Welcome from our Executive Director, Siobhan Allen
Welcome to our second newsletter for Term 1!
As you are all no doubt aware we have in recent times moved to one newsletter per term, acknowledging that you all receive regular updates from your own school communities. However, we have so much going on at the moment that we wanted to ensure that you are all up to date with our activities!
As Marina alluded to in our last newsletter, this year we are celebrating 70 years of advocacy, representation and service for our Catholic school communities here in WA.
70 years is represented by platinum, hence the colours of our 70th Anniversary logo designed by Jennifer in our office. Platinum as a metal is known to be extremely durable yet more flexible and adaptable than gold. These characteristics reflect those of our organisation. As the oldest non-government parent group in Australia, we certainly reflect the characteristic of durability and of course like any other organisation have had to be adaptable whilst not losing our integrity along the way. We are extremely lucky to be able to consistently attract Council and staff members who are committed and dedicated to the work of Catholic School Parents WA, however we are very aware that we stand on the shoulders of those who went before us. (There is of course always room for one more, so if joining our team of councillors is something you may be interested in, please contact the office.)
70 years is a significant milestone and one we look forward to celebrating at our Conference on the weekend of 7th & 8th June. You will find information regarding the conference, including registration, assistance for country parents to attend through the generosity of Lotterywest and of course the Awards of Excellence in Building Positive School Communities. We look forward to reading about the wonderful ways in which you contribute to your school communities, through your 'friendraising' efforts.
Term 1 is always a busy time, however when we plan ahead it makes life easier and helps to focus our thoughts to the tasks at hand. As you are planning for the year ahead we urge you to remember the importance of building relationships with your local representatives - Local, State and Federal. Our elected representatives are always keen to hear about the activities taking place in their electorates and we see them as part of our extended communities. However, like the rest of us, they are busy people and so is it useful to think ahead about we go about building and maintaining these relationships. You may find the guide included in this newsletter useful as you think about how best to go about reaching out to your local members. It should be noted that there is merit in invitations to visit the school coming from the P&F / SAC Chair (with the permission and collaboration of the Principal), as it is with our grass roots communities that politicians are often interested in meeting. As always if you would like some further assistance with this, please don’t hesitate to contact the office.
For some time now, CSPWA have been working with the team at CEWA to create generic type email addresses for members of P&Fs and SACs in order to streamline the communication between CSPWA and our members. In the past we have spent many hours calling schools, collecting contact details for P&F members and so this new method of communication will not only make life a little easier for us, but will also ensure that we can get information and requests for input to you all in a more timely manner. I would like to particularly thank those at CEWA who have been involved in this initiative and express my gratitude for their commitment to parents within our Catholic school communities.
At our first council meeting of the year we welcomed Ms Annette Morey, the new Deputy Executive Director of CEWA to our group. Several years ago we were very grateful to receive official endorsement from the Catholic Education Commission of WA (CECWA) as the peak body representing the interests of those parents who choose a Catholic education for their children in WA. As part of this process the decision was also made to invite a member of the CEWA Executive to the table as an ex-Officio member of council and so Wayne Bull became the inaugural representative from CEWA. This has worked very well for CSPWA and I would hope for CEWA as well, and has served to strengthen the relationship between our two organisations. And so, we look forward to having Annette at our meetings and continuing to work alongside each other in the best interests of our children and young people.
Finally, I would like to acknowledge all the wonderful activities that were shared across your social media channels for International Womens Day. Whilst it is just wonderful to see the influential women who have taken time to address our school communities and provide inspiration for our young women (and men) along with the staff in our schools who created awareness around the possibilities for young women today, I would like to acknowledge some others. Firstly, the staff in the office of CSPWA, Nicole, Jennifer and Jonelle. I am beyond blessed to work with these wonderful young women, all Mums who are juggling work, children and extra-curricular activities with their resolute commitment to the work we do on behalf of families in our system. You are all fortunate to have these women in your corner! And lastly but certainly not leastly, to all the Mums, Grannies, Aunties, Sisters, and Daughters who support each other every day. They don’t ask for thanks or payment however we know our school communities would be poorer without them.
As we move into the immensely important Easter season, I hope that you will all take time to reflect on it’s meaning for us as Catholics. It provides for us, above all, a sense of hope, something which we surely need. Enjoy the break with your families, and we look forward to seeing many of you at the conference later in the year.
Warm regards
Siobhan