Principal's Report

If no mistake you have made, losing you are. A different game you should play.

Yoda, Jedi Master  896BBY-4ABY

Hello everybody! Firstly a major apology on my behalf for the delay in the publishing of this edition of the newsletter - it is wholly and solely my responsibility. In the midst of many other things the newsletter got repeatedly pushed back on my priority list. In the end that is not good enough and I will ensure that it doesn't happen again.

What it does mean is that theoretically I have more to write about - don't panic that is not a warning of a huge article coming.

I was recently asked a question about school fees and just wanted to give a very clear and concise statement in relation to them. At our school we have basically three types of fees;

1. Voluntary Contributions - these are fees that as the name suggests are voluntary (as in there is no obligation to pay them). Currently these are set at $40 per year for a single student and $70 per year for a family of students. These are funds are used by the school to support all educational programs. By way of example if everybody paid these the school would have an extra $10,000-$12,000 to allocate to such programs in any given year - two new class sets of laptops. You are free at anytime to drop by the school office and pay these, invoices should be sent out prior to the end of Term One. Once again I stress that whilst we appreciate the payment of these contributions there is no obligation to do so.

2. Subject fees - these will generally only pertain to 'elective' subjects, that in our school can occur from the Middle School up. These fees will vary depending on the type of subject but they are generally levied to cover the cost of consumables e.g. the wood used in a Wood elective. Such fees are always highlighted in Elective subject booklets and it is a given that in electing to take these subjects that you are agreeing to the payment of these fees. Failure to pay these fees may result in being restricted to the theoretical aspects of these courses.

3. Excursion fees - as the name suggests these are fees directly associated with extra-curricular activities and generally they cover the cost of the activity and transport to and from the venue.

We always endeavour to keep fees at a minimum for all students - we do not charge fees to make a profit. Indeed there are very few if any excursions that take place where the school hasn't made a significant contribution to defray the cost to families. As always should you experience difficulties in meeting these costs you can seek assistance from me through the office.

Last week we completed the recruitment process for our Science teacher position and an offer has been made to and accepted by the successful candidate. At this point the process is subject to a ten day appeal period and once that is complete I will be in a position to announce who the successful candidate is.

Over the last week we have had several successes on the maintenance/assets front. The ceiling in A block will be repaired during the next holidays - hopefully, this will bring an end to all the dirt and dust that constantly rains down from above. I have also been finalising the plans for the upgrade of the first of the Science Laboratory's and the Preparation Room. I am assured that the other Science laboratory will be upgraded in 2019. It is expected that the first lot of works will commence late this term or early next term. 

A problem shared is a problem solved! What am I speaking about? Often you might have a concern or an issue about things that may have occurred at the school rather than stew on it the best course of action is always to ask or seek clarification of processes and actions that may have been taken. If it's classroom related your first port of call is the classroom teacher. If its broader than the relevant Head of School, the Deputy Principal or myself. We endeavour to get back to people as quickly as possible within the constraints of the school day.

There are various areas that we will be seeking input from our community throughout the year from Assessment and Reporting to Mobile Technology usage. Could I just reinforce that currently the school policy is that;

1. It is preferable that students not bring expensive devices such as phones and iPods to school.

2. If they are brought to school they remain the responsibility of the owner and should only be used outside of class time unless under teacher direction for educational purposes in class.

3. Inappropriate usage will see a request for the item to be surrendered to a staff member for securing at the office - students then pick up the item at the end of the day.

4. Parents/carers should contact the office ph: 6778 4204 if they need to get messages to their children rather than ringing or texting during class time. 

We appreciate your support in this regard.

Have a great fortnight.     

The capacity to learn is a gift;

The ability to learn is a skill;

The willingness to learn is a choice.

Frank Herbert (1920-1986) Author of Dune