New Staff Members

We are delighted to introduce three new staff members who will be joining us from the end of August.

Margaret Wright will be teaching first class.  Originally from Galway, Margaret did her teacher training in London and taught for several years in East London in a variety of school settings.

Clare Conry will be working as a special needs assistant in the junior infant classroom.  Clare has more than a decade of experience as an SNA, most recently at Scoil Cholmáin, Tuairíní.

Claudia Ní Chúlain has been appointed as part-time secretary.  She has a range of experience in administration and project management and is active in the GET2LS (Galway Educate Together Second Level Campaign).

 

School Tour and End of Term

It’s difficult to believe a month has passed since the finish of the school year.  We had a fantastic visit to the Aquarium and Monkey Business.  We also had a wet Sports Day followed by a very enjoyable family potluck.  The year ended with a great assembly.  Many thanks to all the parents who joined us for these events.

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Thank You

The children of the school were delighted with the beautiful cake the Board of Management presented to the children for the last day of school.  Sincere thanks!

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School Fees

Many thanks to those parents who have paid fees for the coming school year.  We’d kindly ask parents to pay €40 now so that we are able to purchase all books and supplies for your child for the coming year over the summer.  The fees for junior and senior infants will remain €80.  The fees for first class will be €90.  This may be paid directly into the school account.

 

School Office

The school office will re-open from Tuesday 23rd August during normal school hours.  In the meantime, please reply to this email if you have any questions or concerns.

 

First Day of School

A reminder that our first day of school will be Wednesday, 31st August.  We look forward to welcoming our new junior infants that day.  The junior infant day will end at 12.00 for the first week and a half.  The senior infant day will end as usual at 13.30 from the first day of school.  Children in first class will finish at 14.30 from the first day of school onwards.  Afterschool @ KETNS will operate from the first day of school.  We look forward to the coming school year.  In the meantime, enjoy the rest of your summer holidays!

Knocknacarra Educate Together NS

Board of Management Meeting

22nd June 2016, 19.30

Present: Louise Shields (chairperson and patron nominee), Maggie Hall (patron nominee and treasurer), Waqas Khawaja (male parent nominee), Lynn Morgans (female parent nominee), Áine Ní Chuinneagáin (teacher nominee), Paul Adams (community nominee), Matt Wallen (principal and secretary)

Louise chaired the meeting.

May Minutes: The minutes from May were ratified.

Principal’s Report

Enrolment

  • There are currently 49 pupils enrolled. 24 children have accepted places for junior infants.  Three children have accepted places in next year’s senior infants.  The predicted enrolment for September is currently 75.

Staffing

  • A temporary teacher will be hired to teach first class.
  • We are the base school for a new shared resource teacher. Vivienne will be teaching in our school, Lackagh NS (three half-days per week) and one hour in Gaelscoil Mhic Amhlaigh.
  • We have been allocated a 0.75 SNA.

Attendance

  • The attendance in May and April has been generally good. Overall, the attendance rate since the start of the year to now is 92.4% as compared with 89.9% for the 2014-2015 school year.
  • Seven children have missed 20 days or more. Four children will be recognised at the end-of-the-year assembly for having an attendance rate of 98%, and one child has perfect attendance.

Building Concerns

  • A follow-up letter has been sent to the Department regarding long-term accommodation. If no reply is received, this will be followed up with a phone call this summer.
  • Furniture orders will be placed next week. Installation of the new projector will also be arranged.
  • Based on the enrolment projections, the assignment of classes to rooms may be altered.

Curriculum

  • The new Aistear theme for the month is travel and the airport.
  • The English school plan is in progress.  On Wednesday, 29th June the school will be closed to facilitate a training session regarding the new Primary Language Curriculum.  This will be followed up with further whole-school training in September regarding the new Primary Language Curriculum.  In the meantime, the maths school plan is under revision.

Policies

  • The Social Media and School Website Policy is ready for ratification.
  • The Health and Safety annual audit has been completed, and the policy has been amended.

Misc. Events/Information

  • Our official school tour will take place on Friday. We will visit the Aquarium and Monkey Business.
  • Pupils will present their portfolios and parents met with class teachers on Friday, 3rd
  • Our third fire drill of the year was conducted this month.
  • Sports Day will take place on Monday. This will be followed by a family potluck with an international theme.
  • We will end the year with an assembly on Tuesday at 11.30. The senior infants will be presented with their completed portfolios, and both classes will sing and share highlights of the year.

Financial Report

  • All budget targets have been met. Income over the year has been strong and expenses have been managed well.
  • The response to the request for voluntary contributions has been very good. Sincere thanks to the many generous families who have chosen to support the school this way.
  • An accountant has been arranged who will certify the school accounts.

Budget for 2016-2017

  • A long-term two-year budget was presented and agreed by the Board. It is conservative regarding income and is a balanced budget.

PTA Report

  • A draft constitution is being considered.
  • Matt will liaise with the current office holders to arrange an AGM to take place in September.
  • Planning for the Spring Fair will begin earlier next year.

Registering for Online Training

  • Due to difficulties registering for the online training, it was agreed to devote 30 minutes at the next five meetings to complete the first training module.

Building Update

  • No new updates have been received concerning permanent accommodation.

Policies

  • The revised Healthy and Safety Policy was ratified.
  • The Social Media and School Website Policy was discussed. Additional information on procedures for breaches of security will be added to the policy, and it will be ratified in the Spring.

Community Nominee

  • Edward Joyce is unable to continue as a Board member. The Board thanked Eddie for his contribution to the school community.  A replacement community nominee will be agreed as soon as possible.