Dear Parents,

I am pleased to report that after three weeks at school, students and staff have all settled in beautifully to the new school year. There is a calmness in the school that has not existed since preCovid19 times. The optimism and goodwill is very evident in staff, students and families. Congratulations again on the way the students are arriving at school each day. 

On Friday 12 February, all students from Years 1-6 participated in a liturgy in the school hall and were joined by a number of families. All Year 6 students received their leadership badge, and specific students received badges for School Captain, Prefect or Colour Captain. The year has commenced very well for this group of Year 6 students and I know their leadership skills will continue to flourish as the year goes on. Parents of these Year 6 students should be very proud of the fine young people who have accepted the privilege of being a leader at St Michael’s school. We are going to have a great year!

Our Parents and Friends group met on Monday evening at 6pm this week. It was also the Annual General Meeting. I would like to formally thank the outgoing members of the executive committee, Sophie Pavlis, Kylie Plant, Rachelle Moore and Lisa Owens. These parents have worked tirelessly over the last few years, despite the challenges of COVID19 and continued to be your voice as well as provide funds for the school. Thank you especially to Sophie Pavlis who has been on the executive committee for the last nine years. Congratulations to the following office bearers for 2023.

This new committee will be meeting very soon to further a number of initiatives that were  raised during the meeting. It was also a Zoom meeting for four parents who chose this option. I encourage all parents to attend these meetings or Zoom in. Details of the next meeting will be shared with you soon. 

Today our first Primary Assembly was held. Congratulations to the students who received badges which were blessed by Father Joseph last week. These badges were presented to the new members of the Student Representative Council (SRC), Year 6 Mini Vinnies members and our Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students. The usual class awards were presented to various students in Years 3-6 and all students were thanked for a great start to the new school year. Assemblies will occur on Fridays: Primary students in even weeks and Infants students in odd weeks. There will be an Infants (Kindergarten, Year 1 and Year 2) assembly next Friday (Week 5). All families are invited to attend.

All students will learn about Shrove Tuesday (21 February) next week. Shrove Tuesday is the day before Ash Wednesday, the beginning of Lent in the Roman Catholic Church. Shrove Tuesday is a reminder that Christians are entering a season of penance and was originally a solemn day. 

On Ash Wednesday (22 February) all students will receive ashes on their forehead to signify the start of Lent. Students in Kindergarten will have prayer in their classroom and receive ashes by their teachers. Years 5 and 6 will attend the Parish mass at 9am. Any parents may attend this 9am mass and receive the ashes. Students in Year 1-4 will have a liturgy in the hall led by the staff. They will receive the ashes from their teachers. During the next 7 weeks, the students will learn about Lent and the Easter Holy Week.

From Week 7, each grade will be on a roster to attend mass in St Michael's Church at 9am. Parents are invited to join their children at these grade masses in the Church. A Compass alert will be sent to all families informing them of when each grade mass will occur. Last year, many families joined the parishioners and students for these masses. 

Early next week, all families will receive through Compass a ‘Grade Newsletter’ which will give an overview of the term. On Tuesday 28 February from 3.15-5pm, students and parents will be invited to visit the classrooms to meet their teachers for 2023. This will be an informal gathering and families can drop in anytime between 3.15 and 5.00pm. These gatherings will not be a formal opportunity to have an indepth meeting with your child’s teacher, though you may wish to book an individual time to meet on another day. All of our teachers are excited to meet you. At any time during the year, requests for parent teacher meetings can be made through the school office. Thank you teachers for this informal opportunity. 

Next Wednesday the school will be hosting the POWER FM radio show under the COLA on the back playground. The show will commence at 6am, however students and families are welcome to attend from 7am. ‘Abby and Riley’ will be broadcasting live from the school and will be conducting interviews with students and others. Fruit will be provided as well as some games and fun. Students will move to classes when the usual bell goes at 8.40am. At 9am, the Year 5 and 6 students will attend mass in the Church. 

At the end of last year, Mrs Martine Mathieson, our Religious Education Coordinator (REC) and I were invited to represent the Wollongong Diocese at the Religious Congress in Los Angeles from 21-28 February 2023. Four other schools were also invited to attend. Mr Marshall (Principal) and Mr Comensoli (REC) from St John’s Nowra will be attending as well. Attending this Congress, which has been held since 1954, is a great privilege and a wonderful opportunity to witness what is happening in the teaching of Religious Education in other parts of the world. We are looking forward to representing the Wollongong Diocese and being immersed in the rich Spirituality of the Congress. We fly out next Tuesday morning and will both return to school in early March. While I am attending the congress, Mrs Carolyn Rutkowski will be Acting Principal. I thank Carolyn for accepting this role.

The dismissal from school each afternoon is going well. Just a reminder that school finishes at 3pm for all students, though those who catch buses leave the classrooms at 2.55pm. Teachers are not able to allow all other students to leave the classrooms until the 3pm bell, unless written permission is given by the Principal. 

Yours in Faith and Virtue,

Christopher Paton

Principal