St Mary Star of the Sea College P&F General Meeting Minutes 22 February 2012 (7:50pm) - Polding Learning Centre
1. Minutes of Previous General Meeting Actions carried over: Refer to list attached. 1. More meetings: Rob Anderson proposed to trial 6 meetings this year as follows: Term 1 x 2, Term 2 x 1, Term 3 x 2, Term 4 x 1. Motion Carried unanimously. 2. Speakers: Looking at holding some parent information nights with Michael Carr Gregg (child and adolescent Psychologist) and Paul Dillon (Drug & Alcohol abuse) 3. Cadet Program: SES Cadet Program booked up for 2012. Frank to follow up for 2013. Minutes accepted as a true and accurate record. Accepted: Seconded:
Helen Bow Jennifer Portman
2. Correspondence No correspondence 3. General Business 3.1.1
BBQ Trailer - Karen Tavener-Smith provided information on the purchase of a galvanised BBQ trailer. Motion to spend up to $8000 proposed by the P&F executive. Motion carried unanimously.
3.1.2
Funding for Sports department - Belinda Sparkes to create a wish list and provide to Frank.
3.1.3
Greens Bus route from Austinmer - The number of students requiring this service outnumbers bus capacity. Unfortunately the college has tried speaking with Greens but with no success. It was suggested that parents of the students affected contact Greens direct to express their concerns.
Meeting closed: 9:15pm Next meeting: 16 March 7pm
Attachments Presidents Report We sit here again at another St Marys AGM. Like previous years 2011 was busy, focused and successful. The tradition that is the Welcome BBQ was held in Term 1. I think this one was even bigger than the last. Thanks to our Vice President – Megan Waud and her band of helpers it was well run, well attended and the weather just fantastic. The BBQ is such a great initiative to welcome new (and old) families to our community. My gratitude goes out to Megan and her helpers. Again our pastoral care program did some great work. I have personally heard first had the gratitude of the work done by Sr Rita and I know the support the parent community provide in the way of meals is well appreciated. As always, I would like to thank Sr Rita and to the parents that support this worthy cause. 2011 saw the second Formal Fashion Parade and Expo and again it was a great success. We received so much positive feedback and as well as having fun I think the girls (our models) did St Marys proud. 2011 also saw the inaugural Outdoor Movie Night. For all that attended that night was a great success and I would recommend to the 2012 Committee to also organise one. The P&F continued to fund some great items for the College. The COLA that was approved for 2010 did not go ahead and thus the funds were allocated to other things. The P&F purchased more furniture for the Year 12 study area; outdoor furniture; a commercial grade coffee machine for the SGN; supported a number of teams and individuals to attend sporting events and academic events and fulfilled all requests presented by the teaching staff. As history shows, our Year 12 girls did us proud with the achievements. Congratulations to our three All rounders – Georgia Fisher, Ellen Marning, Emily Ritchie. This is an awesome achievement and to have 3 students on this list is a great testament to our school and teaching staff. I would also like to congratulate our Top ATAR achiever - Ellen Marning who achieved 98.90. An outstanding effort. 2011 saw the inaugural P&F Year 12 luncheon held after the Year 12 graduation Mass. This event was a huge success and again I think Megan Waud and her committee for their foresight and hard work. I think this event will remain on the calendar for years to come. The St Mary’s 2020 Strategic Plan was launched late in 2011. This was a culmination of lots of hard work and many hours. The Plan is going to shape the College going into the future and ensure that we do not rest on our laurels and keep striving for excellence. The Calendar is always full – providing our girls and our families with many opportunities to interact as a community. Events such as Mother’s Day Dinner, Father’s Day Breakfast, discos and of course Good Sam’s Day always provide great joy and pride for our community. Whenever I am asked about the College I always end my recommendation with the fact that on top of the academic, artistic and sporting achievements, our girls graduate from the College as community minded, well rounded and resilient young women. They turn into global citizens ready to take on their future. I would like to thank my committee for their continual support and guidance. I regret to say that I will be standing down from President this year as my children have taken my focus to other things. I will continue to support the P&F and the College and I know that 2012 is going to be another great year for our girls and the College.
Principal’s Report The college year has commenced with 1100 enthusiastic young women presenting for the first day of classes on 31 January. We welcomed over 230 new students who joined our community, with the vast majority entering Year 7 and the remainder entering other years. Our academic year commenced with our first college assembly, providing the younger girls with a sense of just how big the college is and the older girls with the opportunity to meet our new students. This was followed by our Commencement Mass and a number of other college events that have highlighted the calibre of our students and their determination to enjoy all aspects of college life. We welcomed our 2011 HSC cohort back to the college on Wednesday 22 February to congratulate them on their achievements and to recognise their outstanding results. The girls were very excited to return to the college and they enjoyed the opportunity to catch up with friends and teachers. This celebration was a wonderful way of motivating our younger students as they continue on their education journey. P&F Executive I would like to take the opportunity to sincerely thank our P&F Executive for their outstanding work again throughout 2011. The team were led by Helen Bow who showed both vision and energy in organising events, contributing to educational debate, and working as part of the steering committee on the development of the college strategic plan. I extend my thanks to Maggie, Kevin, Megan, Cathy and Catherine for their work and their enthusiasm in often difficult circumstances. You have been a great team and we owe you a debt of gratitude. Thank you! Opening Liturgies The college opening Mass was celebrated by Bishop Peter on Thursday 16 February, with the SGN Hall being transformed into a sacred space as students from Years 7-12 gathered to pray for a happy, safe and successful school year. As a way of welcoming our Year 7 cohort, each Year 12 girl presented a Year 7 student with a bible, symbolising the beginning of their academic and faith journey at the college. The Mass was simple, yet beautiful, and it marked the commencement of another year at the college. The college began the season of Lent with an Ash Wednesday liturgy that brought into focus the three aspects of Penance, Repentance and Fasting which prepare us for the Easter mysteries. The liturgy brought a contemporary focus and the girls have already begun planning their Project Compassion themes for the Lenten Season. We will continue to reflect on Lent through prayer at Tutor Group and in our assemblies leading up to Holy Week. Staff The St Mary’s staff returned to the college looking refreshed and happy to be back at work. There is a positive energy apparent as teachers review the 2011 school year and reflect on the HSC and School Certificate results of their students. We have a number of new staff who have joined us and they have settled in very well. Without exception our new teachers have commented on the enthusiasm of the girls and their positive attitude to learning. They have also commented on the support they have received from colleagues and the sense of community that is so apparent at St Mary’s. The teaching staff returned to the college on 25 January and undertook a number of professional development sessions with each focusing on an aspect of the strategic plan. Sessions included a deeper exploration of the work we have been undertaking on charism and values as Good Samaritan educators, we worked further on pastoral care structures and how they can support both students and staff in a more effective manner, and a review of learning at the college was commenced as we analysed the 2011 year.
HSC Results in 2011 The college again achieved very pleasing results in the 2011 HSC, with St Mary’s girls finishing above State average in 29 of the courses studies. Three students gained places on the HSC AllRound Achievers list which recognises students who achieves a mark of 90 or above in at least 10 units of her subjects. It is a remarkable achievement for three students to be named on the HSC AllRound Achievers list and we are very proud of our girls who worked hard and gained the required results. The College Dux, Ellen Marning, gained an ATAR of 98.9 which is an outstanding results and she was joined by 26 other St Mary’s girls who achieved ATARs of 90 or greater. Other notable achievements included five Dance students being nominated for Call Back, students gaining a combined total of 85 Band 6 results and 85% of all results being Band 4 or higher. New Students The college welcomed over 200 new Year 7 girls as members of our community on Monday 30 January. The girls were delighted to finally arrive at St Mary’s and they have been very enthusiastic in all aspects of college life. They were overwhelmed by the first college assembly and they were quite amazed at the reverence and the beauty of our opening Mass. I met with parents at our first Year 7 evening and they are very happy with the start their girls have made and relieved that they have settled into college life so quickly. The Year 7 cohort in 2012 is a wonderful group of young women who will make a fine contribution to the life of our college. College Production Work has commenced on the 2012 production of Godspell. The leads have been cast and rehearsals have begun amidst great excitement and energy. The girls are now trying out for roles in the chorus, as dancers, as part of the orchestra or to work in costuming and staging. This will be a very busy first semester for many of the girls but one that will bring great joy and excitement. The production performances will run from the 14-17 June. Commonwealth Review of Funding for Schooling As you may be aware, there has been a significant review of education funding over the past two years. The findings of the Gonski Review of Funding for Schooling were released on Monday 20 February and the following summary outlines initial reactions to the review. The Review’s report is detailed and comprehensive. It provides recommendations on what it believes would constitute a fairer funding system for all students. It calls for an injection of an additional $5 billion into the education system distributed to all schools according to need. The allocation of funds would be determined by three major planks of the report: A new schooling resource standard which aims to determine the amount of funding per student to provide a high quality education loadings for indicators of student need, particularly students with disability and special needs capital funding needs. The SES model will continue until a new funding model is determined. There is also the continuation of annual indexation and an indication that new funding agreements will be of 12 year duration, providing schools with a measure of predictability and certainty. Early indications are that the review is quite positive for all schools; however, the agreement between State and Commonwealth Governments regarding provision of funds and the development of an equitable funding formula are matters for ongoing discussion. I will continue to keep parents updated as further information is released on funding for Catholic Schools. Technology The college will commence an IPad trial at the beginning of March. Teachers have been testing the IPads over the holidays and have provided valuable feedback on the applications available and their
value in the classroom. A Year 8 class has been selected to trial this technology and we have a number of research questions that we will use as the focus for our study. Essentially we wish to explore the possibilities that IPads offer in the classroom, how they might be used and the benefits or otherwise of IPads when compared to laptop computers. The trial will run from midway through Term 1 and throughout Term 2 after which we will evaluate the data and have a clear idea of how the college might integrate IPads into learning. I look forward to working with you as we begin another exciting year at St Mary’s College. Frank Pitt Principal
Treasurer’s Report The brought forward balances on the P&F accounts at 1st January 2011 totalled $138,212.64. Through the year we received total income of $112,437.60, made up as below: P&F Levy
95,822.20
Interest
4,250.15
Grad Lunch/Movie Night/Fashion parade
12,365.25 112,437.60
During the year, the P&F incurred total expenditure of $115,187.03. A summary of this expenditure is shown below: Yr 7 BBQ
2,145.12
Grad Lunch/Movie Night/Fashion parade
12,771.31
Grants to the College: Air-conditioning
50,000.00
Other equipment grants
43,703.85
Grants/awards directly to students
5,861.50
Charitable donations
705.25 115,187.03
As at 31st December 2011, the combined balances on the P&F accounts totalled $135,463.21. This comprised the current account balance of $58,377.55 plus the term deposit of $77,085.66. It should be noted that this relatively substantial balance is a result of a quiet year with regard to expenditure during 2010 as a consequence of the handover of the principal’s role to Mr Pitt. As expenditure roughly matched income in 2011, there is still a substantial balance available at the end of December 2011. The balances as of today (22/2/2012) are unchanged from the figures noted above. The Income and Expenditure for 2011 have been audited by a suitably qualified independent accountant and a signed copy will be provided to the College for records purposes. Kevin Grimmer Treasurer
St Mary Star of the Sea College P&F General Meeting Actions 22 February 2012 (7:00pm) - Polding Learning Centre Agenda item T3/11.3 T3/7
Agenda item
Action items carried over
Improving future P&F meetings
Outcome/Updates
Responsible
Table for further discussion T4 meeting
All
Due date
Closed
The P&F agreed to donate $1700 for dance Amendment to Financial report Kevin Grimmer costumes and any extra cost above this was to be required: incurred by the school who also agreed. The report indicates P&F charged $1970. Let the report reflect that the amount the P&F actually donated was $1700.
Action items NEW!
Action
Responsible
T1M1/7.1
(P&F) Promotional flyer for Year 7 BBQ
T1M1/7.3
Check if TAFE can event manage movie night Maggie to contact TAFE event
Maggie Henderson
T1M1/9.4
SES Cadet Program booked up for 2012.
Frank Pitt
T1M1/11.1
If we don’t get new BBQ for Yr 7 BBQ in time Karen to ask Edmund Rice perhaps we can borrow from Edmund Rice
T1M1/11.2
Sports requirements wish list for P&F funding
Maggie to draft Promo flyer
Frank to follow up for 2013.
Maggie Henderson
Karen Tavener Smith
Belinda Sparkes to create a wish Belinda list and provide to Frank Sparkes
Status
Closed
Due date
Status