Parent Forum Chair:
Nicole Moore
RE: Parents and Citizens Association Dissolution
Dear Families and Community Partners,
After several challenging years attempting to fill the required roles of the Parents and Citizens group, a decision was made last term by the remaining members of the PnC to no longer be active participants in the organisation.
There are a variety of reasons why the membership voted in favour of the dissolution of the PnC however several major factors included;
1. A recognition that for many families the commitment of attending meetings, formalising minutes, managing correspondence as well as the multiple roles in the Executive Committee (such as President, Treasurer etc) were not tenable for many members of our community. There was no clear new memberships arising and a lack of desire to become an Executive member.
2. Managing the demands of the organisation in terms of financial audits and insurance was seen to be draining on the limited funds the PnC did have and members agreed that using over $3000 a year on insurance and audits seemed at odds with the desire of the group to utilise funding to directly support the school and students. Our PnC does not own any businesses or has the man power to run fundraisers so they are challenged in ways of generating income to actually pay for the mandated aspects of Qld PnC Corporation. Despite outgoing President Ms Nicole Moore championing to PnCs Qld for reprieve, this was not able to be achieved.
3. Finally, the group desired to be a part of the decision making and the community voice of the school, and as Principal I am committed to ensuring ways to collect parent voice and work together to ensure all parties know about the amazing school we have. As such, the PnC agreed to the Principal’s suggestion of forming a school council group, currently known as a “Parent Forum”.
I am excited to announce the details of the parent forum will have many of the same supports and voice of the PnC such as meetings each term (with the option to use the TEAMS online platform to support this), decision making regarding key areas of the school such as vetting policies like the Code of Conduct and School fees. There will also be a Constitution and parameters detailed about how the Forum will operate. Basically, its very similar to a PnC without the financial obligation to larger organisations such as PnCs Qld and without the requirement of formalised positions of the Executive.
I am delighted to detail that the Forum will be lead for this year by outgoing PnC President and ‘Mac Mum’ Nicole Moore who will take on the Forum Chair position as we navigate and build on this unique opportunity together.
Nicole and I look forward to seeing you at the first Parent Forum meeting held on Tuesday 29 July, 2025 at 6.30pm at Merrimac SHS Hospitality Centre or via TEAMS.