iServi News | 13 December 2019 | Term 4, Week 9
The liturgical season of Advent helps us focus on our spiritual readiness for Christmas. For Catholics, Advent “is a time of preparation for the Solemnity of Christmas, in which the First Coming of the Son of God to humanity is remembered, and likewise a time when, by remembrance of this, minds and hearts are led to look forward to Christ’s Second Coming at the end of time. For these two reasons, Advent is a period of devout and expectant delight.” (UNLYGRC #39, 1969)
I so love this time of year! You may be thinking that my joy is because it is the end of the academic year and Christmas is around the corner. While I am looking forward to the holidays, this has been a delightful week at Servite. Our students have been engaged in diverse activities and there is a festive feeling around the College.
As we end this academic year, it is with great pride that I look back at the efforts and achievements of our students. Many of them have worked so hard and this is reflected in their Semester 2 reports. I would like to extend congratulations to those students whose work ethic is reflected in their excellent final results. The holidays provide our students and families with space to review reports and begin to think of the goals that will be set for the new academic year.
I am also very pleased to recall the Servite Community Attributes that have been on display throughout the year. Our students have demonstrated key attributes of resilience and perseverance when tackling tricky problems in the classroom or issues between friends. The ability to self-regulate when under stress has been evident in our students this year and I have also observed strong examples of leadership and teamwork as students have worked collaboratively to complete tasks.
College Values have also been evident, for example: courage in coping with changes, challenges or issues; respect towards all members of the school community; and compassion for others through ongoing generosity and giving to the Christmas appeal. These values all strengthen our students’ characters and their capacities to make the most of every aspect of school life.
I would like to thank all parents and carers for their support this year. A great deal of what we do at Servite cannot be achieved without you and your backing. Many thanks and we look forward to continuing to work closely together.
I wish students who are leaving us at the end of this academic year all the very best on their journeys. I know that they have all had a great start here at Servite and know that they will go on to achieve great things in the future. It always gives us great delight knowing that as they leave, they will be facing exciting adventures in their chosen pathway.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank all staff for their commitment and accomplishments. Our staff embraced the introduction of the the Berry Street Educational Model this year and we look forward to further implementation in 2020.
We will be farewelling the following staff at the end of this year:
- Mrs Sue Feher
- Mrs Helena Gryglicki
- Mr James Maitland
- Mrs Jennifer Rhind
- Mr Derek Smith
- Mrs Tarsha Smolenski
- Mr Mark Stephens
- Ms Rebecca Waters
We thank each of these outgoing staff for their dedication and service to the College and wish them all the best in their future endeavours.
Finally I hope everyone has a very Holy Christmas, a wonderful start to the new year and a restful summer holiday. Please stay safe and we look forward to welcoming you all back to Servite for the start of the 2020 school year.
Mrs Franca Coutts
(Acting) Principal