Term 1 Week 7 - Thursday 9th March 2023
News from the Principal
International Women’s Day
This week we honoured all women during International Women’s Day, the date of which was yesterday.
For the Catherine McAuley community, this day has a significant focus. We are a school for young women, and our focus is to educate them in partnership with you to be strong, capable and merciful in their lives now, and in their future lives.
The first International Women’s Day was marked in 1911, and in 2023 it remains a significant focus for social activism because parity for women has not yet been reached. The theme for this year’s event is ‘embrace equity’, highlighting a global need for all of us to be open to, and aware of, the gender imbalance that persists in many social, economic and political realms. Attaining equality requires enormous courage and honesty from each of us in the way we challenge our own expectations and assumptions in our thoughts, words and actions.
At Catherine McAuley this week we have had a significant focus on International Women’s Day, beginning with an address to the school community by Rosemary Kariuki (as reported in both this week's and last week’s Weekly Review), and including the publication of a video developed by the school captains and the profiles of women who have demonstrated their strength and success in their achievements.
In our school community we have many women who model to your daughters what strength, capability and mercy look like; these include you, their mothers and grandmothers, their teachers and other students.
On this International Women’s Day I ask you to join me in acclaiming women and ‘embracing equity’.
Attendance
Early in the year I wrote to you that we would continue to focus on student attendance throughout the year. I thank you for ensuring that your daughters attend school daily, unless they are very ill and really cannot do so.
The attendance rate has shown some improvement, but further improvements can still be made, and I ask you to continue to support us in this. We know that if students are not at school, they can’t be learning at their potential.
If your daughter requires extended leave from school (planned absences of three days or more), please follow the procedures found on page 7A of the School Planner; applications for this leave require you to complete a form that is available from Student Reception. If your daughter has difficulties attending school, please feel free to contact her Leader of Learning Wellbeing so that we can help to put a support plan into place.
Mary Refalo
Principal
Pray With Us
News Articles
This Week on Social Media
Follow Catherine McAuley Westmead on Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn for regular updates. One of the posts from this week is shown below:
INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY - Embrace Equity! The 2023 theme for International Women’s Day is ‘Embrace Equity’. Equity isn’t just a nice-to-have, it’s a must-have. And it’s important to understand the difference between equity and equality. The IWD 2023 theme is to get the world talking about ‘Why equal opportunities aren’t enough’. People start from different places, so true inclusion and belonging require equitable action.
Need To Know
Upcoming Fortnight
Term 1 Week 8
- PDSSSC Open Basketball Gala Day
- PDSSSC Netball and Golf Selections
- Years 7 and 9 NAPLAN Testing
Term 1 Week 9
- PDSSSC Open Soccer Gala Day
- School Cross Country Carnival
- Year 8 Reflection Day