them by changes such as moving up to meet their new teacher, classmates and classroom for 2026. Thank you for supporting your child at home at this time of change. Over the past few months, we have invested a significant amount of time and thought into the classes for next year, to ensure the best learning environment for all our students. This has always been an exciting time for our students and we sincerely thank our staff for the considerable investment in establishing these classes. 

2026 Staffing

Please find attached the staff list for 2026. We warmly welcome Clara Davidson, Pilar Caivano, Sally Jeffree, Bec Nielsen and Isabella Rourke to the team, and welcome back Tess Riley from one year of leave. Over the last few months we have invested a significant amount of time and thought into staffing arrangements, to ensure student wellbeing and learning is maximised. We could not be more pleased with our team for 2026.

2026 SCHOOL PERSONNEL (As of 11.12.2025)

Leadership & Management Team

• Principal – Mr Richard Jacques
• Deputy Principal and Religious Education Leader – Mrs Caitlan Taig
• Learning & Teaching, Learning Diversity and Wellbeing Leader – Mrs Josy Reeder
• Literacy & Intervention Leader – Miss Shelby Turner
• Mathematics Leader – Ms Nicole Collins
• Prep Level Leader- Miss Tess Riley
• Junior School Level Leader – Mrs Michela Vella 
• Middle School Level Leader – Miss Eliza Jones
• Senior School Level Leader – Mr Steve Pertz

Learning & Teaching & Wellbeing Team

• Mr Richard Jacques
• Mrs Josy Reeder
• Mrs Caitlan Taig
• Miss Shelby Turner

Classes & Teachers

• Prep JM Mrs Jamee Montebruno (T-F) & Miss Ellie Mackenzie (M)
• Prep TR  Miss Tess Riley (M, W-F) & Miss Ellie Mackenzie (T)
• Grade 1/2CH  Mrs Catherine Harrison (M-T) & Miss Ellie Mackenzie (F)
• Grade 1/2MV  Mrs Michela Vella (M, W-F) & Ms Sally Jeffree (T)
• Grade 1/2NL Miss Natasha Lim (M-F)      
• Grade 1/2RN Miss Bec Nielsen (M-F)
• Grade 3/4CD Miss Clara Davidson (M-F) 
• Grade 3/4EJ Miss Eliza Jones (M, W-F) & Mrs Fiona Lee (T)
• Grade 3/4GO Mrs Gen O’Meara (M-F)
• Grade 3/4NC Mrs Nicole Collins (M-W) & Mrs Fiona Lee (Th,F)
• Grade 5/6ES Miss Emma Summers (M-F) 
• Grade 5/6MG Mr Michael Glennon (M-F)
• Grade 5/6SP Mr Steve Pertz (M, W-F) & Mrs Melissa Bien-izowski (T)

Specialists

• Mrs Clare Flood (STEM)
• Mrs Sam Hudson (Visual Art)
• Mrs Liz Thompson (PE)
• Mrs Trish O’Gorman (Performing Arts)
• Ms Pilar Caivano (Spanish)

Library Team

• Mrs Katherine Grima
• Mrs Diana Milburn

Learning Support Officers

• Mrs Di McDowall (M-W)
• Miss Rosie Siracusa (M-F)
• Miss Ruby Powell (M-F)
• Mrs Jovana Kelman (T-F)
• Isabella Rourke (M &Th)

Admin Team:

• Mrs Maria Hogan (M,T, Th,F)
• Mrs Sharan Talbot (M-W)

New Appointment

We are delighted to announce that Isabella Rourke will join our LSO team in 2026. Isabella has been working on a casual basis this term, covering different grade levels and support programs. I'm sure you will join me and the staff in welcoming Isabella into our beautiful community here at OLA.

Hello, my name is Isabella Rourke and I am joining the OLA LSO team in 2026! I am currently studying a Bachelor of Primary and Secondary Education at Monash University and absolutely love it. In 2025 I began my journey at OLA as a causal LSO. I was instantly welcomed into the community and experienced the positive spirit the school offers. When the opportunity arose to become employed as an LSO for 2026, I was thrilled to be considered for the role. Outside of university and work, I love to spend time with my friends and watch movies. One of my favourite movies is Ratatouille! Thank you!

Isabella Rourke 

Handover and Planning 2026

We have been delighted to welcome our new staff for 2026 to OLA on at least three occasions over the last couple of weeks of the term for handover and planning which is all helping to kick start 2026 in the best possible way. At our Professional Learning Meetings this week and on our School Closure Day staff have sat one on one to handover important learning and wellbeing information on each child so that the next year’s teacher is set up to give your child the best start possible. 

In addition to a thorough handover and sharing of data, teachers also met on the School Closure Day and their planning day in teams to collaborate and plan for RE, Inquiry, Mathematics and Literacy.  The conversations were rich and productive and the teachers are well on the way to being set up for a successful 2026. Spelling will continue to be a focus for 2026 so we look forward to continuing Heggerty and DIBELS across the school as well as Spelling Mastery from Grade 3-6 with students being streamed at their own level of learning. Prep-Grade 2 will continue to deepen their practice on Phonemic Awareness and use all research based assessments linked to Little Learners Love Literacy. All these areas are being enhanced by our work around MACS' Vision For Instruction and Explicit Teaching. We thank Shelby Turner for the lead she is taking in these areas.

Books & Stationery for 2026

Following feedback from teachers, parents and students, we continue to assist families and the classroom teachers by placing one bulk stationery order that provided a consistency across the school. It also enables children not to compare and feel left out about who has and hasn’t purchased the ‘best’ or ‘coolest’ stationery items. From a learning point of view this will also help to maximise desk space around the classroom and it also minimises the distractions that some items can create.

We will ensure book list items including exercise books and stationery will be purchased by the school and all costs are included in your school fees and levies. The school will supply new pencil cases complete with all stationery at the beginning of the 2026 for Grades 3 to 6. The pencil cases have the OLA school crest printed on them and your child will keep that pencil case from Grade 3 through to Grade 6. We ask that children use the pens and pencils provided at school and keep their special stationery for home. We will be emphasising that these pencil cases are cared for and graffiti will not be accepted. At the end of each year pencil cases will remain at school and the student’s leftover stationery will be sent home in a bag. Stationery for Prep to Grade 2 will be provided, ensuring shared access for all.

We also purchase band aids, tissues and wet wipes in bulk. These costs are also included in your school fees and levies.

School Shoes 

Correct school shoes and socks must be worn and we remind students and families, when purchasing new school shoes for next year, black sneaker Asics or Nike runners are not part of the regular school uniform. If the sport shoes are black leather and black soled then they are welcome to be worn as school uniform.We thank you in advance for your understanding. 

Overdue Library Books Reminder

As we move towards the end of the year, we are preparing for our Library Stocktake. We kindly ask that all books be returned to the Library as soon as possible. Overdue notices have been shared with families, and if you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact your child's classroom teacher or our Library Technician, Katherine Grima grimaka@olacheltenham.catholic.edu.au 

Calendar

Please open the ‘Key Dates and Events’ tab in this newsletter for important dates or access the OLA Calendar here. 

School Term Dates - 2026

Term 1, 2026

Wednesday 28 January - Thursday 2 April (10 weeks)

Term 2, 2026

Monday 20 April - Friday 26 June (10 weeks)

Term 3, 2026

Tuesday 14 July - Friday 18 September (10 weeks)

Term 4, 2026

Tuesday 6 October - Tuesday 15 Dec (11 weeks)

School Fees 2026

Please find attached below the 2026 School Fee Information for our OLA Community together with the Direct Debit Form for you to access as and when required. 

CSEF and MACS School Concession Fee

For concession card holders, Camps, Sports, and Excursions Fund (CSEF) eligibility will be subject to the parental/legal guardian’s concession card being successfully validated with Centrelink on either the first day of either Term One, (27 January 2026) or Term Two, (20 April 2026).  

Health Care Card holders may be eligible for the MACS School Fee Concession Program Application. The MACS Concessional Fee Policy is currently being reviewed by MACS Head Office, and the policy and application form will be available in Term 1 2026 which is to be submitted to the school office in Term 1 2026 (specific dates to be confirmed).

Any family wishing to discuss CSEF or MACS School Concessions Fee please contact Richard Jacques (principal@olacheltenham.catholic.edu.au) or Maria Hogan (accounts@olacheltenham.catholic.edu.au).

OLA Canteen

Liz contacted us from Fun Fresh Foods and wanted to let you know that they are implementing a menu price increase right across the board of Fun Fresh Foods. As of the start of 2026 all menu items will be increased by 10%. All customers will be informed via their Flexischools account.

Please be assured this decision has not been made lightly. Over the last 2 years, Fun Fresh Foods have experienced significant rises in the cost of ingredients, packaging, staff, council rates and general operations. While Fun Fresh Foods have absorbed these increases for as long as possible, they now need to make a moderate price adjustment to ensure they can continue to provide the quality, freshness, and service you expect from Fun Fresh Foods.

Fun Fresh Foods understand that price changes can be challenging, and they truly appreciate your understanding and continued support. Fun Fresh Foods commitment to offering fresh, delicious, and a convenient service made with care remains as strong as ever. We thank Liz and her team for providing this amazing onsite service each Friday for students and staff at OLA.

School Operations Updates

As you are aware, Operoo is ceasing operations in Australia in 2026. In the new school year we at OLA will be expanding our use of the nForma platform to include most of our school communication functions. While we already use nForma for attendance, first aid notifications and student reports, this transition will allow us to make full use of the additional features available within the system. This includes medical information, permission forms, notices and announcements. Having the majority of our operations with nForma will allow us to streamline our communication.

December is dedicated time for families to set up their nForma Parent App, entering their child/ren's personal and medical information.

At your earliest convenience, please access your nForma Parent App (or download it if you haven't already done so; instructions are attached), and enter in your child/ren's personal, contact and medical information. With Operoo closing, all medical and contact details must be entered directly into nForma moving forward.

The PDF linked below outlines how to use nForma for:

• Student Reports
• Notices and Permission Forms
• Medical Information
• Marking future absences for your child/children

Please note that at this stage, we are not utilising the nMeet feature, so we will continue to use www.schoolinterviews.com.au for parent–teacher bookings until further notice.

Please reach out if you have any questions or need assistance with setting up your nForma Parent App. 

Congratulations

Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia

Big congratulations to Luke and Emma for their caring and kind actions of raising funds for the Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia. We thank all in the OLA community who were able to support this cause by purchasing wristbands and pins.

Engagement

We congratulate Ellie Mackenzie on her engagement to her partner Chris. Chris proposed to Ellie on a 12km hike at Wilson's Promontory on their favourite beach just last weekend. Such a beautiful time for them both. All of OLA are excited for you and wish you both all the very best.

Thank you all for a wonderful year. Together we are creating one of the best schools in Cheltenham and the Bayside area. Thank you for your support, your feedback and your gratitude. Thank you all for helping make these last few weeks of our school year such happy and memorable ones. Wishing our wonderful students, families and staff a very Merry Christmas and may 2026 be a wonderful year for all. 

Richard Jacques

Principal