From our Principal 

Dear Parents, Students and Friends,

Our fortnightly schedule of newsletters means that this is the last edition ahead of the Term 2 break. The end of Term 2 is traditionally marked with an exam and peak assessment period culminating in the presentation of the Semester 1 Summative Reports. As well, the changeover of semester occurs and students get the chance to build on learnings gained in Semester 1. The end of Term 2 at St. Peter’s College is also a time where we celebrate our Founders Day – St. Peter’s Day. Sadly our COVID experience has robbed us of any celebration over the past two years but in 2022 it returns. The day will commence with a mass, an opportunity to reflect on the man they call the “Rock”. There is much I have grown to love about Peter with one of his most endearing traits the fact that he was not perfect. He made mistakes. That he was a reflective man enabled him to own mistakes and set about improving himself as a loving Christian. It is that same trait that Jesus saw and one of the reasons that Peter was called upon to be foundational in the building of the “new Church”. Peter was also characterised as someone who questioned Jesus (often), a trait that Jesus himself displayed throughout his short ministry. Jesus as master had many messages for Peter and the disciples, prominent amongst them was our motto, “Be Not Afraid”. This was a message imploring them to trust, believe and go beyond their existing livelihoods to be better people and make the world a better place. So the message to students is this: be foundational in all you undertake, always strive to move beyond your existing capacities by believing, trusting, making mistakes and learning from them. Life lessons can begin in the classroom, and in the learning taking place beyond the classroom.

One of the important traditions surrounding our Founder’s Day is to recognise distinguished service by staff to St. Peter’s College. I congratulate the following staff members for outstanding service to St Peter’s College:

10 Year Service Awards

Jean-Paul Antoine, Julie Banda, George Bassett, Adam Bonnici, Peter Brannan, Carol Carter, Glenn Collings, Naomi Edwards, David Fini, Angela Gargano, Delwyn Gillman, David Lawrence, Debra McKenzie.

20 Year Service Awards

Karen Brewster, Ian Ellwood, Anna Gebbing, Michelle Kollarics, Radha Nadan, Greg Nelson, Rebecca Ramsdale.

School Review

Continuing with our fortnightly snippets of the outcomes of the School Review, the focus this week is again on Learning and Teaching and the second of the recommendations: “Ensure ongoing teacher impact through the precise use of evidence to monitor student progress over time”. Current data sets teachers are using include: Literacy and Numeracy testings including Naplan and PAT testing. VCE results are dissected and trends identified and of course, there are the formative assessments that are set throughout the semester and year. Another data set which is scrutinised heavily is attendance records. This year, as part of our current School Improvement Plan, the College has launched a new Data platform which will be able to drill down even further to the class and individual student level to help teachers plan for, and deliver learning in the classroom. Targets and outcomes will be prioritised and timelines set. Targets will need to be ambitious, realistic and measurable. I look forward to presenting these targets at a future date and ahead of the launch of the 2023 School Improvement Framework. 

Mid-Year Reports

At the conclusion of Semester 1 summative reports are issued. The date of release of these is 24 June 2022. I urge parents to be alert to correspondence in the next week giving instruction as to how to access these. The purpose of these reports is to determine progress to date.  It is a point in time report providing the opportunity for parents to discuss their students progress to date, to celebrate the achievements to date, and reflect on areas for further improvement. Where the need arises, I strongly encourage parents to make contact with subject teachers to seek clarification and guidance regarding the progress.

Child Safety

As reported previously, a revised set of National Child Safety standards come into effect on July 1st this year. As a secondary college within the Diocese of Sale we are committed to providing a safe and nurturing culture for all our students. This can be evidenced through three commitment statements. At St. Peter’s College we are committed to:

1. Upholding the primacy of the safety and wellbeing of children and young people.
2. Empowering families, children, young people and staff to have a voice and raise concerns.
3. Implementing rigorous risk-management and employment practices.

Please click here for a copy of the Commitment Statement to Child Safety.

High Achiever

Congratulations to Sage Kelly who recently received an award all the way from Germany for her original song ’Grow Up!’ after being in the top 3 for 4 consecutive weeks on the Indie Fam Charts.

You can access the song on Spotify at the following link: 

https://open.spotify.com/track/0twTgUyPeWLMRDI17iF7Lt?si=D1qeHu8AQ5ufFFSXjcabjg 

Please Note: 11 July 2022 is a student-free day

Enjoy the week ahead and travel gently.

Mr Chris Black

Principal