Welcome to Week 6 of the school year and the halfway point of Lent for 2021.

In the last newsletter I wrote about the Clarity project and our staff’s efforts to ensure that your sons and daughters are focussed on their learning and have a clear understanding of how they can be successful in their learning.  A major contributor to any student’s feelings of self-worth and success is that they have a strong belief in themselves as being a capable learner, be able to work hard and “figure out” the problems a teacher may challenge them to solve.

In my most recent “check-in” with our Year 7 cohort of 2021, I was delighted to learn that they feel very much at home and are enjoying the challenges and changes that secondary school has offered them over the past six weeks.  The group has very much appreciated the opportunity to meet new friends, work with a variety of teachers and collaborate in a number of different learning environments.  The group of Year 7 students I interviewed this week have enjoyed being responsible for their own learning, have felt supported as they have learnt how best to find their way around the school, operate their personal devices and… “do things differently from last year.”  My thanks to Year 7 students Nina Davy, Cornell Estibeiro, Jade Parvin, Ruby Polson, Grace Randall and Ben Wright, for their thoughts and advice and I wish all Year 7 students well on their school camp at Lutanda, Toukley Wednesday, 10 March to Friday, 12 March.

While our Year 7 students are enjoying their camp, St Clare’s will again host primary school students from the Manning who are gifted in the arts to a two day ASPIRE Arts workshop facilitated by ASPIRE project coordinator Anna Kerrigan and teachers of the arts from across the Diocese.  The program offers the opportunity for students and teachers with a diverse range of skills and backgrounds to learn and collaborate together as they write and produce a performance over two days.  My thanks to all the students and staff from across our region and to Anna and her team for their work on the young people’s behalf.

St Clare’s was very well represented by School Vice-Captain Edie Gillis, School Captain Patrick Guthridge and WenYuan LimSchneider at the annual Taree Lion’s Youth of the Year competition.  I will leave the reader to discover the eventual winner by reading Tim Masters, Year 12 Pastoral Coordinator’s entertaining report which can be found a little further into this newsletter!

I am delighted to announce that all our students will have the opportunity to hear a truly inspiring message from guest speaker John Coutis.  John is a motivational speaker on topics such as resilience, bullying and goal setting.  Students are invited to listen to the story of this remarkable Australian who was born with a severe physical disability in which doctors gave him little chance of survival.  John has not only defied medical opinion, he has thrived and is acknowledged as one of the world’s most inspirational speakers.

Without the lower part of his body, John embraces a full and positive life.  He rolls around on his custom skateboard and uses humour to communicate some of life’s most important lessons.  John has delivered his inspirational message to over 6 million people around the world, speaking at events to complement former US President Bill Clinton, global entrepreneur Richard Branson, former British Prime Minister Tony Blair and the late Steven Covey and former South African President Nelson Mandela.  In 2020, John was recognised with an esteemed Order of Australia Medal (OAM) from the Queen of England for his services to the Australian community.

Recently the St Clare’s executive was authorised by the Catholic Schools Office to undertake a full school uniform review.  The timeline, process and procedure for the review will be published early in Term 2.  We would expect the process to carry well into 2022 as we consult widely with students, parents and staff into all aspects of the uniform which has not had a comprehensive review for over 10 years.

A reminder that Year 7 2022 Enrolments are open.  Enrolment packages are available from the front office.  Please complete and return the enrolment form by 22 March and provide the information as outlined on the check list. 

God bless

Peter Nicholls
Principal