I hope that everyone is safe and well. I am sure everyone is on a countdown to the eagerly awaited Summer holidays on Wednesday, June 30th. The following closing times will apply linked to starting times.
Start at 08.40 finish at 11.40 Start at 09.00 finish at 12.00
Start at 08.50 finish at 11.50 Start at 09.10 finish at 12.10
It is expected that schools will continue to operate with the current infections prevention and control measures in place to support their safe operation during Covid 19 when they reopen on August 31st. We are therefore planning to reopen and continue in line with our current Covid 19 Response Plan. These plans will be updated in August following Public Health Guidelines at the time and will be available to you all well in advance of opening. Needless to say we will have to be guided by public health advice and other agencies in what we do.
At this stage of the year we bid farewell to our sixth classes. It has been our privilege to have had the boys here for the last eight years. We will celebrate their Graduation with them on Monday June 28th. We wish them well in their Secondary Schools and in the years ahead. We thank Mrs. Quinlan, Mrs. Sheehan, Mrs. Behan and Mr. Geoghegan for all their assistance with the Graduation and Fr. John who will also join us.
Sadly, we say farewell to Mr. Cadogan, our Principal for the past 25 years and a member of the teaching staff for 43 years, who will retire at the end of June. We thank him for his many years of dedication in leading this school of excellence, for his unwavering enthusiasm, care and commitment to the whole school community. We wish him well in his future endeavours.
To mark Mr. Cadogan’s dedication we have a committee organising a virtual send-off. Many classes have recorded either a poem or song, some in English, some ‘As Gaeilge’. Some have performed a dance and others have created beautiful art work. Some members of staff have recorded messages of support and best wishes along with poems and words of wisdom. I wish to thank all those for their involvement in creating this video which I am sure
Mr. Cadogan will cherish dearly. We are organising a dinner voucher from the school community for Mr Cadogan and his family to enjoy while they watch his virtual send off from home. Please send in €1 if you wish to contribute to this voucher.
Holiday list 2021/2022
The holiday list for 2021/2022 is available on the website on http://olgc.ie/wp/wp-content/uploads/Holiday-Schedule-2021-2022.pdf
Child Protection Statement and Risk Assessment
This policy has been ratified by the Board of Management at its meeting in June. A copy is available on the website and a hard copy is available on request from the office. The Code of Behaviour, Anti-Bullying Policy, Attendance and Absence Policy amongst others have also been updated and ratified by the Board and can be viewed here http://olgc.ie/wp/index.php/policies
New Entrants
Our Information Meeting for New Infants was held last night via zoom. It was lovely to see so many new faces along with many of you who are already a member of our school community. Booklists and tracksuit ordering is available via Aladdin. Please note the cut-off date for booklists is Wednesday July 21st. We look forward to welcoming the boys from Mrs. Whelan’s class in on Wednesday August 25th and those from Ms. Collins’ class on Thursday August 26th. Times will be confirmed closer to those dates. Thank you to Mrs. Behan, Mr. Curran and Mrs. Whelan for their attendance and help with the meeting.
Book Orders 2021/20212
Book orders remain open online up to midnight on Wednesday, July 21st where payment can be made via Aladdin Connect. New books ordered will be in the classrooms when children return to school on August 31st. Booklists are available on the school website if you are not ordering through the school. As previously explained books/stationery are only part of the booklists. It would be appreciated if book rental could be paid by midnight on July 21st to facilitate the distribution of books used in the rental scheme on the first day of term. If you have not paid book rental by then we will issue you with a full booklist. Please do not leave book ordering until the last moment in case there are “gremlins” in ordering on-line.
School Reports
Summer reports were issued on June 17th. These can be accessed through Aladdin Connect. Thank you to all the teachers for such thought and dedication. Please let us know if you have had difficulty accessing the report and we can organise a copy to be sent home.
School Uniforms
Our School Uniform in Junior and Senior infants is a crested tracksuit and light blue polo shirt which can be purchased in the school shop. Please see http://olgc.ie/wp/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/Tracksuit-prices-2021-2022.pdf for prices. From 1st class upwards the uniform comprises of a grey shirt, v-necked navy jumper, grey trousers, navy and grey tie, grey socks and black shoes. All items of clothing should be clearly marked. The crested jumper is optional. Many parents purchase an ordinary navy jumper and sew on the crest which is fine. In a uniform survey conducted a number of years ago parents reported that although the crested jumper was more expensive it tended to last/ “survive” longer. The crested jumper can be bought at https://www.uniformwarehouse.ie/. School tracksuit and school polo shirts are allowed on P.E. days only. All items of clothing should be clearly marked. For the new school year proper uniform must be worn by all pupils. A special thank you to Carol Berkery, Orna Larkin, and Jenny Simeoni who have run the uniform shop over the past number of years and for their, and your, patience and understanding while we moved this venture online. The sale of tracksuits will continue via Aladdin and you will be informed of a date(s) in August for collection.
Johnstown Parents’ Association (J.P.A.)
We thank the members of the Parents’ Association for their work and support of many school activities and events during the year. A special thank you for the recent donation of €1000 which will allow us to redesign our sensory room. This is a therapeutic, calming space with a variety of equipment enabling children to focus themselves so they can be better equipped for learning and interacting with others. The A.G.M. of the Parents’ Association will be held on Wednesday, September 22nd at 7.30p.m. Further details to follow in September.
Voluntary Subscriptions
Thank you to the Parents/Guardians who have responded to the annual Board of Management appeal. Without your financial assistance the school could not afford to continue to function. If you have overlooked payment and are in a position to do so, payment can be made online through Aladdin or by cheque, cash or standing order. Renewed thanks for your assistance.
I take this opportunity to thank everyone in our school community for their involvement, assistance and support during the year and for the extraordinary lengths so many people went to in the interests of the children during the pandemic. What everyone did was truly amazing despite the great challenges people often faced.
I trust that everyone has a safe and enjoyable Summer. A reminder to all families of the importance of water safety and safety on farms. I hope everyone stays safe and well in the months ahead. We look forward to seeing everyone back in school safely on August 31st.
Yours sincerely,
Michelle Cotterell
Acting Principal.
