So when will I see a CHARIS poster in my classroom? What about my SCEA school website?

The Marketing & Partnerships Team at SCEA’s Central Office recently issued a Request for Proposal (RFP) to a number of signage providers for the next phase of the project. The chosen signage partner will work alongside the CHARIS Brand Project Team to create a unified signage system that reflects the shared identity while remaining appropriate to each campus community.

The aim is to create a clear and consistent experience for families, visitors, and staff across every SCEA location, helping people easily identify a SCEA school while highlighting our shared virtues and mission.

Some of the signage expressions planned for schools include entry statements, campus wayfinding signage, reception displays, ‘CHARIS Way’ driveway signage, CHARIS virtues and scripture installations, and other environmental branding elements designed to strengthen the sense of identity across each campus.

Please note that the concepts shown are early visualisations intended to help staff imagine how the CHARIS brand may appear across different environments. Final designs and applications are still being refined.

In addition to signage planning, work has started on redeveloping the SCEA and school websites. This week, the Marketing & Partnerships team will send out Expression of Interest (EOI) documents to a number of potential website partners, and the ‘Website Working Committee’ will begin guiding the project’s next phase.

The new websites will aim to ensure a more consistent appearance across SCEA sites, while improving usability and accessibility for parents, students, and staff. The updated websites are currently set to launch later this year.

An artist’s impression of the new websites across SCEA schools. This is a concept illustration.

The Marketing & Partnerships Team at SCEA’s Central Office has been developing a growing suite of practical resources to assist schools during the transition. These resources include Microsoft Word letterheads, PowerPoint templates, business cards, email signatures, Microsoft Teams backgrounds, lanyards, name badges, social media templates and various other day-to-day communication tools.

While much of this work will happen behind the scenes, the goal is to make everyday communication across SCEA schools clearer, more consistent and user-friendly for staff.

The unified resources and systems being created will provide schools with professionally designed tools that reflect the excellence, care, and gospel-centred mission shared throughout our Association.

“Our goal for the CHARIS brand is to provide practical support for staff, rather than simply introducing just a new logo,” said Kirsten Page (Lead Designer – SCEA) this week.

“We are focused on creating resources and environments that enable schools to communicate clearly and consistently, while also reflecting the quality of education and the Christian environment that families experience in our school communities every day.”

Stay tuned for further updates on the CHARIS branding in SCEA schools. The aim is to have the significant branding work completed in SCEA schools by 1 December 2026 and be operationally ready for the 2027 school year with CHARIS resources for all SCEA schools and the Central Office.

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The CSA National Policy Forum is a two-day event that allows representatives from member schools to hear from Australian and international speakers on issues affecting Christian schooling in Australia.  

Following these two days, the Wednesday session is known as the ‘Symposium’ and allows teachers and administrators to hear from experts and school leaders about real-life case studies that involve Christian schools across Australia.

Keynote presentations for 2026 included:

• Policy, growth and the future of Independent Schooling: Mr Graham Catt (Chief Executive Officer – Independent Schools Australia)
• The Impact of Human Rights and similar legislation on Christian Schools: Mrs Lorraine Finlay (Human Rights Commissioner)
• Legislation, Regulation, and Policies impacting Christian Schools: Mr Mark Sneddon (Director – Sneddon Legal Consulting)

On Monday evening, our SCEA group (along with other Christian teachers and leaders from across Australia) was invited to attend the Gala Dinner at Federal Parliament, with Federal Members invited to sit with their constituent Principals and discuss issues pertaining to their SCEA schools.

The Gala Dinner gave all participants the opportunity to hear from Senator Deborah O’Neill (on behalf of the Education Minister), who outlined the Federal Government’s perspective on the educational landscape and the place of Christian schools and noted

Gonski reforms around equitable funding for all schools in Australia.

Mr Julian Leeser MP (Federal Shadow Minister for Education) also spoke, making a passionate speech in favour of the freedoms for independent schooling, saying that:

“Unlike Labor we will never indulge the fantasies of the Law Reform Commission, who wanted to attack your very identity as Christian schools,’’

The speech marked the unveiling of the Coalition’s private schooling policy, with Mr Leeser defending the right of religious schools to discriminate on the grounds of religious belief.

The move aims to clearly delineate the Coalition’s position on independent schooling from the Australian Labor Party (ALP) and the Greens Party’s position in readiness for the next Federal election, which is scheduled for May 2028.

The speech was printed in ‘The Australian’ newspaper the next morning and laid out more details of the Coalition’s position on private schooling in Australia under a Coalition government. The newspaper article clearly articulated a change from the current stance of the Federal government:

“We believe in parental choice, institutional autonomy, freedom of religion, and that schools with a faith mission should be able to remain genuinely faithful to that mission.

“Religious freedom … is about allowing schools not just to teach but to model the doctrines of their faith, without the threat of litigation. Religious schools want to educate, not litigate.’’

Guests also heard from Ethan Beer, a graduate of a Christian school and an emerging Australian Christian artist from Brisbane. Ethan is a singer, songwriter, and producer whose acoustic-pop sound wowed the Christian audience at the Great Hall, completing the stellar event in the nation’s capital.

Following the success of the three days in Canberra, the group travelled north to Newcastle. The team visited St Philip’s Christian College (SPCC) Foundation Office in Newcastle on Thursday, with the St Philip’s Teaching School already working closely with the CHARIS Teacher Training School (CTTS) as it prepares for teacher-training in SCEA school for 2027.

One of the goals of SCEA Research trips is to learn from like-minded educators and leaders. The trips also help to expand our collective knowledge across SCEA by offering these delegates opportunities to return and share their findings with other SCEA staff, thereby enhancing our ability to deliver Christian education in our schools in 2026 and beyond.

The ten SCEA travellers for the week were:

• Mrs Kate Rimmer (Acting Deputy Principal – Kalamunda Christian School),
• Ms Vernita Jaques (Deputy Head: Junior School – Swan Christian College),
• Mr Stuart Chisholm (Principal – Northshore Christian Grammar School),
• Mrs Jacqui Wilmot (Head of Junior School – Mundaring Christian College),
• Mr Doug Lake (Head of Secondary – Ellenbrook Christian College),
• Mrs Michelle Schouten (Principal – Ellenbrook Christian College),
• Mr Terry Eason (Acting Head of Secondary – Mundaring Christian College),
• Mr Brett Costin (Principal – Southern Hills Christian College),
• Dr Darnelle Pretorius (Principal – Swan Christian College), and
• Dr Graeme Cross (Chief Executive Officer – SCEA).

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At SCEA’s newest school, Northshore Christian Grammar School (NCGS), the tradition that began 44 years ago in Midland is being passed on to a growing community in Alkimos – a grandparent who unselfishly serves a large number of children each day.

‘Granny Margaret,’ as she is affectionately known, blesses the students at NCGS each day with acts of service – and recently she was awarded for her amazing contribution to the life of the school.

Granny Margaret’s four-year commitment to volunteering with Northshore’s Primary students was recognised at a recent school assembly, presenting our young people with a fantastic example of how schools and community members can work together to enrich the student experience.

Mrs Richelle Schokman and Granny Margaret during the National Volunteer Week assembly.

Granny Margaret was honoured for her contribution to the school.

Similar to SCEA’s founding members, Granny Margaret’s desire to volunteer stemmed from identifying an opportunity in her world.

Her grandchildren had moved away, and Granny Margaret found herself searching for the sense of purpose and connection she finds when caring for children.

A conversation with someone at church who is connected to Northshore pointed her in the direction of the school and a student who needed extra support.

From helping a single student to now caring for her “250 Northshore grandchildren,” Granny Margaret has become a beloved member of the school community.

Granny Margaret’s involvement at Northshore may have started small, but it has grown organically over time.

She is now a weekly fixture in Year 4 classrooms, where she helps with anything from cutting and gluing to helping teachers with classroom tasks or encouraging students learning to read.

“Wednesdays are the highlight of my week because I get to spend time with the kids,” she explains.

As Granny Margaret’s involvement with Northshore continues, her love for the students certainly flourishes.

“Each of those children is really like my own grandkids,” she says.

At the end of each school year, the ‘grandkids’ receive a personal card from Granny Margaret, thanking them for being part of their year group.

In return, the students often gift their ‘granny’ with cards and drawings – each of which is treasured by the recipient.

Granny Margaret’s acts of service are characterised by compassion, grace and abounding love – all of which are found in her favourite Bible passage, Psalm 103.

Granny Margaret in the classroom

When asked in an interview with the school what she would say to someone considering volunteering, Granny Margaret was nothing but encouraging.

“The teachers and students benefit, but I think the person who truly benefits is me,” she says.

“It keeps you active, it gives you purpose, and it helps you feel part of something. I don’t do it to get anything out of it, but I love how much I love it.”

Schools that are eager to partner with members of their local community could certainly take notes from Northshore’s example:

• It starts with a conversation. Granny Margaret’s involvement at Northshore began through a conversation at church with a member of the school community.
• It starts small. One student, helping build skills Granny Margaret was already passionate about (in this case, English). Margaret’s involvement grew naturally over time as she got to know the students personally.
• It carries the heart of Christ. Granny Margaret’s desire to get involved with serving children started in prayer. SCEA aims to help students become all that God has created them to be. As volunteers like Granny Margaret work with our schools, more families can be blessed by the love of God.

Granny Margaret and the Year 4G class, 2026

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The post SCEA News – 29 May 2026 appeared first on SCEA.

So, how has it been going?

Here are just a few of the stories that have come from the month of prayer – testimonies of God’s goodness at work in West Australian schools and churches.

“We have been praying as a church, as have our prayer teams.”

“Last night we had a churchwide meeting, so we started the meeting with prayer for schools.”

Testimonies from Lifestreams Church in Como highlighted the ongoing impact of committing schools to prayer in their church:

“We shared the list of names of local schools as part of our prayer focus notes for Lifestream’s Day of Prayer & Fasting on 7 May and had specific prayers for each church on that day.”

“We have since prayed for our schools in varied prayer sessions in our Prayer Hub, and we have a notice with the schools listed to encourage ongoing prayer.”

“On Sunday 17 May we had a prayer time in our morning service focusing on those involved in schools as teachers, teachers’ aides, parents or students, with congregation members praying for individuals.”

Further afield, education workers at Nulsen Primary School in Esperance said:

“Our school needs prayer this week! The Ear Bus, dental van and Bega Cheese representatives are all on site today. We also had nine new students enrol yesterday!”

Schools have been reaching out to each other as a result of this time of prayer:

“After spending some time today (Day 20) praying for schools in Mundaring LGA, I then emailed the Principals and Chaplains of each school, to share the prayer that was prayed over their school community. I’ve had some immediate responses from three of the school Principals and some of the chaplains, expressing their appreciation.”

Thank you for your email and for sharing the care and goodwill expressed towards our school.

Please share with your church community that we appreciate the spirit of support, kindness and encouragement reflected in your prayer, particularly your hopes for the wellbeing of our students, staff and families.

The variety of approaches to prayer for education highlights the beauty and breadth of prayer across the body of Christ.

Where does this unity come from, given that our lives and unique backgrounds are so different from one another?

Psalm 133 says:

Behold, how good and how pleasant it is
For brethren to dwell together in unity!
It is like the precious oil upon the head,
Running down on the beard,
The beard of Aaron,
Running down on the edge of his garments.
It is like the dew of Hermon,
Descending upon the mountains of Zion;
For there the Lord commanded the blessing—
Life forevermore.

We pray that every church and school across our state may be blessed by the prayers of a faithful, united church. Stay tuned for more updates on how this Month of Prayer will continue to unite Christian ministries across our state and bind us together as God’s people!

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The SCC Arts Captains, Joshua and Sebastian, organised an event that showcased talented musical groups from across the SCEA schools.

The five different bands ranged from mullet-haired rockers to ballad-singing teenagers, with judges from the Western Australian music industry giving first place to Northshore Christian Grammar School (NCGS) heavy hitters ‘Astrasa’.

The band (pictured below) is made up of Year 9 and 10 students from SCEA’s northern-most campus in Alkimos, and they were driven by a love of loud music and their College in the Shorehaven estate, with Northshore fostering a creative environment for these young men to play their music during lunchtime and after school breaks.

Winners of the competition ‘Astrasa’ salute the crowd of students who came to support the five groups last week.

Five bands competed in two Award categories: Overall First Place and the People’s Choice award.

While the industry judges selected the overall winners, the People’s Choice award was made by students online who enjoyed the lively music up close!

The panel of judges spoke of the talent across the five groups, saying:

“Choosing a winner is always a conflicted moment in artistic endeavours.”

In the end, both the First Place award and the People’s Choice award went to Astrasa – a remarkable achievement!

Congraulations to Declan (vocals) Coby (lead guitar), Sunny (rhythm guitar), Jack (bass), and Dylan (drums) on their fantastic performance.

Dylan, Coby, Sunny, Jack and Declan

We look forward to hearing more from Astrasa in the future, along with the other four bands who took the stage for their SCEA school.

See more photos from the event below.

Bands performing at the Battle of the Bands event

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December 2025: SCEA announces the opening of the CHARIS Teacher Training School (CTTS).

January 2026: Mrs Melissa Meloni announced as our Head of CHARIS Teacher Training School.

April 2026: Partnership with St. Philip’s Teaching School in Newcastle is announced.

May 2026: The Expression of Interest is now open for the CHARIS Teacher Training School for 2027. 

Our vision and hope is that CHARIS Teacher Training School (CTTS) will support the development of highly skilled Christian Educators who will be in our classrooms from ‘Day 1′ of their undergraduate and postgraduate teaching courses, as they are mentored by our exemplary Christian educators across schools.  

To register your interest, please use the link below:

If you know of someone who may be interested in being a part of this program, please send them this link to register their interest in this new initiative.

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The post SCEA News – 15 May 2026 appeared first on SCEA.

Day 1 – A gathering of two of our key networks across SCEA: The Learning Support Network and the Wellbeing & Chaplaincy Network

These two groups came together to learn more about an issue they are deeply invested in: tackling school avoidance.

Attendee Mrs Danielle Grisham gave us the scoop on what the day was all about:

“School avoidance is a relatively new phenomenon, with rates increasing significantly since COVID-19. The Australian Government estimates that school avoidance affects between 1% and 5% of students, with higher rates among neurodivergent students.”

AISWA’s Senior Psychologist, Wendy Vasquez, and Dana De Bunnetat spoke at the combined Learning Support and Chaplains Network meeting. School avoidance, or ‘school can’t’, is difficult to address, not only for parents, but also for schools.

Dana and Wendy emphasised the importance of early conversations with parents and students when warning signs begin to appear.

Both psychologists also stressed that our focus should not be on fixing the student, but on understanding and adjusting the environments that support them.

It was lovely to bring learning support and wellbeing together in collegiate conversation, to deepen our understanding of school avoidance and work within our school teams to improve ways we can support our students who are struggling.”

Day 2 – CSA/SCEA Senior Leaders Institute Coaching Day  

This full-day event formed part of the Christian Schools Australia (CSA) Senior Leaders Institute, aimed at developing potential school leaders.

Many of the leaders present had already had contact with Mrs Emily Dickinson, who has been engaged by SCEA in recent years as a coach and trainer.

However, it was the second presenter, Mr Grant O’Sullivan, who was the ‘new face in the room’, bringing insights from decades of leadership coaching. Mr O’Sullivan is also a former colleague of our Chief Executive Officer, Dr Graeme Cross, and he shared some anecdotes throughout the day about their time together as leaders in a school setting.

Together, the tandem of coaches delivered a number of fresh insights and opportunities to develop the coaching skills of the SCEA group.

These events work together to increase our knowledge and understanding of contemporary issues in Christian education and also provide opportunities for rich conversation and fellowship across our SCEA schools.  

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Today we reach the halfway point of the Month of Prayer, and here is the ‘half-time report’ for those of us praying each day for different Local Government Areas (LGA’s) and schools across our state.

Step 1: The Geo-Networks have connected to unite in this initiative.

(‘Geo-Network’ refers to a geographical network of pastors who gather together regularly to work for the good of their communities.)

Step 2: A dedicated website with resources is set up, including videos about each community, daily prayer guides, a prayer schedule, and an interactive prayer map.

Step 3: Start praying!

For many people, prayer is an intensely personal experience. It’s a private moment between you and God. It’s completely sacred – and the more you contemplate its depths, the harder it is to put into mortal words.

However, there have been some positive messages, and it is clear from website visits and map usage that people from all over Western Australia have come together to demonstrate their belief in the power of prayer and its positive effects on our wider community.

As of today, the Month of Prayer initiative has covered schools in 15 Local Government Areas (LGAs) in prayer.  

At the heart of this mission are the thousands of students, teachers and families connected to WA’s schools.  

This week, Amit met with local chaplains and church pastors as part of this work:

“It’s exciting to see how God will move through a unified and surrendered church,” he said.

“We’re looking forward to seeing the results of this month of prayer in our local schools.” 

And it’s not just schools that will be positively impacted – as churches commit to prayer, they have shared several encouraging testimonies with us.   

At the core of each story is the growing heart of compassion towards schools in each church’s local area.  

Their churchwide prayer meetings began with a dedicated time of prayer for their local schools.  

In our next edition of SCEA News, we will conclude the Month of Prayer with some details of the 30-day campaign. What a wonderful initiative for our schools, the Central Office and the wider community!

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