‘None of us is an island, autonomous and dependent from others. We can only build the future by standing together, including everyone.’

Pope Francis

At the end of May we were joined in the school by the HTs of Auchinleck Academy, Greenwood Academy and Carrick Academy. They spent the day observing lessons and talking to staff and pupils.  The feedback from them was very positive and has also given us some areas for development in the school.

At the start of June we were joined by the Primary 7 pupils who will be our new S1 in August. They had a great time following their new timetable and meeting new friends.

On 1^st June a group of pupils joined other pupils from across the country in the Aid to the Church in Need Rally at Carfin Grotto

Another group attended the annual Youth Saint Vincent de Paul event.

Our S5/6 pupils returned to school after study leave and seemed happy with how the exams had gone. They were set straight back to work however, as they set on their new courses for 2017/18.

Thanks to Miss Devanney we were lucky enough to have an Anne Frank Exhibition in the Drama Studio for a couple of weeks. Pupils were trained to guide others round the exhibition including some of the P6 and P7 pupils from St Andrew’s PS

Our S1/2 Awards Ceremony took place on the 8^th June – well done to all who received awards and thanks to their families for coming along to celebrate their achievements.

That same day a number of our S6 pupils were awards the Pope Benedict XVI Caritas Awards at the Clyde Auditorium in Glasgow. It was a lovely event and great to see so many young people recognised for their commitment.

The Lochside House Hotel was the venue for the S5/6 prom this year.  A beautiful venue, the pupils looked fantastic and and they had a great time.

I sent a letter to parents last week to inform them that I had been appointed HT of Our Lady’s High School in Motherwell. I will take up this post in August at the start of the new term and will be sorry to leave the many wonderful young people of St. Joseph’s.  There will be an Acting HT in place for August until the post can be advertised and appointed.

School closes for the summer holidays on Thursday 29^th June at 1pm and pupils return on Thursday 17^th August.

Pupils will receive their SQA results on Tuesday 8^th August.

Everyone has something to give to society; no one is excluded from contributing to the good of all.

Pope Francis

SQA Exams are almost completed now and there has been positive feedback from pupils as they have left the hall and from staff as well. A long wait now until the 8^th August when the results come in – it will all be worth it!

We changed our timetable and structure of the school day on 15^th May and despite having to get used to bells going off at different times, it has all gone smoothly.

The school recently hosted the ‘O’ Factor, celebrating outdoor learning across the authority. Everyone who attended to see the great work had the opportunity to vote and we were delighted that St. Joseph’s won the Secondary Outdoor Learning Excellence Award thanks to the wonderful work that has been done with the John Muir Award by Geography teacher Mrs Fulton. And as if this wasn’t enough, thanks to her hard work with the links we have with Holy Trinity College in Sri Lanka, the school has also recently received the British Council Intermediate award.

Mrs Whiteford recently took a group of pupils out of school to create a Community Mural. Well worth going to have a look!

A number of our pupils took part in the recent Colour Me Rad 5k run in Glasgow. This was organised by Miss Farrell in the PE department. By all accounts it was a great event!

A number of our pupils in S3 went on their final expedition and managed to achieve their Duke of Edinburgh Bronze award. Many thanks to Mr Szumlakowski, Mrs Whiteford, Mr Ritson and Mr Yemen for taking them out.

Mr Hannah took a few S1 pupils out recently to the Salters Competition at Glasgow University and returned victorious! Well done!

Forthcoming Events:

• 1/2 June      P7/S1 Induction Days
• 5th June      Parent Council Meeting
• 8th June      S1/2 Awards Ceremonies
• 8th June      Caritas Awards
• 15th June    Prom
• 19th June    S3 Diploma of Achievement Award Ceremony

May St Joseph give young people the ability to dream, to take risks for big tasks, the things that God dreams for us.

Pope Francis

I hope everyone enjoyed the break over Easter and came back refreshed. Not a complete break for many of our pupils as there was a great response to Easter School over the 2 weeks from our pupils preparing for their SQA exams! Let’s hope it was all worthwhile.

Before the holidays we planned a 5K run to raise funds for one of our S2 pupils Jessica Judge, who was staying down south with family whilst receiving treatment. It was with great sadness that we returned to school after the holidays to discover that Jessica had passed away. The decision was made to go ahead with the 5k run (or walk for many!) and raised over £1000 to be passed on to the family.  This was a great way of coming together as a community to show our support and, despite the circumstances, had a lovely afternoon. RIP Jessica.

The S3 Biologists enjoyed a trip to Edinburgh Zoo recently. No one was left behind!

On Thursday our S4/5 pupils gathered at St. Matthew’s Church for the SQA Mass, to pray for the success of the exams. On the Friday S6 pupils joined the parish Mass for their Leavers Mass and were joined by friends and family. They had lunch and activities later with Fr Martin and we finished off the day later with a water fight with SMT and Guidance staff. A memorable last day!  We wish them all the best in whatever path they take in the future.

At the weekend we had a number of pupils off on their practice for the Duke of Edinburgh expedition. By all accounts it was a very successful and enjoyable expedition despite an unexpected detour as a result of the Tour of Ayrshire cycle event! Thanks to staff for giving their time to pupils with these excellent opportunities and experiences.

Good luck to all our S4/5/6 pupils who will be sitting exams over the coming weeks! May you reap the benefits of all your hard work!

Forthcoming Events

• Thursday 4^th May – Inservice Day (holiday for pupils)
• Monday 8^th May – Parent Council meeting at 7pm
• Monday 15^th May – Change of timetable (& format of school day) for S1/2/3 pupils
• Monday 29^th May – School holiday

“It is vital that we sow the seeds of goodness in order to cultivate justice, foster accord, and sustain integration, without growing weary.”

Pope Francis

We have had another busy few weeks recently with plenty happening on top of all the hard work going on from staff and pupils as they prepare for the SQA exams beginning in May.

Mr Sikora and senior pupils organised a concert for S1 – 3 pupils recently as part of the fundraising going on in the school for SCIAF. We have so many very talented young people here in St. Joseph’s – absolutely brilliant!

The East Ayrshire Schools’ Art & Design Exhibition opened recently at the Dick Institute.  The exhibition has a number of excellent works of art displayed from across the schools in East Ayrshire, including from our very own James Johnston and Courtney Cameron as well as from last year’s S6 pupil Christian Kerr.

Our gymnasts were entered in the East Ayrshire Gymnastics Competition and were delighted to be placed 2nd – a great achievement!

Google have launched a programme called expeditions where they are going into selected school throughout the UK to deliver taster sessions of a virtual reality app built for the classroom. This is seen as a revolutionary tool that teachers can use to make lessons truly immersive.  Mrs Whiteford managed to organise a session in St. Joseph’s where pupils had the opportunity to ‘visit’ the Pyramids, Paris, the Great Barrier Reef, Pearl Harbour  and many more.

Congratulations go to Daniel and Marco who went on to win the Frankie & Benny’s Final. Rabbie’s pasta will be on the menu in Kilmarnock soon!

Four of our S6 pupils were recently recognised for the work they did on a World War 1 Research project.  They attended a ceremony at the Council Chambers in London and were presented with their certificates from the Provost. Well done to Sophie Gallagher, Ava Hepburn, Ann McGiffen and Zara Ainsworth.

Holidays are now approaching – I hope everyone has a restful and peaceful break.

Have a Happy and Holy Easter when it comes.

Some dates for the diary!

• Friday 31^st March                                School closes at 2.30pm for the end of term.
• Monday 3^rd – Monday 17^th April       School Holidays
• Tuesday 18^th April                               Pupils Return
• Friday 28^th April                                   Last day for S4/5/6 pupils before study leave.
• Monday 1^st May                                  May Holiday
• Tuesday 2^nd May                                 Study Leave begins for S4/5/6 pupils
• Thursday 4^th May                                Inservice Day (Local Elections)

‘God is always faithful and never stops for a moment loving us, following our steps, and running after us when we have strayed from him.’

Pope Francis

Our S5/6 Parents’ Reporting Evening took place recently and this was a great opportunity for parents to not only get an update on progress but also advice on how to support the pupils as they moves into the final weeks before the SQA exams.  Mr Lang has been liaising with staff and there will be an Easter school running during the holidays in a number of subjects and levels. Pupils in S4/5/6 have been asked to sign up for the classes they want to attend. Thank you to staff who have volunteered to come along during their holidays.

1st March was Ash Wednesday and saw the start of Lent. We had 3 services and my thanks go to the RE Department as well as Fr. Martin Chambers and Fr. Stephen McGrattan for their help on this day.  As part of Lent, our almsgiving began with a no-uniform day on 10th March – it’s funny how different everyone looks without a uniform on!

A group of S1 boys took part in the ‘No Knives, better lives’ football tournament last week and were delighted to come out victorious. Well done boys!

Congratulation to Oscar and Daniel (S2) who were the winning team in the semi-final Frankie & Benny’s Challenge that took place in Doon Academy.  Mrs McErlean prepared them well!

A group of S2 pupils from St. Joseph’s as well as some of the othe secondary schools had a visit recently from children’s book author and illustrator Debi Gliori.

Miss Devanney and Mr Divers thoroughly enjoyed their trip recently to the Scottish Parliament with the senior Modern Studies pupils.

S1 pupils had a great day out at the Science Centre last week. Thanks to the Science staff for organising this trip and all those staff in the school who are regularly giving the pupils those extra opportunities in the way of trips and clubs.

‘If evil is contagious, so is goodness. Let us be infected by goodness and let us spread goodness.’

Pope Francis

Our S3 Parents meeting took place on Tuesday 7^th February. This was a great opportunity for parents to talk with class teachers before the pupils choose their subjects as they move into the Senior Phase of their education, leading to qualification. Our S5/6 evening takes place on Tuesday 28^th February after which pupils will start their options for next session.

The Modern Languages department organised an S2 Spanish Day. Articulate Language Camps worked with pupils on a Spanish language challenges throughout the day and one lucky group had the pleasure of a paella cooking demonstration in the afternoon. Very tasty indeed!

The pupils had a week off to relax a bit before the last big stretch to Easter. Teachers came together for two inservice days looking at issues such as dyslexia and learning & teaching. We also had the pleasure of welcoming staff from the Primary schools in our Education Group, who came together to discuss Attainment and Achievement and how, as a group, we could tackle improving this.

Catholic Education week takes place in February and staff and pupils from St. Joseph’s and our associated Primaries visited churches in the area for Sunday Mass. A  Mass was organised for our pupils undertaking the Pope Benedict XVI Caritas Award along with pupils from the Primary Schools undertaking the Pope Francis Award. This was a lovely occasion, taking place in St. Matthew’s Church and celebrated by Fr. Philip Kitchen.

Mrs Burnett and I had the great pleasure recently of attending the Cumnock Young Citizen of the Year Award along with, amongst others, Provost Jim Todd and Head of Education Alan Ward.  This was a lovely celebration where this year’s winner, St Joseph’s pupil Elizabeth Brown was recognised for the great work she does.

Forthcoming Events

• Tuesday 28^th February:                  S5/6 Parents’ Evening beginning at 4pm
• Wednesday 1^st March                    Ash Wednesday
• Monday 6^th March                           Parent Council Meeting at 7pm

“God wants us all to see one another as brothers and to live as such, forming a great human family that is harmonious in its diversity.”

Pope Francis.

We have now almost completed all of our prelims for our S4/5/6 pupils. They have worked hard towards this and hopefully will reap the benefits of their efforts. They will start to get some of their results back next week and parents will be issued with these on Monday 27th February with Parents’ Evening for S5/6 taking place the following evening, Tuesday 28th February.

Our Options Evening for pupils moving into the Senior Phase took place last week, where parents had the opportunity to look at the Options form as well as listen to support and opportunities offered by the Pupil Support staff, Ayrshire College and Skills Development Scotland.

27th January was Holocaust Memorial Day and our Holocaust Ambassadors and a group of S2 pupils were honoured to be a part of an event taking place in the Ayrshire Chambers with elected members.

The school hosted a Languages for Business event in the school this week.  This included workshops which involved pupils from across the secondary schools in the authority. Provost Todd came along to introduce the event and participated in workshops as well.

On the same day we had a group of pupils out at the Park Hotel for the ‘Abilities Conference’, looking at the challenges that some of the pupils in our schools have to face on a daily basis due to particular disabilities.  We were particularly proud of one of our own pupils, Kyle Cleary, who led one of the Visual Impairment workshops on the day.

Forthcoming Events:

• Tuesday 7th February           S3 Parents Meeting
• Friday 10th February             S2 Spanish Day
• Monday 13th February         February break (pupils return on Monday 20th February)
• Tuesday 28th February         S5/6 Parents’ Evening
• Wednesday 1st March           Ash Wednesday

On Monday the PE department had a great afternoon with an indoor match and inspiring talk from the Scottish Woman’s Street Football Team. And well done to on the S4 boys who progress onto the competitive school sport basketball finals, following success at the East Ayrshire tournament on Tuesday.

The first Parent Council meeting of 2017 book place last Monday. The next meeting will be at 7pm on 6^th March and we are always looking for new members, so feel free to join us.

On Tuesday S4 Parents’ Evening took place with a good turnout. Many parents went away happy, equipped with plans on how to ensure the pupils achieve their best in the prelims and in the main exams in May.

Pupil Council Meetings took place this week and these will come together next week when I meet representatives of all year groups at the School Council meeting.

On Wednesday we had our S3 Inspire. This was yet again another successful event with 6 workshops for pupils – Teambuilding with the RAF, a careers input  from SDS, Radiography/Radiotherapy, Finance (RBS Money Sense), Healthy eating and  SPUC Scotland.

This week we had a number of pupils away on the Fire Reach programme this week and they represented the school very well indeed. This culminated in a display at Newmilns Fire Station towards the end of the week.

Just after New Year the community of St. Joseph’s was very saddened to hear of the news that former DHT in the School, Mary Margaret Lucas, had passed away. Her funeral was in Fort William but a Memorial Mass was organised for her in St. Matthew’s on Thursday evening attended by friends and former colleagues and pupils. with a beautiful eulogy from Mrs Donna Shearer.  Rest in Peace.

Forthcoming Events:

• 23rd January – S4/5/6 Prelims begin
• 26th January – Options Information Evening
• 5th February – Start of Catholic Education Week
• 7th February – S3 Parents’ Evening
• 13th February – start of February break.

Our Christmas Tins campaign was well underway in November. As part of this campaign our Head Boy, Scott Dippiazza, offered to get his head shaved if we reached a target of 700 tins and other items.  Not only did we reach this target but we doubled it. Thank you so much to everyone who contributed to this.  And a fond farewell to Scott’s hair on 22^nd December!

There was an opportunity made available by the Art & Music faculty to come in to the school on 29^th November for a Folio Presentation evening, with so many fantastic pieces of pupils’ work displayed. This was a great demonstration of the talent that we have here in St. Joseph’s.

Our House celebrations continued this month with the Feast of St. Andrew on 30^th November. There was an assembly with the whole House and then a Mass in St. Matthew’s celebrated by Fr. Martin.

As part of the 16 Days of Action, the campaign against domestic violence, Mrs Cassidy arranged some activities for a White Ribbon Event in the school. This was a great way of getting involved in this National event, raising awareness amongst our pupils.

As part of our transition for the P7 pupils who will joining us next August, we had a number of our S5 pupils out visiting and helping out for the day. Pupils thoroughly enjoyed this and the feedback from the Primary was extremely positive.

Some staff put their baking skills to the test recently as they fought for the prize as winner of the St Joseph’s Bake Off 2016. The  results were very impressive and the winner will be revealed soon!

Some members of our Youth St Vincent de Paul group joined Miss Curran and  took part in the Santa Dash in Glasgow on Sunday to raise funds for their Homeless Appeal. Congratulations to all who took part and managed to raise some great sums of money for this cause.

On Monday afternoon our Caritas pupils managed to get a bit of time out of school as they headed to St Matthew’s Church for a retreat with Fr. Martin.

You can also keep up to date with the many things that are happening in the school, particularly in classes, by following the twitter accounts:

• School Twitter:                                    @StJoAcad
• English Dept. Twitter:                        @StJoAcadEng
• Mod. Languages Dept. Twitter:       @stjoacadmodlan
• Science Dept. Twitter:                       @stJoAcadSCI
• Social Subjects Twitter:                     @stjoacss
• Arts Dept. Twitter:                             @StJoAcadArts
• Health & Wellbeing Twitter:             @StJosephsHWB
• RE Twitter:                                          @StJoAcadRE
• Design & Technology Twitter:         @stjoacad_tech

Forthcoming Events:

• Thursday 15^th December        Christmas Concert
• Friday 16^th December             Trip to ‘The Snow Queen’ at the Royal Conservatoire
• Thursday 22^nd December        S1 Panto Trip
• Friday 23^rd December             Last Day of term (school closes at 2.30pm)