From the Principal

We acknowledge the Traditional Owners of the land on which our school stands, 

the Wurundjeri people of the Kulin Nation.

Dear Families and Friends,      

First Communion

On Saturday and Sunday, students from Year 4 will celebrate their First Eucharist at one of our Parish Masses:

• Saturday - 6:00 pm
• Sunday - 10:30am Mass and 5:00pm Mass

Please keep these students in your prayers as they continue on their faith journey. 

St Justin’s Feast Day

Yesterday we celebrated the Feast of St Justin, or Justin Martyr. (St Justin’s Feast Day is 1st June) As part of our celebrations, we gathered as a community for Mass in our Parish Church. It was a beautiful celebration and we thank all those who were involved. We also thank the Parents and Friends for providing us with donuts for morning tea.

The Gospel reading on St Justin's Day was from Mark (10:46-52) and told the story of Jesus leaving Jericho with his disciples and a large crowd. Bartimaeus, a blind beggar, called out to Jesus, asking for his sight to be returned. Jesus responds and because of his faith, the blind man regains his sight. 

We pray that amongst the business of our lives that we also hear the call of others in need and respond. Whilst we may not always be able to perform miracles, our support maybe just the thing that is needed. 

Thank you to all who helped make this day special for us all.

Division Cross Country

On Wednesday, 15 students from Years 3-6 represented St Justin's at the Division Cross Country held at Mirrabooka Reserve, Blackburn. These students were running after finishing in the top 12 of the district cross country a couple of weeks ago. 

There were some extremely talented runners on show and our representatives pushed themselves incredibly hard in their respective races. 

A big congratulations to all of our runners;

• Lachlan D, Cristian L and Sienna Z from Year 4. 
• Jesse-Lee D, Valencia V and Ophelia D  from Year 5 and 
• Amelie P, Alisha E, Chiara T, Cristian S, Kai P, Salvatore C and Luca S from Year 6.

A further congratulations goes to Amelie P, Valencia V and Ophelia D for all progressing to the Regional Championships which will be held at Yarra Glen Racecourse in two weeks time! 

Best of luck girls from us all. 

Mr Johnson 

Fair on the Hill Meeting

On Tuesday we had our monthly Fair on the Hill Meeting. It was a great meeting and although we are only small in number, the committee has already done a great deal of work to ensure that our community has a fantastic day, one that we can all be proud of. In coming weeks, we'll be asking families and friends for expressions of interest in sponsorship and/or stall holders. Again, I encourage everyone to get involved - not only is it a great money spinner for our community, but more importantly, it's a great community builder, something that money can not buy.

For more information, please refer to our Fair on the Hill Page in our newsltter.

Nazareth College Musical - Seussical

Last night I had the privilege of attending Nazareth College's Musical Production - Seussical. It was a wonderful presentation showing casing some very talented students, including former St Justin's students. The show is running for two more nights - see the community page for more information.

Enrolment Applications for 2024

We have now begun processing applications for our 2024 Prep intake. If you, or someone you know, require a placement at St Justin’s for 2024 at any year level, could you please notify the office as soon as possible.

Working Bee

Our working bee for this Term will be held this Saturday 3rd May from 9:00am - 12:00pm. There are a variety of tasks to complete, all of which help keep our school safe, tidy and well presented - something I think we are all proud of. We would love to finish at 12:00pm with a sausage sizzle. Again, we encourage everyone to come along, even if only for an hour or two – many hands make light work. 

School Smoking and Vaping Ban

Safety First

Thanks to everyone for making a big effort to use the pathway when walking from the front gate to the school buildings - much appreciated.

Professional Learning Days

Tuesday 13th June, 2023

 Our next Professional Learning Day for this term is on Tuesday 13th June, 2023 (the day after the King's Birthday long weekend) with a focus on preparing for our School Review.

The School Review takes place every four years for all Catholic Schools and has two dimensions: 

1. Improvement: supports self-assessment and reflection of performance and growth in school improvement and informs planning for future growth. 
2. Compliance: an audit/verification process of the minimum standards for school registration and other State and Commonwealth requirements for Catholic schools is conducted for all schools engaging in the process of school review.

Please note that these days are not taken lightly - they are essential for us, in supporting our students at St Justin's. 

Where's  Mr T

Can you find Mr T? He's hiding somewhere in the newsletter.

School Fees

All families will be receiving School Fee progress statements if they have fees still owing. 

It is an expectation that by the end of term one all families will have made at least one payment towards your child/children’s fees and we thank those families who have made payments or have paid in full.

We understand that there are financial pressures and we ask families that are experiencing genuine financial hardship to contact the Office on 9561 7644.  Pat will organise a time to meet with you to look at how we can support your situation whilst still ensuring that all families have access to incursions, excursions, camps and other extra-curricular activities that payment of school fees and levies support.

By families keeping up with payments or organising for assistance this allows us to maintain activities and program we already have in place at St. Justin's. We would greatly appreciate your support in regard to this matter.

Have a great weekend.

All the best,

Pat

Mr Patrick Torpey

Principal