Principal's Report

Welcome back to students and families and a special welcome to our Year 7 students and other families new to the College. I look forward to working closely with you all throughout the year.

We have already had a positive start to Term 1 with students enjoying year level specific start up programs, whole college assembly and commencement of timetabled classes. The program for Year 7 students was organised by the Junior School Team and followed on from the transition programs, which commenced last year. It was a great opportunity for all students to develop positive relationships with members of their classes, home group teachers and sub-schools. Based on observations of student engagement and feedback from students, parents and staff it has been a highly successful start to the year.

New and Returning Staff

We welcome the following new staff to Scoresby Secondary:

Ms Cyndee Bautista

Mental Health Practitioner

Mr Gordon Gunn

Head of Music and Performing Arts

Mr Dave Grewcock

Maintenance and Facilities

Ms Kathleen Shirer

English and Mathematics Teacher and Tutor Program

Mr David Westerbrook

Building better Australians Program

Ms Sharon White

Chaplain / Social Worker

We also welcome back Mrs Casey De Silva from family leave to teach design and technology and art

Assembly

Last week our College Captains led our first whole college assembly. Students had the opportunity to welcome our incoming Year 7 students, meet new and returning staff and be provided with an overview of what 2021 has in stall for them. One of the highlights of the assembly was the official presentation of our College Captains and Vice Captains face to face.

College Captains for 2021

Bonnie Collins
Tatira Tatira

College Vice-Captains

Aimee Bugeja
Mason Rimmer
Jasmin Lewis

We are fortunate that our College has excellent leaders to represent our students and the College.

2020 Dux

We congratulate our Class of 2020 who achieved some excellent results. We are also proud to report to our community that our College Dux was Xianyi (Lin). Lin LIn has chosen to continue his studies in Science at The University of Melbourne.

I would like to acknowledge the strong commitment and work ethic of our staff, students and parents / carers throughout last year

Knox Australia Day Awards Winner

Congratulations to Aimee Bugeja Year 11 who was awarded Knox City Council’s 2021 Young Citizen of the Year at the recent Australia Day Ceremony. The award is recognition of Aimee's hard work and contribution within the Knox community as both a leader and advocate for student voice and agency. We are so proud of Aimee, and all of our students who are working towards a brighter future!

Aimee presented an inspiring speech which can be seen on the City of Knox Facebook page at the following link https://fb.watch/3AizV1q7-s/

Last year we announced Aimee was awarded a $15,000 scholarship towards her next three years studies as part of the National Business Awards. As part of this award, Aimee is able to participate in their Accelerate Program, which includes a business mentor. Yesterday Aimee met her mentor Candice Carrasco from the Legal Firm Hall & Wilcox.

Our College

At the start of the year, I revisit the College vision and values with students, staff, parents and the community. These are the key drivers of everything we do and form the foundations for our Annual Implementation Plan (AIP), which outlines the key goals and strategies for 2021

Vision

Scoresby Secondary College’s vision is to be the College of Choice and to be respected by parents, community, tertiary providers and employers.

Our purpose

Scoresby Secondary College’s core purpose is to provide a safe, supportive and rigorous learning environment that focuses on nurturing the whole person so that every child gets the opportunity to be their brilliant best.

Our values

Underpinning our purpose is our strong desire for our students and school to have strong links to the local community and our genuine care for students’ personal growth. These are embodied in our College values of

I.N.S.P.I.R.E

Integrity
Nurture
Success
Pride
Innovation
Respect
Excellence

Uniform

We are pleased with the exceptional feedback about how well presented our students are. I thank parents and guardians who have supported us in ensuring our high expectations are met. Blazers are now available for student leaders or any other student wishing to purchase on from the office.

PSW Blazer Flyer for Leaders Orders.pdf

Year 12 Residential

The COVID restrictions meant our annual Year 12 residential conducted at the University of Melbourne could not be conducted on site this year. However, we were fortunate to be able to still hold the program at the new Waterman Business Park in Scoresby. The experience of studying in a high quality environment, together with the expertise of the presenters and opportunities to participate in team building has been motivational for our students.

Personal Property

Parents / guardians and students should be aware that personal property brought to school is not covered by the College or Department of Education and Training does not accept any responsibility for any loss or damage. Personal property is often brought to school by students, staff and visitors. This can include mobile phones, calculators, toys, sporting equipment and cars parked on school premises. Students are discouraged from bringing any unnecessary or particularly valuable items to school.

Accidents

The Department and College do not provide personal accident insurance or ambulance cover for students. Parents and guardians are generally responsible for paying the cost of medical treatment for injured students, including any transport costs. Student accident insurance / ambulance cover policies are available from some commercial insurers, and can be obtained by parents/guardians for individual students.

2018 Parent Payments and Student Resources

Thank you to parents who have made their full payments or made arrangements with our Business Manager, Vicky Kamfonas, for a payment plan. Parent payments are an essential source of funds for a school to operate effectively. Without charges schools would not be able to provide the many programs and resources we provide for the students. The actual amounts that are charged to each family are determined by College Council and the Finance Committee.

Student resources are the items which were book listed. These items are essential to student learning and were required to be purchased by the first day.

Student Safety

The College applies all elements of the Child Safe Policies which are available on our website policy page. Our strict policies require all visitors to sign into the office. Staff, tradespeople, volunteers etc. are required to provide current Working with Children's Checks.

To further maintain safety, our College car park is not available for use by parents or senior students as a pick up / drop off zone. Indiscriminate vehicular access by parents increases traffic congestion and places students at risk.

School Council Elections

What is a school council and what does it do?

All government schools in Victoria have a school council.

They are legally formed bodies that are given powers to set the key directions of a school within centrally provided guidelines. In doing this, a school council is able to directly influence the quality of education that the school provides for its students.

Who is on the school council?

There are three possible categories of membership:

A mandated elected Parent category

More than one third of the total members must be from this category. Department of Education and Training (DET) employees can be Parent members at their child’s school as long as they are not employed at the school.

A mandated elected DET employee category.

Members of this category may make up no more than one third of the total membership of school council. The principal of the school is automatically one of these members.

An optional Community member category.

Its members are appointed by a decision of the council because of their special skills, interests or experiences. DET employees are not eligible to be Community members. The term of office for all members is two years. Half the members must retire each year, creating vacancies for the annual school council elections. At Scoresby Secondary College the College Captains are valued members under this category providing a voice for our students

Why is Parent membership so important?

Parents on school councils provide important viewpoints and have valuable skills that can help shape the direction of the school. Those parents who become active on a school council find their involvement satisfying in itself and may also find that their children feel a greater sense of belonging. How can you become involved? The most obvious way is to vote in the elections, which are held in Term 1 each year. However, ballots are only held if more people nominate as candidates than there are positions vacant.

In view of this, you might seriously consider

• standing for election as a member of school council

• encouraging another person to stand for election

Do I need special experience to be on school council?

No. What you do need is an interest in your child’s school and the desire to work in partnership with others to help shape the school’s future. What do you need to do to stand for election? The principal will issue a notice and call for nominations following the commencement of Term 1 each year. All school council elections must be completed by the end of March. If you decide to stand for election, you can arrange for someone to nominate you as a candidate or you can nominate yourself in the Parent category

DET employees whose child is enrolled in a school in which they are not employed are eligible to nominate as parents for the school council where their child is enrolled. Once the nomination form is completed, return it to the principal within the time stated on the notice of election. You will receive a Nomination Form Receipt following the receipt of your completed nomination. If there are more nominations received than there are vacancies on council, a ballot will be conducted during the two weeks after the call for nominations has closed.

Remember

• Ask at the college for help if you would like to stand for election and are not sure what to do

• Consider standing for election to council this year

• Be sure to vote in the elections.

Contact Principal, Mrs Gail Major for more information.

The 2021 Council Election Process and Timeline Nomination Forms may now be obtained from Reception at the College and must be lodged at the College no later than 4pm on Thursday 15 February 2021.

Following the close of nominations, a list of nominations received will be posted at the College. An election will then be conducted (if the number of nominations exceeds the number of vacancies). The terms of office, membership categories and numbers of positions in each membership category open for election are as follows:

Parent Member

Number of Positions: 3

Term of Office:

From the day after the declaration of the poll in 2021 to, and inclusive of, the date of the declaration of the poll in 2023.

DET Employee Member

Number of Positions: 2

Term of Office:

From the day after the declaration of the poll in 2021 to, and inclusive of, the date of the declaration of the poll in 2023.

If you decide to stand for election, you will need to arrange to be nominated and seconded by persons who are eligible for the same category as you will stand for.

Student Member

Number of Positions: 1

Term of Office:

From the day after the declaration of the poll in 2021 to, and inclusive of, the date of the declaration of the poll in 2022.

If you decide to stand for election, you will need to arrange to be nominated and seconded by persons who are eligible for the same category, as you will stand for.

Community Member (non-elected – co-opted by Council Members)

Number of Positions: 2

Term of Office:

From the day after the declaration of the poll in 2021 to, and inclusive of, the date of the declaration of the poll in 2022.

If you decide to stand for election, you will need to arrange to be nominated and seconded by persons who are eligible for the same category, as you will stand for.

Continuing Council Members

The following Members will continue to serve on School Council throughout 2021

Principal / Executive Officer:

Gail Major

Parent Members:

Garry Davies, Glenn Corey, Leanne Powell

DET Members:

Chris Knight

Students:

Aimee Bugeja

Community Members:

Annualy Co-opted

Mrs Gail Major

Principal