Mrs Ryan's Fortnightly Reflections

The only way is up!

St Mary’s ends its week in celebration, commendation and recommendation. Thank you to everyone in our community, staff, learners, families and the School Advisory Council who contributed to our NSIT (National School Improvement Tool) review. It was a fantastic process to be a part of. Talking about the great change, direction and energy in and around our school. The staff and leadership team will now reflect on the recommendations and plan alignment with our School Improvement Plan and Annual Action Plans. This information will be shared with our community in the near future. 

I have recently concluded Annual Review Meetings with all staff. This will see some new employment opportunities advertised in the near future. St Mary’s will be looking for several educators to join our team. Staff changes, and staff leaving and ending their careers will not be announced until later in the year. Given that our nation is experiencing a ‘teacher shortage’ it is vital that St Mary’s is proactive with its employment for 2024. Please be sure to share our adverts on your socials if you see them. 

This week we have approximately 36 students from St Mary’s celebrating the Sacraments of Confirmation and First Eucharist. They have been wonderfully prepared and supported by the St Mary’s Parish Sacramental team as well as their families. It would be fantastic to see our community support this memorable celebration at one of the three masses over the weekend. Bishop Shane McKinlay will be in attendance at the Sunday Mass at 11:30am. 

On Friday we host our annual Book Parade! This is my first book parade at St Mary’s so I am hugely excited! This year as in the past the children will sit in designated spaces around the soccer pitch while parading their costumes and celebrating their love of literature! I can’t wait to see the school filled with colour and creation. Miss Adelia has done an incredible job at ensuring leading up to Book week our students have had rich and relevant learning experiences which celebrate reading and writing. The 2023 theme is Read, Grow, Inspire, and I believe St Mary’s has done a great job at this, this year! 

We are nearing the end of term with only three weeks to go. Please be sure to keep up with our Compass, newsletter and socials to know what lies ahead! 

Take Care & God Bless, 

Jasmine Ryan

Principal