Principal Report

One of the most rewarding aspects of my role is when I get to see students taking control of their lives and pushing themselves on further. It is not enough to have a dream - you have to name it; you have to commit to it; and you have to fight for it. Woodmans Hill students are made of strong stuff and they never cease to amaze me with the aspirations that they have. I have had so many conversations with students of late who are ready and willing to choose a pathway that leads them to their heart’s desires. We are really lucky in terms of the staff we have who are prepared to go above and beyond the call of duty to provide a wide range of opportunities for our students that may well change the way they see themselves forever.

I’ve heard it from our departing VCAL and VCE students who value their time at Woodmans Hill and who feel exceptionally well supported as they take the next step on their journey: how they know what they want to do and how prepared they are to do the hard yards to achieve their goal. The professional lives of our students will be very different from what many of us adults will have experienced. Theirs is a world of emerging technologies and transferable skills in which a job isn’t for life, it is for now. The thing that has impressed me the most is how much they get it. One student explained to me this week that the aim has to be ‘to get as many tickets as you can to have the greatest choice you can’… I love that idea: that our students don’t know exactly where they will end up, but they are going to make sure they have a choice and the greatest chance to win the prize.

At Woodmans Hill, we continue to look to create a range of contexts for our students to learn outside of the classroom. This term, for example, we have had students involved in a Job Camp to learn key skills to help them access jobs in a range of settings. For many of our students and I was certainly the same, part-time work is a necessity and it’s important that we can help them balance finishing Year 12 with the financial implications of modern life. What is always of equal importance to us as any qualification is that we produce students who are respectful and hardworking. Therefore, it was great to receive the feedback (from the provider) that “this is the best group of kids that I have worked with and you should be very proud of them. This is a reflection of what a good school we have.” It is great to receive feedback that confirms what we already know about our students- that they have enormous potential to do great things in their lives.

I witness these high standards again and again at Woodmans Hill. This week, Jackie Collins entered our students into the Peter Doherty Science Award with our students competing against Ballarat Grammar. By all reports, our students gave a fantastic account of themselves and the results should land sometime next week. Whilst it would great for our students to win this award, the competing (and competing well) is the most important thing because this experience will fill them with confidence and underline the fact that Woodmans Hill students have every right to compete at any level against any student from any school. If our students believe in themselves, they can achieve anything.

This is the culture we need to create together and we are putting things in place for next year to ensure that we create even more opportunities for our students to make a difference in our school. As part of our planning, we are developing positions of responsibility for both careers and student leadership. The former reflects our ongoing commitment to helping students shape their future and the latter is incredibly timely, after a year when students have felt restricted and disconnected. If 2020 was the year of isolation, I want us to make 2021 the year of connection and participation with as much learning happening outside the classroom as inside. Please encourage your child to get involved, make a difference and help us build a school we can all be proud of.

Stephan Fields

Country Bus Travellers

Reminder to all country bus travellers that you must catch the bus from the school to the interchange.

This is a Department requirement and students are not allowed to walk to the interchange due to Safety Concerns.

Personal Accident Insurance and Ambulance Cover

Parents and Guardians are reminded that the Department does not provide personal accident insurance or ambulance cover for students.

Parents and guardians of students, who do not have student accident insurance/ambulance cover, are responsible for paying the cost of medical treatment for injured students, including the cost of ambulance attendance/transport and any other transport costs. Please note that if First Aid trained staff at Woodmans Hill believe an ambulance to be necessary they will ring for one immediately. Parents and Guardians are not consulted prior to this decision being made.

Student accident insurance/ambulance cover policies are available from some commercial insurers.

Private property brought to school by students, staff or visitors is not insured and the Department does not accept any responsibility for any loss or damage.

VCE Students surprised by staff flash mob - Nutbush

Tegan Crosbie organiser