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Dear Parents
Welcome to the new school year with all its hidden joys and challenges. 2025 has very quickly come upon us following what has hopefully been a restful and enjoyable summer break. As we set out once again on a new year of learning, I invite you to share in the gift of what lies ahead.
May the school year ahead, see staff and parents in genuine partnership in our collective roles in education.
God, our Father,
we ask that Your Spirit be a constant
influence in the lives of all who make up
our school community this year.
Help our students to be discerning, so
that the outcomes of their choices will be
in accord with Christian values. Amen.
WELCOME
In a special way, I would like to welcome all those who are new to the family of St Joseph’s School community. My prayer and hope for you is that your association with the school will be long and lasting, and one filled with many memorable memories. May your settling in be a gentle one.
MyCE – PARENT APP - Our School Mobile App: Stay Updated and Engaged
To get started, simply download the app from [App Store Link/ Google Play Link] and sign in with your Parent Portal login and password. Should you have any questions or need assistance, please don't hesitate to contact us.
Features found include:
- Absentee Notification: Log an absence from your mobile. Individual or multiple student absences with the click of a button.
- Newsletters & Targeted News just for you: Stay informed with our digital newsletters and targeted news feature, ensuring you never miss out on any important information.
- Instant Access to Parent Slips: Say goodbye to misplaced permission slips. With MyCE, you can now digitally access and respond to all Parent Slips, ensuring timely responses and no more lost slips or missed emails!
- Academic Reports at Your Fingertips: Access your child’s academic reports anytime, anywhere. Monitor their progress and stay involved in their academic journey. Two years of reports available.
- School Contact Directory: Need to get in touch with a teacher, administrator, or department? Our school contact directory is just a tap away!
- School Events Calendar: From sports events, school community events and cultural programs to holiday schedules – our integrated events calendar ensures you’re always in the loop.
- Security First: Our application is not just user-friendly but also secure. We prioritise the safety of our community’s data with enterprise-level security measures in place.
NEXT NEWSLETTER
Our next newsletter will be published in Week 2 – Tuesday, 4 February
OFFICE HOURS
The school office is open for business this week, except for Friday 24 January due to professional learning off site for all staff.
OPEN CLASSROOMS - Stationery drop off
To assist families, classrooms will be open on Thursday, 23 January from 8:30am until 9:00am. Books and other classroom belongings can be brought into your child’s new classroom during this time.
UNIFORM SHOP
Mrs Lee will be available for uniform sales tomorrow - Wednesday, 22 January and again on Thursday, 23 January from 8:30am to 4:00pm.
SCHOOL 2025
School commences on Wednesday, 29 January. A reminder that Monday, 27 January is a public holiday, and Tuesday, 28 January is a student free day.
A COFFEE VAN will be on site for the first two days of our school year – Wednesday, 29 January & Thursday, 30 January – 8:30 – 9:30am. Why not pop into school, have a coffee and catch up with old and new friends.
TUCKSHOP 2025
A reminder to families that our tuckshop will be open for business from Wednesday 5 February (Week 2).
STUDENT TOILET REFURBISHMENT UPDATE
We are excited to share that the refurbishment of our school amenities began in December and is progressing as planned. Although the project may not be completely finished by next Wednesday, some of our student toilets will be available for use.
We appreciate your understanding as we work to enhance our facilities.
FINALLY… I pray that our 2025 year be filled with good thoughts, kind people, happy moments and unexpected blessings.
I look forward to catching up with you in the coming weeks.
Rita Petersen
Welcome to the 2025 school year!
My role in the school as the APRE - Assistant to the Principal - Religious Education, is to assist the Principal Mrs Petersen to manage the religious life of the school here at St Joseph’s. This includes the Religious Education curriculum taught in the classrooms as well as coordinating the prayer and liturgical celebrations for our school which supports our Catholic Identity.
Mercy Charism
Our school was established by the Sisters of Mercy in 1923 and has been educating students from across the Tablelands for over 100 years. Sometimes, you might hear the phrase “charism of our school.” So, what does this mean?
A Catholic Christian school like ours, draws upon the rich heritage of spiritual gifts used for the service of the whole community. The central influence on the charism of any school is the person of Jesus Christ. All charisms seek to provide a pathway through which a school community might interpret and give voice to the centrality of Jesus Christ. A school can also draw inspiration and direction from the stories of the founding religious congregation and the patron saint on which the school was named.
Therefore, “charism” can be viewed as the spiritual energy that permeates a particular school based on the significant people, values and stories in the school’s history and how they exemplified particular gifts of the spirit in living out the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Our school is influenced by our Mercy tradition and our Patron Saint Joseph. Students will learn what it means to be a “Mercy” school and about the founder of the Sisters of Mercy, Catherine McAuley. If you hear us talking about “The Mercy Way @ SJA” that is where it comes from.
St Joseph
We can also recognise the wonderful gift that our patron Saint Joseph brings to the charism of our school. Although the bible tells us very little about St Joseph, it is enough for us to appreciate what sort of father he was, and the mission entrusted to him by God.
Pope Francis describes Saint Joseph as a beloved, tender, and obedient father; an accepting father; a father who is creatively courageous, a working father, and a father in the shadows.
St Joseph’s School Prayer
Do you know the words to our St Joseph’s School Prayer? Our new staff and students will receive a bookmark with our patron saint, St Joseph, on the front and our school prayer on the back.
We pray our school prayer each week on assembly and the words of this prayer are really important to us. It tells everyone why we look after and care for each other in our school family.
In 2025 the universal Church will celebrate a year of Jubilee with the theme, “Pilgrims of Hope”.
Jubilee years find their roots in the Jewish tradition. In the Scriptures, Moses prescribed a time of Jubilee for the Jewish people allowing them a year of rest from their labours, an opportunity to return to their families, to receive a remission of their debts and for slaves, liberation (Leviticus 25:10-14).
In the history of the Catholic Church, the frequency of Jubilee Years – or Holy Years as they are often called – has changed over time. At first, they were celebrated every 100 years, then 50 years and since 1470 every 25 years. Successive popes have also chosen to have “extraordinary” Holy Years to commemorate or highlight a significant theme for our Church, for example, the Year of Mercy in 2015.
Jubilee Years are opportunities for transformation. When a theme for a Jubilee is offered, Catholics are invited to enter deeply into that theme through prayer and reflection, formation and missionary action.
I look forward to seeing everyone when we return next week.
God bless,
Mary MacCallum
If you are keen to be a volunteer helper in school tuckshop
contact the office on 4095 9000
Uniform Shop Opening Hours
Tuesday and Thursday mornings between 8.15am – 8.45am.
Outside of these times by appointment only.
Online ordering of school uniforms is available via Flexischools. Order online at anytime. Orders will be packed on the next available Tuesday or Thursday morning and given to your child.
For all uniform information please contact:
Tricia Lee – plee@cns.catholic.edu.au
