Weekly Newsletter #9 - 31 Mar 2021
Reflection
The Way of the Cross
The way of the cross looks like failure. Christianity is about how to win by losing, how to let go creatively, how the only real ascent is descent. We need to be more concerned with following Jesus, which he told us to do numerous times, and less with worshipping Jesus—which he never once told us to do.
Palm Sunday’s second reading Paul’s letter to the Philippians encapsulates this theology of descent:
His state was divine,
yet he did not cling
to his equality with God
but emptied himself
to assume the condition of a slave
and became as men are;
and being as all men are,
he was humbler yet,
even to accepting death,
death on a cross.
But God raised him high
and gave him the name
which is above all other names
so that… every tongue should acclaim
Jesus Christ as Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.
(adapted from Richard Rohr Simplicity: The Freedom of Letting Go)
From the Executive Director
This week I have spent time visiting the following schools:
- St Patrick’s Primary School, St Arnaud
- St Mary’s Primary School, Donald
- St Joseph’s Catholic School, Charlton
- St Joseph’s Catholic Primary School, Hopetoun
During Term 1 I have managed to visit almost all schools in the Southern and Northern zones and am looking forward to visiting Central zone schools next term.
As we approach the end of what has been a very busy term for everyone, I would like to take this opportunity to thank all of our staff in our Diocesan Education Community for their hard work and commitment to getting another school year off to a very successful start.
Easter is the season of great hope and renewal, it affords us the time to reflect on our faith and the nature of our work within Catholic Education. It also allows us time to be with our families and friends. I encourage everyone to maximise this season of renewal for themselves, rest, rejuvenate and enjoy.
30 Year Service Recognition Recipients
I am pleased to announce this year’s recipients for recognition of 30 years of service to Catholic Education.
Tutor Program Survey
Just a reminder that all schools are required to complete the survey that was received from Melbourne Archdiocesan Catholic Schools (MACS) regarding the Tutoring program.
CEB Staff Appointments
Patrice Rickard has accepted the permanent, full time position of Psychologist for the Northern Zone, based in the Horsham Office. As many of you would be aware this role has been vacant for some time, so it is with a sense of relief and excitement that we welcome Patrice to the role. Patrice will commence in her role on Monday 3 May.
Rebecca Free has accepted the permanent, full time position of Speech Pathologist in the Southern Zone, based in the Warrnambool office. Rebecca has been working in a fixed term capacity with Catholic Education Ballarat since 2016 and has become an integral part of the Speech Pathology Team. Rebecca will start in her full time role at the beginning of Term 2.
MaryAnn Delima has accepted the permanent, full time role of Payroll Officer based in the Ballarat Office. This new role will assist with the offering of Centralised Payroll Services across the DOBCEL schools. MaryAnn has extensive payroll experience and commences in her role on Tuesday 6 April.
Brooke Nester has accepted the permanent, part time position (0.5FTE) of Education Officer, Wellbeing. Brooke will work across the Diocese specifically with our Secondary Schools/Colleges. Brooke will commence in her role on Monday 19 April.
Tom Sexton
Executive Director, Catholic Education Ballarat
CEB Updates
Protecting Children: Mandatory Reporting and other Obligations - eLearn Module - Update
CECV COMS sent on Friday 29 January provided a circular to principals and all school governors of Catholic schools in Victoria regarding the ‘Protecting children - mandatory reporting and other legal obligations’ eLearning module. The circular advised that all mandated staff are required to complete the module by the last day of Term 1, 2021.
Further advice was circulated that Catholic education was working with the Department of Education to reset the ELMO platform to enable staff to complete the eLearn module - Mandatory reporting and other legal obligations by the end of Term 1. It has not been possible to resolve the issues which have prevented all staff from completing the module prior to the end of Term 1.
Schools are now advised to ensure that all staff complete the module prior to the 12 month anniversary since last the module was last completed. It is understood that some staff will not complete the module by the end of Term 1 in 2021.
Please contact Tim O’Farrell via email or on 03 5337 7175 if required.
Are New Staff Starting at your School in Term 2?
Does your school have any new staff starting in Term 2? If so, please contact Emma Newman via email to add their email address to the Weekly Newsletter mailing list.
PAT Licences
PAT system licences for PAT Reading 5th Edition and PAT Maths 4th Edition have been renewed and all schools’ OARS accounts have been updated accordingly. Each school will receive a hard copy of the PAT Essentials 2nd Edition resource in the next 2-3 weeks. Where schools have PAT licences for other assessments, these need to be negotiated directly with ACER.
Education for Sustainability Update
Various Environmental and Sustainability awards and grants opportunities are currently open for schools, with thousands of dollars worth of prizes to be won.
Please send the name and contact details of the staff member responsible for Environmental Sustainability at your school to Susan Crowe to receive updates directly.
EAL Research Project - Expressions of Interest Invited
Home languages in the English classroom: Working with multilingual stories
Expressions of interest are sought from schools in the Diocese of Ballarat to take part in a joint CECV / Monash University research project, beginning in Term 3, 2021. This professional learning and research project has been designed to guide teachers and schools to work with a plurilingual approach and is aimed initially at upper primary classes and involves professional learning for teachers as well as data collection and onsite visits and observations.
Further details on the project are available here. If your school is interested in participating, please contact Sue Paulka via email for further details.
Learning Diversity Newsletter
The Term 1 Learning Diversity Newsletter is now available.
Reminder: Invitation to Collaborate - Online Forum
Strengthening student engagement through student voice and agency is emerging as a growing priority for our schools. CEB invites schools who may be interested in co-designing professional learning in this area to participate in an online forum on Monday 26 April from 2pm - 3pm.
Please contact Susan Kern to register or Sue Paulka for further information.
Reminder: Review of Student Wellbeing Service Provision - EOIs close tomorrow
As detailed in the Executive Director's Update in last week's newsletter and in the attached letter, the Review of Student Wellbeing Service Provision across the Diocese is about to commence and provides an opportunity to baseline current service provision practices within the Diocese and determine the extent to which the current financial and educational support provided to schools is meeting student needs. As part of this review, a multi-jurisdictional analysis of how system level student wellbeing support funding and services is managed and distributed will be undertaken. The review will be led by Ian Claridge, who is very experienced in the Wellbeing area.
To ensure oversight of the review, a Reference Group will be established. It is anticipated that the group will be representative of the diversity of our student services workforce and the mix of schools that we serve across the diocese. This group will meet regularly to receive updates on the progress of the review and provide input, advice and direction to the reviewer.
Reference Group Expressions of Interest Invited
If you would like to express interest in being part of the Reference Group, you are invited to submit your details to Sandra Harvey via email by tomorrow - Thursday 1 April. It is expected that the review will be completed in the first half of this year.
Career Opportunities in the Diocesan Education Community
Principal Vacancies
Principal - St Brigid’s College, Horsham
Contract, Full time position
Closes: Monday 19 April
CEB Vacancies
Assistant Director: Business Services
Contract, Full time position
Location: Ballarat
Closes: Wednesday 14 April
Speech Pathologist
Fixed Term, 0.8FTE Parental Leave replacement for 2021 school year
Location: Horsham
Closes: Monday 12 April
Around the Diocese
Country Dioceses Leadership Program 2021 (CDLP)
After the Labour Day long weekend 22 leaders from primary and secondary schools from the Ballarat and Sandhurst Diocese gathered at Cammeray Waters, Woodend for the CDLP 2021.
The CDLP program is a 7 day residential leadership program offered to middle leaders with a significant focus on the skills, knowledge and capabilities for effective middle leadership within a Catholic context.
The program provides opportunities for participants to identify their effective leadership practice and apply this within their own school context through a spaced learning model, and a coaching program.
In Part 1 of the program we had the pleasure of Paul Desmond, Executive Director of Catholic Education Sandhurst, present an engaging session on Leadership in a Catholic context. Tom Sexton, Executive Director Catholic Education Ballarat, will present at Part 2 in July.
There is no doubt that all participants and convenors of the program are looking forward to Part 2 in July.
Year of St Joseph Prayer Cards
Pope Francis published an Apostolic Letter ‘Patris corde’ (With a Father’s Heart), commemorating the 150th anniversary of the declaration of Saint Joseph as Patron of the Universal Church. To mark the occasion, the Holy Father has proclaimed a “Year of St Joseph”, running from 8 December 2020 to 8 December 2021. A prayer card has been printed to encourage and support the celebration of the Year of St Joseph. These prayer cards will be delivered to schools for distribution and are available to families and staff in primary schools and for each staff member in secondary schools around the diocese.
Schoolzine Website and eNewsletter EOIs Invited - Reminder
The opportunity to secure a new Schoolzine website and eNewsletter solution at a special Diocesan price of approximately 50% off is currently available. See our information page and FAQ document for more information on increasing your school’s digital engagement with existing and prospective families.
Expressions of interest for Phase 2 are open until tomorrow, Thursday 1 April. To request a quote and initiate the process for your school, submit an EOI form or contact Emma Newman via email.
From Other Dioceses
Deputy Principal Opportunities - Shepparton
Catholic Education Sandhurst is currently seeking four Deputy Principals for Notre Dame College, Shepparton.
Deputy Principal Career Opportunities - Tasmania
Catholic Education Tasmania is currently seeking two Deputy Principals for Mount Carmel College, Sandy Bay and St Aloysius Catholic College, Huntingfield.