Principal's Report

50th Anniversary Celebrations

On the 24th of March, we had a wonderful open day where our community came together to celebrate 50 years of teaching excellence at Doncaster Secondary College.  There was a large crowd of our extended community who came into the college to view the amazing archives on display as well as partake in the hospitality on offer.  I have included part of my speech to give you an insight into my thoughts and feelings on this important occasion:

 

 

Welcome to our special guests, Mayor Paula Piccinini, School Council President Ms Sofia Georgiou, past and present students, staff and families.  It is wonderful to be here today to celebrate the 50th birthday of Doncaster Secondary College / High School.

 

It is always a good feeling, to be connected to something which has a sense of history. It gives you a sense of belonging and being a part of a rich community.  This site has been a place of learning well before the school was built here 50 years ago, when First Nations people’s rich culture connected community to this land.   It is my great pleasure to welcome representatives of Mullum Mullum Indigenous Gathering Place to formally start proceedings with an Acknowledgement/Welcome to Country and smoking ceremony.

 

I would like to thank you all for coming today to help us celebrate this wonderful milestone.  As you walk through the school today, it’s strange to think that 50 years ago, students were attending this school grappling with Shakespeare or Trigonometry just as students are today.  Even though they were living in different times, there are some things that have not changed all that much. Just as those students of 50 years back learned about our world, so do our students of today discover what life is all about in this new global age.  Students learn about different people and different cultures and learn about respecting each other and our other college values: responsibility, resilience and teamwork.

 

We never really forget our own special years at Secondary School. We remember our teachers. Those wonderful dedicated people who we all respect for their hard work and their great commitment to developing the leaders of the future.  You don’t forget your classmates, who might have become friends for life and hopefully, today has provided an opportunity for some of you to reconnect.

 

Be proud to have been, or if you still are, part of this school and what it has achieved.  I congratulate and thank all of the teachers, staff, students and parents who have contributed to making Doncaster Secondary College a very important community hub within beautiful Doncaster.

 

My thanks to the staff who made today possible – too many to name, but I’ll make special mention of Tim Sprigg, Sue Hayward and Chelsea Rohrlach for overseeing arrangements for today.

 

May Doncaster Secondary College continue to thrive and prosper!

Éva McMaster

Principal

 

The video footage below was captured on the day by several of our Year 10 students.