From the Principal's Desk

Mr Luke Skewes

It has been fantastic to see students continuing their terrific start to the year. This has been evident in classroom learning walks and observations, where students are actively engaging in the lessons content, thriving on the challenges their teachers are providing them and recognising how the skills and knowledge gained will help them navigate life beyond school.

Outside of the classroom there has been a vibrancy in the yard, with students engaging in a range of physical activities and lunchtime groups or just simply making the most of the incredible weather we have had, utilising the many beautiful outdoor spaces we have available.

NAPLAN

Completing NAPLAN testing benefits students by providing valuable insights into their literacy and numeracy skills, helping to identify strengths and areas for improvement. The results offer a benchmark for individual progress over time and assist teachers in tailoring learning strategies to support student growth.

Additionally, NAPLAN prepares students for future assessments by building test-taking confidence and resilience. While it is not a pass-or-fail exam, it serves as a useful tool, which allows us to enhance overall teaching effectiveness and ensure students receive the support they need to succeed academically.

Staff at our College use NAPLAN data alongside other information collected by the school to understand student literacy and numeracy needs.

Year 7 Information Evening

On Wednesday March 12th welcomed prospective families to our annual Year 7 information evening.

The evening was a wonderful celebration of the College and our school community and an opportunity to showcase the teaching and learning and extra-curricular program at our College. It was great to see our local community embrace the opportunity and the evening was a huge success with visitors joining us from Lara and surrounding towns.

The sense of community was very strong. As the only secondary school, in Lara, it was a great opportunity to highlight the diversity and richness of the College’s program and of how it meets the diverse needs of our community.

2025 School Council

Our new school council met on Thursday March 13th, please see the school council representatives below:

Paul Wilson (President)
Meg Allen-Armistead (Vice President)
Divya Vagadia (Treasurer)
Bree Migao (Parent Representative)
Lauren Lynch (Parent Representative)
Melanie Bruce (Parent Representative)
Suzane Herrara (Student Representative)
Luke Mustard (Student Representative)
Tim Scott (Community Representative)
Luke Skewes (Principal - Executive Officer)
Pierre Grzybek (Assistant Principal Lara Secondary College Representative)
Brylee McNamara (Assistant Principal staff Representative)

I would like to personally thank Jillian Baird and Priya Davidson, who have stepped down from school council this year.

Both Jillian and Priya have selflessly donated their time and energy to all things Lara Secondary College. They have continuously advocated strongly for our students, our school, and our staff. The success and growth of our school that we have all enjoyed in recent years, has not been based on any form of agitation and grievance, but on support and trust we have received, and the desire to see our school improve, thrive, and grow. This has been truly appreciated, and it is with great gratitude I say thank you to Jillian and Priya.

Cyber Safety Session

After the scheduled Parent Cyber Safety Session had to be postponed earlier this month, we are pleased to confirm that we have set a new date for Thursday May 15th at 7.00pm.

All parents, carers and guardians in the community are invited and are asked to register using the link below.

Parent Teacher Interviews

Parent teacher interviews are scheduled for Thursday 3 April 4pm – 7pm and Friday 4 April between 9am – 1pm.

You are now able to make bookings on Compass to see your child's teacher and receive feedback on progress and on improvements that can be made to support their ongoing success. Bookings will close on Thursday 3 April at 12:00pm.

All interviews will take place in 311 and classes will not be in operation on Friday 4 April to provide time for staff to meet with families and students.

If you have any difficulties accessing Compass, please contact the office on 5282 8988.

Student Collection and Car Park Access

I would like to again remind families of when they are picking students up during the school day that to minimise disruptions to learning, we kindly ask that student pick-ups be scheduled during our break times to allow continuity of learning. Wherever possible it is best if students know what time they will be picked up. If you do need to collect your child during class time we will not make unnecessary calls to classrooms, as we do not want to disrupt the learning of all students.

Please see our break times below:

Recess: 10:14-10:35am

Changeover between session 2 & 3: 11:49-11:55am

Lunch: 1:09- 1:50pm

I would also like to give a friendly reminder to please drop off students to school outside of the school gates, the carpark next to the school can be an excellent spot for this. We have experienced issues of congestion in our staff carpark. Thank you for your assistance with this.

Electric Powered Scooters, Bike and Skateboards

Lastly, I would like to remind all students and families that electric powered scooters, bikes and skateboards are not permitted on our school site at any point in time. We encourage all students to utilise modes of active transport but for safety purposes electric powered options are not allowed and if onsite will be confiscated.

School Uniform - Lowes

A reminder our school uniform supplier is Lowes, please see our uniform price list below. A number of items are currently on sale, and some new uniform items have been recently been added.

Lowes - Lara School Uniform

McClelland Avenue Level Crossing Closure - pedestrian access

Please note it has been confirmed by v/line that there will be FREE taxis available to all students to pick them up from the station and drop them to school. The taxis will also be available after school from a designated zone to drop the students off Lara train station. More information will come regarding this.

V/Line annual maintenance and infrastructure works are taking place on the Geelong Line from Monday 31 March to Sunday 13 April, coaches replace all Geelong Line trains between Waurn Ponds and Wyndham Vale.

While trains are not running, V/Line crews will complete essential level crossing upgrades and track maintenance on the McClelland Avenue level crossing. The crossing will be closed to both vehicles and pedestrians from Monday 31 March until Friday 11 April. Detours will be in place and localised traffic management used as required.

Taxis will be available to move pedestrians from one side of the level crossing to the other, via the road detour. Customer service staff will be onsite to coordinate this, with a turn up and go system in place. Students are advised to allow extra time as they move through the area.

Test trains and freight are still operating while the works are completed so please remind students that it is never safe to cross the tracks when a pedestrian crossing is closed.

Please find more information on the links below:

If you have any questions about the above information, please contact @Comms@vline.com.au

Attendance - Everyday Matters

Luke Skewes

Principal