PRINCIPAL'S NEWS
NEWSLETTER November 12, 2025
Miss Jaclyn is always busy keeping abreast of our socials and sharing the terrific things happening at our school.
👶💖CONGRATULATIONS to Bella, Anthony and Anastasia!
I am delighted to share the wonderful news of the safe arrival of their beautiful new bundle of joy, Olivia!
Warmest congratulations to the proud parents and big sister on welcoming this precious addition to the family. May your days be filled with cuddles, laughter as you begin this exciting new chapter together.
Welcome to the world, little Olivia 🌸
🎨ART SHOW this afternoon/evening
We’re looking forward to seeing everyone today at 5:45 PM for our much-anticipated Art Show!
✨ Highlights include:
- A Silent Auction featuring stunning works
- Our own Archibald Prize presentation
- Awards for the Best Entrants
- Sausage Sizzle
- Gift Stall (great Christmas gifts available!!)
Bring the whole family — especially the kids! They’ll love showing you the direction of their own masterpieces. You'll be able to walk through our 'chocker-block' corridors bursting with brilliant artwork — every wall a gallery, every corner a splash of colour and imagination!
There’s been an incredible amount of organisation behind the scenes — a huge thank you to Jaclyn and Louise for their amazing effort and dedication!
STAFFING 2026
Farewell to Jess Thwaites (and Archie!)
We’re very sad to be saying farewell to Jess Thwaites, who has been a brilliant addition to our team. Jess and Ben are heading off on a “tree change,” embracing a new adventure away from the city. While we’re thrilled for them, it’s bittersweet news for us — especially as it also means saying goodbye to the wonderful Archie, our much-loved school therapy dog.
Jess has made such a positive impact during her time here — her professionalism, warmth, and care have been deeply valued by students and staff alike. We’ll miss her calm presence, her kindness, and of course, Archie’s wagging tail in the corridors!
We wish Jess and Ben all the very best as they begin this exciting new chapter. May it bring them happiness, fresh air, and plenty of new opportunities.
Farewell to Kirsti O'Brien
Kirsti will commence her parental leave at the end of this term. We wish her well as she and her family prepare for the arrival of their new addition.
Changes to P.E. for the remainder of this term...
For these last few weeks of term Kirsti and Lucy Rutten are doing a 'job-swap'. Lucy will be teaching P.E. for the rest of the term, and Kirsti will be taking Lucy's Intervention and general enrichment classes.
Farewell to Gabriel Kofoed
We also say farewell to Gabriel Kofoed, who has been a wonderful addition to our school this year in his role as an ESO. Gabriel has worked closely with many of our students, providing great support and building strong connections across our school community.
We thank Gabriel for his contribution and wish him all the very best for the future.
WE WELCOME TO OUR STAFF...
Sophie Griffith - We welcome Sophie as a permanent member of our teaching team in 2026! Sophie is already a familiar face at St Joseph’s, having worked as a CRT throughout this year. Her time with us has allowed her to build connections with many of our students and staff, and we are excited to have her join us full-time. Sophie brings a wealth of experience to our team and will be working in the Senior Community. We are confident that her knowledge, enthusiasm, and commitment will make a positive impact on our school.
LEADERSHIP STRUCTURE
Principal Mary Kearney
Deputy Principal Kate Lynn / Learning and Teaching
Student Engagement Ashlyn Keane
Religious Education Lauren Haddon (Greenlaw)
Wellbeing (MHIPS) Leader Jaclyn DeVincentis
(Mental Health in Primary Schools)
English Leader Brittany Symons
Math Leader Aoife O'Flynn
CLASS TEACHERS
Prep
Georgie Finnigan
Abbey Arbon
Juniors
Brittany Symons / Aoife O'Flynn
Kate Velden
TBA
Middles
Pierce Rooney
Renee Booth
Seniors
Sophie Griffith
Joban Tankaria
SPECIALISTS
Performing Arts Jaclyn DeVincentis
Visual Art Louise Keys
Physical Education TBA
Digital Technology Peter Zammit
Mandarin Ivy Bo Wen
SUPPORT PROGRAMMES
General Enrichment Lucy Rutten
Community Liaison Jaclyn DeVincentis
EDUCATION SUPPORT OFFICERS
Jacinta Murphy (full-time)
Lynette Peters (full-time)
Steven Connell (full-time)
Maya Muxlow (4 days)
France Montagna (3 days)
Tori Greer (1 day)
Emmerson Clarke
🏃♀️🏃♂️SCHOOL SPORTS DAY🏅
A huge thank you to Kirsti O’Brien for organising yet another fabulous Sports Day! Your hard work, energy, and attention to detail made the day a great success.
We’d also like to thank our teachers and parents for their wonderful support, and of course our students for showing such fantastic sportsmanship, enthusiasm, and camaraderie throughout the day.
It was a terrific event that truly reflected the spirit of our school community – well done, everyone!
💐GRANDPARENTS / SPECIAL FRIENDS DAY
Thank you to all the grandparents and special friends who attended Grandparents Day! We had a great turnout, and it was fabulous to see the interactions between grandparents and grandchildren.
It was also such a delight to meet even more of the incredible people who make our community so vibrant and special Our classrooms were filled with laughter, hugs, and so much love.
Thank you also to Kathryn and Emmerson for the behind-the-scenes organisation of the delicious shared lunch and coordination of the day, and thank you to Lucy and Lynette for their assistance with set-up and pack-up!
Pickle Banana Mania
In exciting news, three of our students have been working on something pretty special and totally bananas. James, Noah and Ben Elliott have over the last 18 months been creating a 3-in-1 card game called Pickle Banana that they have just had accepted onto Kickstarter to fundraise for their first print production run.
The boys came up with the game concept, made all the designs, figured out the game play and more. Sharing in the boys' excitement, we wanted to give their Kickstarter campaign a bit of a plug to our St Joseph's community.
If you would like to find out more, see what the boys have been working on and maybe even support their campaign, visit the link below. The boys are offering any St Joseph's family who backs their project free delivery and are also looking to donate a portion of their proceeds from our community to the school.
Win, win, win.
Best of luck Elliott boys.
🏊♂️💦SWIMMING PROGRAMME
Our senior classes began their swimming lessons this week. These sessions are a wonderful opportunity for students to build water confidence, develop swimming skills, and learn about water safety.
Please ensure your child brings their swimming gear, including bathers, towel, goggles (if preferred), on their scheduled swimming days.
We’re looking forward to exciting and fun times in the pool! 💦
MAD on MUSIC CONCERT
Congratulations to all the children who took part in the Mad on Music Concert. I have no doubt that they performed beautifully and had a wonderful time sharing their music with an audience. Well done, everyone!
Keeping our kids safe online: A partnership with families
A MESSAGE FROM MACS (Melbourne Archdiocese Catholic Schools)
Dear Parents and Carers,
You may have heard about upcoming government changes in the law regarding social media accounts for children under the age of 16, which will take effect on 10 December 2025.
We are committed to understanding these new changes and working with you to ensure our students have a safe and positive digital life.
Why are these changes happening?
The new rules are all about protecting our under-16s. Many social media platforms have inbuilt design features that can:
- encourage too much screen time (like non-stop notifications or content that disappears)
- expose children to upsetting, inappropriate or difficult content through their feeds.
- learning about the positive aspects of being online and the things they need to be careful of
- building their digital, social, and emotional skills so they can navigate the online world confidently and safely
- knowing where to seek help if they see or experience anything that worries them.
Experts have linked these features to problems for young people, including increased stress, less sleep, and trouble concentrating.
What is the goal?
These changes give us all a chance to help our children by:
Are you ready to partner with us?
While social media platforms have the main responsibility to enforce the age restriction, we all play a part in teaching our children to be safe online.
The best strategies are:
- Clear communication – talking openly with your child about their online activities
- Effective teaching – helping them understand online safety rules
- Positive modelling – showing what responsible and kind online behaviour looks like
- Mindful timing – holding off purchasing your child a smart phone.
Quick facts about the upcoming changes
We will continue to update you as more guidance is provided. In the meantime, we encourage every family to subscribe to the eSafety Commissioner alerts so you can remain informed about the legislation change and ongoing digital trends.
2026 CLASS PREFERENCES
It’s amazing that we are once again at the time of the year when we are beginning our discussions for structures for 2026. An important component of this is the regrouping of our classes.
When determining new classes, we consider the following:
❏ a balanced number of students with social, emotional and academic needs
❏ an appropriate mix of student role models and class leaders
❏ a balanced number of boys and girls
❏ student friendship circles.
Please make an appointment with me if you wish to discuss any concerns you may have that may impact your child/children’s class placement for next year. This may include particular social nuances with other students or any other extenuating circumstances.
Please be aware that this is not an opportunity for ‘teacher shopping’ and to discuss a preference for a teacher, but rather an opportunity to share genuine concerns about your child’s learning environment for 2026. I am currently finalising the staffing schedule for 2026 and will share this with you once it has been confirmed.
If you are not intending to return to St Joseph’s in 2026 please contact the office as soon as possible
SCHOOL CLOSURES REMINDER...
Please note the school closure days for this term:
• Friday, Nov 28 – Staff planning day – 2026 preparation.