Dear Families

Last week I was so fortunate to attend the 2025 Australian Catholic Education Conference in beautiful Cairns, where the warm weather was a welcome bonus! The conference was a rich and inspiring experience, bringing together educators and leaders from across the country to explore the future of Catholic education.

The event opened with a moving keynote by Sr Nathalie Becquart XMCJ, “Hope Anchored in Faith: A Synodal Vision for Catholic Education,” which set a reflective and visionary theme for the conference. A highlight was the Mass, celebrated by the Bishop of Cairns, Most Rev Joe Caddy, and attended by over 1,000 Catholic school students who were also the amazing choir. It was a faith-filled celebration of community and connection.

I had the privilege of attending two keynote addresses:

Prof Dylan Wiliam spoke on “Everyone Counts: Responsive, Engaging Education for All,” offering powerful insights into inclusive and adaptive teaching practices.
Dr Steve Constantino presented “Why Families Matter,” unpacking five simple yet profound principles for engaging every family in the learning journey.

I look forward to exploring further these topics and the positive impact it can have in our school community.

I also attended thought-provoking sessions on:

Trauma-Informed Instructional Practice – exploring strategies that are essential for some and beneficial for all.
Anchored in Culture and Guided by Faith – a meaningful conversation on co-creating hope in First Nations education.
The Wellbeing Data Landscape – tackling the challenge of subjective decision-making in student wellbeing through data-informed approaches.

It was an enriching experience filled with learning, connection, and hope for the future of Catholic Education, and I look forward to sharing these insights with our school community.

Sadly, being at the conference meant that I missed our Book Week parade, which I heard was a wonderful event with so many families in attendance. I have enjoyed looking at the photos and matching the creative and colourful costumes to the students and staff who were wearing them. A big thank you to Lisa-Jayne, Jemma and Kelly for bringing this event together and for all the work they do to promote high-level teaching of literacy and communication in our school. They are a great team!

As we also celebrate Speech Pathology Week 2025, themed “Impact Through Communication,” I want to take a moment to acknowledge the incredible work of our speech pathologists Jemma and Kelly. Their dedication and expertise make a lasting impact in our school community, and we celebrate them this week and always!

Kind regards

Cathy Sires

Head of Campus - St Patrick's Special School

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