ANNUAL REPORT FOR THE FINANCIAL YEAR ENDING 31st DECEMBER 2010

This was a milestone year for the Sathya Sai School at Murwillumbah, New South Wales.

In March 2010, the second and final stage of the building program was completed and officially opened by the guest-of-honour, the local Federal Member of Parliament and Minister for Ageing, the Hon. Justine Elliot.

The completion of these buildings and other associated works has brought to reality our vision for the school. The school now has seven classrooms, a library / resource centre, music room and office space for our administrative staff. The board of governors and the school community extend their appreciation to the Federal Government for the grants to the school under the Building Education Revolution Program, which largely assisted us to complete Stage 2 of our building program.

The year also saw the appointment of Mrs. Leelah Broughton as the new principal of the school. Mrs. Broughton functioned as the assistant principal and teacher at this school just prior to her appointment as the principal. She has made a commendable start to her term, winning the respect and confidence of staff, parents and students through her commitment to the education in human values program and for her focus on further improving students' academic achievements.

During the year, enrollments rose from 97 in February to 101 in December. The school, with the new spacious classrooms, has the capacity to increase student enrollments in the future. This is a key policy objective as we move forward.

Two new full-time teachers were appointed during the year, one replacing Leelah Broughton as she moved into her role as principal. The new teachers are Ms Michelle Carlier and Ms Belinda Sercombe.

All classroom teachers are Australian qualified degree holders who meet all requirements of accreditation with the NSW Institute of Teachers.

Teachers at the school are also required to undertake the Diploma of Education In Human Values, conducted by the Institute of Sathya Sai Education Australia, and are at various stages of completing the course.

Under the direction of Dr Dhall (Director, ISSEA) and the principal, there is a continuous program of staff professional development. Included in this ongoing training was the use of the new interactive whiteboards installed in the classrooms.

Academic standards remain high with our students' reading skills well above national average for Naplan scores.

The school sets high standards with a progressive curriculum and students' literacy and numeracy achievements are well within national benchmarks.

The school continues to develop community engagement activities, with students participating in various service projects linked to a nursing home, a women's refuge and with support for the homeless. The students also participated in the Murwillumbah Festival of Performing Arts, winning a number of awards.

With the retirement of Mrs. Ros Molloy from the bursar's role, the board reviewed the administrative structure and subsequently created the new position of business manager. Mr. Suresh Sampathkumar was appointed to this position. An accountant by profession, Mr Sampathkumar's previous work was in senior management in the banking industry.

A number of administrative improvements were brought into effect during the year. These included an enhanced secure database system, improved cash management, the set up of best practices regarding budgets, planning and forecasting, and the establishment of a fixed asset register.

The financial statement circulated to members provides a summary of the income and expenditure for the year ending 31st December 2010. The Director of Finance will provide an overview of the current financial position of the school and forecasts for the next six months.

At a management level, both the principal and the business manager attended skill development courses run by the Association of Independent Schools (AIS). All members of the Board of Governors and the Principal attended a governance workshop in Canberra, which was presented by a senior officer from the NSW Association of Independent Schools.

The school community is particularly grateful to Bob and Ros Molloy who worked full time in a voluntary capacity for over eight years at the school. Their work and commitment as a former principal and school bursar has been fundamentally important through our establishment years.

The Board of Governors, express their gratitude to Bob & Ros for their selfless service and for their role in building the school to what it is today.

This year we enjoyed a continuation of strong support from parents and friends. Their work involved the preparation of a master plan for the school grounds, organising and participating in working bees, helping students with reading and many other tasks. Parents also contribute to the school's aim to establish good character qualities in the students by being good role models themselves. This is particularly important as a significant proportion of a child's learning experience is at home.

Special acknowledgement is given to the Institute of Sathya Sai Education in Canberra and its Director, Dr Pal Dhall who provides overarching guidance to the principal and the teaching staff.

The school continues to operate without charging tuition fees. This is primarily due to voluntary contributions the school receives from the members of this incorporated body and from well wishers, people who have a resolute belief in the societal and individual benefits of strong values based education for children of this school.

Our primary purpose is to develop a model school in Human Values Education, and to make our teaching material available to all, free-of-charge. This material is the standard state curriculum interwoven with the five human values of Universal Love, Truth, Right Action, Peace and Non-Violence. For any society to experience long term peace and prosperity, the character of its citizenry at large must be imbued with these qualities. This can be achieved through a comprehensive values based education.

On behalf of the Board of Governors, I express heartfelt appreciation to the principal, teachers and staff, to parents and friends, to all volunteers and donors, to Federal and State Governments, to the Association of Independent Schools and to St George Bank for their confidence and support

Finally, our admiration is expressed to the students at the school who are striving to become exemplary young citizens, and who we trust will become leaders in the future.

Neville Fredericks
Deputy Chair
Board of Governors