69É«ÇéƬ

With the end of term well within sight, it’s time for students and staff alike to plan how they will spend the two-week break. I find that if I am to make the most of my time away from school, I have to think ahead and make conscious decisions about what I’m going to do. As the weather warms up, there should be plenty of chances to spend time outdoors – something which I increa ...

To our dear Perth Jewish Community, As we approach Rosh Hashana this year, we are filled with sadness and angst for the events in Israel over the past year. Having been in Israel twice this year, I can testify to the remarkable strength and resilience of our people. Israelis not only carry on - they carry on in a constructive and positive way. Nevertheless, it is tough – tough ...

Volunteering I was lucky enough last week to be offered my first tour of Maurice Zeffert Home (MZH) by Sharon Cherny, the Wellbeing Manager. It’s only a short walk from my office so I didn’t get too wet in the rain, and I brought along Mr David Williams, our new Director of Communications and Enrolments. I didn’t really know what to expect, but I am now such a fan – it genuinel ...

The introduction in August of legislation regarding the right to disconnect from work has caused much discussion in various schools and other workplaces; listening to people’s opinions on the new laws has been fascinating. The wording of the legislation (accessible on the Fair Work Ombudsman’s website) explains that “The right to disconnect protects employees who refuse to mon ...

Last weekend, I had the privilege of attending the ZFA Jewish Educators' conference at Mount Scopus in Melbourne, together with a team of Carmel Jewish Studies staff. The experience was quite different from my first ZFA conference two years ago, when everything was new, every idea was surprising and I knew nobody. This time I was fully aware of what to expect and was looking fo ...

Public speaking is one of those skills which is so important in many spheres, yet daunting to many people. Some of us have genuinely struggled with it over the years and practise for many hours before every speech, enduring feeling sick the night before and boasting dangerously elevated heart rates as we stand to speak. Watching others speaking publicly is much more fun and ha ...

69É«ÇéƬ Alumnus Matthew Leibowitz (OKC 1997) has many heartwarming school memories. Not only did he make lifelong friends during his time at Carmel he discovered a love for Maths which ultimately led to a successful career in finance. Matthew is the now the founder of the successful financial services company, Stake and we recently caught up with him to find out more abou ...

This week was a week of contrasts for me, as I enjoyed the start of my Year 12 Leavers’ interviews as well as hosting the Year 6 students’ Orientation Day in the High School as they prepare for their move across the oval in 2025. The transition ‘to Big School’ is a fascinating one; a carefully curated process planned to set students up for High School, ensuring a positive star ...

Term 3 has started well, with the annual Zooz Camps a highlight. The first one was our Year 12 students’ last camp as a student (we hope that many of them will return as madrichim in future years!) and they embraced the occasion accordingly. Mr Lawrence and his fabulous Jewish Life team had organised the usual fantastic activities and our very own canteen led by Mrs Horwitz and ...

I watched in awe last week, as a lifeguard at the pool where I was exercising dived in fully clothed and swam the length of the pool to save a small child. Nobody had noticed the little boy was drowning. He was at the stage of floating bolt upright with scared looking eyes and slowly moving arms, but nothing was happening – he was out of his depth and unable to swim. His paren ...