Level 3 Plus Staged Return to School

We are looking forward to the commencement of students returning to school from Monday October 18 commencing with Year 12. The plan for this staged return which was released earlier in the week has adopted the protocols that have been established by the NSW Government and Catholic Schools NSW. These protocols are designed to minimise the risk to students and staff of contracting the COVID-19 virus. We have purposefully taken a cautious approach to the return of students after conducting a thorough risk assessment of our campus in line with these guidelines.

The College does promote the NSW Government advice regarding the vaccination of young people 12 years and over but fully understands that this is a family’s personal choice. We are aware that when we commence the return, many of our students will not be vaccinated, further supporting the need for the careful and cautious planning for the return.

Wearing of masks, physical distancing, the staggered cohort approach are unfortunate measures that must be adopted, while we remain on the Level 3 Plus guidelines. It is certainly not how we want our students to return, but we are relying on the support of parents and the cooperation of the boys to ensure we can make St Edward’s a safe place over the coming weeks.  We will continue to monitor the Health Advice and adjust our plans accordingly. It is hoped with the increasing vaccination rates and declining infection rates, that some of the restrictive conditions governing our return to school will be lifted, allowing us to return to a plan which begins to resemble our normal school day.

Teachers will do all they can to make the return as normal as possible. We will be positive with students continuing to foster and build on the positive relationships that we have established in welcoming students back to school. We will share our experiences of working from home and being in lockdown. We will discuss what we have learnt about ourselves as learners, and we will ensure that we continue to provide learning experiences that are engaging throughout the transition process. We are extremely proud of how the boys have responded during Home-Based Learning. As we continue the final term for the year, the challenge remains for each student to strive to better themselves in their approach to their work, their relationships and their commitment to their faith. Their teachers look forward to working with them in this pursuit.

It is important that I take time to remind families of the advice from NSW Health on additional measures to help mitigate the risk posed by COVID-19 to school communities. These measures relate to ongoing vigilance associated with safety, health, hygiene and school operations.

The following protocols must now be continued:

• Students must wear a mask while travelling to and from school and while on campus both indoors and outdoors.
• Students are required to bring their own masks. (Students are encouraged to have two masks with them at all times to cater for lost or broken masks)
• Students with a medical condition which prevents them from wearing a mask are required to have a medical certificate, which is carried with them at all times.
• Students absent or sent home due to flu like symptoms must be tested for COVID-19.
• If you are asked to collect your son who is unwell, we ask that you do not come into the office – call the office when you arrive and we will send your son to the front gate;
• Parents must notify the College when their son has been tested.
• Staff and students must not return to school or work until they return a negative COVID-19 result and are symptom free.
• Schools must sight the negative COVID-19 test result prior to allowing students and staff to return to school. This can be done by forwarding the text message and including the student’s name at the top of the text to 0416 907 361.  Alternatively, you can email a screenshot to info@stedwards.nsw.edu.au including the student’s name.

We continue to ask parents to keep their son home from school if they have any of the following signs and symptoms:

• fever
• coughing
• sore throat
• shortness of breath

Liberating Education

As a Catholic School in the Edmund Rice tradition all members are challenged to prophetic leadership within the school community and beyond.

2022 College Prefects

It is with great pleasure that I announce the following students as Prefect Leaders for the 2021/2022 School Year.  I look forward to working with this fine group of young men, commencing with an online leadership day on Friday 15 October involving topics such as what good leadership looks like in the 21^st century and expectations that come with the Prefect Role.  Congratulations to the following students:

Owen Bradstreet

Ronan Grattan

Nicholas Green

Ryan Green

Noah Hamilton

Jai Heaney

Jett Heaney

Wilheim Hieber

Michael Holmes

Cooper Lord

Luke Richards

Cameron Shaw

Louis Whyatt

Year 11 Commencing HSC

Year 11 students have commenced work on their HSC Courses from the start of this term. It is important that students in this year begin to establish some clear routines, ensuring that they manage their time between schoolwork, part time work, a social life and sport so that a healthy balance is maintained. The Preliminary reports will be made available to students in the coming weeks and this report provides some valuable information to assist boys in establishing learning goals in each of their courses as well as their pattern of study for the HSC Year.

Additional advice to support parents as their son embarks on the HSC Year is available at the NSW Government Department of Education Website at:   HSC help for parents and carers

 Scholarship Bequest 2022/23 – Open to Year 8 and Year 10 students

Through the generosity of various College stakeholders, the College is able to offer the Catholic Women’s League part scholarship to current Year 10 students and the Judy Skeahan St Vincent de Paul part scholarship to current Year 8 students, which will contribute to the costs of schooling for the subsequent two years at St Edward’s.  Applications for these are currently being accepted from current Year 8 and Year 10 students.  Please click here or the link below to visit the College website for more information.