From the Principal
- Pablo Grana
- Apr 9
- 11 min read
The Liturgical Season of Lent and our Preparation towards Easter
Throughout this Lenten period we have all being living out our call as followers of Christ to pause and reflect on our role in being the face of Christ to others through our words, deeds and prayer, in essence to reflect on meaning of discipleship and the Christian life.
Our students and staff have been displaying and demonstrating this through our charitable works for Caritas Australia. Through our Valentines Day Roses Initiative, our Ash Wednesday House Liturgies, our many fundraisers throughout the term, we have all been reminded of the importance of working together as a community for one cause, one way of living, that of a Christ, a life of love and service to others, for the good of all people.
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As we begin our preparations for Easter, which will commence during the school holidays, we remind all students and their families of the importance of Christ's message during Eastertide. The message is clear that as Catholics we remember and rejoice in the resurrection of Jesus Christ, a cornerstone of our faith, offering hope and the promise of eternal life. This is a time to renew our faith and commitment to living a life of love and service, reflecting on the transformative power of Christ's victory over death.
As we finish up this first term of the 2025 school year, I take this opportunity to thank all of our students and staff for their hard work and dedication in making this a very memorable start to our school year.
Outstanding Good Samaritan People and Students
Below are great examples of outstanding Good Samaritan People and Students:
Our Strategic Direction - College Annual Improvement Plan for 2025
Important National Changes to Social Media Access for Children Under the Age of 16
Recently Sydney Catholic Schools sent a message to all families via the Compass platform to advise of the following changes to Social Media access to all children aged 16 years and under:
Staff Professional Learning Day - Monday 28th April 2025
There will be no classes on Monday 28th April 2025 as Good Samaritan Catholic College staff will participate in a Staff Professional Day, this also includes staff of the Specialist Support Classes. Please contact the College office If your child/ren require supervision on the day.
Classes for Term 2 resume on Tuesday 29th April
All students return in the full College Winter Uniform.
Term 2, commences for all students on Tuesday 29th April 2025. As such our learning and behaviour expectations continue to focus on quality teaching and learning with all students engaged in classroom tasks and assessments. Parents/Carers are reminded that all student assessment booklets are available for your convenience via the College website found under ‘Teaching & Learning’, followed by choosing ‘College Assessment’. Please take the time to be aware of the College regulations and policy around assessment and engage your child/ren in positive discussions around how they will organise, prepare and complete their assessment tasks on the due dates.
Future Calendar Planning - Staff Professional Learning Days for the Remainder of 2025
For future planning for all families, Staff Professional Learning Days for the remainder of 2025 are on the following days and dates:
Friday 6th June
Monday 21st July
Monday 4th August
Friday 26th September
Monday 13th October
Friday 21st November
Please contact the College if you require supervision for your child/ren on any of these dates.
Parent Charter Update
As per our correspondence to all parents/carers on 10th February, please find linked the updated Sydney Catholic Schools (SCS) Parent Charter.
The Parent Charter underpins the relationship between parents/carers and schools whereby mutual respect and dignity can flourish. Parents/Carers are valued and recognised for the primary role they play in their child’s faith formation, learning and wellbeing and teachers and staff are respected for their expertise in educating students, managing student behaviour and making recommendations to support student learning/wellbeing.
The updated Parent Charter includes clarity around parent/carer responsibilities and also around unacceptable behaviour from any parent/carer including possible consequences.
Our focus at Good Samaritan Catholic College is to ensure a positive relationship with all parents/carers based on the words of Pope Francis; If we make kindness a daily activity we can create a healthy social atmosphere in which misunderstandings can be overcome and conflict forestalled."
We look forward to continuing our strong and fruitful relationship with all parents/carers.
College Uniform Expectations for Term 2
Parents/Carers and students are reminded of the College uniform and grooming policy when resuming in Term 2 with all students required to comply with the winter uniform regulations found in the College diary or on the College website. Parents are reminded that we require all students to wear their College blazers to and from the College throughout Terms 2 and 3. We appreciate your support throughout this term in respect to student uniform and grooming. To avoid any issues on the first day back, parents/carers and students are asked to also adhere to our grooming regulations and expectations regarding haircuts, shaving, jewellery and nails. In particular, we would like to remind everyone that chewing gum, eyebrow slits and undershirts are not permitted. Any student found breaching this policy will be issued with a uniform infringement.
We would like to remind parents/carers that all students should be wearing black leather low
heel lace up school shoes. Below are the acceptable type of leather lace up shoes that are permitted to be worn for both boys and girls:
As per the images below, black canvas shoes, sneaker type shoes (notably Nike Air Force 1s),
and Mary Jane school shoes are not permitted.
Additionally, all female students should be wearing their College skirt "to the knee” as per the image from our College Website below:
A reminder of our uniform policy consequences are detailed below:
three (3) uniform infringements will have Compass generate an automatic Wednesday detention (visible to students and parents/carers).
six (6) uniform infringements will have Compass generate an automatic Friday detention (visible to students and parents/carers), and Year Coordinators will make contact with parents/carers, either via telephone or a parent meeting.
nine (9) uniform infringements will result in a suspension, and a further meeting with parents/carers to discuss our concerns."
We ask parents to ensure that over the holidays you check your son’s/daughter’s uniform and rectify any problems before coming back on the first day of Term 2. If any student is not in the correct winter uniform on the first day of Term 2, they will be sent home to have the problem rectified.
Please also be advised that we will be continuing to carry out uniform checks of students in each year group. These checks will now be random and at the discretion of the Year Coordinator.
Our uniform is something we are all proud of as a community. It reflects our values as a Catholic school and demonstrates our high expectations of all of our students at Good Samaritan Catholic College. These expectations have existed since the College was first opened. We thank all parents for your support of our College uniform regulations and welcome you to call us if you are having any difficulties with ensuring your child is in the correct uniform. We will also be happy to assist you with any difficulties where possible.
Important Reminder: Traffic and Parking Safety
We remind all members of our community regarding the importance of maintaining road safety in and around our College at all times.
The following are important reminders for both parents/carers and students:
All drivers are to adhere to the sign posted speed limits within the school grounds
When picking up or dropping off students in the College Bus Bay, please move the car to the furthest spot to allow as many cars access the area for pick-up or drop off as possible and avoid any traffic queues at the front gate of the school and subsequently affecting traffic on Hoxton Park Road.
No student is to be dropped off on the median strip or middle of any road or street. This is very dangerous and places at risk the lives of students and other drivers.
Respecting all road and parking laws both on the roads near the school, local streets and the parking areas in local shopping centres around the vicinity of the College.
Respecting the local neighbouring homes and not parking in front of driveways, on the grass areas in front of homes, leaving any litter and ensuring noise is kept to a minimum.
Students are to respect and follow all pedestrian road rules when using all forms of crossings in and outside the College site.
The local NSW Police Force has been briefed to carry out regular checks during morning and/or afternoon peak times to ensure drivers and pedestrians are following all road and parking laws and rules.
We encourage parents/carers to speak to their children about maintaining safe behaviour when making their way to and from the College. To assist you, please find the link below, that provides a suite of educational resources.
Morning Attendance Reminders
We also remind students that once they are dropped off in the morning inside the College grounds, they are to remain on the College grounds and are not permitted to leave the College grounds to visit the local shops. If students are found to be leaving the College grounds once dropped off inside the College grounds in the morning before school, will be dealt with in accordance with consequences for truancy.
We thank all parents/carers and students in advance for ensuring the road safety of everyone in our community and ensuring that students remain on College grounds once dropped off before school.
Important Reminders Regarding Attendance and Applications for Leave Reminders
Sydney Catholic Schools (SCS) make very clear that “school attendance plays a critical role in enhancing the lives of students in schools. Every day of attendance adds to a student’s academic achievement and success at school, and conversely every absence, can impact their learning and progress.”. Studies are clear about the importance of attending school to ensure your sons and daughters progress and grow in their learning.
In NSW, all children from six years of age are legally required to attend school. After students complete Year 10, and until they turn 17 years of age, they must remain enrolled in school, be engaged full time in approved education, training, employment, or a combination of the two. This is a legal responsibility of all parents/carers.
Responsibilities of Parents/Carers
As per the SCS Attendance Policy, parents/carers of students enrolled at an SCS school are required to:
Ensure their child attends school each day unless exempt or absent for an approved reason.
Explain the absence of a student as soon as possible and within seven (7) school days from the first day of absence, otherwise the school will record the absence as an unexplained absence.
Provide a medical certificate where a student’s frequent, recurring or long term absence is explained as being due to illness.
Apply in advance for planned student leave
Work in partnership with the school and SCS to address any issues impacting on a student’s attendance.
At Good Samaritan Catholic College, we work in partnership with parents/carers to ensure your sons and daughters attend school each day. When attendance becomes an issue, this partnership is critical to ensure that the student’s learning and wellbeing are at the forefront of the response.
We ask that parents/carers work with our College in ensuring that you support the importance of daily school attendance, especially when you may be challenged by your sons and daughters who may ask for a “day off” or a “break from school”. Allowing this will affect their learning as you can see below:
1 day absent = 5 hours of learning missed
5 days absent = 25 hours of learning missed
10 days absent = 50 hours of learning missed
20 days absent = 100 hours of learning missed
30 days absent = 150 hours of learning missed
40 days absent = 200 hours of learning missed or the equivalent of a whole two (2) years of a HSC course.
Application for Extended Leave Procedures (Five (5) Days or More)
I have noticed a high rate of applications for extended leave recently, mostly for overseas or domestic family holidays. As you would be aware, the College does not encourage student breaks during school time, but I understand that at times, this cannot be avoided in situations where there may be a legitimate family emergency or an international learning or sporting experience. As stated earlier, I must stress however, that any absence can have a negative impact on students’ performance and, in turn, can affect their academic results.
I encourage parents/carers to avoid requesting extended leave during school terms (except in cases of extreme emergencies) and instead plan/arrange these trips during school vacation periods to avoid your son/daughter missing learning time and in some cases assessment tasks/exams and risk receiving zero marks.
Parents/carers must complete and submit the Application for Extended Leave (A1) form together with the school based (yellow) Application for Extended Leave of 5 days or more prior to commencing leave.
Both forms must be submitted with a minimum of four (4) weeks in advance of the first date of the requested extended leave. If the form is submitted late, this will result in the leave request being declined.
Travel documentation, such as travel itinerary or e-tickets, must be attached to the application.
We will not accept a reason for travel during the school term if it is not in the best interest of the student, academic or otherwise.
It is the responsibility of the student to ensure they are accessing work missed and complete any work/assessment that has been required by teachers by the time they return to school or in some cases during their leave.
If the application is accepted, the code Leave (‘L’) is used. A copy of the certificate (C1) is attached to the application form (A1) and a letter is sent to parents/carers confirming the acceptance of the application.
If the application is declined, the code ‘A’ for unjustified absence is used. A copy of the certificate (D1) is attached to the application form (A1) and a letter is sent to parents/carers confirming the application being declined.
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact the College Office or your son/daughter’s Year Coordinator.
Student Property
A reminder that we have a clear expectation of students regarding the respect and care of other students' property. Students should not be touching, using or in any other way interfering with another student's property. This includes items such as watches, jewellery, laptops, mobile phones and any other personal property. The school does not and will not take responsibility for damage caused to a student's property by another student/s.
Any cost of repair or replacement will be passed onto the parents/carers of the student/s responsible for the damage.
Online Safety During the Easter School Holidays
We ask parents/carers to keep a close eye on their sons/daughters to ensure they are safely using the internet. We also encourage all students to communicate any unsafe or threatening online behaviour to their parents/carers immediately. Parents/Carers are then advised to contact Police and/or the eSafety Commissioner if there are any serious concerns regarding online behaviour.
For more information, please visit the eSafety Commissioners Website: https://www.esafety.gov.au/parents
May all families have a happy and Holy Easter. We hope that our students have a safe, enjoyable and restful break and look forward to their return in Term 2.
Inspirational Quote from Pope Francis
