There is an enormous sense of relief to be able to plan to return to onsite learning from Friday, 4^th June for all year levels. This is the case for all regional and rural schools in Victoria. We will return to our regular timetable here onsite this Friday.

One of the requirements of returning to onsite learning is that all members of the community must wear masks unless legitimate exemptions apply. I ask that families please equip students with masks to wear and spare masks to enable them to engage with their learning and school activities. Students will be required to wear masks to be able to access school buses and public transport.

I admire the efforts of all those within our community to adjust to the interruptions that this time of lockdown has brought. Our students and staff have moved from onsite to remote learning with minimal warning and have gone to extraordinary lengths to continue quality learning and teaching. Our families lives have been disrupted, and yet opportunities for young people are always prioritised. Thank you! If your young person is nervous about returning to onsite learning, could you please liaise with your TA or House Leader to address those concerns.

As we planned at the end of last week, we will proceed with the condensed timetable for tomorrow, Thursday, 3^rd June. This condensed timetable allows students some time to finish off work before returning onsite or to take the opportunity for some activity time outside. It allows our staff a chance to return learning equipment onsite. The timetable for the day tomorrow is listed below and will be in student messages in SIMON tomorrow.

The College is providing onsite supervision again tomorrow, but we would ask that families arrange for student collection or written permission to leave the campus at the earlier finish time of 1.42pm. For families that require it, supervision of students will be available until 3.17pm.

Matthew Hallowell communicated with Year 11 students this morning about a delay in the exam timetable to enable students to have at least one face to face session with their teacher prior to their exams. Year 10 exams will also continue, and both Year 10 and Year 11 exams will now take place on June 10, 11, 16, 17 and 18. Students will shortly receive their revised exam timetable.

The last day of Semester 1 will now be Friday 18^th June, and we will commence Semester 2 with Early Start on Monday 21^st June, for the last week of this term. These extra few days of classes will support students within practically based subjects to conclude work. The end date for tasks in SIMON will also be adjusted to reflect the end of the semester as Friday 18^th June. Unit 3/4 teachers will be discretionary as to when they move from the content of Unit 3 to Unit 4 for our senior students. Reports will be available to families in the first week of Term 3.

Tuesday 15^th June will remain a non-teaching day for students to enable staff to prepare for Early Start and continue to provide feedback on end of semester assessment.

The Government and the Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority (VCAA) have not been definitive on whether the General Achievement Test (GAT) for those students studying a Unit 3/4 sequence will proceed next Wednesday, 9th June. At this stage, it is scheduled to proceed; however, this may change, and we will inform students and families in due course.

There are a number of activities such as Music recitals scheduled next week and the middle school formal the week after. At this stage, we are awaiting formal advice to inform whether these events can proceed and, if so, in what format. We will keep students and families informed as this information becomes available.

I am aware that some families may have had their income affected due to this current lockdown. As a Catholic school, in the Mercy and Diocesan tradition, our position is very clear that families are supported in times of need. The school’s immediate priority is to provide as much stability as possible for your young person/people. With this in mind, we are committed to providing flexible and confidential financial assistance to support you with managing your school fee commitments for 2021.  If this is an issue for you, please get in touch with us to discuss the options. We do care, and if you need help, please reach out by contacting fees@damascus.vic.edu.au

The uniform shop and canteen will both be open from Friday. We encourage students to order lunches online to reduce congestion.

This communication replaces my regular Wednesday newsletter and is available on the website.

We keep in our prayers this week all those who have struggled with the uncertainty of this time. We particularly pray for those in metropolitan Melbourne who continue their lockdown. All do not share our good fortune, and we remember those for who these challenging times continue.

We also ask that our loving God be with Damascus families experiencing grief at this particular time. We remember Blake and Matthew Powell (Year 8) and their family as they mourn the loss of their grandfather. We also remember Jessica (Year 12) and Hamish (Year 11) Sainsbury and their family as they grieve the loss of their maternal grandfather. We also extend our prayers to the Principal of St Patrick’s College, Stephen O’Connor, as he grieves the loss of his father this week. May each of these families find comfort in the presence of our loving God!

Until next week …

MATT

Please see following a small collection of Winter Poems completed by Year 7 Students recently:-

Our College Captains, Maya Tolliday and Shaun Leonard share a message of encouragement and positivity for our Damascus community, as we make the most of this circuit breaker lockdown.

No doubt there will be mixed feelings amongst our community, about embarking on remote learning 4.0, but it is important that we remain positive, support each other, and stay connected.

It’s times like this where we can all take a collective breath, slow down a little and enjoy some time at home with our families.

Importantly, Maya and Shaun reflect on their study tips and send a gentle reminder for us to keep on keeping on. So please remember to reach out to your friend, your TA, your house leader, particularly if you are struggling to find motivation, as together we are stronger.

This is our shot to make the most of this remote learning experience. We’ve got this Damascus!

Recently the Sustainable Racing Team was visited by Mr Evan Milne, an occupational therapist who delivered an inspiring talk for our students, to begin an exciting new project for our SRT.

Evan spoke of his love of life and outdoor activities, his desire to study the journeys of the explorer Major Mitchell and of his challenging health affliction that has resulted in substantial disruption to his life and direction.

The project that the Sustainable Racing Team are undertaking will be to create a 4-wheel off-road electric vehicle that will enable Evan to access the bush he loves so much. SRT anticipates being involved in the frame construction and fit out, while Evans other contacts are assisting with machining and design tasks.

The connection with Evan comes via Alan Strange’s previous business Astec Services, where Evan, Alan and Astec staff often co-operated on the design and fabrication of many one-off devices to assist people with disabilities. In that setting Evan showed amazing compassion and a willingness to work on a range of things from electric wheelchairs to car modifications, all with the aim of helping people access the community. Unfortunately for Evan, the tables have now turned and since contracting an extremely rare disease that is slowly affecting all of his body and reducing his mobility, he is now in need of many of the services that he once championed for others.

Evan’s great attitude was evidenced by the sense of humor he displayed during his talk to our students and his zest for life during the subsequent demonstration of “stunt” riding in the carpark using his current 3-wheel disability scooter!

Given COVID, the SRT race schedule has been severely affected both last year and this, meaning that we are looking for new ways to direct our team’s energy. This project for Evan alongside development of a new race trike for the team, refurbishment of our wind tunnel, design of a new aerodynamic shell and the construction of new trainers means the team still has plenty of useful projects underway for our students.

Evan responded by saying: “Thanks for your commitment to this project: please pass on to the students my appreciation of their respect, attention, questions and ideas and their welcome of me into their space”

Here are some comments from a few SRT students after Evans visit:

“I really enjoyed listening to what Evan had to say on Thursday and I found it really interesting about what he does and what he’s been through, his activities on his electric scooter thing definitely takes a toll on how hard or easy it is to get around in the bush/tracks he goes on. So I think it is a great idea for us to help him to design and create a better suited vehicle for him to get around in. I found it very interesting and I would like to maybe help in the future to create this vehicle so his dreams may come closer in the making. Thanks from Izzy”

“I really enjoyed him being here, and I can’t wait for everyone to work on the off road mobility scooter” Laclan

On Wednesday 26 May 10 Damascus students went to to Federation University, SMB Campus for the 'Try a Trade Day' for Girls only.

The students took part in hands on activities related to trades in Automotive, Carpentry, Engineering, Electrical and Plumbing.

They all got a lot out of the day and learned a lot about the industries and what to expect out of an Apprenticeship.

What a fantastic opportunity for our students to learn the possibilities for the future.

To be eligible for a conveyance allowance, individual students will be assessed under the following criteria:

1. Attend a school/campus located outside the metropolitan conveyance allowance boundary
2. Attend the closest appropriate school/campus at which admission is permissible
3. For students attending specialist schools, this will be determined by the specialist school’s Designated Transport Area (DTA) in which the student resides
4. For students attending government schools, this will be the closest school/campus appropriate to the age and gender of the student (e.g. primary, secondary, single sex)
5. For students attending non-government schools, this will be the closest school/campus of the recognised denomination for conveyance allowance purposes.
6. Reside 4.8km or more from the school/campus (shortest practicable route calculated by the school attended at the time of application from the student’s home to the school/campus)
7. Be of school age (between five and 18-years-old at the time of application), and a resident of Victoria
8. Be enrolled and travelling to school three or more days per week.

Students’ circumstances can change during their school years (e.g. moving residence or changing schools/campuses). Change of circumstances affects eligibility and a new application must be submitted with each change of circumstance.

Private car
A private car conveyance allowance is not available if the journey could have been made using a public transport service or free school bus.

• Where there is more than one student in the vehicle, there are two rates claimable: ‘furthermost’ and ‘additional.’
• Where there is more than one student in a vehicle, and they attend different schools, the amount claimable is based on the distance travelled to school by each student. That is each student must be the subject of a separate application and the student attending the furthermost school is identified as the ‘furthermost’ student; each of the other students must be claimed as ‘additional’.
• Rates are calculated according to the distance (measured in kilometres) from home to the campus attended using the Department’s standard measurement method; for details of the rates claimable, refer to Appendix 1 Conveyance Allowance Rates
• It is assumed that all students from the same family will travel in one car therefore only one family member may claim furthermost student allowance.

Pro-rata adjustment of reimbursement (time fraction)

Where students change school, transport mode and/or address that affect the payment of conveyance allowance, pro-rata payments are made, having regard to the number of days of actual attendance. It is the responsibility of each school to report any mid-semester student changes and the required pro-rata adjustments that are required.

Late payments
Late (past year) applications cannot be accepted or paid.

Any inquiries relating to this allowance or to any bus travel matter may be directed to Tracey Williams at the College office Phone: 5337 2222.

** FAMILIES ARE REQUIRED TO SUBMIT A NEW CLAIM FORM EACH YEAR**

CSEF eligibility

Below is the criteria used to determine a student’s eligibility for the Camps, Sports and Excursions Fund (CSEF).

Criteria 1 – Eligibility

To be eligible* for the fund, a parent or legal guardian of a student attending a registered Government or non-government Victorian primary or secondary school must:

• on the first day of Term one, or;

• on the first day of Term two;

• Be an eligible beneficiary within the meaning of the State Concessions Act 2004, that is, be a holder of Veterans Affairs Gold Card or be an eligible Centrelink Health Care Card (HCC) or Pensioner Concession Card (PCC) holder, OR
• Be a temporary foster parent, and;
• Submit an application to the school by the due date.

* A special consideration eligibility category also exists. For more information, see: www.education.vic.gov.au/csef

Parents who receive a Carer Allowance on behalf of a child, or any other benefit or allowance not income tested by Centrelink, are not eligible for the CSEF unless they also comply with one of (a) or (b) above.

Criteria 2 - Be of school age and attend school in Victoria

School is compulsory for all Victorian children aged between six and 17 years of age inclusive.

For the purposes of CSEF, students may be eligible for assistance if they attend a Victorian registered primary or secondary school. Typically, these students are aged between five and 18 years inclusive.

CSEF is not payable to students attending pre-school, kindergarten, home schooled, or TAFE.

Eligibility Date

For concession card holders CSEF eligibility will be subject to the parent/legal guardian’s concession card being successfully validated with Centrelink on the first day of either term one (27 January 2021) or term two (19 April 2021).

Payment amounts

CSEF payment amount

The CSEF is an annual payment to the school to be used towards camps, sports and/or excursion expenses for the benefit of the eligible student.

• Primary school student rate: $125 per year.

• Secondary school student rate: $225 per year.