A/Principal's Report

I would like to thank our students, parents, staff and wider College community for your support in what was one of the most unusual and difficult starts to a school term that we have ever experienced.

Teaching and training staff had to develop a new learning programme for students working from home in a very short period of time. This involved developing resources that could be placed and accessed on Connect and presenting lessons on Webex, a system that had its limitations and didn’t always operate as it was intended. Thank you to the teaching and training staff for your dedication, hard work and commitment to supporting our students.

Early in Term 2 the majority of our students were involved in online learning through connect and Webex. This was obviously not our preferred learning programme and a difficult situation for staff, students and parents. College staff and I contacted parents and students during this period of time and discussed the issues some parents were having with the internet and their son/daughter's learning from home. While the situation was quite difficult for most, it was also rewarding to note how positive and supportive parents and students were towards the College.

Week 2 and 3 of the term saw a return to boarding for some of our students and an adjusted learning programme involving some online learning, normal Workplace learning (Farm) day and time in their allocated options.  Towards the end of Week 4, the State Government announced changes to education based on a review of current arrangements and updated health advice.  

As of Monday, 18th May 2020 all students were expected to attend school, except for those students medically referred to learn from home. College staff were very pleased to see the return of Year 10 students to boarding and nearly 94% student attendance at the College.   

Staff have ceased delivering an on-line learning program and all classes are now ‘face to face’ as per normal College timetable. 

It is now a case of ‘catching up ‘on time lost over recent weeks. The cancellation of Country Week sport and work experience will provide additional time for the learning programme towards the end of the term.  

COVID 19 Update 

 Current health advice states that schools remain safe for staff and students and should remain open. There is also no doubt that schools are the best place for children to learn.

However, there are some key precautionary requirements that we have put in place on advice from the W.A. Health Department and the Department of Education;

• Social distancing and health and hygiene practices have been incorporated into all residential activities and wherever possible during the day programme.
• Split sittings for some meals have been introduced to reduce numbers in the dining room
• Additional cleaning during the school day and in residence on weekends and evenings
• Food/meals are being served by kitchen staff. Students are required to sanitise before entering the dining room and practice social distancing.
• Sanitisers have been placed in all bedrooms, classrooms, vehicles and common areas.
• Staff and students are to stay home or return home if unwell.
• Parents and family members are to report to the Administration building when visiting the College. Visitors and non-boarders are not permitted in the residential areas.
• College is limiting unnecessary visits from non-school staff
• Avoidance of direct social contact (handshakes, hugs, etc)
• Students will have safe opportunities to leave the residential facility for activities such as exercise and shopping where appropriate
• Contact sport / activities are not permitted
• Boarding students are unable to leave the College during the week to be involved in part-time employment. This is a strategy to reduce student interaction with adults and hence reduce the risk of bringing an infection back to the College.
• We recommend students have the COVID Safe app on their phones to assist with tracking interactions and also have a flu vaccination
• Some of the usual recreational activities (such as outings and excursions) will unfortunately not be available

In relation to weekend leave

In line with AHPPC advice to reduce out of facility visits, boarding students may only return home on the weekends following arrangements with and approval of the Principal. Again, the intent is to reduce the number of occasions students leave the College site and interact with adults in order to reduce the chances of bringing any infection back to the College.

• I can only approve weekend leave to a student’s family home. However, if the family home is a long distance from the College, I will approve leave to another nominated family home.
• We expect parents and host families to manage student movements over the weekend to ensure social distancing and correct hygiene.
• Boarding students may leave the College during the week and on weekends for appointments and to spend time with family out of the immediate residential area. However, please avoid appointments and visits during College teaching / learning time
• Parents / carers are required to collect and return their son / daughter to the front of the residential office and not enter the College with their child
• Weekend leave booking arrangements must be completed by Wednesday of each week. Please enter your leave requests into REACH with as much detail as possible

College staff have developed very thorough risk management and response plans and are confident we have made the College environment as safe as possible. Please contact me on 98480200 if you require further information relating to boarding, college operations and COVID 19.

Kevin Osborne 

I am sure that the WA College of Agriculture-Denmark community are aware that Principal Kevin Osborne suffered a serious medical condition during the Term 1 April school holidays.  Kevin has been undergoing treatment in hospital in Perth over recent weeks. Kevin’s wife Alison has informed us that he is making very good progress and is hoping to return home very soon. We pass on our best wishes to Kevin and his family and look forward to having him back at work at the College very soon.

I have been appointed the Acting Principal for the short term at the College. Amanda Gaunt will be Acting Deputy Principal during this period. The Head of Dept. – Studies position has been filled by Stuart Irwin. 

Environmental Scan of Equine Program

As the parents of our Equine students already know, the Deputy Director General, Schools, Mr Stephen Baxter, recently requested an environmental scan of the equine programs at each of the WA Colleges of Agriculture (WACoA).  Horse riding is, of course, a high risk activity and the aim of the review is to ascertain if there are any improvements that could be made to the Equine Policy and Procedures across all the WACoA sites.  The review and a report outlining 10 recommendations has now been completed.

As a result of the enquiry the Department of Education proposes to formalise a set of Equine Program Guidelines and Procedures for use across all the WA Colleges of Agriculture. Our Equine trainer, Elissa Forbes, is one of two WACoA equine trainers included in the consultative group to develop the guidelines. 

Home Weekend

The home weekend programmed for the WA Day public holiday weekend from 30th May to 2nd June will continue as planned.  The College learning programme will continue to 2.10pm on Friday 29th May and resume 8.10am on Wednesday the 3rd June.  The College provides a travel day on leave weekends to allow students extra time at home. However, the travel day also results in lost instructional time at the College.  It is therefore very important that students remain in the programme until 2.10pm on Friday 29th May and are back in time for an 8.10am start on Wednesday 3rd June. The College is providing an early close of 2.10pm on Friday 31st May to allow students and parents to travel home during daylight hours. 

College staff will be using the travel day (Tuesday 2nd June) as a school development day which will include discussion on the College’s new 2020 – 2023 Business Plan.

New Dairy Position

Dairy AITO Kylie Quilty recently informed us that she would be finishing her employment at the College to take up a new role in Bunbury.  Kylie has been an outstanding manager of the Dairy enterprise and a greatly respected Training Officer to our students. It was obvious that she really enjoyed working with young people and developed a really positive working relationship with all our students. She also loved working with the dairy cows and I am sure they will miss her a great deal as well.

As a result of Kylie leaving this position, the College is seeking another Agricultural Technical Officer to work and train students primarily in our Dairy enterprise.  The position will be advertised shortly and we hope to have the successful applicant commence at the start of Term 3.  If you would like to discuss the position please contact either myself or our Farm Manager, Kevin Marshall.

School Enrolment Interviews

The College’s A/Deputy Principal Amanda Gaunt, and I have been busy interviewing prospective students for 2021 on most Tuesdays and Fridays for the past several weeks.  Given the very strong demand for places I would urge anyone who is thinking of trying to secure a place for their son or daughter to do so as soon as possible. Application forms can be downloaded from our website.