Principal's Report

Principals Report - May

It’s hard to believe we are already approaching the halfway point of Term 2. It has been wonderful to see so much learning, creativity and engagement across the college throughout the term.

Collingwood College - MYP World School

Collingwood College is now officially an authorised International Baccalaureate World School for the Middle Years Programme (MYP). This is a major milestone for our school and reflects many years of dedicated work by our staff and broader community.

This achievement has been led by Lori Michael, who has guided this initiative since her return to Collingwood College as a Leading Teacher. Her leadership, expertise and commitment have been instrumental in bringing this vision to life.

Our journey toward the MYP began in 2017, making this a significant milestone in a long-term commitment to strengthening learning at our school. It reflects years of thoughtful planning and collaboration with School Council, staff, our community and the Department of Education.

We extend our sincere thanks to all teachers and community members who have contributed to this work over time. This collective effort has enabled us to build a rich, challenging and globally minded learning programme for our students.

We are incredibly proud of what this means for our young people. The MYP strengthens our focus on inquiry, critical thinking and real-world learning, while supporting students to develop as confident, compassionate and internationally minded learners.

Staffing

We also extend a warm welcome to new members of our community -

Simon Gooding - 7–12 Science Learning Area Leader and Year 9 Coordinator
Asha Clarke - Receptionist and First Aid Officer
David Motamed - Year 11 & 12 EAL teacher
Nathaniel Lamb - Junior Media & Year 11 & 12 VM Literacy
Fatuma Abukar - Community Liaison Officer
Thomas Kristof - Leading Teacher - Primary School, Mental Health In Primary Schools Leader

Alison Seabrook has recently announced her appointment to the Principal position at Sophia Mundi Steiner School. We have advertised this position to find a replacement for Alison.

Alison has given an amazing 17 years of service to Collingwood College. During this time she has seen many changes to the school and taught in our Steiner classrooms with passion, heart and commitment. She taught many year levels throughout the school in Primary and Secondary, giving our Steiner program students educational opportunities and experiences that have led to great outcomes. There are many students who still return to Collingwood, seeking out Alison to tell her how much influence she had on them as students - the ultimate compliment. We wish Alison the very best of luck with her fabulous opportunity at Sophia Mundi and thank her for everything she has done throughout her time at Collingwood. Alison’s last day will be Friday 29th May.

International Recruitment Trip - South Korea and Japan

Chris Millard departed for Japan last week as part of the 2026 International Recruitment Trip to South Korea and Japan. This work supports the promotion of Collingwood College internationally, with a particular focus on the unique educational pathways we offer within our primary school.

International engagement strengthens our global connections and creates valuable opportunities for students and families to engage with our diverse learning community.

Senior Partnerships

It was fantastic to further strengthen our partnership with Fitzroy High School through the integration of our Athletics Carnivals. This marked our first combined Years 7–12 Athletics Carnival and was a wonderful example of what can be achieved through collaboration across our broader learning community.

Importantly, opportunities such as these allow students to begin building connections with peers they will later join at Wurun Senior Campus.

Our partnership with Fitzroy High School has also expanded through the employment of a shared Daily Organiser and Timetabler, enabling both schools to work more collaboratively and efficiently. We continue to strengthen professional learning partnerships through initiatives such as the New Metrics program and Network Communities of Practice.

We look forward to future ways we have expand our partnership to improve our schools ina collaborative way.

Steiner Celebration Day

It was wonderful to see so many current and prospective families, alongside School Council members, attend our recent Steiner Celebration Day.

This new initiative was designed to further promote Steiner education within the community and support enrolment growth within the program. Andrew Hill, CEO of Steiner Education Australia, delivered a presentation exploring the importance of creativity and imagination in the early years of Steiner education.

Andrew also met with the Victorian Association of Steiner Stream Schools, where discussions focused on the theme Cosmos and Classroom: Inner Renewal for Teachers and School Leaders.

We thank Andrew for his ongoing support of our Steiner program and look forward to future opportunities to continue these conversations with our community.

Building Works Update

Thanks to the advocacy of our school community, led by our school council, the Victorian School Building Authority (VSBA) has been working closely with the school over the holiday period.

A new Science relocatable building is currently being installed, with final stages expected to be completed in the coming weeks. The timetable will then be updated to reflect this additional learning space.
Structural investigations on the ground floor and Level 1 have returned positive results.
The plumbing investigation has been completed and will be reviewed by the VSBA next week.
A fire safety report is due to be finalised of the building.

VSBA is calling twice a week and will continue to keep our community informed. They are taking a considered and holistic approach to the building before making a decision on the next steps in rectifying the issues. We are hopeful for some indication of options in the next few weeks. Principal support Brett Bell from VSBA is visiting on June 1st.

Gabrielle di Vietri, Sarah Witty, Jane Hancock have all visited in the last week to see the progress on level 3 and try to use their contacts to support the repair and speed of our roof. School Council (Geoff) has requested that Ben Carroll come to visit level three to see the issues first hand.

Theatre Works

The redevelopment of our theatre has commenced with a slash! We are working with Arc3 and Smith and Tracey as the project continues. We are working toward a projected completion date of January 2027 and look forward to delivering an improved facility for our students and community.

AEU Industrial Action Update

AEU and the Department have reached an in-principle agreement this week with the new VGSA agreement to be voted on by members in early June. The Joint Primary and Secondary Sector Council has determined to suspend all current industrial action. The Department has also confirmed that members will not be required to complete written comments on student reports for parents in Term 2, 2026.

Thank you for your continued support, partnership and commitment to our school and staff.

Kind Regards,

Angela Watters & Chris Millard

Principals