PRINCIPAL'S REPORT

Nicolas Adamou

Principal

2023 Key Dates

We have made it to the final newsletter issue after what has been a very successful year.

The success of an outstanding educational setting is dependent on the combined effort of those involved, staff, students, and parents. Creating a culture where educators, students and parents work together is always full of challenges and also opportunities.  It moves the whole school community up beyond simply cooperating together to collaborating authentically to strengthen and transform teaching and learning. At NGSC, collaborative professionalism and collective efficacy are approaches embedded in our Teaching and Learning. Yet it is not easy to create a culture of deep collegiate learning and co-creation, where all educators see themselves as collective change agents. Complacency, pockets of discontent and disconnection, mistrust and ‘emotional baggage’ can derail our efforts. Focussing on the human factor of the school is the key to creating a deep learning culture, based on the pivotal role of mutual trust and connectedness to our school community. 

I would like to extend my heartfelt gratitude to our dedicated teachers and staff members who are working tirelessly to provide a nurturing and stimulating environment for our students. Their passion, dedication, and innovative approaches to education have been instrumental in shaping the future of our students.

As we reminisce about the moments that define us as a school community, let us also look ahead with optimism and excitement for the future. The road ahead is filled with endless possibilities, and I am confident that, together, we will continue to shine as a beacon of excellence. This year, we have together navigated through the uncertainties of the world, proving that our school community is not just a place of education, but a place of strength and unity, immersed in our multicultural value.

Together we also have studied hard, journeyed to fascinating places, won, and lost Sporting, Debating, Public Speaking, Mathematics, Science, English, History, and other competitions, made mistakes, learnt from our mistakes. I am sure this academic year holds a special highlight for each one of you. 

This year’s annual school production “High School Musical” was a lively musical interpreted perfectly by our wonderful cast. The singing and dancing were pure entertainment for all ages. “High School Musical” contained lots of light moments of humour and also a bit of a dark side.  A cast of over 40 students and staff, and many helping behind the scenes including several staff members brought to life a fantastic show. I take the opportunity to thank and acknowledge the work of Producer Ms Isobel Peter; Choreographer Ms Janelle Butler; Production Directors, Ms Matilda Hassall, and Technical Assistant Ms Courtney McCullough; Acting Mr James Parker and Ms Kellie Phillips; Backstage Mr David Cottingham, and Ms Gloria Ragesh, Makeup Design Ms Caroline Makin and the VET Beauty Class and finally Front of House Ms Laura Melican, Ms Rebecca Travers, and Ms Amal Isac. Congratulations to students and staff for a fabulous school performance.

This year’s awards presentation evening was a memorable event, as we celebrated the great achievements of our students. The evening was extremely well-organised, thank you to Ms Suzanne Henry – Events Coordinator and a number of staff members who worked behind the scenes to ensure the evening was as successful as it was. The student performances were outstanding. Congratulations to all the award and scholarship recipients.   

I acknowledge the work of Assistant Principals; Mr Paul Dawson, Mr Brad Headlam, Ms Sarah Bridges, and Acting Assistant Principals; Mr Brad Smallman and Mr Ryan Mills, and also the School Leadership Team who worked closely with me to plan, implement, and evaluate a school curriculum, special programs, and assessment, navigating through this year’s challenges. 

I also acknowledge the work of the School Council President, Mr Dirk Heitmann; Vice President, Ms Susan Davenport; Council members, Ms Jasmina Blagojevic, Ms Christine Wilson, Mr Jared Shrimpton, Ms Meg Wylde, Ms Michelle Culjak, Ms Divine Daguasi, Ms Jacqueline Darling, Ms Tonia Tigani, Mr John Doyle, Ms Darcy Cropp, and Mr Mark O’Callaghan; Student members, Dean Smilevski and Edie Graham; Council Sub-Committee members for their continuous support and guidance during this year. Their dedication and commitment are commendable, participating in meetings and providing the school with strong leadership.  Thank you to all school council members.

School Captains Mackenzie Martin, James Smith, Emily Heitmann, Alana Stretton, Faith Qoon, Nooria Hussaini, and Bailey Griffin, in their leadership roles, led the student body in an innovative way, organising many successful student activities. I thank and congratulate them and wish them all the best for the coming years.

To our Graduating Year 12 Class, I wish them all the very best, as they move on to tertiary studies, apprenticeships, or full-time employment. Their school experiences, learnings and importantly resilience prepared them well for the future, and nothing will stand in their way. To all our other students, I applaud their hard work, and determination to learn and grow. Their achievements have been nothing short of inspirational.

To the parents and guardians, thank you for entrusting us with the education and well-being of your children. Your support and partnership have been invaluable, and we look forward to continuing our journey together in the coming years.

Wishing you all a wonderful summer break filled with rest, rejuvenation, and new adventures. We eagerly await the opportunities and challenges that the next school year will bring.

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! 

I look forward to a great start to the 2024 academic year. 

2023 VCE Results 

Our VCE students have finally received their VCE results. We are very proud and extremely pleased with our results and as all media outlets reported and quoted me on Monday, December 11, I as Principal, am “the proudest Principal”!

• VCE Allstudy mean score 29 - an outstanding achievement! 
• 40+ scores – 4.2%
• 100% VCE satisfactory completion 

The Dux of the year Haisong Qi achieved 99.7 ATAR score. 

• 10% of our students achieved ATAR scores 90 to 100 
• 22% of our students achieved ATAR scores 80 to 89 
• 13% of our students achieved ATAR scores 70 to 79 
• 16% of our students achieved ATAR scores 60 to 69

Congratulations to all VCE students for their outstanding efforts. Wishing the class of 2023, a very bright future!

Here are our top ten performers:

Dux of the Year: Haisong Qi

 ATAR score 99.7

Marc Gonzales              Emily Heitmann                 Angelle Mackay

                       Omid Bahaduri                      Jynx Vriens                      Corey Thomson

                       Clancy Freeman                Trinh Ngoc Thu                      Jett Peart

Human Powered Vehicle (HPV) 2023

   This year the NGSC Human Power Vehicle (HPV) Team was very excited to continue their participation in the annual RACV HPV Energy Breakthrough racing in Maryborough, from Thursday 23 to Sunday 26 November. 

Our two teams; Storm and Avalanche participated in display and presentation, design and construction/scrutineering, obstacle course, time trial and 8-hour endurance race and a 24-hour endurance race) 

The Energy Breakthrough is a joint initiative of the Country Education Partnership (CEP) and the Central Goldfields Shire Council (CGSC). Since 1991, the Energy Breakthrough has provided opportunities for many students, teachers, parents and local industry to work together to design and construct a vehicle, a machine or innovation in technology that will represent an 'energy breakthrough'. The program is unique in that all teams must compete across three areas of assessment: Design and Construction, Display and Presentation and Trials.

The Energy Breakthrough isn't just a once-a-year event. Our teams work throughout the year to design, build and test machines within detailed specifications. The program encourages our students to examine and use the latest technology whilst considering its impact on the environment and the way people live locally and globally. It requires a team effort and an across-the-curriculum approach. The NGSC HPV team then brings our vehicles and machines to Maryborough for a huge celebration to display and trial them in action.

Of course, this event would not be possible without the outstanding leadership and hard work of Ms Sherryn Martin – HPV Leader and the support of the following dedicated teachers who attended the camp; Mr Luke Scott, Ms Isobel Peter and Mr Aaron Milsome. I take this opportunity to thank them all for their support of this year’s HPV camp.

Also, I wish to recognise the amazing group of HPV students who have shown leadership, teamwork, organisation skills and endurance during this year’s presentations and races.  They all participated in preparing and pre-taping their speeches, along with the technical components of their trikes and the race.  They set up and packed up camp, walked through rain, ankle deep mud, rode their hearts out and always representing our school with the utmost respect and pride. 

Congratulations to the following outstanding students who were part of our HPV camp this year; Clancy Freeman, Noorullah Hussaini, Mackenzie Martin, Anna Pagtolon-An, Maria Pagtolon-An, Jett Peart, Logan Scott, and Adam Synot. 

Important Dates to mark on your calendars:

2024 Academic Year – Staggered Start 

Parents/Guardians and students, please note that the 2024 academic year will commence with a student staggered start as follows.   

• Monday January 29 – Teachers ONLY (Student Free Day) 

This day is a student free day. Teachers will have the opportunity to attend staff, curriculum, and other various meetings. They will also prepare for the arrival of the students including some planning time.

• Tuesday January 30: First day for all Year 7, 11 and 12 students.
• Wednesday January 31: All students return back on site. 

This is to ensure a very smooth transition for our new Year 7 students and a great start for Year 11 and 12 students.

2024 School Captains 

Looking forward to working closely with an outstanding team of young leaders next year.