Principal Team Editorial
Last week we appointed our College Captains for 2025. We were fortunate to have some outstanding candidates and, after a rigorous selection process including an application, an interview and delivering a speech to the whole school, we were excited to announce the four successful candidates – Phoenix Rigano, Katherine Styles, Fiona Bui and Harrison Bedford.
Our captains have already started in their roles with an introductory video, participation in our Leadership meetings and conducting a brief Remembrance Day service. Their excitement and enthusiasm is infectious and I’m looking forward to working alongside them next year as we focus our collective efforts on making our school an even better place for students, staff and our school community.
A key strength of Wantirna College is undoubtedly our student leadership program and the multitude of opportunities our aspirant leaders have in developing and refining their leadership skills. Co-authors of The Leadership Challenge, Jim Kouzes and Barry Posner, have done extensive research into what ‘effective leaders do when they’re at their personal best’ and defined these behaviours into 5 core practices: they Model the Way, Inspire a Shared Vision, Challenge the Process, Enable Others to Act, and Encourage the Heart.
Students at Wantirna College are given opportunities at every year level to take on leadership roles ranging from Class Captains to Year Level Captains, Sport Captains, Curriculum leaders, Middle School leaders, Student Representative Leaders (SRC) and College leaders. These leaders certainly ‘Model the Way’ and lead by example.
Over the past couple of years, our student leaders have been active participants in school events however, our focus in the coming years is to involve student leaders more in teaching and leadership meetings where they can have an active role in the decision making of learning and teaching. This will have a greater impact on improving outcomes for students.
This term, student leaders have been given office space in Senior School to conduct student meetings and have a physical presence that students from all levels can connect with.
It’s been wonderful having three SRC representatives regularly attend School Council meetings to provide SRC reports but also sharing ideas such as improving our bus shelter area and giving feedback about what’s working well and areas for improvement. We look forward to continuing to work alongside our student leaders and provide opportunities to strengthen their voice and participation in driving whole school improvement.
Project Update
With completion still on track for the end of Term One next year, it’s fantastic to see our new facility taking shape. At our last site visit, we saw the cladding on the inside walls of the basketball courts being installed and that the timber flooring has been delivered, ready for installation. As we head into Christmas, the doors, floors, windows and louvres will be installed, with the Performing Arts and office spaces not too far behind. We look forward to announcing, early next yea,r when the naming ceremony will be. This will be followed by an official opening ceremony after our spaces are fully operational – it’s exciting times for Wantirna College!
The Orchard
In 2025, we are changing things up with new canteen providers. We have enjoyed a strong working relationship with Bocca however, next year, My School Catering will provide an onsite chef, more options, better value for money and contributions to our Breakfast Club. We look forward to providing students with greater choices and more variety!
Parent Forum – Strategic Plan 2025-28
Next Tuesday is our Parent Forum. All families are encouraged to come along, meet with the Principal Team and find out what our plans for the next four years are. It’s a great opportunity to learn more about the school, meet other families and provide feedback to school leaders. It is helpful (but optional) to let us know if you will be attending, for catering purposes.
Please RSVP here: https://forms.office.com/r/HZrvD4JGW0
Carrie Wallis
Principal