Acting Principal’s Message

By Acting Principal, Mr Stephen Hill

When leadership changes – What does this mean for your son?

As you read, listened or watched your various news and social media streams this week, and particularly on Wednesday, I’m sure many of our current parents would have asked themselves one simple question, “What does this mean for my son?”

John Crowley’s decision to accept EREA’s invitation to take up the position of Acting Principal of St Kevin’s College for the remainder of 2020 is clear validation of the outstanding work he has done for our community, including victims and survivors of abuse, during his time at St Patrick’s.

For our parents, the consequence of John’s work is the surety that the safety and wellbeing of each boy is at the very centre of all that we do here at St Patrick’s. This is our binding commitment to all our families.

The College spent a significant amount of time in 2018 in the development of the 2019-2021 Strategic Directions document. This document has become the blueprint for our teaching and learning, faith, life and culture, wellbeing and master plan development. The College Board, the Leadership Team and each member of school’s staff is dedicated to the implementation and delivery of the goals stated in this document.

Our teaching and classroom support staff have committed themselves fully to a sustained program of professional learning and growth focused most partially on boys education. Our goal is clear, to become the leaders in the education of boys.

Finally, our commitment to be a school that is an active and giving member of the Ballarat community, with particular focus on our Old Collegians, will remain as strong and purposeful in the future as it has been in John Crowley’s time.

So, what does a change in the College’s leadership mean for your son? It means a continued commitment to the safety and wellbeing of your son, to the plan for growth and renewal of all aspects of the school, to St Patrick’s as a leader in the education of boys and continuing to be a place of welcome to all who are in the community of this great College.

Regards,

Mr Stephen Hill

Acting Principal

For your calendar – Term One Parent/Student/Teacher interviews

Can parents please note that the Parent/Student/Teacher interviews for Term 1 will be taking place in week 7 on Tuesday, March 10. The interviews, which will take place in the O’Malley Gym, will commence at 4:00pm and conclude at 8:30pm. There will be a meal break for teachers between 6:00pm and 6:30pm.

Further details regarding the interview booking process via the Parent Access Module (PAM) will be emailed to you next week.

Please note that students are expected to attend these interviews with their parent(s).

Gathering as a whole school community

In using the O’Malley Gym to gather together as a whole school community to conduct this round of Parent/Student/Teacher interviews, parents are asked to note the following:

• Timing – interviews have been scheduled in a series of five-minute blocks. There may be circumstances when a five-minute interview is insufficient. If so, either the teacher or you as parent should request an additional meeting time or phone contact for a later date.
• Respectful conversations – your son’s academic progress and his learning needs will be the key focus points of each interview. Understanding this, we can all acknowledge that our conversations must be respectful throughout the course of each interview. Any significant issues or concerns that have not been resolved or actioned in the five minutes allocated for each interview may need to be revisited through further contact or an additional interview on other date.
• Screen display and chime – Keeping in mind the restriction of time, a large screen will display the interview and transition times. As a matter of courtesy to all who will be attending and leading these interviews, please observe the timing on this screen.
• Movement – Sufficient time has been included to allow parents to transition from one interview to another. Seating will also be available for parents and students.
• Seating of teachers – Teachers will be seated in alphabetical order.Opportunity to meet with all of your son’s teachers
• While it is not possible to provide sufficient time slots to guarantee all parents an interview time with every one of their son’s teachers, the following will assist parents who wish to make other arrangements to communicate with their son’s teachers:
• Parents unable to book a Parent/Student/Teacher interview time and who would like to contact their son’s teacher regarding his academic progress or learning needs, can do so via email using the teacher email link in PAM. Instructions for this are available in PAM (by clicking on ‘Knowledge Banks’ and then ‘Parent Information’)
• Alternatively, parents can phone the College on 5331 1688 regarding other possible meeting times or contact options.

Parents unable to attend the March 10 Parent/Student/Teacher interviews are also welcome to use these arrangements to contact their son’s teachers.

Access and Parking

Parents will be able to enter the College via the Wanliss Street, Alfred Street or Sturt Street entrances. You are advised to park externally on Wanliss Street, Alfred Street or Sturt Street as there is limited car parking will be available onsite. Disabled parking will be available in the area immediately in front of the entrance to the O’Malley Gym.

Bookings

St Patrick’s College uses the Parent Access Module (PAM) to give parents and guardians online access to a range of information specific to their son(s). An email with your 2020 Parent Access Module (PAM) parent log-in details, username and password, was sent to you earlier in the year. You will need these log-in details to access the Parent/Student/Teacher booking section of PAM. PAM can be accessed by clicking on the link on the College’s homepage (https://www.stpats.vic.edu.au) or by going directly to the PAM site (http://pam.stpats.vic.edu.au).

A PAM parent user guide has been written to assist you with the log-in process, including forgotten login details, and to explain the key features of PAM. It can also be accessed by clicking on the link on the College’s homepage (https://www.stpats.vic.edu.au).

Parents requiring further assistance with their PAM login or the Parent/Student/Teacher interview process are asked to phone the College on 5331 1688.

The 2020 Semester 1 Mid Semester reports for all students will be made available through PAM from 4:00pm on Friday, March 27.