Principal's News

Dear St Joseph’s Primary Community,

 

It is hard to believe how fast the end of the year is approaching! The next few weeks will be jam-packed with learning and experiences for our students. Several events are approaching, like our St Andrew’s Feast mass, end-of-year prizegiving, graduation mass and graduation dinner. We also have our infant's excursion and our year 6 pool party. Events that need permission will be sent out via Compass, so watch this space!

 

Staffing Updates

Our staff for 2025 will be announced very soon. There has been a lot of work with Armidale Catholic Schools to ensure that we continue to staff our school to provide the best education possible so we can fulfil our mission of educating Literate and Numerate students for a hope-filled future. This information will be released during Week 9 this term.

 

Recently, Mrs Dannika Schwager announced to students that she will be relocating with her husband Brock and son Louie to her hometown of Coffs Harbour over the summer holidays. Dannika has been a teacher at St Joseph’s since 2022 and has returned this term from maternity leave and has been teaching across multiple year levels on a Wednesday. We wish Dannika well in her future endeavours and look forward to her dropping into St Joseph’s Wee Waa for a visit in the future.

 

School Fees

Our 2025 school fees will be released before the end of the term. There will be communication regarding school fees and further information about why systemic schools like St Joseph’s Wee Waa charge school fees in the coming weeks. Once this information has been released to principals (after our principals meeting in week 8), I will send it out to all families.

 

Our administration team will contact families with a balance owed to their school fee account and work with families to resolve these outstanding invoices. As I have always communicated, if payment of school fees is problematic, please contact our school office to schedule a meeting with me. We can work together in this endeavour. We always want to ensure that we are offering a quality Catholic education for our students and an education experience that is accessible to all in our Wee Waa region.

 

Annual Satisfaction Surveys

Thank you to all of the parents who engaged with our Annual Satisfaction Survey this year. The data has been really positive, and the feedback that we have received will help us shape our 2025 Annual Improvement Plan. Further information about our AIP will be released in the final weeks of term 4.

 

Wii Gaay

On Monday, 4th November, students and staff travelled to the National Indigenous Centre of Excellence in Redfern to participate in another fantastic Wii Gaay Learning Hub. Thank you to Darcy Lang for assisting our students on Wii Gaay throughout 2024. Karen Tighe, Subject Matter Expert: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Education K-12, will be attending St Joseph’s Wee Waa to work with our Wii Gaay students and to celebrate their successes in 2024.

School Musical

Last Thursday, 14th November, our school celebrated an extraordinary evening with the combined Infants Musical, "Santa's Setbacks," and the Primary Musical, "The X Factory." Our talented students and dedicated staff worked tirelessly to prepare for this special event, and the results were nothing short of amazing. It was heartwarming to see so many families and friends in attendance, and to our special guests, we extend our heartfelt gratitude for joining us and your continued support.

 

A huge thank you goes out to our incredible staff members. Your dedication and hard work have made this production a reality. The countless hours spent on rehearsals, choreography, and planning have not gone unnoticed, and we are truly grateful for your efforts.

 

We would also like to thank the Crossing Theatre and its staff for their generous support with audio, lighting, setup, and overall organisation.

 

Finally, a massive shoutout to our amazing students. Your commitment—from singing and dancing to acting and teamwork—truly brought this performance to life. Each of you played a vital role in making this production special, and we hope you feel as proud of your achievements as we are of you. 

 

We would also like to thank the families for their unwavering support and encouragement.

 

Thank you all for contributing to such a memorable evening.

End of Year Awards Presentation & Leaving Families

This is a reminder that our End of Year Awards Presentation will occur on Thursday, 12th December, at the Wee Waa Bowling Club, starting at 6 pm. Students will be required to wear their full summer uniform.

 

All Kindergarten and Year 6 students will receive a book on the night to commemorate the completion of their first year or graduation.

 

Additionally, we are in the process of preparing for the presentation and planning for 2024 and beyond. If any family is moving during the summer holidays and is leaving St Joseph’s Wee Waa, please contact the school office to inform us.

 

End of Year Mass

This is a reminder that our End of Year Mass will be held on Monday, 16th December, at St Andrew’s Catholic Church, starting at 9:30 am. Please note that there will be no sport on this day, and students will be required to wear their school summer uniform.

 

This is a special time as our current Year 6 students will ‘pass on their light’ to the future leaders of our school during the Light of Leadership ceremony and receive their graduation certificates. 

 

All are welcome to attend.

 

We look forward to celebrating with you all.

 

Have a great weekend.

 

God Bless, 

 

Alistair Stewart

Principal