On Wednesday night, our annual Open Night was held to showcase the school and initiate the enrolment period for Year 7, 2020. It was a wonderful evening, highlighting what a great school we have. A huge thank you to all the staff who organised such engaging activities and also to the large number of students who contributed to the night through demonstrations in classrooms and as tour guides. The enrolment applications are due on Monday 8 April 2019, please make sure you have noted this date as judging by the huge amount of interest in the school on Monday night, we will once again have a lots of interest for Year 7, 2020.

Community

At St Johns we have a strong focus on community and engaging with our parents and friends to enable it to be a rich and diverse community. This tradition has always been very strong and people readily engage at so many levels. Over the last few weeks and in the weeks ahead there have been and will be many opportunities for this engagement. I encourage you to come along, you are always welcome.

We hope you can join us by coming along and helping out at any future opportunities for parent and friend engagements. These may include: the swimming and athletic carnivals, helping on canteen, assisting with exam support and supervision and supporting sporting teams or excursions as required. Volunteering does help you become more connected to our school community.

Attending the Parents and Friends committee meetings is also a wonderful way to connect to the school. Many parents have used this opportunity and attended most meetings as their child moves from Year 7 to Year 12. They have engaged in the activities, been informed by the presentations and enjoyed getting to know other families at St John’s.

Congratulations to our new Parent and Friends committee, such a wonderful group of people who are so willing to support us by sharing their talents and time.

We had a wonderful crew at the working bee on Saturday. There were over 80 people who attended, worked hard and had some fun together. Our school looks amazing from the work they did and hopefully some of us made some new connections with other families. It is always wonderful to see so many of our students at the working bees. They take great pride in their school and they along with the many parents and friends, who over the years have maintained the beautiful grounds in which we live and work each day.

Mass with a Difference - Farwell to Father Duane

Our connection with parish was also celebrated  this week with a wonderful mass ‘with a difference’ to farewell Father Duane. We also had five students receive the sacraments of baptism, confirmation and first Holy Communion. What was also so special about this mass was the large members of the school community who came along. It was a wonderful celebration.

Verdict of Cardinal Pell

Following media reports of the conviction of Cardinal George Pell, a statement has been released by the President of the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference, Archbishop Mark Coleridge, to the Catholic community. Click here to view a copy for your information.

There is no doubt news of this verdict of Cardinal Pell will give rise to a range of emotions and responses. The legal process will now run its course.

We should never forget, that in any matter of this nature our concern and prayers are with victims and their families. Please be assured, that our school system works tirelessly to ensure the safety of every child in our schools, and will continue to do so, as together we share the responsibility for the wellbeing of your children.

If you or your child requires support, please contact the Principal directly or you may also wish to contact the CatholicCare Sydney Parent Line NSW on 1300 1300 52. Concerns of child abuse and crimes must be reported to the relevant authorities which are the NSW Department of Family and Community Services (FaCS) and the Police.

Child Protection personnel at the Catholic Education Office in Wollongong are also available to provide confidential advice and support as required.

Mrs Sandra Hogan
Principal