Home > Parent Community

At Stella Maris we are committed to open and engaged relationships with each of our families. To this end, we welcome your ideas and encourage your participation at every level. There are six easy ways to be an active Stella parent:

• Access the College Portal regularly
• Stay in touch with daily College life through our publications
• Join the Parents & Friends
• Offer your time and skills as a volunteer
• Attend events
• Share your thoughts and ideas with us

 The Stella Maris Portal

The Stella Maris Portal is an important tool that strengthens the lines of communication between you and the College. The Portal provides online access to a range of information and is updated daily, including

• a calendar featuring all relevant assessment tasks and excursions
• a list of reportable assessment tasks showing the due date and details of the task itself
• marks for completed assessment tasks (with comments if applicable)
• Academic Reports
• Pastoral Reports
• timetable (printable)
• pastoral records
• subject list
• news and notices such as daily room changes
• attendance records
• assessment schedules for each subject
• permission slips for school excursions that can be digitally approved by you with just one mouse click

You will also find a Quick Links section on the guest page before you log in that gives you access to many of the College services such as Moodle, email, the Newsletter and so on.

Your Parents & Friends Association

“The Stella P&F gives you the opportunity to give something back to the College and the opportunity to be involved, make friends, have a great time and be an active parent!” – John Mills, President, 2016.

The aim of the Stella P&F, one of the most important facets of the College, is to provide a collaborative safe and sharing environment where people can meet, discuss and support the general ethos and future of the College. As the Principal, Mrs Carnegie, says, “The P&F is about raising friends, not funds”. The P&F provides

• the opportunity to discuss, listen, gain knowledge about and support all College activities and College life in general
• the opportunity for positive, relaxed and effective communication with other parents and staff
• the opportunity to help and support the College and community wherever possible
• an understanding of the College/Parent relationship and its importance
• the opportunity to raise funds to contribute to the College for specific projects

There are five or six meetings per year usually held on a Wednesday at 7 pm: the Annual General Meeting always held in February, two general meetings, usually with guest speakers, and other Executive meetings.

Email the P&F or look out in the Newsletter for meetings dates and times and simply come along. Every parent is invited and your participation is much appreciated. You’ll be warmly welcomed.

There is only one fundraiser per calendar year. All money raised is donated to the College and specifically allocated to something needed by the College that has been discussed and agreed upon at the P&F meetings. The aim of fundraising is to be able to contribute something special to the College and in turn support our students moving forward.

Email the P&F about meetings, joining the Executive or events, or you can call the College main reception on 9977 5144 to be connected with our P&F President or leave a message.

Our Publications

The College Newsletter and website Highlights, are ways you can keep in touch with the daily life of the College. They are an important point of contact for parents who are unable to be actively involved in the College community. We encourage you to ‘Like’ us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter – especially important in situations where other lines of communication may be temporarily down. Each year we also publish a College yearbook called ‘Stellabration’. The yearbook is a valuable keepsake for the students but parents also enjoy this glossy look back at ‘the year that was’.

Volunteers

Our parents contribute according to their own skills, time and interest and enjoy each other’s company. The College appreciates every single moment you are able to share with us.

Some of the ways you can be involved are

• serving customers in the Canteen or Uniform Shop
• helping out at Music performance nights with supervision, stage management and ushering
• getting creative on Drama productions like set building, making costumes, doing makeup or ushering
• coaching sport teams or refereeing competitions
• joining the Parents & Friends
• assisting students with writing or reading difficulties during their exams
• spending time in the Library shelving books or taking books home to cover
• helping in the College historical archives and museum
• using your professional and trade skills
• advising in your field of expertise – from landscaping to marketing and anything in between

Research shows that volunteering actually causes happiness! Our generous Stella parents give their time and effort to contribute to the continued health and happiness of our College community. Their presence on campus creates a highly cherished atmosphere of collaboration and commitment.

Annual Events

The P&F generally organise one major fundraiser each year which is always entertaining and full of fun! Additionally, the following annual events provide informal points of contact between the College and our parents.

Opening Mass
Welcome Dinner for New Families
Mothers’ Day Breakfast
Information Nights for various Year groups
P&F AGM
Fathers’ Day Breakfast
Volunteers Thank You Dinner
Presentation Evening

Talk to us

Your feedback is always welcome. To reach specific people via email or to leave a comment or suggestion go to the Contact Us page.

Parenting Resources

Contact the College Counsellor
Council of Catholic School Parents
Partners4Learning
A to Z Parent Guide
Parenting Ideas by Dr Justin Coulson
Relationships Australia
eSmart

Save