Principal's Piece 

Term 3, Week 9

Dear Parents and Carers, 

We have come to the end of yet another busy and successful term. Thank you to all our families for your ongoing support and commitment to our school program and special events this term. Your involvement makes a real difference and we are so grateful for the way you continue to partner with us in your child’s learning. This term, our Family Engagement Nights have been a highlight and have definitely been a positive addition to our school calendar. It has been wonderful to see so many families connecting with staff, students, and each other through the engaging and interactive activities.  Our students have also enjoyed a variety of excursions, incursions and special school event days. 

What a great way to finish the term with our annual Footy Day, commencing the day with our parade.  The energy, enthusiasm, and school spirit were on full display and it was fantastic to see so many students and staff dressed in their footy colours.  A big thank you to Dylan Marguccio for putting together a video of   AFL highlights to share with our students. His passion and creativity have given our students a chance to relive some of the best moments of AFL footy.

This week we farewell our school psychologist, Chanel. On behalf of all of us at OLPS we wish her all the best in her new role and thank her for the support she has provided to our students, staff and families.   

Congratulations to our winners of our Art Competition Maya Zaki 2C and Israel Oyoo 4D, who created an art piece inspired by the image of Mary. Congratulations to all the students who entered the competition, the artworks are on display in the Prep area.

From the 2nd to the 4th of September, our Year 3–6 classes took part in the Melbourne Rocks Times Tables Competition. This year’s event was huge, with 156 primary schools, 1,175 classes and 13,329 students participating across Victoria. We are proud to share that Our Lady’s placed 46th out of 156 primary schools—a fantastic achievement! A big congratulations to 5B, who ranked 20th, and 5C, who ranked 45th out of all 1,175 classes.

Our top-performing students were Ishan Divarakan, Manraj Sandhu, John Baquiran, and Liam Woodgate. A special mention goes to Ishan and Manraj, who achieved an outstanding 18th and 20th place out of 13,329 students statewide! What an incredible effort from everyone involved. Thank you to all students who participated—it was wonderful to see such enthusiasm and teamwork, and we are so proud of the results!

On Thursday, we conducted a practice Evacuation Drill as part of our commitment to ensuring the safety and well-being of all students and staff. These drills are an important part of our emergency procedures, allowing us to ensure that everyone is familiar with the steps to take in the event of an emergency. I am pleased to report that the drill was successful, with all students and staff responding quickly and calmly. These drills will take place each term in order to continually improve our safety measures in an event of an emergency. 

Congratulations to our students who competed in Division Athletics on Tuesday. We had 18 students representing our school and we are excited to announce that seven of our athletes have qualified for the Northern Metropolitan Region Athletics Championships on Wednesday 15th August., Congratulations to: Chloe Barnes, Ryder Cardamone, Lily Barnes, Denzell Tait, Jacob Hanona, Anthony Razqoo and Hudson Gentle. Congratulations to all our students who competed and showed great sportsmanship and determination. Thank you to our parents who attended and also to Mr Whittey and Ms Heenan for supporting our students. 

Our $1.00 Zooper Dooper Tuesdays are back next term. Thank you to all our families who have supported the Tuesday fundraisers this year. The proceeds will go towards our Year 6 Graduation. 

It is that time of year again when we are beginning to plan for 2026. If you are not intending to return in 2026 could you please let me know by email principal@olps.vic.edu.au. 

I wish you all a peaceful and relaxing break with your families. Thank you for your ongoing support, and see you in Term 4! School commences on Monday, 6th October.

Take care and God Bless

Cinzia Mancuso

Acting  Principal