Principal's Report

Bereavement  

Sadly during the week, we learnt of the passing of former Principal of St John’s, Brother Kevin Moloney.  Brother Kevin was a wonderful leader of our school who passed away peacefully surrounded by his family.  He had several Principal roles at Lasallian schools including St James Bentleigh and St Bede Mentone as well leading our school from 1983 to 1987.  Br Kevin joined the novitiate in 1954, the beginning of a faith journey which saw him commit more than 60 years of his life to the service of Lasallian Communities around Australia.  St John’s Regional College will be represented at the celebration of his life which will take place at St Patrick’s Church Mentone on Monday 21 March at 11.00 am.

We pray in thanksgiving for Kevin’s life, for his eternal rest and for the comfort of his family and all those who were honoured to know him. 

Catholic Education Week

13–20 March 2022 

This year, all Catholic schools in the Archdiocese of Melbourne celebrated Catholic Education Week from 13 to 20 March.  The theme for Catholic Education Week 2022 is ‘The Way of the Gospel’.  This theme is based on Archbishop Peter A Comensoli’s 2021 Pastoral Letter which we have also adopted as our College theme this year. 

There are 335 Catholic primary and secondary schools across Melbourne, enrolling more than 150,000 students and employing approximately 17,000 staff.  Catholic schools provide a high-quality education in a faith-centred environment.  This annual event is held to promote the special ethos of Catholic schools and to highlight the great things that take place in Catholic schools every day.   On Thursday, Director of Faith & Mission Tim Swan and Faith & Mission Captains Jethmi Almeida and Chris Kelly attended Mass at St Patrick's Cathedral with many other Catholic schools from across Melbourne to celebrate Catholic Education Week.

As part of our celebration of Catholic Education week, our student lead Social Justice Committee held a Green fundraiser on St Patrick's Day the 17th of March.  Focusing on the sale of all things green, including cupcakes and lime green spider drinks , our Social Justice committee was able to raise funds to support CARITAS projects  in local and international communities .  

Primary Principals & Parish Priests Lunch – 10th of March    

On Thursday the 10th of March the Parish Priests and Primary Principals connected to St Johns Regional College celebrated the start of the school year with a luncheon in our Graduates Restaurant.  As a Regional College, St John’s is owned by the parishes of St Mary's, St Paul Apostle, Resurrection, St Anthony’s and  St Kevin’s and therefore the educational and community partnerships between our schools is very important in the development of the young people in our local parishes. 

We look forward to working with our primary schools and supporting their science and literacy programs throughout the year as well as providing access to our new sporting facilities which will play host to the St Paul Apostle North school sports later this term. 

Evacuation Drill 9th March  

As part of our Emergency Management Protocols students and staff are required to practice an emergency lockdown and evacuation drill twice a year.  This gives all new members of our community the opportunity to familiarise themselves with these important processes should the need arise.  Our drill on the 9th of March took approximately 15 minutes to evacuate the entire school population and I congratulate all members of the community for the calm and purposeful way the drill was completed.  A second impromptu drill will take place later this year to test our completion of the drill without prior notice or warning. 

Congratulations Aaron Bailey  

Well done to Aaron Bailey for his achievement on being recognised in the National Teacher-Artist Prize 2022 competition.  The National Teacher-Artist Prize was established to reward teachers by celebrating the value and quality of their individual art practice, supporting both their professional teaching practice and personal growth needs.  The prize is a recognition of those who foster rich learning environments within school communities and promote the fundamental importance of the arts in children’s education.  The prize aspires to be one of the most valuable events on the art and education calendar, being the only dedicated art prize for educators in the world. 

Aaron's work has made the finals shortlist and you can see his work and show your support by voting  for it through the link below: 

https://www.zartart.com.au/zartstatic/page/national-teacher-artist-prize  

Staffing  

I advise that staff member Ms Sally Taylor will be leaving St John’s after many years of fine service.  Ms Taylor has been a wonderful teacher in our Hospitality department running the VET Certificate for Hospitality out of the Graduates' Restaurant over the last 10 years. She will be missed, and we wish her well in her retirement. 

Learning Support Officer Mr Markos Spyrou will be leaving St John’s to start his teaching career at Gleneagles College.  Mr Spyrou has been studying for his Education Degree while working at St John’s and we wish him well on the commencement of his teaching career.  

St John’s School Tours - Enrolment Applications for 2023 & 2024 

Our next open evening will take place on the 24th of March at 6:00pm. This is an opportunity for parents and new families to hear from senior staff and take a tour of our educational facilities. You can book a place by contacting our College reception on 9791 3366 or via the try bookings link on our school website.  All enquiries are to be directed to our school Registrar Ms Symone Goodwin. 

Interim Reports & Parent Teacher Interviews 

We look forward to meeting face to face with our parents for our Term 1 interviews.  The last time we were able to do this was in late 2019 (pre-Covid) so it will be exciting to welcome new parents into our community.  Interim reports will be available on our learning management system SEQTA next week in the lead up to Parent Teacher Interviews.  The interviews will have a focus on teacher feedback regarding student progress to date and the important next steps for their learning in Term 2. 

Parent Teacher Interviews will take place on Thursday 7 March, (students will finish classes at lunchtime on this day) and Friday 8 March  (student free day) to complete the end of Term 1. 

Harmony Day Invitation – March 24th  

On March 24th we will be celebrating Harmony Day under the theme: Where everyone belongs. The day will include an assembly at 10:00am that all parents are invited to and features the Fire Carrying Ceremony and a celebration of our Polynesian cultures through dance. Students, Staff and Guests are all invited to attend in cultural costume.