Chairman's Report 

A Huge Thank you and well done!

May I first of all extend to all the students, teachers, staff and parents on behalf of the College Board our best wishes and congratulations for a challenging year that no one in our history has endured before.

The resilience of the teachers and students in performing their duties remotely, having to adapt to a new way of learning was and is inspirational. Much has been learnt from these new ways and we commend Mr Hogan and the staff in maintaining open and continuous communications through this challenging time.  Well done to all.

I also acknowledge parents who, with the home schooling, technology and COVID19, need a very special thank you and well done. We could see from the survey responses that in most situations the teaching staff were able to adapt to suit the different needs of the individual children.  You, the parents had to add this to your busy lives and juggle this aspect of running your home life, the different needs of your children need and manage the space to do all this. 

Similarly, the Board had to adapt to Zoom meetings since April and it has been well coordinated by our Board Secretary Ms Goodwin and Mr Hogan. The technology worked well in the remote settings, we were able to continue the meetings and work through different challenges to support the school throughout 2020.

We farewell the class of 2020 year 12 students and wish them all the success for their results and future as they chase their ambitions whether in tertiary or the workforce – you deserve a huge congratulation for your efforts this year.

Our Student leaders, Captains – Aker Mawith & Tofy Jorissen and Vice Captains – Johanna Pastias & Chester Finau have certainly had a different year with a whole new way of supporting and interacting with their fellow students. We commend them on their ability to support the students and maintain their studies during all the lockdowns and remote learning. 

To the teachers who are leaving and those we welcome back in 2021 as new teachers or those returning – thank you and we wish you all well for the coming year. A special note to Clive Moore who I was fortunate to be a fellow student with here at St Johns many years ago…. Stay well and enjoy life.

Continued promotion of the college.

With the pandemic restrictions and lockdown, the marketing and enrolments for the next year have been a challenge.  Tony Biviano as the marketing representative has worked with Mr Hogan and the staff on the task of making St Johns more visible to the feeder schools and the public in general.  The school has conducted virtual tours for prospective students and families – if you have not seen this, they are well worth watching. The website is continually being updated and improved using multiple languages and SBS radio, to increase the visibility through social media.

There are more ideas being investigated to continue the marketing and promotion of the school.  Such as a new electronic display at the Kidd Road end of the College and bus promotions.  Of course, nothing is better than your word of mouth to others so we ask you to continue to support the school, fellow students and your children to continue to grow St Johns as Catholic School of choice in our region.

The Board and Committees.

Our thanks to all members of the Board and committees in attending and supporting the college through the year. 

The Board: Tim Hogan, Fr Brendan Lane, Andrew Schoenmaekers, Maria Nasioulas, Cathy Pascal, Tony Biviano, Andrew Jorissen, Chris Sikora, Chris Richardson, and Symone Godwin as minute taker… thankyou.

The Finance Committee: Tim Hogan, Fr Brendan Lane, Andrew Schoenmaekers, John Loizou, Peter Liddell, Shelley Iles and again Symone Goodwin as minute taker – thankyou. 

They all give up their time to attend, provide candid discussion and feedback on policies and issues that arise through the year as advisory to the School management and the Canonicals Administrators of the school. We have a great representation of key stakeholders on the College Board with a range of specialised skills that have proven beneficial to the future growth of St John’s.

Highlights for 2020…..

The management of COVID19: social distancing rules, remote learning and meetings – how different!

Completion of the Sports field – fantastic addition – ready for use!

The completion of tenders process for the new Junior STEM building with construction to commence in December 2020.

The solar panel project -a wonderful achievement and promotion of the school’s sustainability focus and saving of costs. 

The changing of Finance Managers – Mr Nic Salvatore, thank you for your service and welcome to Ms Shelley Iles.

An unqualified audit report for 2019 – that found no financial issues or compliance issues. A fantastic result and well done to the administration and office staff in getting this result.

The change of Governance models for St John’s Regional College which will see it come under the umbrella of Melbourne Archdiocese Catholic Schools Limited from Jan 1, 2021.

The Alumni has been quiet this year but we hope to keep communications open and improve the website to keep past students in contact.

We had the opportunity to attend the School of Rock production last year… a great night and a tribute to the staff and students who created, participated and really enjoyed the event – well done. Something to be very proud of.

Once again, congratulations on an amazing year and well done to all.

Mr Andrew Schoenmaekers

Chairman of the Board and Finance Committee