A letter from our School Council President

A very warm welcome from school councillors to our returning students, staff, and our new Prep students and their respective families. We hope that all students have settled in well and are enjoying their new class groups and the diverse range of learning opportunities that Carnegie PS has to offer.  In particular I draw attention to the new Science and Performing Arts specialist classes that are a welcome addition to the specialist offerings and the introduction of the Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) program at grade 4. What an exciting year our children have ahead of them.  

Thank you to school staff for your time in the ‘You Tell Us’ sessions. These meetings at the beginning of the school year contribute to the development of family-school partnerships that are integral to supporting students interest, motivation and engagement in learning. In developing effective partnerships schools recognise the shared interest and responsibility for students and the need to collaborate to create achievable goals, share information and enhance opportunities for student learning.

I warmly invite all parents to consider opportunities to contribute to and participate in the life of the school throughout the year. School Council is just one option but an important one. A well-informed and effective school council strengthens community confidence in the school, helping to build and secure the broad direction and vision of the school within the school's community and assisting in the efficient governance of the school to ensure that decisions affecting students are made having regard to the best interest of the students.

A sincere thank you to those parents and staff who have generously contributed their time and expertise and who are concluding their term on council at the forthcoming AGM in March. Your contribution has been greatly valued.  We are actively seeking interested parents who might like to consider a position on school council to fill these positions. For more information on school council and to nominate please see the next page.

A word about myself…

I have had the privilege of leading school council from 2022 and have been a school councillor now for 10 years. Two of my three sons are at Carnegie PS, Flynn (grade 6) and William (grade 4), with my eldest Eamonn now at McKinnon SC (year 9). I have worked in education myself now for 25 years, most recently as the Manager, Strategic Delivery and Transformation with the Victorian Catholic Education Authority and the Company Secretary for Catholic Capital Grants. I look forward to meeting families in the school grounds or at school events and encourage you to stop for a chat.

Verity Walker

School Council President