Dear Families,

Welcome to May! It’s hard to believe that we are already through 4 months of the year and past the halfway mark of Autumn! We hope you all enjoyed your long weekend.

Over the next few weeks, you will start to see the beginning of some maintenance and refurbishment work across the school. While we will aim to keep the disruption to classes at a minimum, there will need to be some movement of classrooms throughout the term. We will keep you updated with movements before different works happen across the school so that you and your children can be well prepared. Some parent support may be needed after hours over the next 2 weeks to help vacate a couple of classrooms. We will be in touch with dates and times. Exciting times ahead!

Staffing Update

As was communicated to families early in Term 1, Mrs Kelly Van Veen is expecting her third child later this term. Kelly’s last day with us will be next Tuesday 7th May. We congratulate Kelly, her husband Tom, and older brothers William and Max, and wish them well.

Last week, we interviewed for the vacant teaching position that will be left by the departure of Kelly, and I am pleased to inform you that we have appointed Mrs Alycia Fryer to the role. Alycia will be working on Tuesdays in JLC for the remainder of the school year. A short profile of Alycia can be found here, she will also join us on Tuesday to meet the children and complete a handover with Kelly & Veni.

Holy Saviour / St Tim’s STEAM Day

As part of our amalgamation transition program, we will be welcoming all the children and staff from St Timothy’s next Tuesday 7th May to participate in a STEAM Day. All children will move through four different STEAM based activities in their house colours. We ask that all children wear their sports uniform next Tuesday. We will also be providing a sausage sizzle lunch for everyone to share.

School Attendance

A reminder to please notify the school via the Audiri form, email to the Office or Classroom teacher, or phone call (please leave a voicemail if there is no answer) by 9am if your child will be absent for that day. If we have not heard from you, and your child is marked absent, an SMS will be sent to follow this up.

Where possible, please provide notice of absence for upcoming family holidays etc. so that the teacher can plan for this. Students that arrive at school late, after 9am, will need to be brought into the Office by a Parent/Guardian/Carer and signed in on the iPad. The side door to the shared area will be closed and locked from 9am.

Another reminder, to please sign out early departures of students on the iPad in the office, and if returning back from an appointment will need to be signed back in.

All of the above is for the safety and wellbeing of the students. We appreciate your cooperation.

Mother’s Day Afternoon Tea

On Monday 13th May, we are inviting all children to celebrate Mother’s/Special Friends Day by having afternoon tea and being involved in some fun activities at school with their mum/special friend. If for some reason the children’s mother cannot attend the afternoon tea, then we encourage them to invite a significant other female such as their grandmother, aunty or a family friend etc.

The afternoon tea will begin at 2:00pm and run through until approximately 4:00pm, and will include a Mother’s Day assembly.

In order to assist with catering, we ask you to complete the form posted on Audiri by Wednesday 8th May.

Save the Date - Holy Saviour & St Timothy’s Parents Social Event

Following the success of our welcome BBQ last Tuesday with the St Timothy’s families, the School Advisory Council will be inviting all parents from both schools to join in an evening of fun and socialisation later this term. Please keep the evening of Friday 14th June free in your diaries. This will be a child-free event, so please organise your babysitters!

Emmaus College Junior School ~ Expression of Intent

We would greatly appreciate if you were able to complete the survey via link by MONDAY 6th MAY. The survey is in effort to gain a better understanding about possible numbers across both schools. This will assist Karen in working on programs and staffing for 2025 and beyond.

School Tours & Open Days

Since the announcement of the Emmaus College P-12 beginning next year, I have been swamped with school tours! This term, we have held a series of Open Days and an Open evening to welcome any prospective families to our school. The next school tour date is Thursday 16th May (Tour at 9.30, then again at 2.30).

A flyer with more information and enrolment processes will be available shortly. In the meantime, please feel free to share this information with anyone you know who wishes to enrol at Holy Saviour/Emmaus College.

Prep 2025 Enrolments

We have had great interest in Prep for 2025, as well as other year levels, and we’ve had a good number of enrolments come through already. If you have a child who is eligible to start Prep in 2025, please submit your enrolment at your earliest convenience. This will enable us to develop a clear picture of classing and group sizes for 2025. Enrolments for 2025 are to be made through the Emmaus portal.

Australia’s Best Teacher

For the second year, News Corp is running its Australia’s Best Teachers campaign, recognising inspirational and innovative educators across the country.

Nominations are being accepted now, and MACS is calling on the community to nominate teachers who have had an incredible impact on our students and all our lives. A panel of expert judges will then select and announce the top 50 teachers on Sunday 30 June.

We have amazing teachers at Holy Saviour and I would like to encourage the entire school community to contribute nominations via the following link: www.heraldsun.com.au/news/national/australias-best-teachers-campaign-is-back-nominate-now/news-story/f7ded458c472bc3ab10862e6735415df

Vinnies CEO Sleepout

Next month, I’m participating in the Vinnies CEO Sleepout. By going without shelter for one night, I hope to raise at least $5000 for people experiencing homelessness. The cost-of-living crisis is hitting Australians hard. Right now, homelessness is growing across all demographics. And while I’m experiencing just one night of mild discomfort, there are thousands of people who experience it every night. With your donation, more people can access homelessness support services including accommodation — so they can start to rebuild their lives. Please donate to my Vinnies CEO Sleepout today! https://www.ceosleepout.org.au/fundraisers/steve-evans

2024 Sacramental Program

All the dates for the 2024 Parish Sacramental Program have been set. Please add the following dates to your diaries if you are wanting your child to receive either of these sacraments. All sacraments will be celebrated at St Christopher’s in 2024.

First Eucharist

Presentation of Candidates: Sunday 5th May, 10.30am

Family Evening: Thursday 23rd May, 7.00pm

Reflection Day: Wednesday 29th May, 9.00am-3.00pm

Sacrament of First Eucharist: Sunday 2nd June, 2.00pm

Sacrament of Confirmation – Celebrated again in 2025

Catholic Secondary School Enrolment Applications

Key Enrolment Dates for Year 5 Students in 2024 starting Year 7 in 2026

The key enrolment dates for students in Year 5 in 2024 who will be starting Year 7 in 2026 have been agreed after consultation with the Executive of the Principals Association of Victorian Catholic Secondary Schools (PAVCSS).

The timeline of events and dates are as follows:

Monday 29th January 2024 – Applications open for students commencing Year 7 in 2026.

Friday 16th August 2024 – Applications will close.

Friday 18th October 2024 – Offers will be posted to prospective Year 7 applicants.

Friday 8th November 2024 – Final date for parents/carers to accept an offer made by a school.

Parents of Year 5 students in 2024, please diarise these dates so you don’t miss out.

Final Thoughts - Kaló Páska

This weekend, the Orthodox community celebrates Easter. Many Orthodox churches base their Easter date on the Julian calendar, which often differs from the Gregorian calendar that is used by many western countries. Therefore the Orthodox Easter period often occurs later than the Easter period, that falls around the time of the March equinox.

I wish to take this opportunity to wish all our Orthodox families a very Kaló Páska (Happy Easter) for this weekend.

Kind regards,

Steve Evans

Principal

Happy Birthday!