Pastoral Care Worker- Kathy Zilm

Through the National School’s Chaplaincy Program, we employ Kathy Zilm as our Pastoral Care Worker for four afternoons per week. Kathy’s role is wellbeing focused and encompasses the six dimensions of school chaplaincy; role modeling and mentoring, social and emotional support, spiritual support, school engagement, community engagement and extra-curricular contribution.

At Kangarilla Primary School Kathy’s role looks like this:

• Role Modeling & Mentoring- Kathy is a role model in the school community and she assists students, staff and adults to develop supportive relationships with others. She often meets with individual students to provide mentoring in developing and maintaining friendships and getting along with others.
• Social & Emotional Support- Kathy provides a pastoral presence to nurture student and staff emotional wellbeing and assist students to develop knowledge, understandings and skills that support learning, positive behaviour and constructive social relationships. This might take the form of one on one support, small group work or working with whole classes. Kathy is also here to be a listening ear for parents who are struggling with life’s challenges.
• Spiritual Support- Kathy provides an enhanced dimension to the school’s care, guidance and support of students’ and staff spiritual wellbeing in that she respects diversity and facilitates their quest for meaning, purpose and hope. Kathy does not proselytise (attempt to promote a belief or religion) but encourages each individual in their spiritual development. This usually takes the form of casual chats if questions of a spiritual nature are asked.
• School Engagement- Kathy provides further social, emotional or spiritual support, especially for those students at risk of disengaging, through personal support and/or group activities e.g. social skills group, lunch clubs and meeting with small groups or individuals as the need arises. Kathy has a heart for those students who struggle with the challenges that school life can present and works closely with those students and their families to ensure school is a safe and positive experience for them. Her aim is for those students and their families to feel valued for who they are.
• Community Engagement- Kathy develops links between the school and its community, working with school based support staff such as our community-funded counselor, churches, agencies, services, and other networks. This might take the form of groups coming into the school to present values-based seminars, Cybersafety workshops, referrals for students or families to outside agencies for extra support or even members of the local church providing morning teas for staff. Kathy is our school liaison for community events such as the Kangarilla Anzac Day Service and Community Carols Night. A lot goes on here at Kangarilla Primary between the school and the wider community.
• Extra-Curricular Contribution- Kathy participates in and contributes to general school activities, such as camps, excursions, sports day and supporting the SRC.

“I feel so blessed to be here at Kangarilla Primary School, in this role. I love this school and this community and enjoy my role immensely. In fact, I’m one of those lucky people who look forward to going to work, because I never know what the day has in store.”