Principal's Report 

Flexible, adaptable, resilient and ready.

Events of the last few weeks have again brought these words to the forefront of my thinking. They have also given me pause to reflect on these words from the Gospel of St. Matthew.

What does it mean to be ready at the moment?

In my practical day-to-day life, it means a heavier than usual bag being carried to and from my office just in case events transpire that preclude me from getting to work one day. Through no fault of my own, I could unknowingly cross paths with a COVID infected person and subsequently receive a stop and stay directive from the Health Department in the same way as thousands of Shepparton residents did recently.

At home it means a slightly larger than usual stock of non-perishable food items to get us through a few days of unexpected confinement whilst we sort ourselves out with online shopping etc.

I would like to commend our staff, students and families for the level of flexibility, adaptability, resilience and readiness that has been demonstrated in recent weeks. It has truly been wonder-full. 

In this year in which we are focussing on the Kildare Ministries core value of Wonder, I would like to celebrate with Joy and Gratitude all that is good about our St. Joseph’s College Catholic Learning community.

The level of readiness to move into and out of remote learning has been most impressive; especially given the extremely short notice with which the NSW and Victorian lockdowns were called. There have been some problems. No-one is perfect. However, these difficulties have been worked through with all the compassion, consideration and support that are hallmarks of the way our College goes about its mission.

We have also been challenged in recent weeks by images from places such as Haiti, Afghanistan, Europe, and other parts of the world affected by conflict or natural disaster. Our hearts, thoughts and prayers go out to people in these places who are dealing with COVID on top of everything else. 

For me, reflecting on these situations takes away much of the extra heaviness in that bag I cart to and from work each day.

In the words of this year’s College theme, we have certainly Embraced Curiosity, Explored the Unknown and Been Surprised.

Maintain the flexibility, adaptability, resilience and readiness and we will all emerge stronger when things settle down.

Go gently. Stay safe. Look after one another.

Michael Delaney

Principal