Mrs Jenna Hogan - Long Service Leave

Jenna will be taking a period of LSL from Friday, 20 June through to Friday, 1 August. This is a well earned time to refresh and re-energise (as well as catch up with her daughters in Europe!).

Sacrament of Confirmation

Last week, Bishop Brian Mascord visited our parish to confer the Blessed Sacrament of Confirmation. 44 students from Year 6 received the Holy Spirit into their lives. This was a very special occasion and one which our students will remember for the very long time.

Multicultural Mass

Last Sunday. Fr Duane celebrated the annual Multicultural Mass for our parish. Instigated a few years ago to reflect the multicultural community in which we live, this celebration has continued to grow. This year, many families took the opportunity to dress in their National Costume, read prayers in their native language, share food derived from their culture and offered up recipes and stories from their past. The Burmese community, once again, sang the Reflection Hymn in their own language with beautiful harmonies. To finish off the Mass, Mrs Jenna Hogan, as only Jenna can, gathered the St Therese students on the altar, taught the congregation our Harmony Day song (with clapping percussion) and then led the singing and playing, along with students on percussion instruments, for our final hymn. It was truly a beautiful Mass and gathering and one which we would love to see grow each year.

Parent Teacher Learning Conversations

These will occur for most classes over the next two weeks.Students, where possible, should be part of these conversations as it is all about their learning. Regardless of the grades awarded, all learning should be seen as a celebration. Students start at different points along the learning continuum and have varying interests and academic aptitude - please don’t compare children. Discover their strengths and learn about the great effort they are putting into their learning every day at school.

Emailing Staff

Parents are reminded that all emails should be directed to the info@stwwdow.catholic.edu.au address as this is checked numerous times throughout the day. These emails can then be triaged and sent to the most appropriate staff member. Teachers rarely check emails during the day and important messages can be missed if not channelled through the office.

Staff Development Day (Pupil Free)

As stated previously, Monday, 21 July will be a Staff Development Day. Learning on this day will continue our focus on improving the Maths outcomes for all of our students.

Kiss & Collect Name Signs

If you have lost, never received or need an additional, family name sign to display through Kiss & Collect (drive through student pick-up), please call or email the office.

James Carey visit Thursday 5th June, 2025

We shared another great day together on Thursday with James Carey. Stage 2 and 3 students were the lucky ones to share time with James - singing together, listening to his story so far, getting life updates, asking questions - and getting the answers….all in all, being inspired!

James is an inspiration to us all. James’ passion is music - all things music, but in particular, musical theatre. James has starred in the film “Over”. He and his team are heading to the USA in two weeks to “walk the orange carpet” in Hollywood having won a national award at Flickerfest earlier this year. Yes, that’s right, James will be in L.A. !!

James has just finished a successful season with Black Cat Theatre in Warrawong with the production of “Little Shop of Horrors”. This was his first “yes” in a long line of “no”. James talked to our students about his resilience, persistence, hard work and focus on his goals. The word “no” was not going to stop James trying. It only made him hungrier..

James is his own advocate and speaks proudly of living with his disability. James was diagnosed with Kabuki Syndrome at a very young age but with the extraordinary support of his parents and community, James has thrived, doing life his way. 

We look forward to our next catch up with James, singing his signature Frank Sinatra tune,”My Way”. Now we know for whom it was truly written.

Jenna Hogan

Attendance

Changes to the CEDoW Attendance Policy have been flagged a number of times this year. Essentially, unless children are sick, most other absences will be recorded as Not Approved. This isn’t to say students can’t have the leave but the emphasis is now on the fact that students should be at school every possible day that they can. An average attendance of above 90% is the goal for every child. 

Mobile Phones / Smart Watches

Minor Head Injuries

Further updates in Compass now allow for minor injuries to the head of a student be relayed to parents via SMS. These injuries are assessed as usual in the office and if deemed ‘minor’, an SMS will be sent. As usual, if deemed more significant, a parent will be contacted via a phone call. This process will free up a lot of time for office staff having to look up phone numbers and individually call parents. By minor injuries, we are looking at a soft ball bouncing on their head or lightly bumping a head on another child’s shoulder. If there is a significant bump on concrete or other hard surface, or head clash with another student, parents will always be contacted via phone.