I have been slowly settling into the chair at Richmond and getting to know the students, staff and parents. The positives have been that I am able to visit classes and observe the programs in place. All classes participated in an online assembly last Friday with performances by students and merit certificates awarded. Given the heat it was a great alternative to having students sitting outside and was well led by our Student Leaders.
With the backdrop of COVID, a great deal of time has been spent on making sure the school has a plan to navigate through the next few months. A growing number of schools are being affected with positive cases altering the operations of individual classrooms. Schools will be guided by the Department and attached is a copy of our COVID Response Plan, click here. We do understand that families are extremely busy, and any plan must be manageable with family life. In many cases parents and siblings are also competing for devices and bandwidth. The plans include work, and, in some cases, we realise it may be problematic. There are no expectations and importantly no judgements. I do encourage families to continue to monitor for symptoms and if unwell please stay home. If you do have any queries, please contact a member of the Admin Team for any clarification and we will endeavour to make sure information is sent out in a timely manner.
School Board/P&C
The School Board and P&C met last week with all positions being filled for the upcoming school year. Both committees will be important to represent the parent community and to make sure the school is still the Hub of the community as it has been in the past. Both Lacey (School Board) and Aoife (P&C) have been supportive, and I could tell I was in the right place on Tuesday as I heard Aoife laugh as I got out of my car prior to our meeting at the Tradewinds. I look forward to working closely with both groups throughout the year.
A Message from Mike Slattery
I just wanted to let you know that I will postpone the Dads and Kids Camp, which was due to be held on the weekend of 12/13 March. With restrictions placed on School events, as well as today’s further restrictions on gatherings and the square-metre rule, it would be difficult to justify even holding the Camp, let alone negotiating solutions to the various requirements. I hope to have the Camp later in the year, most likely in late September, October or early November.