I have been asked by Melbourne Archdiocese Catholic Schools to present at a Professional Learning about some of the initiatives that have occurred at the school.

It is this opportunity for reflection which really creates an understanding of how far we have come and more importantly, the awesome opportunities our students have had.

Whether it was holding the Melbourne Cup, running the Melbourne Storm out at AAMI Park or creating a School Cookbook, the opportunities we have created is something that we are proud of.

This will continue with Free Auskick coming and finalising some tennis coaching in Term 4, along with some other opportunities.

What it provides is the opportunity to dream big. The result is students starting to challenge themselves to reach new heights. Yesterday, at the Athletics, we saw some of the best results we have produced. For a school of only 100 students, we had 4 of 5 Relay teams place in the top three, which demonstrates that we have not just developed one student, but the group is raising the bar.

We have seen this with recent NAPLAN data. Our Year Three data showed that students who have been at our school for at least a year before the assessment performed exceptionally well, with most performing above the state average. This is a great achievement when many of our students were either born overseas or English is their second (or third) language.

We are raising the bar. We are holding students to a higher bar, and they are starting to leap that bar.

Pope Leo has reinforced that Catholic Education is at it's best when it is serving disadvantaged communities and lifting the opportunities the students have in life, whatever background they may have. I am so proud to be in an inclusive school, which is genuinely providing uplifting opportunities. Our families do everything they can to provide their children a better future, and we will never take that gift you provide us for granted.

Australia's first Saint, Saint Mary Mackillop's feast day is this Saturday 8th August. I can never forget this day, as it is also my Mum's birthday, who I know will be reading this, so happy birthday Mum. Mary was a complete rebel, who went against directions from the superiors of the day in the Church to do what see believed was God's work, educating children, mostly in disadvantaged communities. Mary has a quote attributed to her, 'Never see a need without doing something about it'. That is exactly the attitude we are trying to develop in our students. A willingness to serve, to support and to strive!

On this theme, some may have seen newspaper articles or communication online about Melbourne Catholic Schools and funding, with big increases to fees and cost cutting. I can assure you that we at Holy Family have and will have the most affordable Catholic School fees now and next year as well. We have made some changes and increases in the past few years, but at the same time, increased the number of families eligible for Concessional Fees, through having a Health Care Card, or approaching myself for a discussion. Our fee increases will be less than previous years, but any family needing support, please come and see me. I continue to work through the final implications and will communicate any changes when finalised. I understand the challenge, however, I also know that State Schools pass on many charges that we absorb, so it relies on everyone contributing to ensure that our fees will continue to be the most affordable in Catholic Education Melbourne, whilst providing more opportunities than most schools and smaller class sizes with intensive support.

We have welcome 8 students from China in the past couple weeks. these wonderful children have brought joy, dedication and a hard work ethic with them. I know some of our Year 6's were blown away by their new classmates ability, which is driven by hard work. Equally, our students have really embraced these children and we thank their families for choosing our school. We hope many families can come Tuesday as a way to welcome these families, help the school and see what is going on at the school. We will have a plan if bad weather hits!

Finally, the building. You may have noticed it has been slow progress. Unfortunately, due to many issues certainly beyond my control, it has been delayed. However, I can assue you the builder, myself, the architect and MACS is committed to getting the school these kids deserve, and the new expected date is Cup Week. I thank the Parish for their patience with us using the hall.

Workshop