Wellbeing 

Dear Parents/Guardians,

As we enter Week 4 of Term 1, I am very pleased to say that the year has continued to progress smoothly for all staff and students. There has been a very positive vibe each day and it is fantastic to see the students arriving with big smiles on their faces and interacting with staff and peers throughout the course of the day.

Strategic Directions 2023

For the benefit of all members of the Academy Community, I thought it would valuable to very briefly outline the strategic directions for Student Wellbeing and College Operations for 2023. 

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Parents are most welcome to get in touch with me if you require any clarification around these directions.

Year 7 Camp

The Year 7 cohort along with 12 staff headed off to Don Bosco in Safety Beach on Wednesday 8 February for their 3-day camp. The weather was perfect, and the students all had an extremely enjoyable time, participating in activities designed to assist with their transition from primary school to secondary school, allow them to meet other girls and commence to make important friendship connections. The activities were also designed to challenge the students, take them out of their comfort zones a little and build some resilience as well as their problem-solving skills. I would like to acknowledge and thank all staff that attended, and in particular, Year 7 Wellbeing Leader, Dr. Bryce Dermody for her meticulous organisation and planning to ensure the camp went off without a hitch. 

Photos

Elite School Photography attended the Academy on Wednesday 15th February for our annual Photo Day. Details of how to order photos were sent to all families a fortnight ago. We will be having a Photo Catch Up Day on the afternoon of Tuesday 28th February for any students who were absent yesterday. 

Anaphylaxis

Given that we have quite a few students here at the College who have anaphylaxis, we urge parents/guardians to take great care with what food products you provide your daughters. Please be aware that certain foods, particularly nuts, can cause severe and potentially harmful reactions to others. Please familarise yourself with College wellbeing, contacts and policy around this important issue.

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Operoo

If you have not already done so, we ask that you create an Operoo profile for your daughter. The sooner we have your daughter on the system, the more information we have in ensuring her safety and wellbeing. Please understand that without this profile and associated permission, students cannot attend excursions that have been planned for their class.

Parent’s Association Meeting

Monday 27 February

It is an opportunity to continue an ongoing partnership between the College and the parents of the students in our care. I once again invite parents/guardians to play an active and crucial part at Academy.

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Child Safety

Child safety continues to be a key focus for the College in 2023 and I would like to refer parents/guardians to the Child Safety Policy on the College website.

Within the ‘Guiding Principles’ of the policy it states that, “Catholic schools have a moral, legal and mission-driven responsibility to create nurturing school environments where children and young people are respected, their voices are heard and they are safe and feel safe (CECV Commitment to Child Safety).

Within the framework of this policy is an adherence to the Victorian Child Safe Standards as follows.

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While we believe that the College, in its practices and protocols, meets all of the above Standards, an overall essential component of Child Safety is a student’s capacity to respond to incidents which may threaten their own safety. To that end, I would also like to inform you that, in the coming weeks, I will be giving a presentation to all year levels, focusing on recognising unsafe situations and avenues available for responding and reporting these situations as well as reporting abuse. This presentation has already occurred with the Year 7 & Year 10 students.

I would also ask parents/guardians to encourage their daughters to report any incidents when travelling to and from the College, where a member of the public makes them feel unsafe. Reporting such incidents is important in ensuring that the relevant authorities are informed and appropriate action is taken to ensure the safety of not only our students, but also other members of the public. 

House Swimming Carnival

As communicated to families via email last week, the House Swimming Carnival was scheduled to take place on Friday 24 February, but unfortunately as we have been unable to secure buses for staff and student transportation, this event has been rescheduled to Tuesday 7 March. We have contacted approximately 12 bus companies and all provided similar reasons with regards to the lack of availability of buses: not enough drivers as they left the industry during COVID and a high number of buses are being used to replace trains due to level crossing works. An updated Operoo asking for permission for your daughter to attend on this new date will be sent shortly.

Don't forget to check our community page for College and community events, including Parents Association's 'International Women's Day Breakfast'.

As always, please never hesitate to get in touch with me if you have any questions or concerns.

Mr Sam Di Camillo

Deputy Principal, Wellbeing & Operations