Welcome to 2023,
Over the past 2 weeks we have as a pastoral team very much enjoyed welcoming the boys back to school. We were delighted to meet a number of students across Year’s 8-11 as well 198 eager Year 7 students. We know you will thoroughly enjoy being a part of our Edmund Rice Family. Thank you to all those families who have supported us by ensuring that the boys have returned well attired and ready for a great year of learning.
I would like to acknowledge and thank Ms Alexandra Gregorio and the Year 7 SRC of 2022 who worked collaboratively to design a beautiful Welcome Booklet for Year 7 families. Our week-long transition program for our Year 7 students was a huge success thanks to the extraordinary efforts and planning of Mr Russell Bates and Mr Marco Panozzo, who worked tirelessly to ensure the boys had a smooth start. Our Year 11 Peer Support Leaders also played a huge role in the facilitation, on behalf of all of the Year 7 students I sincerely thank Mrs Dianne Schodde (Assistant Pastoral Coordinator Year 11) and the team of teachers that played a pivotal role in the facilitation of their training. Congratulations and thank you to the Year 11 students who generously gave of their time to support our Year 7 students, you did an extraordinary job.
One of the greatest privileges of our role is to work in partnership with parents to ensure that each boy is supported to become the best version of himself. In support of this very important relationship I am pleased to share with families that in 2023 we will continue to partner with the My Strengths Team and with the Happy Families ( formerly known as Parenting ideas). Please find attached the first article for 2023, Starting the year right. Additionally, in 2023 our counsellors will write regularly for the College newsletter, sharing valuable insights and advice for supporting the boys. It is our hope that you find something is these valuable offerings to help support you in your parenting journey.
Each year Catholic Care offers a range of parenting courses, both online and in person specifically designed to support a range of challenges facing the parents.
Please find here a link to the Catholic Care Parenting courses on offer this year.
As mentioned above we are delighted to continue our partnership with My Strengths and strongly encourage families to take advantage of the MY Strengths Parenting Courses available free of charge to ERC families, click on the link here and go to find my school, then select Edmund Rice College, then scroll down to access this course and register your details and you will be ready to go.
Our Pastoral program this Term offers a school wide opportunity for the boys to set SMART goals for Semester 1, celebrate the extraordinary achievements of the graduating class of 2022, gather for our College Opening Mass, College Assembly and Easter Liturgy. Additionally Term 1 sees the commencement of Outdoor Education program for the year with Year 10 and Year 7 currently preparing for camps this term. In Week 6 of this term Senior Constable Darren Palk, our Youth Engagement Officer will be addressing Year 11 and 12 about Respectful Relationships, this will be followed up in Week 9 with a presentation from Youth Law Australia about consent. The My Strengths team will run the My Resilience course with Year 7 in Week 9, Other opportunities will include sessions facilitated by our College Counsellors, House based activities, Peer Support activities for Year 7 and cohort liturgical celebrations to name just a few.
Mrs Hughes
Director of Pastoral Care & Wellbeing