Many would know Charis as a very active lady, working for our community and often visible around the Greater Springfield area, but perhaps not know so much about the lady behind the political duties.  On Thursday we offered Charis the opportunity to put aside her political duties and talk to our members about her life and her Greek heritage and how she learned to adopt Australia as her home having arrived at the age of 7yrs and unable to speak English.  A very interesting talk and of course lots of questions. Not to miss a photo opportunity we managed a quick picture of Charis with our our President Paul.  

On September 9, 2021,  Principal Fleur Watson and Deputy Principal Kali Harris, from the Goodna Special School were guests at out weekly meeting and spoke to us about the great work that the school does for children with special needs.  The school covers a large catchment area which includes all of Greater Springfield and is thus an area of interest to the club and members.  Members enjoyed a very informative presentation by Fleur and Karli, supported by PowerPoint slides, and we gained a good insight into where Rotary might be able to support the school.

 

The school encompasses a wide area across 21 suburbs from Redbank Plains, Springfield through to Ipswich. All students have an intellectual disability which includes impaired vision, hearing difficulties as well as physical and mental issues. 20% have an Aboriginal background and the age range is from 4 to 18 years.  The school is growing and in the future there will be over 200 students attending.  

 

The school encourages students to feel that they are an important part of the community, and in promoting this, the school has partnerships with Ipswich Jets players who interact with the students as well as family days.  Students are provided with skills and a plan to support development and their transition to life after school. Working closely with parents/carers enables individual curriculum plans to support student access to the Australian Curriculum.

 

While there are many challenges, building student communication skills is a priority at the School, with  staff needing to know how the students are feeling and what they may need. Staff work with a team of therapists to embed individualised communication programs into all areas of learning. Pragmatic Organisation Dynamic Display (PODD) books and IPad apps, Auslan (sign language), communication devices and core word boards are in use around the school to support the success of every student, by facilitating communication.  PODD is normally a book or device that contains symbols and words to support communication between people with complex communication needs and their communication partners, whether that's carers, family, friends or support workers. 

 

 

 

Our new Board for the 2021-22 Rotary year from left to right -

President - Paul Roger;  Director Club Services - Mark McMonagle;  Director International  - Costa Mukendi;  Director Community Service - Sue Roger;  Director Youth Service - Rosemary Kelly; Treasurer and President Elect - David Goss;  Secretary -Amanda Vidal;   and Immediate Past President - Donelle Paul.