From the Principal

Dear Families,

Like most people last night, I sat down to watch the Matilda’s game with my family. What dawned on me was the power that comes from a collective goal. As a community everyone across Australia came together as one to support our Matildas. It didn’t matter your background, gender, or race. It didn’t matter your town, territory, or state. And it didn’t matter what job or career you had; it was simply everyone in it together. This drew me to the school’s recent celebrations and the impact that so many have had across so many years. After several years of being physically divided due to the COVID pandemic, the collective effort of our community post pandemic has been nothing short of extraordinary. 

The work of our parent and carer volunteers for the 150th celebrations and upcoming Seaside Fair demonstrates the power of a collective goal. The turnout and support at recent celebration events, and also the Grade 5/6 Shark Tank and Grade 4 Change Makers Expo are further examples. As a community we should be extremely proud of what we do together, because only together can we continue to provide the best learning experiences for our Willy Kids, which is of course is our collective goal.

150th Celebrations

Throughout all the school’s 150th celebration activities and events we have looked to ensure access for all students and their families. To support this the aim has always been to run these celebration items at cost neutral meaning any money raised from one activity went towards supporting another. In essence the school has not looked to raise money, but effectively looked to ensure our students and families have the opportunity to be involved and have shared experiences.

Two more opportunities will be presented to our community as part of 150th celebrations.

The first being the sale of the schools official 150th celebration book. Although pricing is still being worked through, final design drafts indicate that this will be a once in a lifetime opportunity for families to own a publication of this quality about the school, which includes all current students and staff. The second will be to forever have student and family names inscribed on wall tiles that will be displayed on the school’s PE Electra St wall, surrounding our 150th school logo. Further detail about these opportunities will be distributed in the coming weeks.

Celebration Gala

It is building up to be an exciting night tomorrow night at the Williamstown Town Hall as Willy Kids young and old come together to celebrate the school’s 150th Anniversary. With over 300 guests attending, the night will be hosted by two former students and we will also hear from three different generations of Willy Kids as they reflect on their time at the school and the impact it has had on them. Opportunity will also be had to celebrate and dance the night away to the provided entertainment. We look forward to sharing this event via the school’s social media platforms.

Open Day

This Saturday 19th August we will conclude our official 150th events with our school open day. We encourage all community members to come and walk through the school to see the physical spaces, view our school archive and timeline expo, and enjoy our choir and bands. The Williamstown Rotary Club will be hosting a BBQ, so we encourage everyone to attend for the final leg of our 150th celebrations.

2023 Parent / Caregiver / Guardian Opinion Survey:

Recently all families received correspondence regarding the Departments annual Parent/Carers Opinion Survey. We encourage all our families to complete this survey as the information collected is an essential part of the school’s ongoing planning. 

2023 School Review Feedback Forum and Feedback Survey

To support the schools review process, we are inviting families to attend a feedback forum. This forum which will take place on Wednesday 23rd August and will give attendees a strong opportunity to contribute to the review process. We encourage interested parents/carers to register utilising the link below. Please feel free to contact me directly if you have any questions about this process.

https://forms.gle/tYiyC4BD9FRnfxKM7

Next week, families will receive a school review feedback survey link. This survey is different to the annual Department’s Parent/Carers survey and instead is targeted for the purpose of the school review and also provides for written feedback, something that the Department survey doesn’t allow. Please keep an eye out for this correspondence.

Willy Kids are Sporty Kids

This week has been a huge week in the sporting space for our Willy Kids

Firstly, we have two students who are heading off to national carnivals in the coming weeks.

Hugo in 5/6C will be heading to the National Diving Championships to represent Victoria. Further to this amazing achievement he will lead Team Vic as the team Captain, what an honour it is and we couldn’t think of a more deserving individual. Hugo’s all round Willy Kid traits have made him an exceptional school leader and we are so glad that he now gets to use these traits on the national stage. All the best Hugo.

Another Willy Kid heading off to the national carnival is Ethan Splatt, who will represent Team Vic at the National Cross Country Carnival. Ethan’s ongoing focus and dedication has been rewarded and we also wish him all the best at the upcoming carnival.

Over to team events, and we congratulate our girls and mixed hockey teams for their recent achievement of claiming the SSV Regional Championships. Both teams showed nerves of steel and class as they powered themselves through to the state championships to be held on 7th September. This now means that both teams have made it to the final 8 schools in the state which is an enormous achievement. Good luck to all the students. Go Willy!

Warm regards,

Mathew Montebello

Principal