School News

The St Joseph’s Catholic School, Wee Waa painting is a modern, contemporary Aboriginal painting that pays homage to the local Gomoroi Nation Aboriginal people and the rich history of the school community.

At the centre of the painting are the red, concentric circles which are traditional Aboriginal symbols for a meeting place and which also represent the School. The colour is red to represent the Aboriginal peoples' deep connection to the land. The white dots around the meeting place are the local Aboriginal people of the past. The large orange coloured U shapes are traditional Aboriginal symbols to represent the local Aboriginal Elders. The smaller yellow coloured U shapes represent the younger members of the community. 

Above the meeting place is Kaputhin the Eagle which is the local Totem for the people. The Kaputhin Eagle associates itself with the spiritual concepts of ; Celebration of the blue skies, upper world messenger, heat and wind wisdom, soaring over obstacles and flight of the spirit.

Flowing through the Eagle are colourful dots which represent the local Aboriginal people, Teachers, Students, Parents and Carers from the School community. 

Within the Eagle can be seen the Cross and 3 J’s which represent the local Josephite Sisters and the Catholic Faith flowing through the School and wider community.

To the left can be seen Aboriginal women’s Coolamon which is a multi-purpose wooden bowl used to collect food, water, mix ochre paint, for Smoking Ceremonies and also as a baby’s bed with the baby wrapped in possum or kangaroo skin. This  Coolamon has a “fire for roasting” which is the Kamilaroi Aboriginal meaning for Wee Waa.

To the right can be seen the Aboriginal men’s boomerang and hook boomerang. These locally made wooden tools made from myall wood were among items the local Aboriginal people would trade. Also to the right can be seen the local rivers Namoi, Barwon, Peel and Darling which provided a variety of food including crayfish, mussels and shrimp.

The handprint of the School Principal represents the love, care and guidance over the entire School community. The 2M by 2030 represents the Wandana motto to inspire 2 million people through Aboriginal Education throughout Australia by the year 2030.