Dear Parents and Carers,

Welcome to Term 4. I hope you managed to have a safe school holiday period where you were able to get into some sort of energy credit. This term is always a busy one with reports, Kinder Orientation, meeting new teachers, our fete, Christmas and end-of-year events, to name a few. This term will certainly go very quickly.

Thank you for the lovely well wishes I received while I was away on Paternity leave. My wife and I welcomed our son Oisin (Pronounced ‘Oh-Sheen’ of Gaelic origin and meaning ‘Little Dear’) mid-way through last term. I thank the staff, particularly Mrs McArthur, Mrs Thomas and Ms Radanovich, for taking on higher duties and providing excellent leadership and management of the school. I am blessed to have these outstanding leaders in the school, which allowed me to enjoy this special time with my family.

Boorowa Touch and Netball

After a hiatus of several years due to weather events and COVID-19, we will participate in the Boorowa Touch and Netball carnival next week. I want to thank our Sports Coordinator Laura Hay for her organisation of the carnival. I would also like to thank the team of teachers who have volunteered to attend the carnival. Without these dedicated teachers attending and supporting our students, this carnival would not be able to operate. Thank you also to the parents who have volunteered to manage and coach on the day. This is also a pivotal and often overlooked role vitally important to our teams' viability. We will have more than 100 students representing the school next, which is a great turnout. I wish all teams the best as they compete at this event and proudly represent our school.

Registration Panel

Next week, I will be away from school on Wednesday and Thursday to be a member of the registration panel for another archdiocesan Catholic school. Every 5 years, all schools undergo a registration process to ensure compliance, quality assurance and make recommendations to assist the school in refining their ongoing improvement journey. Principals are asked to be a part of this process once every 5 years to maintain currency and knowledge of the registration process to assist their own school in this process. St Francis is next up for registration in 2026.

Yr 3/4 block Renovation

We have begun the final fit-out, carpeting and joinery on our Yr. 3/4 block. Our scheduled handover is set for 30th October and we will aim to have students into these classrooms as soon as possible. The move back into these rooms will be relatively straightforward as the spaces will be fully furnished. Students and teachers will effectively only move personal items and teaching resources back into the new rooms. Our furniture is onsite and ready to be deployed in rooms once final fit out is complete. The end is insight!

ELC update

A very exciting week for our ELC, with the Director and Office Manager officially joining the team. We welcome Gabe Adams and Dipti Rathod to the St Francis community and wish them a long and happy association with the school. In the coming weeks, parents will be contacted about booking interviews with Gabe as the first step in our orientation process. The building is also at a significant milestone, with the bricklayers putting up walls this week. We expect a window delivery next week and should be at or close to the lockup stage in the next couple of weeks.

Fete

Our Bi-Annual fete is fast approaching, and I thank all parents for supporting this fundraising and community-building event. Please keep the evening of the 17^th of November free to come along and experience the community atmosphere, great rides, stalls and competitions at our fete.

Classes for 2024

Shortly, we will begin the process of examining class lists for 2024. As you can imagine, this is quite a complex process and I have included some of the considerations teachers, as professionals, consider when looking at placements. When forming the class lists, the following factors are taken into consideration for all students:

• Additional Needs
• Work Habits
• Cognitive ability
• Friendships
• Behaviour
• Gender
• Health considerations
• Religion (to assist in achieving a balance between classes, especially in Sacramental years)
• Common names

Ideally, we aim for a balanced and equal spread of both positive and challenging characteristics. Where practical, parental requests based on genuine educational concerns will be considered.

Parents who wish to discuss particular concerns regarding the placement of their children in specific classes should put their concerns in writing and address them to me via email by Friday, 3^rd November, Week 4 (Term 4). All Parent concerns with genuine educational considerations will be examined and seriously considered during the process. However, it must be clearly understood that there is no guarantee that these can be honoured.

Blessings and best wishes

Sean Rutledge

Principal