Leadership Forum

Next Monday to Thursday I will be attending the Toowoomba Catholic Schools Leadership Forum in Toowoomba.  At this forum we learn a huge amount regarding keeping informed of Diocesan updates, changes in the administration of schools, as well as work on developing our leadership and the practices that make good leaders.  Beyond this, we have the opportunity to work with our fellow principals in order to determine what works best for our staff and students.  This forum’s topic is “Schools That Deliver” and it strongly aligns with key improvement strategies at OLSCC.  I look forward to the experience, as well as enacting my learnings when I return. 

Carpark Issues

With the increase in students this year, we have noticed greater issues with the carparking facilities at the College.  Whilst this isn’t something that can be funded in the short term for improvement, I would encourage people to consider the following options as they go about the pick up at the end of the day:

• Consider whether the car is really needed.  Could you carpool with a neighbour? Are your children capable of riding or walking to school?
• There is an easement that allows access to Brother’s oval.  Feel free to park in our easement during pick up and drop off time.  Importantly, the children can walk across the oval to access the easement rather than through all the traffic
• To avoid the mayhem, consider parking on Cooper Street and allow your children to walk themselves across Brother’s oval.  It’s only a little over 100m away.
• For Senior Years students, the area east of the old carpark entrance has plenty of space and very little traffic, especially along Aerodrome Road.

Most importantly, we ask that our community be considerate of other people at this time.  I understand it is frustrating, though it is a personal choice as to how we react.  We are currently investigating options for new parking facilities and possibly a drop-off zone, however this is not a funded reality in the short term.

Outstanding Fees

We currently have over $250,000 of fees in arrears from 2019 and prior. Whilst we have reduced this debt over the past few years, it is not possible for the College to operate effectively with such fees outstanding.  Mrs Kuruilaca regularly sends out reminders to parents regarding this, along with letters regarding how we can support you in reducing your debt through commitment to a payment plan.  The reality is that students are only funded 90% by the government, whilst the remaining 10% comes from fees.  These fees provide all facilities, maintenance, additional teaching staff, consumables, technology, resources, the College coach, and much more.  Please be aware that families that are not committed to actively reducing their debt will not have access to extracurricular activities at the College in the future.  This includes, though is not limited to,  Year 12 graduation ceremonies, Confraternity, QISSN, camps, incursions, school Sport, Instrumental Music, College Musical and other events. Further details will come shortly, however, if you have a substantial debt or are having difficulty keeping up, please call the College and we can arrange an appointment with our business manager to help resolve the issue.  

Peter Cuskelly

Principal