College News

🏃Kurnai Aspiring Athlete Program🏋️‍♀️

Kurnai College understands the importance of providing students with a fulfilling and challenging education that allows young student athletes to develop their sporting talent, while building confidence, communication and leadership skills.

Kurnai College, in partnership with the Gippsland Academy of Sport, aims to increase opportunities for identified students to engage in a tailored strength and conditioning program that supports young athletes in their pursuit of sporting excellence.

Students in the program will be exposed to;

• Regular Strength & Conditioning classes 
• Fitness Testing & Goal Setting
• Sports Nutrition sessions ran by a sports nutritionist
• Sports Psychology sessions ran by a sports psychologist
• Opportunities to engage in additional training sessions throughout the term with College P.E staff 
• Training with a group of students with high levels of sporting ability 
• Pathways to additional qualifications in Sport and Fitness industry  
• Additional Leadership opportunities

Aspiring athletes will develop personal skills in-line with our Kurnai Pillars of Work Ethic, Engagement, Relationships and Excellence whilst also developing their individual fitness and skills required to continue to take their performance to the next level of their chosen sport. 

Expressions of interest are now open

For more information please contact Jeff Derkacs (Morwell Campus) or Reece Malcolmson (Churchill Campus)Kurnai Aspiring Athlete Program🏋️‍♀️

NAIDOC Week

NAIDOC Week (National Aboriginal and Islanders Day Observance Committee) occurs annually in July, and celebrates the history, culture and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.  

With the official week falling in the school holidays, Kurnai College will be celebrating NAIDOC 22 - 26 July.  Our major event will be held at the University Campus on Thursday 25 July, with additional celebrations held at our other campuses throughout the week.

Reconciliation Week - 2024 Now More Than 

To commemorate Reconciliation Week, our University Campus hosted a campfire conversation evening last week. Students, their families and special guests Aunty Christine and Uncle Laurie made the night a great success, filled with heartfelt storytelling and the joy of community coming together.

Reconciliation Week also saw some staff attend The Secretary’s Marrung Awards in Melbourne, which celebrates the unique knowledge and skills that Aboriginal staff and allies bring to the department to create better educational outcomes for Aboriginal students. 

Kurnai proudly congratulates Marina Cooper, our Koorie Student Wellbeing Coordinator, for being a finalist in this year's awards. Marina's nomination recognises her unwavering dedication to fostering a positive learning environment for our Koorie students.

Smoking and vaping ban

All parents, carers and students are reminded of the legislation that within Victoria, a person must not smoke cigarettes, including e-cigarettes/vapes (regardless of whether they contain nicotine) within school premises and within 4 

 of any pedestrian access to school premises. Smoking in these places is a fineable offence. The smoking and vaping ban applies to:

• anyone present on school premises during and outside of school hours including students, teachers, contractors, parents or carers or the wider community, such as sporting groups
• all activities that take place on school premises including pre-schools, kindergartens, outside school hours care, cultural, sporting or recreational activities and school fetes. Parents, carers, schools, and community all play an important role in protecting children and young people from, and educating them about, the harmful effects of smoking and vaping.

Research from the Royal Children’s Hospital shows many parents and carers are not aware of the harmful effects or how their views about smoking and vaping can impact the likelihood of a young person taking up smoking or vaping.

The Department of Education has developed resources to help you learn more about the health risks of smoking and vaping. The resources include advice about how to talk to children and young people about vaping, and where to get support. To access the resources, go to https://www.vic.gov.au/smoking-and-vaping-advice-parents

You can also view this video on smoking and vaping from experts at the Royal Children’s Hospital Melbourne for health advice and tips for starting a conversation with young people.

Music News

Our musos did an amazing job on the weekend at the 'Show Me Some Art' Festival held at the Moe Botanical Gardens. It was a great turnout, beautiful weather and our students performed to a very high standard making for a really enjoyable afternoon of live music. A Huge thank you to the staff that attended and supported our kids. Please congratulate our musos on a tremendous job when you see them next week. 

Camps, Sports & Excursions Fund (CSEF)

The Camps, Sports and Excursions Fund (CSEF) provides funds for eligible students to attend school camps, excursions, sports and outdoor education programs.  These payments are made directly to the school and are tied to your student. 

Payment amounts for 2024 are:

• $150 per year for eligible primary school students
• $250 per year for eligible secondary school students.

2024 applications close on 21 June 2024. Forms can be submitted at your school's office. 

Are you eligible to apply for the Camps, Sports and Excursion Fund? Those who are eligible to apply for CSEF are:

• families holding a valid means-tested concession card.
• a student over 16 years who is considered a mature minor and holds a valid concession card (such as a Youth Allowance Health Care Card or Disability Support Pension Card).  

Full information can be found at https://www.vic.gov.au/camps-sports-and-excursions-fund 

Annual privacy reminder for our school community

Our school collects and uses student and parent personal information for standard school functions or where permitted by law, as stated in the Schools’ Privacy Policy and the Schools’ Privacy Collection Notice.

Our Privacy Policy describes how we collect and use photographs, video and recordings of students. The policy also explains when parent consent is required and how it can be provided and withdrawn. We ask parents to also review the guidance we provide on how we use Microsoft 365 safely at the school and what parents can do to further protect their child’s information. If after reviewing the guidance, you have any questions or concerns regarding your child using Microsoft 365, please contact the school. 

For more information about privacy, refer to: Schools’ Privacy Policy — information for parents. This information is also available in ten community languages:

* Amharic

* Arabic

* Dari

* Gujarati

* Mandarin

* Somali

* Sudanese

* Turkish

* Urdu

* Vietnamese

Mobile Phones in Schools

A reminder that the Department of Education has in place a mobile phone ban that requires students who bring mobile phones to school to have them switched off and securely put away during school hours.

The department is requiring all schools to ensure this ban is in place and enforced from the start of the 2024 school year.

The ban applies equally to all government schools right across the state.

This helps ensure that school is a learning environment free from unnecessary distractions and disruptions. 

By ensuring mobile phones are kept away at recess and lunch times, students can interact with each other face-to-face, without the distractions and social pressures that mobile phones can cause.

We ask for the support of all our families, staff and students in continuing to support the implementation of this policy in our school. 

Further information 

Exceptions: For a small number of students with particular health needs, an exception to the policy may be granted. Please contact your Campus Principal if you would like to discuss this.

Emergencies: In the event of an emergency or if you need to immediately contact your child, I ask that families contact the school office who will pass on a message as required. 

School mobile phone policy: A copy of our school’s local mobile phone policy, which implements the government’s mobile policy in line with our local context, is available here.

Parent support: The Mobile phones in schools webpage provides links to resources for families to help them balance their children’s time using mobile phones.

If you have further questions, please contact the administration office.