O'Connor Catholic College Newsletter

Principal's Report

Dear Parents and Carers,

 

Welcome to Term 4, another great term of learning ahead. I hope you had some time as a family to connect over the holidays and that all students have returned to school ready to learn. 

 

Annual Improvement Plan 2022

We have begun work on developing our 2022 Annual Improvement Plan. We have as a staff constantly been using our 2021 plan to set targets and identify strategies to improve our learning community at O’Connor. 

As a community we are continually asking the following questions in relation to meeting the goals of our Annual Improvement Plan

  • How are we going?
  • How do we know?
  • What are we going to do next?

By using learning data, staff, student and parent survey results, anecdotal data and observations, we can answer these questions meaningfully and seek to identify the areas for celebration and for improvement. It is this process that will inform our 2022 Annual Improvement Plan.

 

Year 11

Our Year 11 students have begun their HSC studies and it is an important time to set in place solid study programs that will help when the demands of HSC assessments start. Students should be studying every night (and I don’t mean just doing the odd bit of set work). A good resource for studying is called HSC Hub by atomi https://getatomi.com/. This program consists of short videos on specific syllabus points for many subjects. This program is a great way for students to prepare and revise for lessons. Other resources students can access are Education Perfect and Studiosity, an online tutoring service funded by UNE. 

 

Many of our students now have study periods. During these times students are expected to stay at school and study in a designated area, most commonly the library. We have found that staying at school for study periods means that students are much more engaged in the learning process.

 

On Monday 25th October at 6pm, we will have a Year 11 Parent and Student Information Session to go through the HSC Rules and Procedures for HSC 2022. A zoom link will be sent to you via Compass. 

 

Student Leadership Team 2021/22

As always, I was incredibly impressed by the calibre of the recent speeches given by the students who nominated for leadership positions for 2021/22. The breadth of talents and passions of our students is incredible and was shown through their desire to serve their College community. 

 

I would like to congratulate our new student leaders for 2021/22

 

College Captains - Bridie Giles and Fletcher Schultz

College Vice Captains - Judah Flint and Alexandra Shepheard

Faith and Service Captains - Lara Windred and Angus Scrivener

Arts Captains - Lauren Fenton and Mia Brotherson-Moffitt

Sports Captains - Joshua Urquhart and Emma Gray

 

COLLEGE LEADERS: L to R: Joshua Urquhart (Sports Captain), Emma Gray (Sports Captain), Judah Flint (Vice Captain), Bridie Giles (Captain), Fletcher Shultz (Captain), Alex Shepheard (Vice Captain), Lara Windred (Faith and Service Captain), Mia Brotherson-Moffitt (Faith and Service Captain), Lauren Fenton (Arts Captain), Angus Scrivener (Arts Captain)(absent).

 

House Captains

Benilde - Jacob Bamford and Allie Carson

LaSalle - Tilly Brown and Sam Johnson

Merici - Tom Bible and Millie Edwards

Ursula - Georgie Mayled and Emerson Fittler 

 

 

HOUSE CAPTAINS: (L to R): Emerson Fittler, Georgina Mayled, Allie Carson, Jacob Banfield, Thomas Bible, Millie Edwards. Absent: Matilda Brown, Samuel Johnson.

 

I know that they will be excellent ambassadors for both our student body and the whole O’Connor community. 

 

School Advisory Council 

O’Connor Catholic College has a School Advisory Council (SAC) that advises the Principal on matters that are brought to the SAC and also offers advice on issues and in areas that members feel will be of benefit to the school. Its members are drawn from the Armidale community; some, like the Principal and Parish Priest are members ex officio, while others may be school staff, parents of students currently or recently at the school or perhaps people with no direct connection but possessing knowledge or expertise that the Principal feels will be useful to the mission and well-being of the school. The SAC holds three formal meetings a year, though members may also work on projects at other times of the year, individually or in groups. 

 

If you feel you might be interested in becoming a member of the SAC, either Vernon Crewe (Current Chair vernoncrew@gmail.com) or I  would be happy to have a chat with you about what’s involved. The AGM will be held on Wednesday 3rd of November at 5.30 pm.

 

Satisfaction Surveys

Satisfaction surveys of parents, students and staff will be conducted on behalf of all Catholic schools in the Diocese this term. The surveys are designed to gather feedback from parents, staff and students about our school and will be used to inform school improvement. Responses are confidential and individuals can not be identified. The survey link will be circulated via email using the email addresses supplied to the school.

 

Staffing

We welcome to our staff - Mr Graham Smith who will work in the Support Team as an Aboriginal Learning Mentor.  

 

What new learning will you undertake this week?

 

Regina Menz