From the Principal 

Dear Families, 

Welcome back kids: It was so great to see the Year 3 & 4’s yesterday and today and I’m looking forward to seeing the senior kids back tomorrow and Friday. Let’s try to get routines back in place, be at school ready to learn at 9am!!! Spread out and physically distant on drop offs and pick ups. Remember we still have the Prep - 2’s onsite too so it’ll be a little bit busier. Don’t forget your SunSmart hats!

Camp Australia: Reach out to Jo and the team if you require supervision before and after school. 

Announcements: Last week the Andrew’s Government made more announcements in line with directions from the Chief Health Officer. These announcements have elicited various responses within our community (and no doubt across Victoria) and are directives that we as a school do not make but are expected to follow. I understand that some people will feel frustrated or may not want to follow the directives but I ask you to direct your concerns to your GP, local member or the government itself. Being a government school, we are expected to follow the directions given. 

We also have community members who will welcome the directives too. It is important that we respect each other even if we have differing points of view. At the end of the day, the staff at OGPS are here to help your kids grow and develop. When more information about the directives comes through, I will communicate it as quickly as possible. 

Interviews: Last week saw the start of numerous interviews as part of the process for securing staff for 2022. It is a challenging situation for all candidates and busy time for the panel too. Thanks to Kristy, Jake and Cindy for working on this important job with me. This is on top of their normal workload and is greatly appreciated. Upon completion of the processes, we will announce our 2022 staff. Still loads of work to do! 

Industrial action: During the last 11 months the Australian Education Union (AEU) have tried to negotiate the next ‘Agreement’ for teachers. Unfortunately, it hasn’t been progressing as well as anticipated and it appears the AEU have lodged a protected action ballot. Some of their actions will take place from next week and it is unclear how long they will last or what exactly the actions will involve. No doubt you will hear about this in the media over the next few weeks. 

Geelong Cup Public Holiday: Next Wednesday is a gazetted public holiday for the City of Greater Geelong (COGG) for the Geelong Cup. Other LGA’s have the Melbourne Cup public holiday but schools within the COGG have next Wednesday 20th as the public holiday. 

Please Note: Camp Australia will be closed on Wednesday 20th October for the public holiday. 

Middle School Leaders: What a great bunch of middle school leaders we have! On Tuesday I spent some more time with them and finally presented them with their badges. Such an interrupted year but these kids have shown great leadership and will continue to make OGPS an even better place. 

Playground: I am looking forward to sharing some of the plans for the Inclusive Schools Playground very soon. This will be located up near the bike shed where the old chook shed is! Also, the north west corner will be getting a makeover too! The middle school leaders helped discuss playground options last term with kids and we will see the final design soon. 

Have a great week everyone.

Scott McCumber

Principal