Principal's Message 

It's been a very positive start to Term 1, with plenty of school community events and a focused beginning in our classrooms and learning. Our school values of Curiosity, Kindness, Excellence and Connection are genuinely in action and easy to see. 

Our Year 7 cohort is settling in well, and have already enjoyed their camps, which are an important part of their orientation to high school. This year we have expanded our Peer Support program and it was a wonderful addition to have Year 10 Peer Support leaders on each camp. We've also enjoyed our Swimming and Athletics Carnivals and also launched our 2024 clubs with a lunchtime expo. Our student leaders this year have new portfolios which will help them to focus on areas of action within the school, and we have had a great response to our School Council and Student Representative Council elections.  

We've welcomed a number of new students at each year level, and now have enrolments of over 1930 students. This means that there are plenty of opportunities for students in subject offerings, co-curricular activities and ways of connecting to each other and to school. It also means that we are putting additional emphasis on our school-wide positive behaviours and support systems: this is a focus at the moment in both staff professional learning and with students via the Connect program. We are continuing to work with Department of Education to support our facilities and accommodation for our students. The Year 9 Galileo program is currently operating from North Melbourne Primary School, which is an asset for the program and the students' connection to community.

Celebrating excellence

We were delighted to receive the news that two of our Class of 2023 were selected for the VCE Season of Excellence, which recognises outstanding achievement in the practical and arts-based VCE subjects. Congratulations to Michael Streader and Yessie Viota who were selected for their Music performances, and again to Michael Streader whose Product Design and Technology work will be featured in the 'Top Designs' exhibition. 

Learning is 'hard fun'

We began the year by focussing with both staff and students on the concept of the 'Learning Pit' and the importance of high expectations - coupled with high levels of support in a safe and nurturing environment. We are reminding staff that the best learning happens when staff are 'warm demanders': expecting that each and every student can do their personal best, and knowing and providing the scaffolding and support they need to get there. With students, we have been speaking about the 'learning pit': a metaphor that emphasises that some struggle is an important part of the learning process. If everything is coming very easily, we are most not likely not growing or developing in our learning. 

At home, parents and carers can support this by focussing discussions with learning about your child on their process, not just their outcome. Ask them what is new knowledge or a developing skill; and help them to see and celebrate their progress and persistence. This short video contains some food for thought for supporting learning at home: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iXiUyEz-QDg

Parent Student Teacher Conferences

We will look forward discussing your child's learning progress at the end of Term 1 Parent Student Teacher Conferences (PTSC). They will run on Wednesday 28 March from 1pm - 7pm; and Thursday 29 March from 9.30am - 3pm. Classes on the Wednesday will run for Sessions 1-3 only; and there will be no classes on the Thursday. Students are expected to attend the interviews with their parents/carers. To enable easy access for families, the Conferences are held online using Webex.

Please keep an eye on Compass Newsfeed for full details and booking information. The latest round of Attitude and Effort reports, as well as the Term 1 Achievement progress measure, will be published prior to the Conferences.

School Council 2024

The ballot to elect two parent/carer members to the UHS School Council is now open. Ballot papers, candidate information and voting instructions have been mailed to all parents and carers and further details can be found on Compass Newsfeed. The ballot is open until 4pm Monday 18 March. We were delighted with the strong interest in our Council: there are nine parent/carer candidates in this election. 

Once the ballot is concluded, we will also be calling out for members of our School Council sub-committees. This is a great way to get involved with the school through a contribution of your time, skills and knowledge. Election is not required to the sub-committees, which meet twice per term. The sub-committees are: Buildings and Grounds; Finance; Policy and Governance; Community and Engagement; plus a Sustainability Working Group. The call-out and further information will be published via Compass Newsfeed in late March. 

Attendance: it's not ok to be away

This year we are emphasising the importance of student attendance at school, supported by dedicated attendance officers to support our sub-schools. Consistent attendance is critical to student learning: an absence of one day per fortnight equals missing 1.5 years of schooling by the time your child finishes Year 12. Attached is a resource to support strategies with your child around attendance. Please reach out to your sub-school coordinator if you have concerns about your child's attendance patterns.

Where to go for support?

If you have questions or concerns about your child's wellbeing, engagement or academic progress, please contact their coordinator in the first instance.

Questions and support for school administrative matters, including access to or use of Compass, are best directed to the school office (phone 9347 2022 or email university.hs@education.vic.gov.au).

If you require financial support for excursions, camps, parent contributions or school supplies, please contact the office and to speak to a member of the Finance team. 

Ciar Foster - Principal