Principal's Post

Dear Parents,

Primary and Secondary Schools have been talking Resilience for several years now. The capacity for young people and not so young to cope and adjust to change. Being able to identify what decisions they need to make and how to be responsible for themselves and others in those decision making processes. The Coronavirus is providing a dramatic and practical scenario to challenge us in these areas and I have no doubt we are discovering much about ourselves and observing much about others as we all navigate this health crisis. The topic of Mental Health has been quite prominent in schools and society and you can see in the past that it may be considered an issue for those struggling or not coping with aspects of their lives. We are genuinely transitioning to the realization Mental Fitness is the domain of everyone and there are needs to be considered by us all in order to remain healthy and productive. The constant messages we relay to our students about diet, sleep and exercise resonant more than ever. Hopefully we have all grown existentially as well, as we appreciate our spirituality and our need to be a ritualistic and liturgical community.

As we transition back to the conventional classroom students are going to be challenged again to adjust their routines. There are several aspects of Remote Learning that have appealed to both staff and students. The sense of safety and security associated with being at home has been appreciated by the vast majority of our community. We will be providing guidelines early next week for the Year 11 and 12 students who are returning on Tuesday May 26 and then arrangements will be clarified for Years 7 to 10 students who will be with us from Tuesday June 9. A priority of the guidelines will be Community Health and Safety considerations reinforcing hygiene practices and the outlining of cleaning protocols. Consideration will be given to Canteen, Transport, Timetabling and Scheduling as well as Teaching and Learning adjustments needed for assessment and reporting.

Thank you to all the parents, students and staff who completed the Remote Learning Feedback surveys. The report is due this Friday and its findings will be circulated. Anecdotal feedback and the clear messages from the media is that students are missing opportunities by not being at school and they are at risk of falling behind. In the broadest sense this is comforting when evaluating our schooling model. Enormous energy and expenses are put into our educational institutions and it is a good thing they are the preferred source of learning for all our sakes.  

If you have a chance on Thursday please join us online for our celebration of Founder’s Day. Mass will be streamed at 11.00am on Thursday May 21. The Feast of St Eugene De Mazenod reminds us of the Oblate Charism that permeates our Community. Please join us to acknowledge the Oblate Fathers and their service. It is a day to consciously express gratitude and appreciation for the wonderful community to which we all belong. Undoubtedly your sons are conscious of the fact it is a “no classes day” – a chance to avoid screens as much as possible, with the exception of our liturgy.

Yours sincerely,

Mr Tony Coghlan

Principal