We are excited to have officially inducted our 2022 school leaders today at assembly.

We congratulate the following:


School Captains	Saige & Josh
Vice School Captains	Grace & Lola
Freeman House Captains	Thalia & Leon
Hollows House Captains	Oliver & Angelique
Irwin House Captains	Lily & Ollie
Paterson House Captains	Zach & Olivia
Sports Captains	Jackson & Amelia
Performing and Visual Arts Captains	Mariah-Rose & Emman
Environment Captains	Sara & Ben

SRC - Semester 1
Grade 1A	Lewis
Grade 1B	Josie
Grade 1C	Eloise
Grade 2A	Damian
Grade 2B	Kitt
Grade 2C	Adelie
Grade 3/4A	Mikaylah
Grade 3/4B	Hera
Grade 3/4C	Nova
Grade 3/4D	Ana
Grade 3/4E	Charlotte
Grade 5/6A	Scarlett
Grade 5/6B	April
Grade 5/6C	Eve
Grade 5/6D	Suchitha

School Council Election Update:

Nominations for School Council closed last Friday. Thank you to those who have nominated. There are 3 nominations for 2 School Council positions for the 2022/2023 school year/period.

Today, your child will come home with a sealed envelope with a paper based ballot form and information as to how to cast a vote. For those families that have 2 parents residing separately, this information has been sent via mail. Voting will close on Friday 25th Feb at 4pm.

The nominees are as follows:

Name: Amy Barclay

Hi, I’m Amy Barclay. My daughter, Caitlin Cowap, is in grade 3. I’m lucky to love my work as a curator and commissioner of art, and manager of cultural events, through which I’ve become skilled as a creative thinker, writer, speaker, negotiator and project manager. I hold tertiary qualifications in arts practice, history and management and a Master of Cultural Heritage. A certificate in governance for not-for-profits has informed my involvement volunteering on advisory panels for the Victorian State government and Deakin University, plus Monty Primary School Council for the last two years. I’m engaged and motivated by the School’s optimism, values, strong leadership and proactive continual improvement; I’d be delighted to contribute to School Council again. I love any outdoor adventure with family and dog; baking, especially anything chocolate, reading, photography and travel.

Name: Amy Gedge

I have 3 boys at Montmorency PS school in Grades 4, 2 & Foundation. I have always been involved in the school community and local kindergarten in many different capacities. I was also the social representative at our local kindergarten in 2021 where I supported the social and fundraising efforts of the kinder. I have lived in the area over 10 years and worked in a variety of areas, most recently working for myself in the construction industry with a focus on sustainable building practices. I enjoy camping with my family, cycling and have a keen interest in student education and welfare. I would love to be a part of the Committee and can offer my support and guidance on a range of issues including but not limited too; environmental sustainability in the school community, student mental health issues and advocacy for students with additional learning needs.

Name: Jen Currie

I am standing for election because I’m a passionate advocate for government schools and I want to support our school to continue to deliver the best education possible. I’ve worked as a secondary teacher for six years in schools both here and overseas. I now work at the Australian Education Union, which has given me experience in reading policies, and insight into the issues that face schools across Victoria. We are lucky: Monty is a fabulous school with extremely dedicated staff who have fostered a strong community for us all. As a member of the Greenhills Playgroup Committee and the Collingwood Toy Library Committee I have organised successful fundraising activities. I have a son in Grade 1 and another in 3-year-old kinder. My happy place is the beach, where you’ll find me attempting to boogie-board or read a book in between sandcastle-making. I would love to represent you on council.

Covid-SAFE

We want to thank parents and students for the great job they have done in keeping our school as safe as possible by following important COVIDSafe measures such as mask wearing, physical distancing, getting vaccinated and rapid antigen testing.

This has meant that our school has remained open and our students in class. This is a fantastic outcome and a testament to the hard work of parents, carers, students and school staff.

Rapid Antigen Tests

To keep schools as safe as possible, the Victorian Government has extended the COVIDSafe measures introduced for the beginning of Term 1. This includes extending the availability of free rapid antigen tests (RAT) for screening until the end of term. It is anticipated an additional 24 million RATs will be provided to schools and early childhood settings to continue to support early detection and prevent infection, for use at home.

The need for this program will continue to be monitored, and may end earlier based on health advice. This is great news and will mean we’re able to continue identifying COVID-19 cases as early as possible, reducing the impact on our school and individuals.

Department of Health modelling indicates that in the first two weeks of school returning, the program has already prevented more than 21,000 cases in schools alone. Their modelling indicates, assuming a 75 per cent compliance rate with screening of students, that by continuing RAT screening in schools for the full 10 weeks of Term 1, we will prevent:

* 61,000 COVID-19 infections in children aged 5 to 17

* more than 150,000 COVID-19 infections in the overall community (on average 15,000 per week over 10 weeks, or more than 2,100 per day)

* around 400 hospital admissions.

The department will continue to supply RATs to our school for your use. Twice-a-week testing continues to be strongly recommended for both students and staff.

Testing will be conducted at home, and students and staff must continue to report any positive result. There is no requirement to report a negative result.

Have a great weekend - stay safe.

Janene and Bek

Japanese

This week in Japanese: