Weekly Newsletter #27 - 1 Sep 2021
Reflection
Today, is the beginning of The Season of Creation. This is the annual Christian celebration of prayer and action for our common home. Together, the ecumenical family around the world unites to pray and protect God’s creation. The season starts 1 September, the World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation, and ends 4 October, the Feast of St. Francis of Assisi, the patron saint of ecology beloved by many Christian denominations.
This year’s theme, is “A HOME FOR ALL? RENEWING THE OIKOS OF GOD.” Oikos is the Greek word for “home,” or “household.” By placing the theme in the concept of oikos, Christians are called to celebrate the integral web of relationships that sustain the well-being of the Earth. This year’s symbol, Abraham’s tent, signifies the commitment to safeguard a place for all who share our common home, just as Abraham did in the Book of Genesis. During The Season of Creation communities are invited to pray with and for the most vulnerable in their community, including creation. See further resources and information here.
Season of Creation Prayer
Creator of Life:
Earth is full of Your creatures, and by Your wisdom you made them all.
At Your word, Earth brought forth plants yielding seed of every kind and trees of every kind bearing fruit, the waters teemed with swarms of living creatures of every kind, and the world was filled with every kind of winged bird, walking animal, and creatures that creep upon the ground.
Mountains, plains, rocks, and rivers shelter diverse communities, and through the changing seasons Your Spirit renews cycles of life.
During this Season of Creation, open our eyes to see the precious diversity that is all around us. During this first week of The Season of Creation, we praise and thank you especially for the vastness of the oceans that reveal your beauty, power, and peace. Inspire us with ways to protect and keep the oceans healthy. Enlighten our minds to appreciate the delicate balance maintained by each creature. Inspire us to conserve the precious habitats that nurture this web of life.
In the name of the One who came to proclaim good news to all creation, Jesus Christ. Amen
– from The Sisters of St. Joseph
From the Executive Director
Education Consultants – Northern and Southern Zones
I am pleased to advise that Lee Schlooz has agreed to be the Education Consultant for the Northern Zone in Term 4. Chris Robarts will continue on until week 3 of Term 4, before taking a combination of annual leave and Long Service Leave before retiring in July 2022 after a long dedicated career in Catholic education.
Eugene Dalton will continue in the role of Education Consultant for the Southern Zone in Term 4.
I am grateful for Lee, Chris and Eugene’s flexibility to make these arrangements possible. As many would be aware we have advertised for a new Education Consultant for the Northern Zone twice and have been unable to make an appointment. We will continue the recruitment process with the aim of appointing a person to the position for the start of the new school year.
Principalship at St Mary’s Primary School, Donald
It is with great pleasure that I advise that Ms Melissa Drum has accepted the role of Principal at St Mary’s Primary School, Donald, following a national recruitment search (see official announcement).
For the past 12 years, Melissa has been a teacher and Religious Education Leader at St Joseph’s Primary School, Charlton. During this time, Melissa has made a significant contribution towards the leadership of the school and the effective stewardship of school funding. The selection panel were impressed with Melissa’s extensive experience, passion and commitment to lead a Catholic school in a country community. Melissa demonstrated a great understanding of the importance of enhancing the Catholic identity of schools, the importance of continuing to improve student learning outcomes, and the importance of student wellbeing.
We look forward to the contribution that Melissa will bring to the St Mary’s community, and I invite you to join me in offering congratulations and your full support to Melissa as the new Principal, commencing in Term 4.
CEB Staff Announcement
I am delighted to advise that Rachel McGennisken has been appointed Deputy Principal of Trinity College, Colac. Rachel will take up her appointment in January next year. Rachel’s time at Catholic Education Ballarat has been characterised by her commitment to increase student learning outcomes through improved learning and teaching. She has supported our secondary schools in this endeavour. Rachel has also been instrumental in the establishment and the continued development of The HIVE, an initiative that has been very well received by our schools. In addition, she has been the driving force behind the Improving Literacy in the Secondary Years (ILSY) program for our secondary schools, which has seen us partner with Melbourne University.
We wish Rachel all the best in her new appointment and look forward to recognising and celebrating her contribution to CEB at the end of this year.
Tom Sexton
Executive Director, Catholic Education Ballarat
Catholic Identity and Mission Team Updates
2021-2022 Australian Bishop’s Social Justice Statement
The 2021-2022 Australian Bishop’s Conference Social Justice Statement ‘Cry of the Earth, Cry of the Poor’ is offered within the context of responding to an ecological crisis. The intention of the statement is to provide a theological foundation to inspire effective action and to encourage a shift at the level of the heart.
The intended audience of the statement is Catholic communities and it is hoped that the statement can be used as a teaching document, having been written within the Shared Christian Praxis methodology. The statement calls us all to respond and to be open to ecological conversion, at the heart level.
Each year we order many shiny new copies of the statement from ACSJC but in response to the call to ecological conversion, this year I encourage you to use the statement from the website and to reduce printing as much as possible.
The ACSJC has provided an abundance of highly valuable resources for us to access and use. Resources include the statement itself, purposeful prayer cards, an action card (most important), podcasts, launch recording and liturgy supports. There is a beautiful launch video featuring our Bishops and some footage of Bishop Paul speaking from Lake Wendouree. On the site there is also an important link to be familiar with – the Laudato Si Goals Action Platform which will be instrumental in our work over the next 7 years.
Recently the BDSJC used the statement for prayer and formation and if you would like further supports please contact Dr Rachel Smith. Also see the Social Justice website for further information and resources.
Faith in the Future RE Leaders Conference – Keynote Presentation
Below is Professor Mary Coloe pbvm’s keynote presentation which she delivered at the 2021 Faith in the Future RE Leaders Conference on Friday 20 August. Mary has generously shared her presentation to be circulated near and far.
Unite in Prayer for our Afghan Brothers and Sisters
Maria Ford, Education officer in Spirituality and Faith Formation at Sandhurst Catholic Education, has kindly shared this visual reflection called ‘Wait for me’ to all Catholic schools throughout Victoria to unite in prayer for our Afghan brothers and sisters (in particular the Hazara people, a religious minority brutally targeted by the Taliban).
The original poem by Konstantin Simonov and subsequent song ‘Wait for Me’ acknowledges those who continue to wait and hope – even when others give up hope. As members of the wider Catholic Education community may we never stop hoping, through Christ that the Afghan people will once again know freedom, safety and peace.
CERES Environmental Webinars for Students
CERES, Australia’s leading environmental education centre, is offering FREE webinars to schools in Regional Victoria on the following topics:
- Waste
- Biodiversity
- Energy
- Water
- Toward Zero Waste
- Farming for Our Future
- Caring for Climate and Change
- Exploring Ecosystems
System Improvement Updates
Wellbeing Updates
Wrap Around the Learner (WATL)
Wrap Around the Learner (WATL) provides the Student Learning Team (SLT) with processes and protocols that align with the culture of collaboration consistent with PLCs, where there is collective responsibility for all students. Wrap Around the Learner provides a structured strategy within a Multi-Tiered System of Support (MTSS) for a whole of school approach to support all learners, in accordance with the CECV Intervention Framework. Processes and templates include: an internal school referral form, SLT Agenda/Minutes, Intervention Report and Tracking Intervention template, Student Interview, Functional Needs Analysis, Student Adjustment and Evaluation Plan, Personalised Learning Plan (PLP), Intervention Audit and links to CEVN Resources and Guidelines
“Effective schools have a school-wide, professional team of highly able teachers, who take an active leadership role in monitoring student learning – a Student Learning Team (SLT). An SLT takes personal and collective responsibility for improving student learning and wellbeing, working together and learning from each other’s practices. Team meetings place an emphasis on the joint analysis of student data and on matching teaching strategies for improving student learning. Teachers collaboratively plan, deliver and review the effectiveness of adjustments and interventions. A high priority is placed on the ongoing professional learning of all staff and on the development of a school-wide, self-reflective culture focused on improving universal and targeted teaching.” Intervention Framework 2021
The Intervention Framework brings the practices and processes of MTSS (RTI/SWPBS) together into one system: a system designed to support and serve the whole of school to teach all students through ongoing collaboration. The Intervention Framework contextualises MTSS (RTI) within the Australian Catholic context creating an alignment with PLC.
Learning and Teaching Updates
EAL Webinar Series: Supporting Transitions for EAL Learners
Our next EAL Webinar tomorrow explores ways EAL learners can be supported in their transitions to schooling. It will explore the language learner interview and ways schools can support academic and social transitions in both early primary and early secondary years. It will also explore ways schools can support transitions between language schools and mainstream educational settings.
Join us here on Zoom tomorrow, Thursday 2 September, from 3.45pm – 4.45pm. Don’t forget that you can also catch up with the recorded webinars on CEVN.
HIVE Live Remote Learning Tips Video Sessions
Earlier this week Kevin ran a professional development session for our teachers exploring three useful tech tools to implement during remote learning. The focus was to engage students during this challenging time. The 30 minute video of this session can be found here with some further details about what was covered during the session.
Kevin will be running another session at 3pm on Monday 6 September, where he will continue this theme, focusing on three easy to use digital learning tools you can use with students during remote learning. To access this session you will need to log onto The HIVE just before 3pm on Monday and you will find an invite to the session.
We not only look forward to seeing you there, but also sharing your own wisdom and insights around how you have been using technology with your peers during lockdown.
Registrations Open – Schools Responding to COVID Webinar
“Now is the time for us to build on the lessons of the pandemic, to reconfigure the people, spaces, time and technology to devise more effective and efficient educational environments.”
~ OECD, The State of School Education: One Year into the COVID Pandemic April 2021 - Report
You are warmly invited to join a diocesan conversation on Monday 13 September between 4pm-5pm. During the webinar you will be given a tour of the updated ‘Responding to COVID’ section of The HIVE and introduced to a summary of the latest research about how schools can best respond to the unprecedented needs of learners in 2021 and beyond.
We are looking forward to hearing from several of our own diocesan educators, who have bravely accepted the invitation to share their successes and their challenges. It would be great to hear from you, too.
Please register here by Thursday 9 September. If more than one person from your school will be attending, one school registration will suffice. Please note that due to its conversational nature, the live webinar will not be recorded.
Teaching Excellence Program 2022
The Teaching Excellence Program is the Victorian Academy of Teaching and Leadership’s flagship program for highly skilled teachers from Catholic, government and independent schools. Developed in collaboration with each sector, this one-year program is a unique opportunity to strengthen and extend evidence-based teacher practice.
Eligible teachers will have the opportunity to deepen teaching excellence and advance professional practice through disciplinary knowledge, the science of learning and contemporary pedagogies.
As part of the program participants can expect to:
- build expertise with other curious teachers to sharpen knowledge, skills and dispositions
- share knowledge and make connections as part of expert cross-sector networks
- contribute to our professional knowledge as a leading educational system
- enhance and demonstrate dispositions that support ongoing professional development and growth.
Participants will explore the teaching and learning approaches that research suggests are essential to supporting young people to thrive at school and in their contemporary world. Program graduates, known as ‘Academy Fellows’, will be invited to participate in a rich program of ongoing challenge and learning.
For course information and application details go to: Teaching Excellence Program. Applications for the 2022 program close on Wednesday 15 September.
Reminder: Learner Agency in Action – Partnering to Co-create an Educational Landscape
School teams across the Diocese are invited to share stories of learner agency and school innovation to contribute to the co-creation of an educational landscape for Catholic Education communities.
The professional learning will be facilitated by Dr Jayne-Louise Collins and will focus on:
- sharing and collaboratively analysing learning conversations with young people
- reviewing current research with particular attention to the fields of learner agency and the ECSI context
- crafting and sharing narratives of school-based innovation to strengthen future possibilities.
To support this process, guidelines for conversations with young people will be provided by email after registration.
This PD will be held on the following dates:
- Thursday 7 October - Mildura
- Friday 8 October - Horsham
- Monday 18 October - Warrnambool
- Tuesday 19 October - Ballarat
Please register via Eventbrite. Venues will be decided based on registrations.
People and Development Updates
RU OK? Day
This year’s theme for R U OK? Day is “Staying Connected”. We know a powerful way for staff to feel connected is through relationships with their colleagues and the support they experience. Meaningful connection with our workmates and feeling supported by them is invaluable. These connections help us all cope a little better and get through this year in good shape.
RU OK? Day Free Webinar – Thursday 9 September
We are working with our EAP Partner, Converge International, for an online seminar. You do not need to register in advance, simply join the meeting by clicking the link below. We will publish a recording of the webinar for a short time after the event.
When: Thursday 9 September from 4.00 to 5.00pm
Where: via MS Team – click here to join the webinar
The recordings and handouts from our recent Converge International Wellbeing Webinars are available, including the recording from our final session on 31 August.
RU OK? Day Resources
There are some terrific resources available on the RU OK? website, including resources specifically for Educators. Some examples are below – click to see full size.
Safeguarding and Standards Update
Australia’s Biggest Safety Lesson – Daniel Morcombe Foundation
Australia’s Biggest Child Safety Lesson (ABCSL) is back in 2021! Two brand new video resources will be livestreamed, bringing children across the nation together to learn important safety messages in National Child Protection Week. Both lessons will focus on help seeking, a crucial element of personal safety for all children:
- Early Years and Junior Primary resource for 4 to 7 year olds – Tuesday 7 September, 9am
- Upper Primary resource for 8 to 12 year olds – Tuesday 7 September, 10am
Register for these events at the Daniel Morcombe website.
The following resources are also available to assist with promoting this important message to your school community:
- Digital Campaign Kit
- Sharable messages
- Zipped folder of graphics for social media etc
- Various other year level specific resources are also available on the Daniel Morcombe website
Injury Management Update
Reminder: New WorkSafe Poster
A reminder that a new poster has been released by WorkSafe Victoria and must be prominently displayed on all health and safety noticeboards. The new poster includes the contact details for the DOBCEL Return To Work (RTW) Coordinator.
The new poster can be accessed here. Older versions of the poster must be removed and replaced with the new poster which must be displayed on all health and safety noticeboards in each school or office.
Further updates on Workcover Claims and Obligations are in Weekly Newsletter #24 (Wednesday 11 August) under People and Development Updates.
Business Services Update
School Edge Update
As you would be aware, schools currently using SAS are moving towards Tribal’s online version of SAS called School Edge. School administrators and finance officers (SAS schools) recently participated in several online refresher training sessions as a follow up to the initial training offered in Term 1 of 2021. The following feedback was provided from participants following the initial Term 1 training:
- Training was clear and informative
- Overall experience would have been enhanced had the schools been able to access their own live data – via School Edge
The feedback was used to improve the recent refresher training, where schools were provided with their own School Edge URL and invited to use the latest version of School Edge to apply their learnings using their own data as requested.
The latest version of School Edge was used in training, therefore providing opportunity for as many users as possible to report any functional issues. Weekly meetings between CEB and Tribal continue to take place to ensure high standards continue. A formal rollout will only take place when CEB is fully satisfied with the functionality and performance of School Edge.
Please ensure that login credentials for all users are non-generic and not shared, for passwords a combination of upper/lower case, symbols and numbers are recommended.
While SAS will remain operational, we encourage all Administration and Finance Officers to use School Edge and report any product issues through the Tribal support.
Career Opportunities in the Diocesan Education Community
Principal Vacancies
- St Brigid’s Primary School, Ballan – commencing January 2022 (closes 27 September)
- St Alipius Parish School, Ballarat East – commencing January 2022 (closes 27 September)
- St Mary’s Primary School, Warracknabeal – commencing January 2022 (closes 27 September)
School Vacancies
- Teachers (various roles for 2022) – Trinity College, Colac – fixed term and 1.0 FTE (closes 6 September)
- Counsellor – St Mary’s School, Swan Hill – 12 month fixed-term position from October 2021 at 0.2 FTE (closes 10 September)
- Director of Faith and Mission (POL 4) – St Mary MacKillop College, Swan Hill – ongoing at 1.0 FTE (closes 10 September)
- School Officer (Reception/Administration) – St Columba’s School, Ballarat North – ongoing between 0.6 and 0.8 FTE (closes 10 September)
- 2022 Classroom Teacher x 2 – Siena Catholic Primary School, Lucas – ongoing at 1.0 FTE (closes 13 September)
- Health & Physical Education Teacher / PE Co-ordinator – St Paul’s Primary School, Mildura – fixed-term 1.0 FTE (closes 14 September)
- Generalist Classroom Teacher – St Paul’s Primary School, Mildura – fixed-term 0.4 FTE (closes 14 September)
- Generalist Classroom Teacher – St Paul’s Primary School, Mildura – fixed-term 1.0 FTE (closes 14 September)
- Daily Organiser/Teacher – Marian College, Ararat – ongoing at 1.0 FTE (closes 21 September)
- Teacher of Design & Technology – Marian College, Ararat – fixed term at 1.0 FTE (closes 21 September)
- Head of Science Secondary Teacher – Marian College, Ararat – ongoing at 1.0 FTE (closes 1 October)
- Casual Relief Teachers – St Francis Xavier Primary School, Ballarat East (closes 10 December)
From Around the Diocese
Mercy Regional College Alumni Night Postponed
Due to the current COVID situation, Mercy Regional College has decided to postpone its long-awaited Alumni Night until a later date.
The event would not have been the same without many of the guests who would not be able to attend because of travel restrictions and border closures. The College will wait for a better time for the all-year reunion and have a beautiful celebration then.
In the meantime, sign up for MRC alumni database to receive a notification when the new date is determined.
All purchased tickets that will be fully reimbursed.
Season of Creation
Wednesday 1 September – Monday 4 October
The Season of Creation is the time of year when the world’s 2.2 billion Christians are invited to pray and care for creation. This prayerful season runs annually from Thursday 1 September through to Monday 4 October – the Feast of St Francis of Assisi.
The Season of Creation is dedicated to prayer, reflection and celebration of God as Creator. It also celebrates and reflects prayerfully on the gifts of creation and the mission given to us by God to care for creation and respond to its needs and crises today.
This year our theme is ‘A Home for All? Renewing the oikos of God’ (one of the meanings for the ancient Greek word oikos is home). Oikos is a home for all but our common home, the Earth, is now in danger because of people’s greed, exploitation, disrespect, disconnection and systematic degradation. Resources to assist celebration of the Season of Creation are available from the Diocesan website.
Vicar General’s Newsletter
The Vicar General’s August Newsletter #24 is now available.
From Other Dioceses and Beyond
The Brown Collective Masterclass Webinar Series – Andrew Fuller and Maggie Farrar
The Brown Collective Masterclass Series has the following two webinars coming up:
- Andrew Fuller: ‘Reigniting children’s learning and getting their mojo back’
An exceptional and a valuable resource for teachers and parents alike
Tuesday 14 September, 5-6pm
- Maggie Farrar: ‘Cultivating leadership presence’
For teachers and school leaders
Wednesday 6 October, 5-6pm
Recruitment Opportunities in Other Dioceses
The following recruitment opportunities are currently available in other dioceses:
Preview coverage for the Fifth Plenary Council of Australia
In anticipation of the upcoming first assembly of the Fifth Plenary Council of Australia, a number of stories and images are being prepared to help the Catholic community (and beyond) to understand various important aspects of this historic event. This content is available in this google drive, and is free to be used by Catholic media across the country in print or online to supplement local content. Further material will be added as it is finalised.
Any colleagues who have stories, images, multimedia content and any other resources that might be of national interest which they are willing to share within the national Catholic communications network are invited to send it to Gavin Abraham. Please include any necessary attribution, eg. author, photographer, that you would want to appear if the content is used by another publication.
Urgent Help Required! Shepparton Foodshare needs our Support
With a third of the Shepparton community in lockdown the demands for support from organisations like Foodshare have been overwhelming.
How can you help?
Shepparton Foodshare urgently requires financial support so they can purchase food for the growing number of families in need. If you can support this great organisation, please visit Shepparton Foodshare, click on DONATE in the top menu, and make a donation. It’s easy to do and takes no time at all. Most of all, you can be reassured that the funds will be put to good use immediately and donations are tax deductible.
Please do not be deterred by the statement on their home page which says, ‘Foodshare does not provide food to individuals’, they have diversified their service to meet the overwhelming demand for help. If you think you can help, please visit the Shepparton Foodshare website.
Every little bit helps. Thank you!