From the Principal

Pictured above: The completed Doyle Wing, opening for Choomalaka Festival & Feast and to students in Week 10.

Dear Parents/Carers, Students and Friends of St Virgil’s,

Referendum – Voice to Parliament 

The Prime Minister of Australia has announced that the referendum will occur on 14 October. With the date now being announced there will be greater dialogue and interest in the upcoming referendum on the Voice to Parliament in the community.

We need to be reminded that all Australians have a unique opportunity to vote on a proposed amendment to the Constitution that recognises Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander peoples as the First Peoples of this country.  At St Virgil’s College we encourage our students and broader community to be deep thinkers and to listen objectively which allows us to make informed decisions on the future of Australia. The link below will provide information about this process which you may find useful in your discernment and decision-making:

https://www.aec.gov.au/referendums/files/pamphlet/your-official-yes-no-referendum-pamphlet.pdf.

Choomalaka Festival & Feast

There is much excitement in the air and great anticipation from staff and students as they prepare for the Choomalaka Festival & Feast which will be held on Friday 22 September. Students have been practising their performances and the Parents & Friends Associations from the Junior and Senior Schools have been busily organising the food stalls and offering their support on the night. Building on the success of last year’s Festival is a result of the strong and dedicated group of people, parents/carers, staff, students and supporters. This coming together of this event symbolises the great connection and relationship St Virgil’s College has with its community and will be a great opportunity to showcase our new Senior Secondary precinct. I look forward to seeing you on the night.  

Responsible Use of Information Technology

On another note, in relation to the well-being of our young people, you may have noticed increased publicity given recently to cases of young people ‘sexting’, distributing sexually explicit material and image-based abuse via the use of mobile phones, social networking sites on the internet, and so on. This includes the production, posting and sharing of sexually explicit and other highly inappropriate images of themselves and others. We aim to teach our students about the dangers of this kind of behaviour via various programs at school and we also have various policies in place. However, most of this happens outside of school or school control. 

Families are asked to please try to be aware of what their children are doing on the internet and with their phones. We know this is a real challenge, but between home and school we need to be proactive in the interests of our young men. The police are taking a very active role in dealing with any matters in relation to these practices if they become aware of them, as laws are being broken in relation to the production, dissemination of sexually explicit material. This has already affected a number of young people from various schools across Hobart and Australia, and St Virgil’s is not immune to this. If we become aware of such activities, we will inform parents, the police, e-safety commissioner and undertake mandatory notifications as required – as this is what we are legally (and morally) required to do. Please refer to the link below regarding the legislative approach to image-based abuse. Concerns can be raised with your son’s Pastoral Care Teacher or Head of House should the need arise. 

Legal Guide to Image-Based Abuse Legislation in TAS - TechSafety.

Planning for 2024

Planning is well underway for 2024 with subject selections processes being finalised and staffing being determined for next year. To provide certainty with our planning a letter will be forwarded to families soon seeking feedback from you about your child’s enrolment in 2024. Once received I would ask that you respond accordingly to assist with College planning.

Staffing Update 

Planning for staffing next year has commenced. The College is currently seeking a number of teaching positions including Business Studies Teacher, English/Humanities/Religion Teacher and Mathematics/Science Teacher for 2024. Further details are available via the College website. 

Ms Aisling O’Driscoll, Provisional Psychologist has advised me of her intention to resign from her position and will conclude her role at the end of the term. We thank Aisling for her contribution to our College community during her time at St Virgil’s and wish her all the very best in the future. Advertising is underway and I will advise the community of her replacement once the appointment process has been completed. 

Best wishes for the week ahead.

Jon Franzin

PRINCIPAL