Dear Friends,

I trust you share with me, heartfelt best wishes for our Senior School Deputy Principal, Ms Stefanie Kirk. Stef is leaving today to commence maternity leave as she and partner Dan prepare to welcome their first baby. Stef has brought the very best of herself to the school over the past few years putting in place the Student Leadership Program and the review of our Student Code of Conduct. These are two major operational drivers in our school which Stef has lead with clarity and consistency. She leaves a legacy of strong systems putting students at the heart of our work. Stef will be very missed by all during her absence.

We welcome Mrs Talia O’Sullivan to our team as the Senior School Deputy Principal. Talia joins us as an experienced Deputy Principal and will become part of our Yeronga Community in no time. Please make her welcome.

I was sorry to miss the Colour Run as I attended the Regional Principal’s day. I look forward to hearing all about it and seeing the photos from the event. I congratulate the PandC and the community on the success of the event and exceeding the fundraising targets. Similarly, our amazing parents who volunteered their time to help out at the Colour Run event and the Mother’s Day Stall. The PandC supports so many of our programs that benefit students and the cohesion of our school community. On behalf of the school, thank you for your contribution in making these fundraising initiatives such a success.

Successful achievement at school starts with active engagement in learning. At Yeronga we refer to the Continuum of Student Engagement (A. Berry 2022) as a useful guide for assisting students to understand what active engagement in learning looks like and how we as teachers can identify and develop support strategies to assist students to be drivers of their own learning success. 

All of this requires our students to be attending and on time for school every day. Once a pattern of regular absence from school sets in, students very quickly develop a sense of disconnect and lack of belonging in their classroom. This can lead to a gradual creep of disengagement and a cycle of poor school outcomes for the child. Of course, illness and certain family events do occur and this is understood as reasonable absence from school. In the case of extended continuous absence from school and if the absence is to continue for more than ten days, an Exemption from Compulsory Schooling application is required. A 95% attendance rate or higher is the target which equates to approximately no more than 10 days absence in the year. As a school we are currently sitting at 94.2% which means we do have many children who are at 100% attendance. We thankyou for your cooperation in monitoring the attendance and successful engagement of every child at Yeronga State School.

To all our mothers, I hope you are made to feel loved and adored on Sunday. Happy Mother’s Day!

Eunice