Parents and Friends Association
Welcome to 2024
Welcome to Term 1 and another year of opportunities to gather and meet other Koonung families.
Last year was a busy one, our Mother’s and Father’s Day events continued to be popular and enjoyed by so many. Other events included the Parent Morning Tea for the Year 7 students first day of school, activities run by the PFA on Koonung Day, World Teachers Day morning tea, sponsoring the Year 12 last day breakfast, and a Parent Morning Tea on Orientation Day for our 2024 families. We also enjoyed feasting on fresh pasta and juicy mangoes from the fundraisers run by the PFA.
In addition to the PFA committee, we also have some sub-committees that take care of specific areas within the College:
- PFA Oval Project Team
- Second Hand Uniform Shop
- Second Hand Book Sale team
- Koonung Theatre Group
We are looking forward to what 2024 will bring and encourage all parents and carers to get involved to help continue making Koonung Secondary College a fantastic place for our children, families, and staff to enjoy!
Kind regards
Mohammad Soheili
PFA President
Welcome to our new families
The Koonung PFA welcomed new Year 7 parents on the first day of school.
Thanks to Andy Bee and his team of PFA parents and students for coordinating this - please keep an eye on this newsletter and PFA Whatsapp groups for more opportunities to meet others in your school community this year!
Koonung PFA Oval Transformation Project
Last year saw the delivery of Stages 1 and 2 of the PFA Oval Transformation Project. We hope you agree it has made the school entry from Box Hill Crescent much more welcoming for our students with a new garden area including Year 9 urban art works, seating and planting of shrubs and trees; and the oval grass is looking fantastic thanks to seeding, topsoil, sand, and replacement of broken sprinklers.
This has only been possible through two years of fundraising and contributions from you, the parents, through direct donations, mango and pasta fundraisers, and proceeds from second-hand uniform shop and book sales.
Koonung PFA appreciates the collaboration and support of the school leadership and facilities teams for this initiative.
Stayed tuned for more landscaping project initiatives during 2024!
Kind regards
Martina Johnson
Second Hand Uniform Shop
The second hand uniform shop is open on Fridays from 2pm to 3:30pm
Our heartfelt thanks to our volunteers (Mei, Gerti, Alexandra, Annabel, Natalie) who have helped at the second-hand uniform shop during 2023. It was another successful year and we appreciate your time. We would also like to thank Koonung parents/carers who have donated or submitted uniforms to be sold on your behalf. Your support and generosity has allowed us to raise important funds for our school.
Volunteers are always welcome (even one hour a month helps!). Send an email to: secondhanduniforms@koonung.vic.edu.au
Kind regards
Sophia Quek and May-Na Bee
Koonung Theatre Parents Group
The Koonung Theatre Parents subgroup of the PFA had a very successful 2023 year, supporting the musical production of Seussical. Our inaugural Trivia and Cabaret night fundraiser was held at the Box Hill Town Hall with a fabulous turn out of over 200 people treated to a night of trivia and live entertainment from our very talented students. Throughout Term 2 we had costume makers, set builders and a front of house beavering away, with everything coming together for the opening night of Seussical July. Once again, those who were lucky enough to see the show were blown away by the quality of our Koonung production. We couldn’t be prouder of our students and are incredibly grateful to the incredible staff and members of the production team who work so hard to bring the Koonung Musical to the stage.
So now it’s time to look forward to this year's production of Shrek the Musical! We are delighted to announce that the City of Whitehorse are supporting us again next year with a venue support grant to host our fundraising event at the Town Hall on the 20 April: “Once Upon a Swamp – A Knight of Tunes and Trivia” to support the show. Tickets for this event are on sale now and we are expecting a sell-out, so don’t miss out. Get a team together and book early!
If you would like to get involved in the Koonung Theatre Parents Group, members are always welcome. Get started by joining our What’s App group by going to: https://chat.whatsapp.com/FymSFvSlvezL6FX6wRXgLH
Kind regards
Katherine Harding
Stay in contact with other parents through WhatsApp.
In the spirit of fostering community and connection, the following WhatsApp Groups have been updated and are available for parents to join their respective year level/(s) for 2024. If you would like to join, please click on the relevant link below. If you are already in your year level WhatsApp group/(s), then you don't need to do anything as this will simply move with you throughout your Koonung life. If you are not yet part of your child's year level group chat but would like to be, then this is for you!
2024 Year 7 Families
https://chat.whatsapp.com/GbcJqfgk00522n5mjb3Wr2
2024 Year 8 Parents
https://chat.whatsapp.com/DCf3gzmWMHD6trvITkhDpT
2024 Year 9 Parents
https://chat.whatsapp.com/IJeO7MdWY090zuftBZI4yI
2024 Year 10 Parents
https://chat.whatsapp.com/I17H3ldHEvl5w8UbGCijzn
2024 Year 11 Parents
https://chat.whatsapp.com/HjqluQXdJnMHJTJ8EVuNIR
2024 Year 12 Parents
https://chat.whatsapp.com/BmZCvVkAUXE7qfP5Z4FSuw
PFA News on WhatsApp
Keep up to date with PFA news and announcements by clicking this link https://chat.whatsapp.com/DyJZv7jLeRs2KH7ix1E6Fn
WeChat Community for Chinese Koonung Families
Stay connected with other Chinese families at Koonung by joining the WeChat group. Please contact Peihoon Heng 0431615181 or her WeChat @Peihoon1, for the link to join the group.
Become a Parent Representative for your year level!
The role of a Parent Representative needs no experience, just a willing spirit to facilitate parent connection in your student’s year level. You have the flexibility to organise coffee outings, dinners, a Sunday afternoon picnic or whatever you like doing! We generally recommend 2 representatives to support each other for your year level. The PFA will support and help facilitate any events you wish to organise. Please contact us via email pfa@koonung.vic.edu.au to find out more!
PFA Annual General Meeting & New leadership
At the start of each school year, a new PFA Committee is formed to lead the PFA. Our Annual General Meeting will be held on Monday 4 March 2024 at 7pm, followed by an ordinary meeting. Everyone in the school community is welcome and encouraged to attend. As all the committee roles will become vacant with existing members stepping down, new volunteers/members will need to be nominated and duly elected at the AGM. In order for the PFA to continue to exist, the following roles are essential: President, Vice President, Treasurer & Secretary.
Yes, you can self-nominate! Being a committee member does not require any experience, just a willing spirit! It's a very satisfying way to be part of the school and a great opportunity to make friends along the way. In 2024, we are very excited to create 2 new roles!! An Events Coordinator and a WhatsApp Admin Coordinator. If you enjoy making things happen and getting involved with the school community, then this is perfect for you!
To find out more about any of the committee roles, the new supporting roles, or to submit a self-nomination, please contact any of our current members by email pfa@koonung.vic.edu.au or via the WhatsApp group chats which are listed above.
President - Mohammad Soheili
Vice President - Ashley Tolliday
Secretary - Neil Barker
Treasurer - Johan Cameron
General Member - Martina Johnson
General Member - Vittoria O’Brien
PFA President
- Run the PFA meetings, review minutes.
- Be the point of liaison between PFA and Koonung for requests and enquiries.
- Ensure the PFA events have volunteer teams to support them.
- Represent PFA as required at events e.g., School Council, Information Night, etc.
- Be a point of contact and support for any information regarding PFA events.
- Facilitate the funding process of teachers requests for assistance.
- Write the end of Year PFA report.
PFA Vice President
- Assist the PFA president with the activities and meetings.
- Works with the PFA President in the planning and coordination of PFA events.
- Runs the PFA meetings (when the PFA President is not present).
- Be a point of contact and support for any information regarding PFA events.
- Represent PFA as required at events e.g., School Council, Information Night, etc.
PFA Secretary
- Main role is to record the minutes of every PFA meeting.
- Record all the attendance and apologies.
- Document all correspondence received.
- Email the minutes to the PFA group.
- Assist the President with correspondence as required.
PFA Treasurer
- Liaises with Koonung Business Manager as needed to manage the PFA accounts (the PFA account is a sub account of the school accounts; the PFA has no direct access or control of the funds).
- Prepare the PFA accounts, using Excel spreadsheets, before each PFA meeting.
- Must be able to use Excel and be good with numbers.
- Present a summary of income and expenditure at each meeting (Treasurer’s Report).
- Prepare the annual budget for PFA activities and calculate the amount of funds available to KSC for PFA funded purchases.
Events Coordinator
- Lead and organise fundraising events and liaise with the school accordingly.
- Support the committee with other PFA events.
WhatsApp Admin Coordinator
- Create the new year 7 WhatsApp group annually.
- Update the Welcome flyer for the new year 7 group for their info pack.
- Manage the WhatsApp groups for all year levels.
- Support the PFA committee, sub committees and parent representatives as required.
PFA Meeting Dates 2024
Term 1
Monday 4 March AGM & Ordinary Meeting
Monday 25 March
Term 2
Monday 22 April
Monday 3 June
Term 3
Monday 5 August
Monday 2 September
Term 4
Monday 7 October
Monday 25 November
PFA contact details: pfa@koonung.vic.edu.au