Principal's Report

As the second week of term draws to a close I have the opportunity to reflect on the ways in which the staff and students at Killester live out our Kildare Education values of wonder, justice, courage, hospitality, compassion and hope. In so many ways I have seen these values being enacted in the daily interactions between all in our community and I take this opportunity to give you some examples of where this has been visible in our College this week.

Hospitality has again been evident in the ways in which the students and staff have welcomed our international visitors from Hong Kong; Kei Kei and Eris. I thank, in particular, the Trajer and Naik families for opening their homes to our guests; our students have been showered with the gift of compassion in the way in which they hold each-other through times of difficulty (and in making sure there is warm toast at breakfast club); wonder was clearly evident in all classrooms this week, however the celebration of gratitude was particularly visible when staff gathered together in Brigid's Well for a mindfulness exercise focusing on gratitude on Wednesday morning; our Year 7 students demonstrated courage in their meetings with me where we discussed ways in which our College can continue to improve and to be a place that offers them their best opportunity for success (courage was also very evident in those teachers brave enough to "volunteer" for the lip-syncing competition at lunchtime on Friday; with a keen eye on justice our Year 12 students were lucky enough to listen to a presentation about how to ensure they are consumers of ethically sourced and produced clothing in a session organised as part of their RE program, and lastly hope imbued every element of our College life as staff and students worked together to strive for an understanding of how we can live out the true message of the Gospels and take this out into the world around us. In particular our thanks to the staff and students who again attended the Building Bridges program this week, a tangible example of an experience that is hope-filled.

Sally Buick, Principal