Principal's News

Most mornings when I walk into my office I open up my ORDO to see what the day's Gospel reading is.  The ORDO is a reference guide to each day of the church calendar. On Wednesday it was the 'Parable of the Sower'. At the same time Deepak Chopra was on the TV sharing his thoughts about wellness. Some of the ideas he was sharing were right there in front of me in the gospel reading. I listened to Dr Michael Carr-Greg many years ago and he said that Catholic schools have been addressing meditation and wellness for years through prayer and reflection. 

Mt 13:8 "Other seeds fell on good soil and brought forth grain..."

As a family unit or a school community we provide the soil for our young people (seeds) to grow and flourish. 

Monsignor Peter Jeffrey

Not a bad second item to share. Last night we celebrated a great man's service to the people. We celebrated Mons Peter's 60th year since he was ordained a priest in 1963 at Sacred Heart Cathedral, Bendigo. His journey so far includes:

Assistant and Parish Priest in many areas, Rector of three Seminaries (Corpus Christi, Melbourne, Suva, Fiji, Holy Cross, Auckland, NZ), to his current role as Parish Priest of St Mary's Mooroopna. He was instrumental in establishing St. Luke's with Steve Hick's and the community. 

My tribute:

Mons Peter Jeffrey brings Jesus' words to life and lives this every moment. Mons ministers to all and he does not expect recognition. His recognition is that people are better off because Mons came into their life.  

St Luke's has a special relationship with Mons Peter.

"Were not our hearts burning within us while he was talking to us on the road, while he was opening the scriptures to us". Luke 24:32 

These words are so true of Mons Peter Jeffrey. 

Citizenship

Congratulations to some of our students and/or families for becoming Australian citizens during the week. This would have a been a very special moment for you all.

Enrolments 2024

Planning has started for 2024. Class structures are determined by student numbers. Please let me know if you are enrolled elsewhere for Years 1- 6 in 2024. When I have an indication of numbers we can focus on staffing and recruit quality educators. If the pattern of Foundation enrolments continue we may have three Foundation classes in 2024. 

3 Way Conferences (Teacher, Student, Parent/Carer)

Conversations concluded on Thursday night. These opportunities are important but it is the consistent communication outside of these meetings between parents and teachers regarding a child's growth that are just as important.

Morning Drop Off Routine

The students are doing well. nce they drop off their bags they head outside until the music sounds at 8:53am.  3/4 Maher are doing well with their routine. We have noticed children coming to school in warmer clothing which is a positive.

Pupil Free Day this Term

There will be a Pupil Free Day on Friday 25th August.  

Staffing News

Brooke Thompson finishes on Friday 4th August. She heads to Dubai to take up a teaching position at an International School for the next 2 years. We wish her and the family all the best.

Karina Pigdon will replace Brooke Thompson in the specialist Art role.

Hannah Forge, Jess Johnson and Sarah Small will go on maternity leave before the end of the year. 

We welcome Lexie Coomans to St Luke's from 7th August. Lexie graduated from Deakin University, Melbourne. Lexie will transition into the 3/4 Johnson/Forge class as required. 

NAPLAN

Results will be sent home next week in a hard copy format. We will let you know when this information has been extracted to PAM.

Reading, Writing, Spelling, Grammar & Punctuation, Numeracy are the five areas assessed.

The feedback is different from previous years. Instead of seeing bands (levels), the level is graded as:

Exceeding, Strong, Developing, NAS (Not At Standard)

I will provide general feedback in future newsletters.

School Tours and Enrolments for 2024

Tours will be offered every Wednesday at 12:00pm for possible enrolments. If you know anyone outside our community please let them know. Some people may have missed our Open Day in May or they may be new to Shepparton. 

Uniform Reminders

Boys may wear trousers or shorts on school uniform days. Girls may wear trousers or a skort.

This was changed for winter 2022. See the 2023 Information handbook in PAM> Knowledge Bank.

World Youth Day (WYD) Lisbon, Portugal

Miss Levesque and Mrs Small will represent St Luke's at World Youth Day (WYD) 2023 in Lisbon. They will join other staff members from the Diocese of Sandhurst. Eight nights in Lisbon for WYD and three nights in Avila for a post WYD retreat. Fr Jackson is leading the pilgrimage so our parish is well represented. Bre and Sarah will be away from Saturday 29th July - Sunday 13th August. We will share updates.

Exiting the school

Every driver must exercisecaution when driving around schools. Our school is no different. We experience high traffic at certain times every day. Please be patient.  We are still fortunate to have a carpark, but please be careful.  There will be no immediate changes or works for a second exit etc. It is part of our master plan for the next 10 years unless student numbers exceed 400 and we plan for future learning areas. We will explore a traffic audit as we review the master plan. 

As we enter the second part of the year, please keep an eye on the calendar section. For those planning holidays adjacent to the last day of school, Friday 15th December may be the last day. If not, Monday will have no major student events if you need to book travel or accommodation. 

I came across a book I purchased some years ago by Domonique Bertolucci.

"Less is more...

except when it comes to love,

and then more is more is more."

I think Mons Peter Jeffrey would agree and this was the theme in last nights Gospel, John 15:12-17.

"...that you love one another as I have loved you."

Have a great weekend.

David Keenan - Principal