From the Principal
Dear Families,
Thank you for an incredible year.
2023 at Galilee has been jam packed with wonderful events and activities. Our school community has been buzzing and our classrooms have been humming.
To the students - Thank you for everything that you have done this year. It has been wonderful to watch you work so hard, learn so much, be an outstanding friend to each other and demonstrate wonderful leadership qualities. We are all very proud of you and have loved watching you grow this year. We hope you have a wonderful Christmas and a well deserved rest over the holidays.
To the staff - Thank you for being an outstanding team. I would like to thank every staff member who has given their all for our students and our community. I know you work long hours and you care so much. Thank you for treating your position at Galilee as a vocation, not just a job. Thank you for making 2023 outstanding.
To the parents - Thank you our incredible parents and families for everything that you have done this year. Thank you for turning up to the many events that we put on. Thank you for standing on the sidelines cheering. Thank you for working behind the scenes with homework, projects and organising costumes or preparing for events and activities. Thank you for supporting us at school. We feel very lucky to be partnering with you in your child's education and we really couldn’t have done 2024 without you.
To our Parish Priests - Thank you to Fr. Paul and Fr. Gary. Thank you for being such a wonderful support to the school. Thank you for the many meetings, Masses, reflection days, sacraments, celebrations and major milestones that you have assisted us with. Thank you for everything that you have done. Fr. Gary is moving on to another Parish over the holidays. We would like to thank him and wish him every success in his new Parish next year.
Thank you to our incredible volunteers who help to make our school tick - Thank you to the School Advisory Council, led by Carlo Pizzini who have assisted us with many initiatives this year Thank you to the Galilee Parents Association led by Jodie Hoefer and Natalie Calafiore - our events have been outstanding and your work has been exceptional this year. Thank you to our Year Level Representatives who work behind the scenes to make sure things happen and everyone knows about upcoming events. Thank you to our classroom helpers who make our classrooms run smoothly. Thank you to anyone who has volunteered to attend an excursion, sporting event, set-up, run or clean up after one of our many events. Thank you, thank you thank you!
Thank you to Simon Millar - I would like to take this opportunity to thank Simon Millar for pouring his heart and soul into our community again this year. Mr Millar and his family faced a challenging year however there wasn’t a school day that went by where Mr Millar didn’t check in to see how everything was going and how everyone was doing at Galilee. He loves coming to Galilee and working with the students, staff and parents and we know that he has missed being around as often as he normally would. I know he is very proud of everyone within our community and he wishes you all a wonderful Christmas and holiday. Next year Mr Millar will be back full time as your Principal.
To our Graduating Class of 2023 - As we come to the end of the school year, we reflect on the incredible journey our Year 6 students have been on over the last seven years at Galilee.
This year our Year 6 cohort have been wonderful. Among them are future leaders who are not going to stand for the status quo. They are going to take action to make this world a better place. That is what we have seen from them at Galilee this year. They are not afraid to speak up. They are cheeky, fun and funny. They look out for each other and for others in the school. They have lived through COVID lockdowns and a major building project and they seem to have come out stronger - they certainly are a resilient group. Their energy and exuberance will be missed next year.
I would like to thank each and every one of our 2023 Year 6 students for the contribution they have made to Galilee. We could not be more proud of them and we could not be more excited for them. They are well and truly ready to take on their next challenge of Secondary School.
Thank you Year 6 and congratulations on all your achievements!
Families who are leaving the school in 2024. We have a number of families who are leaving our school community at the end of the year. Some of these families have been with us for many years and this year their youngest child is graduating. Some of these families are off on new adventures, they are moving houses and moving schools. We would like to thank them for their contribution to Galilee and we wish them every success in 2024.
Staff who are taking leave in 2024. We would like to thank three staff members who are taking significant leave in 2024.
Carlo Martello - Carlo is taking 12 months long service leave in 2024. He has a large amount of travel planned and a well earned break. Carlo has been to Galilee for a very long time and it will certainly feel strange without him in 2024. We would like to take this opportunity to thank Carlo for his outstanding leadership, especially in the last 5 years as Deputy Principal. We would like to thank him for his love and care of all of our students and the kind and caring way he approaches all his interactions with students, staff and families. He is a much loved person within our community and he will be missed in 2024. We are very much looking forward to hearing all about his exciting adventures when he returns to Galilee in 2025.
Patricia Hickey - Patricia will be taking 12 months leave from Galilee in 2024. You will still see her, as she juggles spending time with her ballet dancer daughter in Melbourne and the rest of her family in Queensland. We look forward to her returning to Galilee full time in 2025.
Colleen Giles - Colleen will be taking 6 months long service leave in Semester 1, 2024. We would like to wish Colleen all the best in Semester 1 and look forward to her returning in Semester 2, 2024.
Staffing for 2024
Prep
Prep C - Caleb Knappett
Prep K - Caoimhe Kennedy
Prep M - Muiread Mckeown
Prep O - Leagh O’Byrne
Year 1
Year 1G - Shane Gettings
Year 1M - Rebecca McCormack
Year 2
Year 2B - Dan Booth
Year 2K - Becky Kavanagh
Year 3
Year 3B - Helen Borger (nee. Rochecouste)
Year 3P - Marcus Page (Richard Harding will teach 3P on Monday afternoon, while Marcus is release for his Digital Technology Leadership role)
Year 4
Year 4G - Mikalia Greenan (Linda Florenca-Grillo will teach 4G on Monday afternoon, while Mikalia is release for her Digital Technology Leadership role)
Year 4L - Rachel Leahy (Linda Florenca-Grillo will teach 4L on Friday, while Rachel is released for her STEM Leadership role)
Year 5
Year 5M - Sinead McGlinchy
Year 5W - Adrian Webster (Carmen Carnovale will teach 5W on Wednesday, while Adrian is released for his Maths Leadership role)
Year 6
Year 6E - Paddy Edwards (Julianne Price will teach 6E on Wednesday, while Paddy is released for his Wellbeing Leadership role)
Year 6P - Alex Pensini (Julie Furguson will teach 6P on Friday, while Alex is released for his Religious Education - Liturgy and Sacraments Leadership role)
Specialist Teachers
Physical Education - Seb Greene
Visual Arts - Linda Florenca-Grillo
Performing Arts - Sandy Baptist
Italian- Anna Petrarca
Learning Support Officers
Rosa Serratore
Jack Sandow
Paul Mapley
Connie Gorgano
Nelson Perrott
Administration Team
Wendy Dalton
Cate James
Adrienne De Burgh Dalton
School Counselors
Tal Silverstein
Julie Ferguson
Business Manager
Florabelle Santiago
Leadership
Simon Millar - Principal
Amy Burns - Deputy Principal and Learning and Teaching Leader
Richard Harding - Deputy Principal and Data and Administration Leader
Carmen Carnovale - Religious Education Learning and Teaching Leader/Community Partnerships Leader/Maths Intervention
Alex Pensini - Religious Education Sacraments and Liturgy Leader
Holly Evans - Literacy Leader/Literacy Intervention/Early Years Coordinator
Adrian Webster - Mathematics Leader
Rachel Leahy - STEM Leader
Mikaila Greenan - Digital Technology Leader
Marcus Page - Digital Technology Leader
Wellbeing Leader - Paddy Edwards
Wellbeing Leader - Julie Ferguson
Facilities Leader - Paul Mapley
Sports Leader - Seb Greene
You will notice two new names to our staffing list for 2024. Next year we are welcoming Leagh O’Byrne to our Preap Teaching Team. She comes to us with extensive experience in teaching Prep and Year 1 in both Ireland and Australia. We are also welcoming Sinead McGlinchy who will be teaching Year 5 next year. Sinead has taught in Ireland, Brisbane and Melbourne and has worked in a variety of year levels throughout her career. We are very excited that Leagh and Sinead are joining us at Galilee. We will introduce them to you all at our first assembly next year.
We have a new Parent Portal at Galilee
Please see our new Parent Information Portal that has useful information for families.
Dates for 2024
We encourage you to access our Parent Calendar to find dates and times for events that will occur in 2024.
We have also included some important dates for 2024 on the Important Dates and Information Page in this Newsletter.
Thank you to everyone in the Galilee Community for a fantastic 2023 school year. This community is very special and that is because of each and every one of you and the contribution you make to ensuring it is the very best school.
I wish you every blessing over the Christmas season and over the summer holiday break and I look forward to seeing many of you walk back through the front gate next year for the 2024 school year.
Amy Burns
Acting Principal