Welcome back to all our wonderful Montgrove families. I hope the first couple of weeks have gone smoothly and everyone is settling into the routine of school life. We warmly welcome our new students and their families. This year we are adding another milestone to our school history by reaching the 600 student mark and adding another Kindergarten class to make four Kindergarten classes. Our Kindy students have made a great start to the year and I have had some charming conversations with them in the playground. It’s lovely to see them feeling so confident and at home.

A special welcome to our new staff members. Miss Caroline Leroy, who will be teaching Year 4, and Mrs Tammy Hemmings and Mrs Chelsea Soriano, who will be taking Year 2 while Mrs Bayliss is on maternity leave. We are also very pleased to have on board our school counsellors, Ms Leonie Nahhas and Ms Rebecca Lubgans. We are looking forward to the positive contribution that they will make to our school. And, as I mentioned last year, Fr Felix Navarro has joined our staff as one of our School Chaplains.

During the holidays, you would have heard about the death of Benedict XVI and Cardinal George Pell. Both men had dedicated their life to the Catholic Church and we are indebted to them for their courage, generosity and faithfulness. None of us have experienced the death of a pope emeritus before, and to me it seemed that his quiet departure very much suited the humble service that Pope Benedict gave to the Church throughout his life. Archbishop Fisher described Cardinal Pell as a giant of the church in Australia, who ‘eclipses any other cleric in our nation’s history’. As men who knew how to bear suffering with the spirit of Christ, we can pray for them and ask them to help us to face life’s challenges with faith and courage.

I very much enjoyed the New Parent Orientation on Saturday. There was a very positive vibe in the room and it was nice to see the new parents eager to join in the community spirit that continues to be a hallmark of Montgrove.

Our first Key Parent Functions for the year are happening this week. The Primary KPF will be held tomorrow, and the Secondary KPF on Friday. Both KPF’s will start at 7.15pm with a plenary session in the COLA. The plenary session is the same for both nights, so you only need to attend one of these sessions. I look forward to seeing you all in the coming days.

Wishing you all a great year ahead!

Congratulations to the following family who welcomed babies over the holidays:

• Benedict Samuel Centeno (Baby #10!!) born to Rob & Ecar Centeno
• Evangline O'Connell born to Marianne & John O'Connell
• Evelyn Burfitt born to Amelia & Charles Burfitt

Ranging around the writings of Saint Josemaría, the following point caught my attention, in “Furrow”, 934:

“Do not be afraid, or surprised, to see the resistance of some people's minds. There will always be stupid people, who deck out the armour of their ignorance with a display of culture.”

In this way, St Josemaría is being unashamedly and bravely challenging, don’t you think?

What struck me about this point is how relevant it is to current events and to education at all levels. I also realized that it would be “dangerous” to comment on this point in any more particular or personal terms… If you can see instances of it, good for you, and if the hat fits, wear it. Hopefully, we can all be positively constructive about it.

This much, I think I can say in behalf of all of us involved in Montgrove College: that we want to seek, learn and teach the Truth, and communicate it in a charitable way. This of course is a tremendous and constant challenge, but fortunately, it does “force us” towards prayer, which, we, as chaplains, can only recommend in the heartiest terms. It should also induce us to take our studies seriously, in an ongoing spirit of preparation for the times ahead.

Mass

Mass is held Monday to Friday at 12:15pm.  Parents are welcome to attend Mass in the Chapel.

Chapel Visits

Parents are welcome to visit the Chapel from 2:30pm for prayer. 

Confessions

Fr Anthony Khoudair is available for confessions on:

• Tuesdays from 2:45pm to 3:30pm
• Wednesdays from 2:45pm to 3:30pm 

Please pray for our sick and injured family and friends:

Benjamin Santiago, father to Agryna (10B); Kathrin Triantoplous mother to Nektaria (12B) & Irene (9B); & Emmanuel Hanna, brother to Cecilia (8B) & Lucia (5B).

Please also remember those who have passed away:

Rajko Ivanac, Great-Grandfather to Angelina (12B) Adriana (10B) and Natalia (8B) Badrov; Aiyana Cabanero (Yr10 2019), sister to Anthea (12B) & Amara (8B) Cabanero.

If you would like to add any intentions to the Prayer Board, please send them to melanie.merriman@montgrove.nsw.edu.au. Please also let Melanie know when your intentions can be removed. 

• The office door will be locked from 9:00am
• Mrs Merriman will unlock it remotely when she sees you
• To enter please wait for the click before pulling the door towards you gently
• If reception is unattended please ring the door bell and a staff member will let you in

Absence forms are done through the Engage Parent Portal. The Engage Parent Portal allows you to access your children's reports, complete absence forms and see your account details for both Wollemi & Montgrove. You would have already received your username and password earlier in the year.

Our first Key Parent Function (KPF) will be held on the following dates:

Kindergarten - Year 6

• Wednesday 15th February 2023 at 7:00pm for a 7:15pm start

Year 7 - Year 12

• Friday 17th February 2023 at 7:00pm for a 7:15pm start

Parents are to meet in the COLA where Miss Lourdes Mejia will start the evening with all parents. After that, parents will go to their child/ren’s classroom to meet their teacher(s) and be informed of expectations and so forth. 

Where there is more than one class involved, parents may choose to split up for this part of the evening.  It is expected that parents will be in the classrooms until approximately 8:00pm. Following the class presentation, we invite everyone to the Hall for supper.

Just a reminder that the KPF is a requirement for both parents and babysitting will need to be organised. Please DO NOT park in the Medical Centre carpark.

Could the following classes please bring a plate to share for supper

•  Wednesday 15th February: Year 2 Blue, Year 2 Green and Year 3, 

• Friday 17th February: Year 7 Blue, Year 7 Green and Year 8.  

Please take the plate to the Hall before going to the COLA.

The Term 1 Whole School Mass for students in Years 2 to 12 will be held on Ash Wednesday 22nd February 2023 at 12:00pm in the COLA.  Students in Kindergarten and Year 1 will receive the ashes in class. 

Parents are most welcome to join us.

Do you have a daughter in Year 3 or 4? If so, you are invited to the highly acclaimed 'Sexuality for Love' Workshops. Created by Carla Fuentes, a Marriage and Family Counsellor, this program has been delivered in more than 50 schools in Mexico, the United States and Europe.

The Sexuality for Love program helps parents talk to their children about the different aspects of sexuality, taking into consideration the child’s age, maturity and personality. The workshop is directed at Year 3 & Year 4 children and their parents. It is a two-part workshop, and its main aim is to help your child comprehend the origins of life.

Part 1 of the Workshop was a live-stream conference that took place on Monday 13th February. Parents are required to attend or watch the conference before the workshop to be able to participate in it. The conference was recorded for those who couldn’t attend the live stream and will be available for that week only.

Part 2 is a face-to-face workshop with the mother and child. Mum and child will engage in different activities and exercises to facilitate their understanding of the content and bring about dialogue between them. The workshops will take place at Montgrove College and there are two options available, Friday 24th Feb (4:00 - 6:00 pm) and Saturday 25th Feb (1:00 - 3:00 pm).

To watch the promotional video, click the flyer below!

To register for the workshop click here! We look forward to seeing you!

The Pared Academy team

School Committee

Infants and Primary Teaching Staff

Diverse Learning & Teacher’s Aide

Wellbeing Staff

Library

Secondary Teaching Staff

Administration

Chaplains

In an effort to teach our students to take personal responsibility and to be accountable for their own items, we do not have a Lost Property box at Montgrove.   

We ask that all personal items be labelled with your child's surname and first initial, so that any items that are misplaced can be returned to the owner immediately.

Under the NSW Adolescent Vaccination Program the HPV vaccination along with the diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis (dTpa) vaccines are made available for students in Year 7.  Under the program these vaccines are offered to all girls in Year 7 free of charge.  

Year 10 students are offered the meningococcal ACWY vaccine free of charge. From 2023 the consent forms are online. Please see the information provided by NBMLHD Public Health Unit.

The dates for the vaccinations at the School have been scheduled as follows: 

Friday 10th March:            

• Year 7  dTpa and HPV  
• Year 10 Meningoccal 

Monday 13th September: 

• Year 7 and 10 catchups (those who were absent or registered after 10th March).

Parental/guardian consent is required for students to be vaccinated. 

Students will be administered the vaccination only if parental consent is given.  

Online consent for school vaccination information from NSW Health.

If your child is in Year 7 or Year 10 this year, you can now provide online consent for their routine school vaccinations. 

In Year 7, students are offered free vaccines for diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis (dTpa) and human papillomavirus (HPV). In Year 10, students are offered the meningococcal ACWY vaccine. 

Vaccination will only be provided at school if consent has been received. 

How to provide consent:

1. To complete online consent for your child’s school vaccinations, visit: https://nswhealth.service-now.com/school 
2. Follow the steps to log in to your existing ServiceNSW account. This is the same account you may already use to renew your driver’s licence. If you don’t have a ServiceNSW account, refer to ServiceNSW to create one. 
3. Update or confirm your personal details in ServiceNSW as required. 
4. Complete the School Vaccination Consent Form for your child/ren. You will need to:  
   • Enter your child’s personal details 
   • Provide the Medicare card details for you and your child  
   • Read the linked Parent Information Sheet and privacy statement 
   • Provide consent  

If you or your child do not have a Medicare card, consent can still be provided by requesting a paper-based consent form directly from your child’s school.

The benefits of providing consent online:

• easily update your child’s details
• receive SMS and/or email notifications when vaccinations are given 
• faster upload of vaccination records to the Australian Immunisation Register (AIR). 

For more information on routine school vaccinations, please visit www.health.nsw.gov.au/schoolvaccination 

If you require information in your language, please visit www.health.nsw.gov.au/immunisation/Pages/school_vaccination_language.aspx 

Montgrove College Trading Hours 2023

Mondays: 8:30am to 12:30pm

Ordering online couldn’t be simpler.

 Go to www.midford.com.au

1. Select Montgrove College from the online School Shops tab.
2. New users to click the ‘Register New Account’ button.
3. Start the registration process by selecting Montgrove College from the drop-down menu and add Montgrove unique school pass phrase: Montgrove2007
4. Add your personal information, create a username and password.
5. Order the items you need, select pick up from the uniform shop on Monday's or option of home delivery.

Please book appointments through our online appointment system by using the below link.  https://Midford.as.me/MontgroveCollege

For enquiries please email: montgrove@midford.com.au

As announced at the end of Term 3, our school has partnered with Edstart to facilitate the payment of your school fees. 

The deadline for setting up an Edstart Plus account has already passed. If you have not already set up your account, please do so as soon as possible by visiting edstart.com.au/pared – it only takes a few minutes to create your account. The friendly Edstart customer success team will be able to assist you should you have any questions, you can contact them at 1300 139 445 or contact@edstart.com.au.

From 2023, all school fees must be paid via your Edstart account where you can opt for weekly, monthly, fortnightly, termly, or annual instalments. Pared will no longer accept direct payments.

As part of our commitment to parents, Montgrove will absorb the administrative fees for your Edstart Plus service, so that this service is free for families to use.

Edstart is a leading provider of payment and technology services for the education sector and currently works with thousands of parents at over 600 schools around Australia, with a key focus on providing personalised service for each family.

What are the benefits of partnering with Edstart?

1. Flexibility:

Edstart provides families with more options and greater flexibility when it comes to paying school fees, at no additional cost. For example, with an Edstart Plus account:

• Choose your preferred day for when payments are made

• Spread your payments over your preferred time frame during the school year

• Option to pay via direct debit, debit/credit card or BPay

• During difficult times, families can be offered flexible payment schedules

• Adjust your payments at any time

2. Paperless & secure:

●      Payment Information will be submitted and stored through Edstart’s secure online platform, so families can be assured of data security.

●      Direct debit forms no longer need to be printed. 

3. Customer Service:

●      Edstart provides Pared parents with a dedicated customer service team who can promptly respond to queries and questions over the phone, email or through their website’s live chat function.

If you haven't already, please set up your Edstart account online at edstart.com.au/pared.

1. PARED will issue the Invoice / Fee Account Statement once by week 2 of every Term 1, 2, 3 and 4.
2. This Invoice includes: Tuition Fees, Curriculum and Technology Levy (CTL) and Building Levy only.
3. The Pared Schools have partnered with Edstart to provide more flexibility and choice with your school fee payments. All school fees must be paid via your Edstart account where you can opt for weekly, monthly, fortnightly, termly, or annual instalments.
4. As it occurs, PARED will issue separate invoices for activities other than those in Item 2 above.  This will include major camps, major excursions, certain elective co-curricular expenses, band program, elective music software,  loss of or damage to laptop, PDHPE workbook, school diary, etc. 
5. These should also be paid via your Edstart account