In many ways, policy and procedures are the vehicle, game book, and development manual that help move us as an educational enterprise from uncertainty and inconsistency to confidence and constancy.

Here are the latest developments that are helping in that shift.

• By the end of next week, all our schools will be uploading hundreds of documents for eminent submission to the Non-Government Schools Regulation Division for a whole-of-���������� Registration review and renewal. Key to this process is having all our policies and procedures in place and staff familiar with them.

• An extensively rewritten draft policy – Incursions, Excursions, Camps and Tours – went out for wide consultation at the end of last term. We are eager for feedback and so have extended the deadline until 14^th May. Please contact your principals for further information.

• The Enrolment Policy has been modified to include a section on the place and use of trial days. Now that the principals have contributed, this will be completed and uploaded to the ���������� Intranet shortly.

• Can I encourage you all to view the updated ‘Alcohol at ���������� Events Policy’ on the ���������� intranet, especially for those on school social committees?

• The next Policy being reviewed is the ‘Graduate Teacher Support Policy’. It will be important for those who are, or have recently been provisionally registered or have supervised graduates to input so we are setting up those new to the profession to thrive.

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The show was accompanied by a dinner option from SCC’s famous ‘Chef Rob’ who worked to prepare pre-ordered meals with the Swan Christian College Hospitality Program.

“Very impressive work by hardworking students! The number of lines they remembered and the way they delivered it were so enjoyable to watch,” said one mother, who had brought her daughter along to learn more about Swan Christian College (SCC).

The Fenceline Theatre Company has now worked hard to establish its reputation as one of the finest performance groups in the secondary school space in Western Australia, winning multiple awards and tackling high-level productions and narratives with current students, ex-students and famous local actors.

The amazing performances led to sell-out performances, with more productions lined up for the rest of 2024.

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Today, we go ‘around the grounds’ to hear from our leaders in ���������� about their administrative professionals.

BEECHBORO CHRISTIAN SCHOOL

“Our administration team shines through their dedicated service to our school community, driven by a deep commitment to our shared values, a love for our community, and ultimately to glorify God.

Working diligently behind the scenes, they ensure the smooth operation of our school.

Their quiet dedication and their spirit of excellence are truly the heartbeat of our school.”

Mr Michael Bolan, Principal – Beechboro Christian School

SWAN CHRISTIAN COLLEGE

“At SCC, we are so grateful to our PA administration team.

Nat, Laura, and Deb are personable, kind, very efficient, and care greatly, and it is a blessing to work alongside them in all the complexities of school life.

Each one brings amazing skill to the team.

Nat, we love the way you are always willing to organise and be part of our College worship sessions.

Debs, your care and guidance of our Parent in Partnership committee is outstanding, and Laura, your gentle yet firm communications in HR and filling in for relief are greatly appreciated.

Thank you, ladies, for what you do. We praise God for you!”

Dr Darnelle Pretorius, Principal – Swan Christian College

ELLENBROOK CHRISTIAN COLLEGE

“We actually celebrated our Administrators last week, with a box of chocolates and a card from the Executive.

I want to thank them all of them for their grace and kindness and the way that they go above and beyond in their roles for ECC.

They are bearers of the love of God in all they do and say!

Un grand merci à tous!”

Mrs Gigi Thiele – Principal, Ellenbrook Christian College

SOUTHERN HILLS CHRISTIAN COLLEGE

“Our team continues to grow and develop each day.

Our student numbers have increased, more parents are a part of our community, and the front office team continues to stretch to accommodate each new situation.

Mrs Renea Tonkin holds our school together, wearing multiple hats and dealing gracefully with us – even when times get difficult!

Lisa, Claire, and Tessa are an amazing team, and this is evident in our social media presence, excursions, and communications.

Heather and Wendy are the front line for us in dealing with every situation that comes to us, and Makayla has just joined us and has made a great start already.

Our College is built on the Christian principle of ‘going the extra mile’, and these ladies epitomise this principle daily.

I am very grateful for their presence and contribution here at Southern Hills.”

Mr Paul Beacham, Principal – Southern Hills Christian College

NORTHSHORE CHRISTIAN GRAMMAR SCHOOL

“Our administration professionals are integral to the success of Northshore’s development and its flourishing community.

They are often at the front line of policy into practice and navigating the personal nuances and tensions with love.
Personally I could not do my work without Fiona or Bernadette before her here at Northshore.

Great PA’s know the flow of the team they serve and respond intuitively from that cultural knowledge.”

Mr Stuart Chisholm – Principal, Northshore Christian Grammar School

KALAMUNDA CHRISTIAN SCHOOL

“Our admin team at KCS are awesome.

Practical jokers, footy tippers, medication dispensers, relationship advisors and communication maestros.

Well done, and keep on doing good for God.”

Mr Craig Hunter, Principal – Kalamunda Christian School

MUNDARING CHRISTIAN COLLEGE

“The contribution our wonderful Administration Team makes to our Mission is appreciated and valued.

We could not operate the school without these amazing front-line staff!

Our team serves faithfully in challenging and demanding roles, remaining flexible and often wearing several hats to support each other.

Today, we join with one voice to celebrate our Administration Team and express our gratitude for their commitment to our community and service to all that God has called us to.

Thank you so much!

May your day be filled with encouragement, appreciation and His peace and joy.“

Mr Doug Holtam – Principal, Mundaring Christian College

���������� HEAD OFFICE

“I am very blessed to have a wonderful team of professionals at the Head Office.

We are in the business of people, and I am thankful every day for the team at ����������.

Having capable, trustworthy professionals around you makes such a difference in our work.”

Dr Graeme Cross, Chief Executive Officer – ����������

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On April 25 each year, our schools celebrate the contribution of the ANZAC (Australian and New Zealand Army Corps) who have served and died in all wars, conflicts, and peacekeeping operations.

ANZAC Day was originally devised to honour the servicemen and women who served in the Gallipoli campaign (the first engagement in the First World War, which took place from 1914–1918), but it has now expanded to include all those who have served under the flags of Australia and New Zealand since then.

ANZAC Day is an opportunity for our school students to gather as one people, united in remembrance.

Year 1-12 students took part in assemblies at their ���������� schools.

Many spent the public holiday at dawn services in their local areas or at the large gathering at Kings Park in the centre of Perth.

The aim of these occasions is to pay homage to the valour and selflessness of those who served in the years past, never forgetting their profound sacrifice.

For Christians, the concept of the ‘ultimate sacrifice’ points to Jesus’ death and resurrection for the sins of the world. A number of ���������� school assemblies are now taking the opportunity to examine the Easter message with reference to the ANZAC ceremony and the concepts of sacrifice, a spirit of servitude, and redemption.

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However, these teaching texts were not the usual textbooks that roll through the door from time to time.

They had never been seen before – and the names of the authors were strangely familiar.

Dr Graeme Cross and Dr Thelma Perso!

The new book, ‘Gospel-Inspired Teaching & Learning’  is now available through publisher Amba Press and presents a framework for Christian teaching and learning in schools.

Dr Graeme Cross has worked hard in this book to answer the question of how the gospel shapes teaching and learning in a Christian school:

“Soon after entering the world of Christian education and exploring the Christian schooling literature, it became evident to me that there were very few resources that helped to inform educational practice in open enrolment Christian schools,” said Dr Cross this week. 

“There is a rich body of scholarship available to support closed enrolment schools, which has been developed over many years, but it has limited relevance to open-enrolment contexts.  Thelma and I hope this book will serve to support those of us who are involved in the rapidly growing open-enrolment schools across Australia and abroad.”   

Dr Thelma Perso came to ���������� in 2015 after a long career working in government schools and administrations across Australia. She realised that Christian education has the potential to impact young lives in a profound way, but there was a lack of real literature around the teaching and learning formation for faith-based schools:

“On joining ����������, it occurred to me that a lot of what I was seeing in the teaching and learning was very similar to what I’d been part of in public schooling, and it wasn’t clear to me what the ‘Christian’ distinctive was,” said Dr Perso.

“In this book, Graeme and I brought together the educational and theological scholarship to demonstrate that embedding a Christian worldview into educational excellence has the potential to be profound.  When practiced, it gives students access to rich and abundant lives through their reasoning and desire to serve God and make a difference”.

This dynamo duo really got serious with the concept of the book for Christian teachers when Thelma joined the ���������� Head Office in the role of Chief Education Officer. She retired at the end of 2022 and now serves on the ���������� Board.

Fundamentally, this book answers the questions of:

– What framework do we use when shaping teaching and learning?

– How do we support learning in a school shaped by Christian virtues?

– How does the gospel shape teaching and learning in a Christian school?

Stay tuned to see how this book may be utilised in your ���������� school in the coming days.

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“I had a wonderful time in my ATAR years (Years 11 and 12) with some amazing teachers who showed me what education can look like when it’s delivered well,” says Tanika.

“Mrs Ford, my wonderful Modern History teacher, gave me pep talks and got me through the workload and school life. Miss Easton, my Drama Teacher, gave me many opportunities throughout Year 12 that helped me achieve everything I was trying to accomplish.”

During the summer break, Tanika enrolled with AustSwim and completed the training to become a swimming teacher. This offered her the opportunity to teach and make some pocket money during the break before university was set to begin.

The current demand for school teachers was not lost on Tanika, who realised that her experience at ECC and time as a swimming teacher led her to a career based on education.

“The decision to pursue Primary Education came from my love of kids, teaching and the chance to make a difference. Initially, I had looked at Criminology, but the subject matter was fairly disturbing, and I wanted to focus on giving our young people the best possible beginnings in their lives.”

Sounds like a future ���������� employee!

What is life like at university compared to ECC?

“The atmosphere of university versus School is completely different,” says Tanika.

“It has been a large adjustment from the set timetable where you go to school from 8.00 am to 4.00 pm every day. Within the university, the timetable is completely up to you. You’re studying what you want to study, so it makes it fascinating and motivating actually to get up and go to lectures.”

I think the ���������� Human Resources team will be keen to hear from future Primary School teachers in due course…

_______________________________________________________________

For graduate Devlin Turpin, deciding his future was very much determined by conversations with influential Christian teachers at ECC.

“Without my regular communications with Mr Lazaar and the trust that built up between the two of us through Physics classes, I would never have been led to the right decision for me,” says Devlin.

In his early secondary years, Devlin was a strong student who, in his spare time, had a passion for film, theatre, and lighting. With standout senior students Devlin was happy to contribute to their extracurricular films and projects as a young protégé.

“Those guys are super-talented, and I was very happy to be a part of their short films, which are precursors to Jordan Prince-Wright’s bigger projects like Before Dawn and the big-budget films that they are now moving towards.”

The love of the theatre (albeit as a behind-the-scenes genius) was clouding Devlin’s thoughts, given that he had significant academic talent and a passion for Physics. Mr Zaven Stephen, the media teacher at ECC, was highly complimentary of Devlin’s work, and he scored highly in media and his other ATAR subjects.

Enter Mr Lazaar.

“I scored highly on a solar panel project, and Mr Lazaar began talking to me about taking on studies into something significant in the engineering space.”

The opportunity to study Stage Lighting at the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts (WAAPA) was presented to Devlin late in Year 12, but Mr Lazaar believed that Devlin could concentrate on an engineering career and pursue his theatre dreams in his spare time.

“Mr. Lazaar encouraged me to pursue a double degree in Mechatronics Engineering and Computer Science at Curtin University. It was actually a really great idea because I still had the opportunity to work in a number of community theatre initiatives at nights and over the weekends.”

The degree is expected to take five and a half years, and employment prospects for graduates of these courses are very high at the conclusion of this training. Devlin’s family has moved closer to Curtin University to reduce the travel time between home and the university.

“I realised that this was a real career, and I had the ability to work hard in this industry. The other pursuits would still be there for me along the way. I’m very thankful for the awesome advice I was given by all of my teachers to get me to where I am now.”

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“Mrs Mongony and Mrs Tonkin are absolutely amazing people, artists, and teachers. They have both shaped me through this journey, helping me every step of the way, and I am extremely grateful for everything they do. They were both very supportive of me, which has helped me to create this piece,” said Amelia.

“I decided to draw my grandfather because he is a large inspiration in my life, and he has taught me so much that I wanted to give back to him. This artwork is a tribute to him and how much he has shaped my life.”

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I wish to advise that the current ���������� Support Staff Enterprise Agreement expires at the end of this year (31 December 2024). The Teachers Agreement also expires at this time.

The negotiations on both of these new agreements will commence in the next two weeks.

Within our ���������� schools and the ���������� Head Office there are two distinct Agreements (Teaching and Support Staff) and these are negotiated by different ���������� staff from across our school communities.

Mr Matthew King (Staff Committee Chair and Head of Swan Trade Training Centre) plays an integral role in these negotiations and is present for the meetings across both Agreements.

Individuals can nominate anyone they choose to represent them in these negotiations – you may even represent yourself.

The Independent Education Union of Western Australia (IEUWA) will be invited to attend these meetings – as they have done in prior negotiations of this nature. If you are a Union member, the Union will automatically represent you unless you nominate someone else.

An email was sent this week to all staff on the Enterprise Agreement informing them of this, and there is a form attached to this email that can be completed and sent to the Human Resources Department of ���������� (hr@scea.wa.edu.au) if you wish to nominate someone to represent you during these negotiations.

Please note that if you do not nominate a representative, ���������� will negotiate in good faith with the other nominated representatives, the representatives of the ���������� Staff Committee and the Union.

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With the ongoing debate around religious freedoms now involving faith-based schools and organisations, the necessity to have advocates in the parliamentary debate ensures that CSA is consistently speaking on behalf of more than 170 independent schools nationwide.

����������’s 5,000 students and approximately 800 staff form a substantial part of the Western Australian cohort of CSA schools that Dr Pampuch and his team represent in these debates around legislative changes, religious freedoms and the future of independent schools in our country.

“It is possible that independent school enrolments will account for 40% of all school-aged students across Australia this year,” said Dr Pampuch.

In 2023, the enrolment figure was 36% of the nation’s students, with the expectations for 2024 set to be higher than that.

“We are needing to work harder to source our staff and really care for our growing communities.”

Dr Pampuch will visit ����������’s school in Alkimos, Northshore Christian Grammar School, on Friday, 19 April 2024.

Photo (from left) :

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