Principal's Report
Lasallian Principals Meeting
On Monday 29 October, St John’s Regional College was pleased to host the Combined Australian Lasallian Principal’s meeting. Representatives from the Lasallian Network from around Australia and New Zealand gathered to discuss a range of issues. These included the Lasallian Mission Councils important work assisting schools in Pakistan and Papua New Guinea, ongoing formation of our Lasallian Identity and preparation for the 2019 Tercentenary of St John Baptiste De La Sale. Our guest included:
De La Salle Malvern (Vic) Mr Peter Houlihan
St Michael’s (SA) Mr John Foley
La Salle College Middle Swan (WA) Mr Wayne Bull
St James College East Bentleigh (Vic) Mr Stephen Pooley
LMC Executive Director Mr Merv McCormack
LMC Operations Manager Ms Julie Alibrandi
De La Salle College Caringbah (NSW) Mr Peter Buxton
De La Salle Cronulla (NSW) Mr Craig Mooney
James Sheehan Catholic High School Orange Mr Peter Meers
Holy Spirit Catholic College (NSW) Mr Phillip Scollard
Casimir Catholic College (NSW) Mr Daniel McInerney
De La Salle Revesby ( NSW) Mr Timothy Logue
Director of Lasallian Identity Br John Pill
Francis Douglas Memorial College ( NZL) Mr Martin Chamberlain
Uniform Changes
Over the past two meetings, the College Board considered the proposal for changes to the sports uniform for 2019. The Parents and Friends Association raised this proposal after consultation with our students, families and staff.
At the Board Meeting on 30 October, the following Sport Uniform changes were recommended to the Association of Canonical Administrators for adoption in 2019.
- New Sport Top to replace old coloured polo
- Navy blue Shell Jacket to replace current Rugby Top
- New Tracksuit Pants as a compulsory item.
Sports Uniform changes are compulsory for new students coming to the College in 2019. Current Students are welcome to change to the new uniform items if they wish or they had to replace worn out items. All students are expected to transition into the new sports uniform items by 2021.
All new and current Uniform items are available from our supplier – Academy Uniform; see our School Website for details.
Staffing News
Retirement
Mr Roger Manning after 38 years of service to St John’s has formally announced his retirement from the College. Mr Manning, who has been convalescing with a knee injury this year, has worked in a number of Positions of leadership over his tenure.
I wish to acknowledge him for his wonderful service to this community. I wish him all the best in his retirement and hope that his beloved Demons can give him much joy over the coming years.
I also take this opportunity to farewell Mr Stephen Harris who will leave St John’s at the end of 2018 to take up a position at St Leonard's in Brighton.
I thank Mr Harris for his service over the last three years and wish him well for the next stage of his career.
Positions of Leadership for 2019
I congratulate the following staff members on their appointments to positions of leadership in 2019. Ms Julie Millar takes on the role of Transition Co-ordinator and Mr Kees Vanderlaan moves into the position of Learning Leader for Hospitality and Food Technology.
Remembrance Day
As we approach Remembrance Day on the 11 November, our thoughts shift to all those who have given their life in service during war and armed conflict. We Pray.
God our Father, your Son Jesus gave up His life to free us from the power of sin and death.
He showed us that the greatest love is in giving up one’s life for others. Today we remember those who fought and died for our freedom.
We ask you to bless and console them together with their families.
Help us to understand to sacrifices they made in leaving their loved ones to face the horrors of war. May we never forget their generosity.
May your Holy Spirit give us the courage to resist evil in all its forms and show us how to be peacemakers through prayer and action, lest we forget those who fought, suffered, and died that we may have the freedom and peace we enjoy today.
We ask this through Christ our Lord.
Amen.
St John's Regional College 2018 Awards Evening and Arts and Technology Exhibition
I would like to extend an invitation to all members of our community to attend our Awards Evening. This is a special evening that focuses on celebrating the growth, development and excellence achieved by our students in all facets of school life. This year we have also incorporated our Arts and Technology Exhibition, which will begin at 5.30pm and see the announcement of the Principals Prize for Art during the Awards Evening. I encourage our families to arrive early and view the many fine pieces of work exhibited by our talented students.
The Awards Evening and Arts and Technology exhibition will take place on Wednesday 21 November in the Br Leo Schollen stadium with the exhibition opening at 5.30 pm and the Awards Evening commencing at 7pm.
Year 12 Exams
We keep in our thoughts our Year 12 students who are in the midst of completing their end of year exams. It has been impressive to see the number of students who have taken up the opportunity to use our Contemporary Learning Centre (CLC) over the last week to revise and catch up with teaching staff. As always, their success will be determined by their consistent work ethic and we wish them well as they enter the final week of exams.
Enrolment Open Evening - 21 November
Our second College Open Event for the term will take place on Wednesday 21 November beginning at 6pm in the Contemporary Learning Centre (CLC). Parents will have the opportunity to hear from senior staff and students, tour our student facilities and see displays of student work presented in our Annual Art and Technology exhibition.
Enrolments for 2019/2020 are invited and parents can book a place for this Open Evening by contacting our College reception on 9791 3366.
Tim Hogan, Principal