Vision: Inspired by Christ, we aspire to excellence in learning, living life fully in community
The mission at St Michael’s is to:

be a vibrant catholic community where all feel safe, valued, loved and respected

display understanding, compassion and care for others and all creation

foster dynamic and diverse learning opportunities

Dear Parents and Carers,

Moments that touched the heart and inspired change (LA Pilgrimage)
Mrs Peardon and Mr Bryce

Throughout weeks 4 and 5 Mrs Ronelle Peardon and I had the wonderful opportunity to engage in a pilgrimage throughout Los Angeles. To be completely honest, I wasn’t sure exactly what to expect from this experience, however I was hopeful that it would be beneficial both personally and professionally. After returning, I can honestly say that it was an experience that moved us in so many ways and has inspired us to bring back the new learning to enhance our beautiful little school community. Please see below an overview of the key experiences from our pilgrimage.

Day 1: Homeboy Industries

To kick off our pilgrimage we stopped by Homeboy Industries. Homeboy Industries has been a beacon of Hope since Fr Greg Boyle developed this service in Los Angeles way back in 1988. Homeboy Industries is a training and support center to assist former gang members and incarcerated people to redirect their lives, find faith and purpose.

To begin the tour, we were greeted by Omar, a former gang member who had been incarcerated multiple times. Omar shared his life journey with vulnerability, including his gang life, incarceration, and his physical disability as a result of a gun fight. He explained that due to the circumstances he was born into, he saw no hope and he placed a very limited timeframe on his time on earth. A glimmer of hope occurred when Omar encountered Fr Greg Boyle whilst visiting the projects. Fr Greg simply provided time to know and understand Omar and offered an alternative. The initial offer didn’t have the desired impact, however after being incarcerated, Omar felt the need to reconnect with Greg. Omar simply stated that, “Greg just listened, he never judged. He didn’t try to change me, rather met me where I was at and created a space where I could belong and feel loved. I made many mistakes, however, Greg welcomed me back every time with the same love, compassion, and sense of family.” 

After many years, Omar’s life began to change and he took the leap to engage in Fr Greg’s program. He removed his tattoos, chose an employment pathway through homeboy industries (tour guide) and even gained custody of his children. His life has now been transformed and he has been empowered to use his gifts to inspire others and give back to the community. This is only one of thousands of stories of transformation that have occurred as a result of Fr Greg Boyle’s vision and dedication to Homeboy Industries. This experience not only moved me, but made me further reflect as to whether this depth of love, understanding, and compassion is evident to all members of our school community. If Fr Greg can create this love in the most complex and challenging streets of LA, there’s no reason why we can’t create this level of belonging in our own beautiful community. 

“He wasn’t a problem to be solved, he was a person to be loved”

“Healing is different at homeboy. We begin with belonging. The focus is not on a behaving community, but a community of belonging.”

“To find the God that has no regrets with who we are.”

“Love never fails, Love as our sacred power.”

“We are exactly what God had intended.”

"Choose to be a light of Christ for which people can see.”

Fr Greg Boyle: Brown jumper in the centre
Omar: Grey Hoodie 

Days 2-5: Religious Education Congress

After our initial tour, we made our way to Anaheim for the Religious Education Congress. Upon entering the convention centre, we were blown away by the thousands of participants swarming into the event full of love and joy. The theme for the congress was, ‘ A call to compassion.’ We had the opportunity to connect with Religious Educators from around the world and had the pleasure of  hearing from a variety of inspiring speakers during the keynote presentations and various workshops. The same reflective questions ran through my mind as I engaged in the various workshops. Is St Michael’s a place of belonging and compassion for all? How do I know?

The love, joy, and hope of our Faith was ever present in the Masses we were fortunate to be a part of each evening. We were extremely proud of seeing our very own parish priest co-celebrating the Mass in front of thousands of people from across the world. We left this experience with deeper knowledge and faith, new insights, and inspired to make positive changes in our school community. The Mass was a symbol of the inclusivity of the many cultures within LA, also leaving us inspired to be able to replicate this sense of belonging in our community. 

Days 6-7: School Visits- St Genevieve’s and St Finbars
Our final days included two visits to Catholic Schools in Los Angeles. St Genevievies is a K-12 school with over 1000 students. The Principal of the school, Dan Horn, shared the powerful journey of transformation this school had undertaken. He described the initial state before his tenure, where the school was on the brink of being closed down due to minimal enrolments and a culture of violence. 

Fast Forward time, and the school has developed a culture where all feel a sense of love, connection, belonging, and hope. The students were divine and the staff were extremely proud to be a part of this wonderful community. Their academic results are now amongst the highest in Los Angeles, but this was not the initial focus. 

When I asked the staff and students what the key factors were that have led to this cultural shift and success, there was a very consistent response. Their focus was on creating a community where everyone belonged and the students were empowered with character traits to unlock their gifts and live life to the full. As the Dean of the school stated, “we don’t teach discipline, we teach character.” This shift in language was simple, yet powerful. It challenged me to think about whether we could be doing more to build the spiritual, moral, social, and cultural skills of our students. I witnessed the students at St Genevieve’s using a shared language of character traits and display a deep understanding of themselves from a very young age. Over the past 2 years, we have worked hard to animate our school vision with the intention of it being imprinted in the hearts and minds of all of our students. This inspiring story has provided further insights into what else we can be doing to ensure every student develops the skills and attributes to become the best version of themselves.

Wrap up:

I can honestly say that this pilgrimage was one of the most moving personal and professional experiences of my life. Both Ronelle and I have come back feeling inspired, and are already beginning to look at the little tweaks we can make to continue supporting this beautiful community. The theme of belonging, connection, and compassion weaved its way through all of our experiences and touched our hearts. We return with a refined lens on Catholic Education and with some additional tools to be able to build loving communities where all can thrive. As I’ve stated from the outset, quite simply I want every student to become the best version of themself. In my travels I even encountered the mural below. It was another reminder from God to keep striving towards this vision to empower your beautiful children. 

Moving into Lent

On Tuesday, I had the pleasure of attending the Project Compassion launch with three of our wonderful Year 6 leaders (Darcy, Hugo, and Oska). Our students represented our school community with Pride. Upon returning, I asked our students to reflect on their learnings from the experience, particularly from Bishop Brian’s homily. Their response was beautiful and highly reflective. They stated that, “Lent is more than just almsgiving, fasting, and prayer. We are called to go deeper and reflect on what changes we can make in our lives to become more like Christ.” They then provided some beautiful and moving experiences of what this could look like at school and home. Our leaders then did a terrific job of sharing their insights with the school community and allowing every student to reflect on what they can do to be more like Christ. This ties in beautifully with the first component of our vision, Inspired by Christ. I encourage you to find opportunities to discuss what they can do to become more like Christ. If we want to empower them to become the best version of themself, Christ serves as a brilliant example of what it looks like to live a life filled with love, compassion, integrity and hope. 

CEDoW Attendance policy

Recently, we sent out a fact sheet outlining key information in regards to the CEDoW revised attendance policy. If you haven’t had the opportunity to do so, please access this fact sheet via the link below:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1lU55NTRPC35QniSiWve5CRA55cKmn7Nt/view

Zooming in on extended absence (e.g. travel)

Please see below an overview of the changes in relation to extended absence. Please note, that extended absences over 5 days (including travel) must be documented on compass, rather than the traditional paper version used previously. 

Mr James Bryce - Principal

Did you know that Gotcha Life is not only for your children? They provide a free ‘mental fitness gym’ on their website with lots of resources and exercises to strengthen your own emotional muscles. 

Please follow the link to access: https://www.gym.gotcha4life.org/

Below are some great strategies and activities that you may like to explore with your child to help assist with their emotional regulation. Don’t be afraid to talk your child about their ‘mental fitness’ and use this term with them at home -  it would be great for this language to be consistent across all settings.

Mrs Pamela Cheetham - Middle Leader

Swimming

The St Michael’s swim team put in a fantastic effort at the South Coast Swimming Trials, demonstrating exceptional skill and sportsmanship despite the challenging rainy conditions. Their resilience and determination were evident in every race, leading to an outstanding team performance.

As a result of their combined efforts, St Michael’s was awarded the Champion Small Schools Trophy—a remarkable achievement! Congratulations to all swimmers on their success.

A special shout-out to Jemima C, who placed second overall in the 11 Years Girls Age Champion, and Vann C, who claimed first place as the Junior Boys Age Champion.

We wish the best of luck to Jemima C, Ella E, Beau S, Vann C, Anna H, Annabel C, Molly H, and Hunter C as they compete for a spot on the Wollongong team!

Touch Football

Congratulations to Tye F and Hugo R in Year 6, and Summer F in Year 5 on their selection for the Wollongong Diocesan Team for Touch Football! Their hard work and talent shone through at the recent trials, and we wish them all the best in their upcoming competitions.

Student Extracurricular Sporting Achievements 

Congratulations to Hugo R in Year 6 for his team's Cricket Illawarra Grand Final win in the Colin Cooper Cup (U11s), defeating Manly-Warringah by 36 runs! Named Man of the Match, he top-scored with 26 runs and kept brilliantly behind the stumps.

Mrs Danielle Campbell - Sports Coordinator  

Principals Award

• Karla R
• Oliver Z
• Callum R
• Lillian C
• Everett W

Gold Award

• Callum R
• Everett W