From the Principal

It brings a smile

Schools are busy places. The wellbeing of our students, staff and parents is our prime consideration. At times we can become pre-occupied with what is going wrong as distinct from what is going right.

I still smile every time I reflect on last week’s Year 4 Musical. Our Head of Primary, Ms Antoinette De Pinto, is very dedicated to our students and she has forwarded some wonderful emails from parents in the past week. We all respond well to affirmation and the plaudits for our talented students and Ms Sasha Cattapan (and other staff) are well deserved.

In between the busyness of school life, we need to sit back and reflect on what our school stands for now and into the future. Our current Strategic Planning process enables reflection and discernment. The phrase ‘men and women for others’ was originally coined by Fr Pedro Arrupe SJ in 1973. The phrase caught on and has been adopted by Jesuit schools throughout the globe. Having worked at Trinity College, it was also a popular mantra in an Edmund Rice school as well.

Ultimately, ‘men and women for others’ is aspirational as we seek to develop student skills and abilities ‘in the service of others’. I have enjoyed reading of Dr Anthony Fauci, the prominent American doctor, during the pandemic challenges. He was Jesuit educated in the city of New York and has been a person of reason in the past two years. Dr Fauci is that real, rare person – a servant leader.

In 1970 Robert Greenleaf wrote:

‘the servant leader is servant first …. It begins with the natural feeling to serve then a conscious choice brings a person to aspire to lead.’ 

The servant leader shares responsibility, places the interests of others first and helps others to develop. Many of our students and staff already exhibit these characteristics.

Hopefully, this can all be done with a smile on the face and a positive disposition. I look forward to engaging further with our community as our strategic planning progresses.

Join us for a Mass dedicated to Fathers

All Dads and father figures are welcome to attend Mass with their children. Mass will be followed by muffins, tea, coffee and juice.

Friday 3 September 2021

7:30am–8:30am

St Louis Sports Centre

Robert Henderson

Principal