Around the Campuses

Julianne Negri Creative Writing Workshops

On Wednesday 11th February, Year 7 students were fortunate to attend a workshop full of activities designed to jump-start their creativity as they worked through the Creative Narrative unit in their English classes. The workshops were led by Julianne Negri, local author of "The Secret Library of Hummingbird House," a book that has been studied at VUSC in past years. The workshop featured creative narrative writing exercises, quizzes, and a Q+A session with Ms Negri, who is an active working local author.

Mr Steyer

English Teacher

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My Brilliant Career - The Musical

On 18th February, the Year 11 and Year 12 Literature classes had the opportunity to attend the performance of My Brilliant Career The Musical which was playing at Southbank Theatre.

Watching the stage adaptation of My Brilliant Career brought a fresh and engaging perspective to the text we have been studying, allowing us to see the characters and themes come to life through music and performance. Experiencing the story in a live theatre setting made Sybylla’s struggles, ambitions and emotional conflicts feel more immediate and relatable, deepening our understanding of her character.

The expressive acting, powerful vocals and dynamic staging created moments that were both humorous and deeply moving, prompting many of us to reflect on ideas of independence, identity and societal expectations. As students, we felt immersed in the narrative and gained new insights that enriched our classroom discussions and creative responses to the text. The performance was both entertaining and thought-provoking, and it gave us plenty to reflect on and discuss back in class.

We are very grateful to Ms Howard for organising this memorable excursion and to Mr Polizzi and Astra Yol for coming along, and for giving us the opportunity to watch the musical.

Lucy, Jessica and Anh

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Chinese New Year Celebrations

Last month VUSC students across different year levels enjoyed celebrating Chinese New Year with a variety of cultural activities.

Our Year 10–12 students in Chinese classes came together to make traditional dumplings, an important New Year food that symbolises family reunion and good fortune. Thank you to Mr Leyland for joining us and supporting the celebration. As a special tradition, our Year 12 students also received New Year red envelopes, and we wish them a year full of growth and achievement in their final year at school.

Year 8 students joined the festivities by making their own red envelopes, enjoying sweets from lucky envelopes, watching highlights from the Spring Festival Gala, writing the character 福 (blessing and good fortune), and creating Chinese New Year greetings.

Teachers also joined in the celebrations with a fun red envelope hunt. Staff enthusiastically took part and enjoyed the festive spirit.

The Chinese Language team wishes everyone a wonderful Year of the Horse - May good fortune gallop your way and success come smoothly!

Students’ reflections:

When Learning about Chinese New Year, I was able to grasp the true meaning and culture behind the popular traditions. Learning that Chinese New Year is a happy celebration of the coming year and not just a time of receiving money via red envelopes deepened my understanding of the topic and Chinese culture in general. The symbols and traditions provided a new insight on the Chinese culture. These traditions such as red envelopes, lanterns, eating fish and gathering as a family have meanings of luck, prosperity and togetherness. – Henry Tran 8B

During this unit of learning about the Chinese New Year, I learned many things that made the occasion special to many countries and cultures. Chinese New Year is often celebrated with loud bangs, such as fireworks and firecrackers and is often associated with the colour red. The bright lights and loud noises originate from a story of how a village managed to scare the monster ‘nian’ away. ‘hong bao 红包’ with lucky blessings within are given to the younger generation from elders, families reunite to eat various foods such as the fish sounding like ‘surplus’ and watch the year’s Gala. Chinese New Year is a celebration that encourages historical tradition, family togetherness, good luck and prosperity for the upcoming year. – Lucia Nguyen 8B

I learnt that the Chinese New Year is a very traditional tradition in China. It is based on a legend, where a monster named Nian came to feast on villagers every new year, but an old man helped them and gave them advice that Nian does not like loud noises, the colour red, and fire. The villagers used this advice and scared Nian away. This is why People from China always have red paper and couplets all over their house, and why every year they set off firecrackers. I learnt that on new year, people would have big family reunions with a big dinner, and every dinner had fish because fish in Chinese sounds like surplus in Chinese, the elderly would give out red envelopes to kids to wish them good luck, and people watched the New Year’s Gala. I also learnt that New Year usually falls in between late January and mid-February, and lasts 15 days. – Jacob Nguyen 8J

During the weeks we have learnt about Chinese New Year, I have experienced how to do the traditional calligraphy using ink, make a red envelope, and learnt how to say and write Chinese New Year blessings to people around me. - Amber Abboushi 8K

Over the past few weeks, I've been learning about Chinese culture, including trying traditional calligraphy with ink, making red envelopes, and learning how to express Chinese New Year greetings. I also learned the story of the Qixi Festival and how it started, plus how to write the Chinese characters for "love" (爱) and "luck" (福). - Jessie Mai 8K

This year during our unit on festivals, I learnt a lot about Chinese New Year, from its origins and history, to how it is celebrated today. Learning about how and why the traditions came to be, and the purpose behind each and every one of them. Those include eating fish, gathering, auspicious phrases and couplets, and cleaning the house all play a key role in bringing luck and joy to those who participate. Therefore, learning about Chinese New Year broadened my understanding of the festival and its importance to those who celebrate. – Olivia Wawrowski 8B

Special thanks to Ms Hazim, Mr Dowie and Ms Chapman for their ongoing support of our Chinese New Year program.

Jessie Wang & Chinese Team

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VCE VM Update

Year 11 – White Card Achievement

Our Year 11 VCE VM students have successfully completed their White Card training, an important qualification for anyone seeking to work on a construction site in Australia. This certification provides students with the essential knowledge required to work safely in the construction industry.

During the training, students learned about workplace health and safety responsibilities, identifying and managing potential hazards, understanding safety signage, and following correct procedures to help prevent accidents and injuries on site. The course also emphasised the importance of communication, teamwork, and maintaining a strong safety culture in the workplace.

With their White Cards now completed, our Year 11 students are officially qualified to enter construction worksites and can begin exploring opportunities for work experience, apprenticeships, or part-time employment within the building and construction industry.

Year 12 – Hospitality Industry Qualifications

Our Year 12 VCE VM students have also reached an exciting milestone, successfully completing both their Responsible Service of Alcohol (RSA) and Food Safety/Food Handlers Certificate.

The RSA qualification ensures that students understand the legal responsibilities associated with serving alcohol. They learned how to recognise signs of intoxication, check identification correctly, refuse service when required, and ensure alcohol is served responsibly and safely in licensed venues.

Alongside this, students completed the Food Handlers course, which provides essential knowledge about safe food preparation, hygiene practices, preventing cross-contamination, and maintaining food safety standards in hospitality environments.

With these nationally recognised qualifications, Year 12 students are now equipped with the credentials needed to work in a variety of hospitality settings, including cafés, restaurants, hotels, catering businesses and events. These certifications provide valuable employment opportunities while students continue their studies and beyond.

Elizabeth Pocklington

Applied Learning Leader

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Spirit of Australia Leadership Conference

On Thursday 26 February 2026, a group of Year 11 students attended the Student Leadership Forum at Engineers Australia in Melbourne, where they participated in discussions and presentations on the theme “What is leadership?” The forum featured inspiring speakers including senior engineer and mentor Nicole Brown, filmmaker and historian Bronte Gosper, and internationally recognised neurosurgeon Jeffrey Rosenfeld, giving students valuable insights into leadership in engineering, community advocacy, storytelling and service.

Here are some reflections of students' experiences:

Farhan Malik:

Throughout this unique experience, what I gained was that being a leader doesn't mean being selected through an election or being selected through a corrupt government that overrules the democratic society's voices, it's about taking initiative and taking responsibility.

Johan Guajardo-Ferreira:

The *Spirit Of Australia* leadership event allowed to me to make friends and build connections with schools from all over Melbourne; we all shared the spark for leadership and the event taught us that leadership isn’t just about commanding a room but to be looked upon by others.

An Nguyen:

Participating in the Spirit of Australia leadership conference alongside other students was truly an honour. Listening to what leadership means to different people broadened my perspective and helped me understand that leadership is not just about authority but about empathy, patience, resilience and inspiring others to make a positive impact on our society.

Jeremiah Delapena:

My participation in the Spirit of Australia leadership event was an experience. It deepened my understanding of what it means to be a leader; being a leader doesn't just mean using your power to command a room, it means leading by example and being the first to tackle a challenge. But the event also told me what it means to be a listener and how it differs from a leader.

Shekinah Santos:

Participating in the Spirit of Australia leadership event was truly such an honour to attend. Myself and the rest of my peers have learnt so much about leadership from different perspectives including those of Monash scholars, women in the workplaces and retired veterans. Meeting them and hearing their story has truly inspired me as a woman and I’m sure a lot of other students that attended, of the power and equality we hold in workforces all across Australia.

Chau Vo:

With the experience of "Spirit of Australia," the conference allowed me to have further insights into recognising one's potential in leadership and what becoming a "leader" may be. The opportunity to participate within this program has exposed me to diverse ways that leadership can take place, and how leadership is not solely based on hierarchy but rather empathy, respect, and courage. I throughly enjoyed talking to new people and bonding over our ideas of what it means to be a leader!

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Sports & Rugby League Update

Congratulations to the Senior Girls Volleyball team who beat Lakeview SC 2:1 in the final at the Keilor Division competition and will progress to Western Metropolitan Region competition in May. Well done girls!!

A huge congratulations to the Year 8 Girls Soccer team (below), who played in the grand final recently against KDC. Unfortunately our team didn't win on the day, but we're so proud of them because it's the first time any girls soccer team has made the grand final! Well done girls!!

U16 Storm Cup Boys & Girls

With a busy start to the year, our U16 Boys & Girls Rugby League squads have started off with flying colours. Both groups played 3-4 round games with quite a few successful results. This has left our academy squads both locked in for the semi-finals on 26th March.

All our coaches will be best managing our students to ensure they excel in school whilst working hard at their trainings to aspire for the best result possible.

Stay tuned as our students show us how beautiful the effect of sport has on bringing people together, motivating individuals and manufacturing high achievers. Go VUSC!

Keilor Division Swimming Results

Congratulations to all students who represented VUSC recently at the Keilor Division Swimming Competition! We are incredibly proud of the effort, determination, and sportsmanship they all demonstrated in the pool.

An amazing 7 out of our 9 swimmers won their events, which is an outstanding achievement!

Because of these fantastic results, our winning swimmers will now progress to the Western Metropolitan swimming competition on Wednesday 1st April.

Oryn Waters - 1st 50m butterfly, 1st 50m freestyle, 1st 200m relay

Phillip Adamovic - 2nd 100m freestyle, 1st 400m freestyle, 1st 200m relay

Kakala Osborne - 1st 50m freestyle, 2nd 50m breaststroke

Tony Tran - 3rd 50m freestyle, 1st 200m freestyle

William Sidebottom - 1st 200m relay, 4th 50m freestyle

Makare Osborne - 2nd 100m freestyle, 1st 50m freestyle, 1st 50m backstroke, 2nd 100m backstroke

Ella Harris - 2nd 50m freestyle, 1st 50m butterfly

Kenny Tran - 4th 50m freestyle

Valerie McRedmond - 6th in both 50m breaststroke and backstroke

Well done again to all students, we are extremely proud of you!

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Lego Pieces Wanted!

Do you have unwanted lego lying around? If so our senior Systems Engineering students would appreciate your donation!

In Systems Engineering, students build working models of mechanical principles and common devices like cam shafts, pistons and push rods and gear systems. By Year 11 students build more complex models as shown below. These models use both Lego Technic and many Lego parts. The students would be very grateful for any spare Lego pieces.

If you would like to donate your unwanted lego, please drop it into the Senior Campus Administration Office for Mr Mildenhall.

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Chess Club - all welcome!

The VUSC Chess Club at the Junior Campus is a welcoming place for both beginners and experienced players to practise and enjoy the game of chess. Students in the club are friendly and supportive, and are always happy to help anyone who is new to the game. The club runs every Tuesday and Thursday at lunchtime in A3, providing a great opportunity for students to relax, challenge their thinking, and connect with friends. If you already know how to play chess, come along and challenge others. If you are interested in learning or looking for a new hobby, the Chess Club is a great place to start. Everyone is welcome!