ASSISTANT PRINCIPALS' REPORT

STUDENT CHROMEBOOKS

It is an expectation that all McKinnon students (Years 7-12) have a school-approved Chromebook purchased through our supplier. As with other parent-purchased resources like textbooks, these devices have been selected specifically to enhance our curriculum. The success of our Chromebook program relies on all students working on a standard platform; therefore, bringing a device not purchased through the school's supplier is problematic. Students may experience network accessibility issues, while non-school approved devices cannot be serviced and maintained by our technicians. In addition, we are continuously rolling out new Google apps and features through our school domain and these are only compatible with Chromebooks purchased through our supplier.

For these reasons, students bringing a different device to school (e.g. MacBook, Windows laptop) may be at a disadvantage in the classroom.

Chromebooks are a critical element of our teaching and learning program. If you need to purchase one for your child, please contact our IT office (help@mckinnonsc.vic.edu.au or 8520 9054). Families experiencing financial difficulties are welcome to contact the College to discuss ways in which we can provide support.

EXAMINATIONS

Years 10 and 11 exams will take place in the coming weeks with the exam timetable and revision resources to be shared with students shortly. These exams provide an opportunity for students to demonstrate the core skills/knowledge they have been developing in their subjects, while at the same time building important study habits. The final part of Semester 1 is always busy for both teachers and students and we congratulate everyone in advance for their efforts.

MCKINNON’S UNIFORM POLICY

McKinnon is very proud of its uniform policy, and we want to ensure all students follow it appropriately. In Terms 2 and 3, students must wear their blazer to/from school. Also, students are only allowed to wear PE uniform if they have sport/PE class on that day.

The correct PE uniform comprises:

Blue McKinnon-branded shorts or track pants;
Red McKinnon PE polo shirt and/or McKinnon rugby top;
McKinnon-branded PE jacket.

Please note that no variations or additions to this policy are acceptable. If new items need to be purchased, please visit our uniform supplier, Bob Steward, located in Centre Rd Bentleigh. Their website can be accessed here.

CORRECTION DAY

As outlined in the previous newsletter, the College’s annual Correction Day will take place on Tuesday 18 June. Staff will be finalising assessments and semester reports. As such, classes will not be conducted on this day, so students should not attend school. The only exception is VCE students who are completing the GAT on this day.

TRAFFIC CONGESTION

At the start and end of each school day the traffic situation outside both the McKinnon Road and East campuses can be very chaotic. Please do not park illegally or in the bus zone. We ask parents to pick up their children a distance away from the school if possible, in order to ease the congestion. Also, please do not drive into the school at all and always take greater care on wet roads. Thank you for your support in this matter.

EAST CAMPUS INDUSTRIAL AREA

We remind students and parents/carers that students must only leave the campus via South Drive, Marlborough Reserve or Virgina Reserve. No student must walk/ride through the industrial estate, it is simply too dangerous. Any student that catches the Route 630 bus on North Road is asked to use the bus stop near the corner or North and East Boundary Roads or Marlborough St (at the end of the day only).

We ask that students not use the bus stops near Cobar and North Rds (opposite Duncan Mackinnon Reserve). We have had issues outside of Astoria Honda. We also have students crossing North Road without pedestrian lights creating a significant safety concern. Student safety is the most important factor here, so we encourage you to discuss this with your child.

TAX-DEDUCTIBLE BUILDING FUND

In recent years many families and ex-students have made generous donations to our tax-deductible Building Fund. The College will use such funds to support the next stage of our redevelopment, which involves updating/replacing our ageing buildings.

Further information about our building fund and the next stage of our redevelopment can be found on our website here.

Building Fund

On behalf of the staff and students of McKinnon, we sincerely thank all those who have contributed to our Building Fund.

MYKI TICKETS

Many excursions require students to provide their own ticket for public transport. Before any excursion using public transport, students must ensure they have a Myki that has a positive balance.