The Board of Management (BOM) of Scoil Mhuire Moynalty consists of a
committed group of people who have the responsibility of overseeing the
governance of the school. The Board of Management is appointed for a
period of four years and meets regularly throughout the school year.
Structure of the Board
- Two nominees of the patron, Bishop Thomas Deenihan
- Two parent nominees, a mother and a father, elected from parents of
students attending the school
- A Teacher Nominee, elected by teachers in the school.
- The School Principal.
The Core Board must then appoint two members from the wider community.
Current Board
The current Board of Management, appointed in 2019 is as follows:
- Fr. Joseph McEvoy, Patron's Nominee
- Pat Nevin, Patron's Nominee
- Denise Ward, School Principal
- Liz Tinnelly, Teachers' Representative
- Eimear Ennis, Parents' Representative
- Kevin Gilsenan, Parent's Representative
- Thomas Owens, Community Representative
- Joe McKenna, Community Representative
Parents
At Scoil Mhuire Moynalty, we recognise the crucial and valuable role that parents play in the education of their children. Parents are the primary educators of their children, and have a vital role to play in the partnership between home and school. School also relies heavily on the support and co-operation of parents in the education of their children. Effective communication between home and school is crucial for the ongoing development and educational success of children. We value our parents and in turn ask our parents to support us in the education of their children. On the Downloads page, you will find some helpful information that will support you in the education of your child.
Parents' Association
We are fortunate to have a Parents' Association in our school who meet regularly and support the work of our school in many ways. The Parents' Association are always delighted to encourage and welcome new parents into working with them. There are fun events organised for the children and social events for parents. There is also a fundraising element to the Parents' Association, which supports and provides for extra resources in the school, keeping our school to the fore in educational and technology developments. The Parents' Association also provide a lovely party for the families of the First Holy Communion class.
The following are the members of the current core committee:
- Chairperson - Anne McMahon
- Vice Chairperson - Eimear Ennis
- Secretary - Jody Gilsenan
- Vice Secretary - Caroline McCabe
- Treasurer - Trisha O’Reilly
- Vice Treasurer - Mary Flanagan
- NPC Rep - TBA
- Yellow & Green Flag Rep - Kieran McEllin
- Community Council Rep - Orlagh McMahon
Message from the Parents Association September 2020
For any parents who maybe considering joining and who may not know what the Parents Association (PA) involves, we have provided the following overview to encourage new members onboard.
The PA is a voluntary group of parents who are willing to work on behalf of all of the parents in our school, planning social activities and fund-raising events throughout the school year.
The PA committee works with the school principal Denise, staff and Board of Management (BOM) to build a good partnership between home and school life.
The usual activities in which the PA are involved with are:
- Organising Fund Raising Events for the school – e.g. successful annual Craft Fair, Spring Walk.
- Contributing to the monthly school newsletter
- Arranging talks on topics of interest to parents. This is mainly facilitated by the National Parents Council (NPC) and organised by the NPC representative on the PA. Previous talks provided to parents include ‘Internet Safety’ and ‘Mental health & Wellbeing’.
- Providing support/organization input to major school events e.g. First Holy Communion, end of year mass.
- Relaying any parental views on relevant school issues to the school principal and BOM. It is worth noting that if parents have a concern about the curriculum or any specific subject, it is best to bring the matter to the attention of the child’s class teacher and not at the PA meeting.
The PA meetings are held monthly on the second Tuesday of the month at 8.30pm. However, if it is a quiet time of the year we may postpone the meeting until the following month. A typical PA meeting (depending on the agenda) would last anything from 40 minutes to a maximum (and very rare) 1.5 hours.
The agenda is usually consistent – discuss any fund raising events at that time or any upcoming events, NPC update, treasury (funds in and out) update, yellow & green flag updates, updates from the principal and then AOB to be discussed.
The minutes are recorded by the secretary and emailed out to the PA prior to the next PA meeting.
New parents may have some apprehensions in joining the PA which is only normal. Any member who has joined the PA most likely had similar fears.
1. You may believe if you join the PA you will have to take up (or even worse!) be handed down a main role on the committee - secretary, chair or treasurer.
This is not the case and any new members are actually not allowed to take on any of these main roles on the committee on your first year.
Any position taken is usually volunteered by the PA member themselves. You can come to the meetings and just listen and only partake when you feel happy to do so. There is never any pressure on any PA member to speak up or take on a role they are not comfortable with.
2. You may believe if you join the PA you are committed to going to every PA meeting – again this is not the case.
We know everyone is busy in their daily lives and may have prior commitments that clash with the night of the PA meeting. The PA constitution has changed in recent years - previously if you did not attend the AGM you would not be allowed to join the PA committee or if you missed a number of consecutive PA meetings you were not allowed to continue on the PA. These rules no longer exist to allow everyone the chance to be part of the PA. So if you know someone you could not make the AGM they are more than welcome to come to any PA meeting.
The PA is not only a good way of getting to know about the activities or events that are going on in your school but also a way of raising any issues, concerns or new ideas you may have to bring to school. The PA help support and initiate activities which enhance the school experience for all OUR children so should be in your interest to join it if you can. The PA work very well together and everyone takes on an active part throughout the school year therefore the responsibility of duties is never left with any one member.
Finally the PA is also a great way of getting to know other parents within the school. There is an annual night out for the PA Committee which is always a bit of fun. So that alone may entice you to join.
Hopefully we will see a list of new faces at our next PA meeting…
Kind Regards,
The Parents Association
