From the Principal

There is no doubt that the brutal rape and murder of Eurydice Dixon has had an enormous impact on so many people.  Firstly, we continue to pray for Eurydice, her family and friends. So much has been written and discussed over the last two weeks about this terrible tragedy and has challenged us to reflect on the lack of respect towards women that is evident in our society.

Every woman and girl should have the right to walk through a park, walk home from work, school or from a social outing without the fear of being raped, assaulted or murdered. They have the right to get home safely. We also need to reflect on the fact that many women and girls are subject to violence from partners and family members. We need to, firstly as a school and community, acknowledge the presence of gender violence and speak up. We need to challenge people, who by their words and actions make women and girls feel devalued and inferior to men and boys. We need to challenge gender stereotyping for girls and boys so that they are able to relate to each other on an equal footing. We need to make sure that all in our school and community are valued for who they are, for their personal gifts and talents.

As a College we will continue to educate our students to recognise gender inequality and to help them find a voice in order for them to challenge these stereotypes. As part of our Student Wellbeing Program we provide students with opportunities to explore and develop a voice and strategies for them to deal with situations in which they feel devalued, threatened or uncomfortable. We will continue to work in partnership with our students and their families in order to ensure all in our community are valued and respected.

On Tuesday June 26 recent MSJ graduates returned to the College to provide some very insightful advice to the current Year 12 students. It was delightful to have these students visit and spend time with our students to help them understand the task ahead of them as they commence their last semester of Year 12. The strategies and advice provided was of enormous help to our students and I am very grateful to these recent students for giving up their time to support the 2018 Year 12 class. On Thursday July 19 there are Parent/Teacher/Student interviews scheduled for our VCE/VCAL students. I strongly encourage all families to make an appointment with their daughters’ teachers through PAM, the parent portal.

As mentioned in the last edition of Synergy, our new College Uniform will be introduced at the beginning of 2019. Attached is a frequently asked question sheet that may answer any questions you have in regard to the new uniform. If you have any further questions could you please send them to info@msj.vic.edu.au 

Term 2 has been an extremely busy and productive term and I thank all students and staff for their hard work, both inside and outside the classroom. Online Semester One Reports will be available via PAM on July 18. Please ensure that you take the time to read the report and contact your child's teachers if you have any questions or concerns.

I wish everyone a very restful break over the coming holidays and look forward to a productive and fun term 3.

Kate Dishon

Kate Dishon

Principal