CEB Staff Newsletter #46 - 28 February 2025
Staff News
Gerard Delaney's Farewell Morning Tea
This morning, we said farewell to our Marketing and Communications Manager, Gerard Delaney, as he sets off this afternoon to return home and will be retiring in Brisbane, Queensland. Deputy Director of Stewardship, Megan Ioannou, thanked Gerard on behalf of the whole team and presented him with a lovely bottle of wine and a group CEB Staff card as a thank you and goodbye gift.
We wish Gerard all the best in this new chapter of his life, which includes celebrating his upcoming birthday with family and friends and travelling around the world!
Great to See the Box Filling Up for Rebecca Brodie!
A huge shoutout to everyone who has been placing 10c refundable bottles and cans in the box in the Ballarat staff lunchroom!
Your contributions are making a real difference in supporting Rebecca Brodie (daughter of Kevin Brodie and Stephanie Porter) with her entry, travel, and accommodation costs for the Hammer Throw at the 2025 Australian Junior Track and Field Championships.
Let’s keep the momentum going and show our team spirit. Let's keep filling up the box!
If anyone would like more information on Rebecca and her hammer throw journey, feel free to drop by the SIMON area for a chat with Stephanie or Kevin.
Rebecca at the 2024 Australian Junior Track and Field Championships in Adelaide.
Support Rebecca by putting your refundable cans and bottles in this box in the Ballarat office lunch room.
Footy Tipping Starts Next Week – Let’s Kick off the Fun!
Round 1 starts next week (March 6), so whether you're a seasoned pro or a first-time tipper, we’d love to have you join us!
The competition is open to all staff, regardless of who you’re supporting!!
Log in, sign up, and get ready to fine-tune your tipping skills (or just trust your gut!), as we make this season unforgettable. It’s all about the fun, the bragging rights, and, of course, the glory of claiming that first-place spot!
The entry fee is $20 cash, due to Nadia by Round 2.
To register, follow this link: CEB football fanatics 2025
If you prefer not to participate this year, please let me know.
Get involved, stay competitive, and let the footy banter begin!
Spirit of Catholic Education Awards 2025 - Nominate a Colleague!
Everyone is encouraged to get involved and nominate their colleagues!
DOBCEL will continue to sponsor the awards program that honors outstanding service and leadership within our Diocesan school communities and the Catholic Education Office.
In 2025, we will unveil refreshed awards that align with our DOBCEL Strategy 2035.
This strategic alignment underscores our commitment to our vision: “As partners in Catholic Education, open to God’s presence, we pursue fullness of life for all.” We encourage all staff to participate and help us recognise the remarkable contributions of our colleagues. Together, let's celebrate the dedication and excellence that enrich our community!
For all the information, please visit the Spirit of Catholic Education Awards 2025 page on our website.
Register for Choir of Hard Knocks Happening This Sunday!
Sharing Our Voices is an inspirational afternoon of song, community and resilience in a joint collaboration between local organisation ‘Jimmy’s Allsorts’ and the award winning ‘Choir of Hard Knocks’, proving that “adversity will never win”.
The Choir of Hard Knocks is thrilled to be performing in Ballarat on Sunday 2 March at St Patrick's College, in the brand new state of the art Performing Arts Centre, sharing the stage with a combined Ballarat Schools Children’s Choir.
Our very own DOBCEL schools Siena Catholic Primary School, Lucas, St Patrick’s Primary School, Ballarat and Lumen Christi Primary School, Delacombe, will be taking the stage with this extraordinary choir!
The Choir of Hard Knocks, now in its 19th year, is an iconic story of humanity, connection and celebration in the face of adversity. The Choir is credited with being the only artist in Australian music history to have won a Logie, ARIA and Helpmann award in the same year.
This exciting concert seeks to raise funds to support two dedicated organisations engaged in transformative, hope-filled work - the Fiona Elsey Cancer Research Institute and the Choir of Hard Knocks.
For more information see the flyer below.
Get your tickets here.
People & Development Updates
Culture Amp 2025 Goals – a reminder to get your goals in!
As the year quickly progresses, it is time to ensure individual 2025 goals are captured in Culture Amp by the end of February 2025.
Instructions on how to add goals in Culture Amp can be found here.
Please note that Culture Amp has recently updated the goal-setting section of the platform, providing higher visibility of goals that were submitted as being visible to everyone. Goals that have the visibility setting as private, are still only viewable as private. No settings on existing goals were changed through this update.
If you no longer wish your previous goals to be visible to others, please ensure you change the privacy setting of your goal. Setting your goal to private means that only you and your manager can view it. The default setting for any new goal is private.
Instructions on changing the privacy setting of your goal can be found here.
If you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact Fiona Murphy or Emma Baldwin for assistance.
Have YOUR Say…Staff Engagement Survey March 2025
We are excited that our 2025 CEB Staff Engagement Survey will open soon!
We have once again partnered with Culture Amp to facilitate this survey for many reasons, including a 100% guarantee of confidentiality and the ability to complete the survey via a PC, laptop, or mobile phone.
The Engagement Survey will offer an opportunity for all staff across CEB, to pause, reflect and provide input into what we are doing well and focus on areas for improvement to support engagement and continue to create a positive workplace culture.
In 2023, our Engagement Survey saw a 92% participation rate, highlighting a CEB-wide emphasis on strengthening communication. Via feedback and debrief sessions and the 2024 Pulse Survey you shared the need for focus on communication, specifically –
- Having Crucial conversations (including the giving and receiving feedback)
- Improving the flow and connection of information
- Fostering a spirit of communication, including partnering and presumption of good intent
These insights have guided us all at CEB to focus on transparent communication within and across teams over the past two years.
You can read more about some of the key organisational activities as a result of the 2023 Staff Engagement Survey and 2024 Pulse Survey in the attached FAQs document.
Key Dates
The survey will open on 11 March and close on 24 March.
How will I receive a copy of the survey to respond to?
Survey links will be emailed to you with a link to access in your Culture Amp account.
The link will take you to the survey, however, the survey can also be accessed on the Culture Amp home screen under tasks.
When will the results of the Survey be shared?
You can expect the results to be shared during Term 2. Teams will experience similar debrief session to the 2023 survey debriefs.
2025 Staff Engagement Survey FAQs
Click here to answer any frequently asked questions
Who can answer questions about the Survey?
If you have any questions about the Engagement Survey please contact Fiona Murphy or Emma Baldwin.
Leadership Development - Program Offerings for Term 1
Throughout 2025 a number of leadership development opportunities will run to support the implementation of the DOBCEL strategy 2035 and the development of our leaders.
During term one, the following opportunities are offered.
Feedback - Facilitated by BTS Sparks
| Date, time & location | March 6, Sovereign Park Motor Inn, Ballarat 1:00pm - 4:30pm |
| Program overview | Feedback plays a crucial role in the development of collaboration skills. The focus of this program is shifting mindsets from –
|
| Target Audience | This program is designed for current people leaders – eg: Early Career Principals, Deputy or Assistant Principals, members of school leadership teams and is also suitable for aspiring people leaders and CEB staff. |
| Booking Link | https://www.trybooking.com/events/landing/1342196 |
| Cost | $275 |
For further information please click here.
(Minimum participant numbers apply for the program to run)
Collaboration - Facilitated by BTS Sparks
| Date, time & location | March 6, Sovereign Park Motor Inn, Ballarat 9:00pm – 12:30pm |
| Program overview | The focus of this program is to deeply understand what collaboration means and how to bring the best version of yourself to collaborate. It focuses on shifting mindsets from –
|
| Target Audience | This program is designed for current people leaders – eg: Early Career Principals, Deputy or Assistant Principals, members of school leadership teams and is also suitable for aspiring people leaders and CEB staff. |
| Booking Link | https://www.trybooking.com/events/landing/1342190 |
| Cost | $275 |
(Minimum participant numbers apply for the program to run)
For further information please click here.
Click here to view the full list of leadership development opportunities for 2025.
If you have any questions related to Leadership Development opportunities please contact Fiona Murphy.
Career Opportunities in the Diocesan Education Community
CEB Positions
- Education Officer: Positive Behaviour Specialist – Ballarat or Horsham office – fixed term position at 1.0 FTE (closes 9 March)
Principal Vacancies
- Sacred Heart Primary School, Casterton (closes 23 March)