Our Opening School Mass last Tuesday was a wonderful way to commence our new school year.  Our thanks to Fr Martin for celebrating our Mass and engaging students, staff and parents in Being the Good News.  As is our custom all our Year 7 students and new students from other Year levels were introduced to the school. New staff were also presented to the school:

Damien Keady - from Christian Brothers College, St Kilda. Teaching RE and English

Paul Hamam - from Catholic College Wodonga. Teaching Mathematics

Jai Knight - from Marist Brothers, Red Bend Forbes.  Teaching Science and HSIE

Zac Cohalan - from Kooringal High School, Wagga.  Teaching English

Sarah Kirley - Graduate of Charles Sturt University and former student of Xavier. Teaching PD/Health/PE

Mel Kean - Classroom and Learning Support

Our guest speaker, was former student Justin Clancy, who spoke of his passion - veterinary science -  and with an analogy explained how he has adapted some aspects of this passion to his own personal life.

We also presented to the school the Dux of 2018.  Ryan Lade was our highest achieving ATAR student and was awarded the Patricia Bradman Memorial Award in recognition of this. Congratulations Ryan and we wish you well in your future endeavours.  Ryan addressed the school highlighting the role his family and staff played in his own journey.

Xavier High School continues working towards a High Performance Culture by 2020. Our journey into exploring this exciting concept began in 2017. To further our journey towards ‘Together Towards 2020’, and prior to the 2019 school year commencing, staff again gathered for a two day conference at Mulwala to further progress our shared vision. Working towards developing a high performance culture requires us to develop our strengths as individuals who contribute to the community, but also to understand how we work best in a team environment working towards a common goal.  Together Towards 2020 is a collaborative approach to growing a culture where high expectations and standards are embedded as everyday practice for all.

This Monday February 11 at 7pm, our Parents & Friends will hold a wine and cheese evening in the front office (entry of Fallon Street).  This event is a welcome to our parents (especially our new parents) prior to the Annual General Meeting of the P&F. Our P&F is not a fundraising group but an association of parents with a focus on providing activities and events suited to you as parents, events which provide a time for families eg House Mass and Meals, High Tea, and events where parents can gather informally - primarily to enjoy each other’s company and to bring our school community together.  I hope you can make the evening and I look forward to meeting you there.

At the end of 2018, our Business Manager, Mr Phil Densten retired.  Over the past 10 years, Phil has provided Xavier High School with sound financial advice and has overseen many building projects which have provided outstanding facilities and resources for students and staff. In all that he did, Phil had the best intentions for all students foremost. We wish Phil well in his retirement.

A new Finance/Business Manager is now being sought. In the meantime please contact Serena Williams or myself for all fee related inquiries.

Auditions for Jesus Christ Superstar are being held 15-17 February 2019. 
If you are interested in being a part of this production and to find out more, click on the following link to access an Information Pack:
https://www.revolutiontheatreproductions.org/copy-of-produc…
To book your audition, click on this link:
https://www.trybooking.com/BAFIR

The review was led by Dr Michael Carr-Gregg, and supported by other independent experts as well as many students, parents and guardians, teachers and principals who were consulted in the process. As a result, the use of mobile devices during school hours will now be restricted in NSW public primary schools.

Currently, school policies around the use of electronic devices during school hours vary widely. Technology does have a role to play in the classroom, but this needs to be facilitated. Personal smartphones, on the other hand, are proving to be a distraction for students in terms of their access to social media sites, as well as potentially being a source of bullying activities.

In this Special Report, parents and guardians will learn about the importance of helping their kids find a balance to get the good parts out of technology. We hope you take time to reflect on the information offered here and we always welcome your feedback.

If you do have any concerns about your child, please contact the school counsellor for further information.

Here is the link to your special report /wellbeing_news/special-report-smartphones-schools

Also attached are promotional images to use with the blurb.

SAFER INTERNET DAY (SID)

As a certified provider of the Office of the eSafety Commissioner as an Online Safety Program Provider, SchoolTV would like to help raise awareness about ‘Safer Internet Day 2019’. 

This annual, worldwide event will be held on Tuesday, 5 February, and is a great way for schools to support the positive use of digital technology. This years’ theme, ‘Together for a better internet,’ encourages individuals to develop four critical skills called the 4Rs: Respect, Responsibility, Reasoning, Resilience.

In the spirit of the day, a number of education resources have been created to assist schools with lesson plans, discussion slides, teacher guidelines, posters and PowerPoint presentations. You can download these resources here.

Safer Internet Day is also an opportune time to promote the other related past editions of SchoolTV linked to this Special Report.