School Council AGM, Staff News, Mid-Year Break

School Council Membership – Annual General Meeting

On behalf of St Catherine’s School, I extend my gratitude and appreciation to Mr Allan Holmes who retired from the positions of Chair of the Finance Committee, Honorary Treasurer and Member of the School Council at the School’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) on Tuesday of this week. Allan has generously volunteered his time at St Catherine’s since becoming a Member of the Finance Committee in 2008 and an elected Member of School Council in 2010.

During this time, Allan has provided his expertise and guidance to the School, overseeing the financing of significant building projects, including the Junior School – Barbreck, Edna Holmes Centre for Science, Senior School renewal and Marigold Southey Sports & Aquatic Centre. Together with our Director of Business, Mr Mike Zammit, and Deputy Business Manager, Mr Joe Esposito, Allan has ensured the School’s strong financial position now, and moving forward into the future. We thank Allan for his tireless efforts for the School, clear guidance and financial acumen.

Also at the AGM, Mr John Steven and Dr Anne Waterhouse were re-appointed as Council Members and Ms Becky Hyde, Mr Patrick Cody and Mr Peter Marriott were re-elected as Members of School Council.

I would like to thank all of our Members of Council who so willingly volunteer their time, skills and experience and, at so many levels, make a significant and lasting contribution to our School community.

St Catherine’s School Council

Ms Jane Hodder Chair
Ms Kate Barber (’96) Deputy Chair
Mr Peter Marriott Honorary Treasurer
Mr Patrick Cody Chair of Endowment Committee
Mr Jamie Gray Chair of Building and Property Committee
Ms Becky Hyde Chair Community Engagement Committee
Mr Wayne Kent Chair of Foundation
Mr John Steven Chair of Governance Committee
Associate Professor Melinda Truesdale (’81) Old Girls’ Nominee
Dr Anne Waterhouse Council Member
Rev. Dr Peter French St John’s Anglican Church Nominee
Rev. Dr Christopher Page Toorak Uniting Church Nominee
Ms Noelene Horton AM Anglican Dioceses of Melbourne Nominee
Mrs Michelle Carroll Principal
Mr Mike Zammit Company Secretary/Director of Business
Staff News

This week, we farewell Miss Elizabeth Ryan, teacher of Humanities at St Catherine’s School. During her time at St Catherine’s, Miss Ryan has also held the position of Head of Year 8, a role in which she fostered and nurtured girls through their early years of adolescence with expertise and gentle guidance. As a teacher, Miss Ryan shared her wealth of knowledge and enthusiasm by providing the girls with rigorous, challenging and thought-provoking development of curriculum materials. Following an 18-month period teaching at The Archer School for Girls, Los Angeles in 2017 and 2018, Miss Ryan and her husband became enamored with hiking and life in the United States. In the new school year in the United States, Miss Ryan will commence her role as History teacher at Catlin Gabel School, a progressive independent school, in her favourite and much-visited city, Portland, Oregon. She will be dearly missed by her colleagues and students at St Catherine’s and we wish her well in her new home country.

In our General Staff, we farewell Mr Brad Lucas from the ICT Team, and thank him for his significant contribution to the development and support of our information systems and Parent Portal. Brad is well known for his friendly manner, patience and good humour over the phone with many parents.

Academic Transcripts

In closing Term 2, I wish to thank and acknowledge our teaching staff for the many hidden hours of work in recent weeks. Preparing course assessment, marking examinations and writing feedback and feedforward comments ensures the girls’ learning is continually monitored, and in partnership with our parents, is accurately communicated. I encourage parents with their daughters to focus their time together reading the Portal comments, rather than just narrowing conversations to a single letter grade. The real learning occurs by comprehensively understanding the extensive feedback provided on each assessment item, with a mindset of what can be achieved next time.

Parents in the Senior School are reminded that assessment comments are documented on the School Portal with an Academic Transcript of Results, Form Comment and Co-curricular Statement provided in Week 1 of Term 3.

In the Junior School, Academic Reports will be available online (accessed through the Parent Portal) by the end of the day, Thursday 20 June.

Save the Date: 2020 Subject Selection Information Evening

In Week 1 of Term 3, on Thursday 18 July, the Subject Selection Information Evening will be held for all Years 8 to 10 students and their parents, commencing at 6.30pm.

Mid-Year Break

I would like to take this opportunity to wish our tour group taking part in the World Challenge with Miss Skye Stansfield and Mr Nick Racina the very best as they undertake their expedition and community work in Vietnam and Cambodia over the coming weeks.

I wish all our St Catherine’s families an enjoyable and relaxing mid-year break and look forward to seeing the students return for Term 3, commencing on Tuesday 16 July.

Michelle Carroll

Mrs Michelle Carroll