From the Principal

A warm welcome to all our families, students, staff and parents, both new and returning for the 2020 school year.  It is a great privilege and honour to have been appointed Principal for the next  five years, and I look forward to working with our school community to continue to build on the strong reputation that Rosehill Secondary College has established over many years. Our pursuit of continuous improvement whilst providing an outstanding education for all our students is paramount to our purpose.

I would like to officially welcome and introduce our new and returning staff in Ms Madalynne Herbert (Maths and Science), Mr Caleb Kissick (English, Literature and Humanities), Mr Adam Messadi who is replacing Mr Rossitto for Term 1 (Technology Materials) and Matthew Horsley (IT support). Returning is Ms Giannino (family leave) and Ms Marcuzzi (family leave).  We wish our new staff the best for the year ahead and have seen them settle seamlessly into our school system.

I would also like to acknowledge the wonderful work of both Mr Paul Taylor (leave for the year) and Mr Rob Houghton (a new beginning this year) who have been with us for many many years and have made a significant contribution to Rosehill across all facets of the College. Best wishes for 2020, Rob and Paul.

Below is a list of the key personnel.

Principal – Arthur Soumalias

Assistant Principal – Kerry Mckay

Assistant Principal – Frances Snow

Assistant Principal (Acting)- Christopher Cogan

Head of Senior School – Daniel Wallace

Head of Junior School – Matthew Hosking

Director of Teaching and Learning – Melissa Chapman

Director of Curriculum – Richard Bader

Student Engagement – Will Stubbings

College Operations Manager – Grant Martens

Head of English – Sirocha Bruckard

Head of Mathematics – Andy Patch

Specialist Science – Daniel Leaver

Specialist Data – Brad Ross

Specialist Literacy – Katarina Ivas

Specialist Enhancement – Stephanie Barbaro

Head of Languages – Taka Hayakawa

Head of Visual Arts – Elisa Errichiello

Head of Health and PE - Gab Sarpa

Head of Performing Arts – Stephanie Wasif

Head of Technology Materials – Chris McConnell

Head of Technology Non Materials – Annette Therik

Head of Humanities – Danielle Murray

Student Welfare Team

Senior School Leader – Daniel Wallace

Year 12 Coordinator – Fiona Morabito

Year 12 Assistant Coordinator – Virginia Singleton

Year 11 Coordinator – Nadia Vossos

Year 11 Assistant Coordinator – Valerie Zivcic

Year 10 Coordinator – Leanne Mortellaro

Year 10 Assistant Coordinator – Annette Ellis

Junior School Leader – Matthew Hosking

Year 9 Coordinator – Michael Freedman

Year 9 Assistant – Olivia Skehan

Year 8 Coordinator – Alice Benson

Year 8 Assistant Coordinator – Simon Benedetti

Year 7 Coordinator – Ben Derks

Year 7 Assistant – Teagan Boadle

The school year has commenced exceptionally well and it has been pleasing to see the calm and orderly manner with which our students have embraced the changes to the school year. Our three key goals for the year are:

Goal 1: To improve the learning growth of every student in literacy and numeracy

Goal 2: To improve student engagement, motivation and connectedness

Goal 3: Improve learning outcomes for students across the curriculum through a focus on distributed leadership

We have started the year with a real focus on our literacy programs.  In particular, we have re- introduced a comprehensive reading program for all students 7-9. This includes reading for 20 minutes in each English class but also, additional reading for our Year 8 students in their literacy classes and additional reading for our Year 9 students in their ID classes every Monday and Wednesday morning. This work is further complemented by our intervention work with students in Year 10 and 11 who have performed below national minimum standards in their Year 9 NAPLAN results. We have allocated five literacy coaches who are working with our staff and students in the classroom to provide what is known as Tier 1 intervention. They are supporting both students and the teachers to team-teach, coach and work collaboratively to improve the learning for all our children. Targeted students in Year 10 and 11 are receiving Tier 3 intervention, which involves individual, or small group support that is considered additional to what is happening within the classroom. This is work that we commenced last year and we are keen to consolidate on the improvements we saw in our students by running such programs.

We continue to provide real rigour in our teaching and learning and have once again funded and provided enrichment programs introduced in recent years. Our mathematics RAMP program is well underway as is our English enhancement program REAP, both of which are underpinned by our long standing STEP program at Years 7-10.  Please contact Ms Barbaro if you are after more information regarding any of our enhancement programs.

The College has introduced Year 11 and 12 supervised study periods. All senior students who are in the college between period 2 and 3 must attend a supervised study session and use this time to complete classwork, homework, summarise notes or use this time to seek assistance from available staff. No food or drink is permitted in these areas, other than at recess and lunch. I also remind parents that students may come to school late if they do not have a scheduled class period 1 and leave early if they do not have class after lunch (students must sign out if they leave for the day). If students are at school during these times, then they must report to the relevant VCE study centre.

All students in the College must have a school diary or planner. These are available from the front office for $10 and are an essential item for all.  Our school rules, expectations and great tips for study are available in the diary. We spent the first few days of the school year running induction programs, one of which demonstrated how students should best use their diary to record and keep track of homework and upcoming key dates on a daily basis.

I would also l