Principal's Report

Dear Parents, Carers and Community Members,

As Term 2 draws to a close, I’d like to sincerely thank our entire school community for the ongoing partnership, positivity and commitment that continue to strengthen our shared work. This term has been rich in learning experiences, student growth and many moments of celebration.

While wet weather meant our Athletics Carnival was postponed, we look forward to this event taking place in Week 1, Term 3 (Wednesday 23 July). I thank Mrs Jackie Barratt and our P&F for their efforts in preparing and now reorganising the carnival. I know our students will be eager to participate.

On Monday, families received Semester 1 reports, which provide a meaningful reflection of each student’s progress. Across the school, students have been actively engaged in their learning and have shown great commitment to their goals. Whether students have achieved growth in academic learning, developed confidence, embraced new experiences or contributed to school life, we hope each of them feels proud of their efforts. At St Joseph’s, every effort matters and every young person matters.

This fortnight, our students had the opportunity to grow in faith and service. Our Mini Vinnies students were commissioned during the Feast of the Sacred Heart Mass, celebrated with parishioners, members of the Glen Innes St Vincent de Paul Conference and our school community. In addition, our Mini Vinnies and SRC students led a hot milo fundraiser and food donation, raising money and donating goods for the St Vincent de Paul Winter Appeal. This is a wonderful example of student-led action inspired by compassion and social justice.

In sport, 15x Stage 2 and 3 students proudly represented St Joseph’s at the Toni Palmer Rugby League Shield in Inverell. Our Stage 3 team, playing in a combined team with students from Barraba and Guyra, won the competition! This is an outstanding achievement given they competed against much larger schools. The effort, sportsmanship and success shown by all students were truly commendable. We also congratulate Peyton, Rose, Brooke and Maggie for their representation at the Polding Touch Football Trials this week - a fantastic achievement.

Semester 1 has seen a positive shift in attendance. Compared to the same period in 2024, our data shows improvement in both the overall attendance rate and the number of students attending school regularly. Thank you to our families for recognising the importance of consistency in building strong learning and wellbeing outcomes.

Thank you to our hard working P&F committee for holding the Winter Disco last night. It is a great social event for the students that they look forward too.

As we head into the break, I’d like to thank our dedicated staff for their tireless work, our students for their enthusiasm and commitment and our families and Parish for the ongoing support that makes our school such a strong and connected community.

Wishing you all a safe and restful holiday. We look forward to welcoming students back for Term 3 on Tuesday 22 July.

May God bless you and your family.

Casey Chard

Principal