Dear Parents/Carers & Friends of St Clare’s

Welcome to Term 2 2022.

I hope our first newsletter of the term finds you and your family fit and well.  Many thanks to Mr Phil Gibney for his wonderful work as St Clare’s Principal during my absence and to the executive team of Theresa Avery, Marian Parvin, Jason Koenig and all our staff for their persistence and resilience during very trying times.  My thanks also to parents and students for their continued support of the school as we work through the disruptions the COVID pandemic continues to inflict on our community.

ANZAC Day occupies a special place in Australian History and I was delighted to see strong support from our school community at the Taree march on 25 April.  The support of our students was much appreciated and I thank parents who made the time to drive their sons and daughters to Taree so they could participate in the march.

The 25 April celebration was followed by a whole school assembly on Wednesday, 27 April when students and teachers gathered to acknowledge the many thousands of men and women who have served in the Australian Armed Forces since 1900.  The Assembly was organised and chaired by the St Clare’s Year 11 Modern History class who did an outstanding job in welcoming our guests and presenting the story of ANZAC to the school.

My thanks to members of the RSL Taree sub-Branch Charles Fisher, Ted Hill, Dulcie Balderstone & Darcy Elbourne for their attendance and participation in the ceremony and to Marian Parvin and her class for their fine work on behalf of the school community.

Charles Fisher, Medinah Wells, Charles Pitt, Ted Hill, Dulcie Balderstone, Darcy Elbourne & Peter Nicholls

On Tuesday, 26 April St Clare’s attended a Staff Spirituality Day in Forster led by Mr Adam Frost from the Diocesan Offices.  The theme of the day revolved around how well our work at St Clare’s reflects the inclusiveness and compassion that Jesus showed as he served his ministry so many years ago.  The day gave further expression to the St Clare’s Vision and Mission Statement (published last year) and to the CLARE student framework which continues to develop in scope and depth throughout the school.

My thanks to Adam Frost and to Jason Koenig, Ministry Coordinator and his team for the organisation of a most successful day.

As you will notice from the newsletter, lessons are back in full swing and staff and students are continuing to engage in excursions, competitions and community engagement.  We do so in the full knowledge that our area continues to be disrupted by the COVID virus.  St Clare’s is not immune from this disruption.  Parents, staff and students would prefer that the usual day-to-day timetable remains operational, we must also recognise that with winter approaching and COVID continuing to exert a significant impact in our country, we should also be prepared to “pivot” to a changed learning environment at short notice.

To help avoid any disruption to the usual school timetable, please continue to keep your sons and daughters home even if they are slightly unwell and please continue not to send them to school until they have fully recovered.

Staff are continuing to encourage students to use hand sanitiser and staff and students are welcome to wear a mask.

Thank you to all for your support of each other as we work together to ensure the best outcomes for the young people in our care.

God Bless

Peter Nicholls
Principal