Principal's Report
Vermont Secondary College
Principal's Report
Vermont Secondary College
On Wednesday evening we were delighted to host the official opening of the college gymnasium.
In attendance were many members of the school and local community including the Honourable John Mullahy, Labor Member of Parliament for the Glen Waverley District, the Honourable Shaun Leane, Labor MP for the North-Eastern Metropolitan Region, the Honourable Sonja Terpstra, Labor MP for the North-Eastern Metropolitan Region, Councillor Prue Cutts, Deputy Mayor for Whitehorse and elected representative for Simpson Ward, past Principals of Vermont Secondary College - Stan Leach and John Knothe, our former VSC College Council President Steve Siems and our current Council President Frank Drost. Also present were Regional Education Department staff and several Principals from surrounding secondary and primary schools. We also welcomed other VSC staff, students and student leaders, members of the College Council and VSC Community Association, other representatives of the Education Department/VSBA (Victorian School Building Authority), our builders ‘2Construct’ and Kneeler Design Architects
Thank you to our House Captains for their support and involvement on the evening and thank to our two College Captains, Areeba and Caitlin, for their acknowledgement to country.
John Mullahy and Mike Stevens, Assistant Principal who oversaw the project, both spoke to the audience about the new sporting complex and the many benefits it will bring to the college and the local community. I would like to make mention of the work done by John Mullahy and Shaun Leane who were able to advocate on our behalf after the initial building firm went into liquidation part way into the build. Over the time the project sat uncompleted and before 2Consrtuct were awarded the new contract, material, building and labour costs had significantly risen. So, I would like to acknowledge them both for their significant support of the college, advocating on our behalf and for their involvement in bringing this build to completion.
A range of people from the Education Department and Regional Office, including the VSBA also played a significant role in getting this building completed, so I also thank them for their involvement over several years.
The other significant player in all of this is Mike Stevens (VSC Assistant Principal overseeing Buildings & Grounds). Mike was recently recognised and celebrated by the Education Department for 50 years of service in Victorian Education, a fantastic achievement by any measure the majority, of which 46 years have been at Vermont Secondary College. This complex first came to fruition financially in November 2020 with a funding announcement from the State Government. Since that time, and even before with initial submissions, Mike has managed and followed the journey of this build. There is not a seat, nail or floorboard in the complex that Mike cannot account for. Mike regularly said, “we only get one shot at this, so we need to get it right”. This was said multiple times and to multiple people and he was true to his word. Mike’s passion, knowledge and dedication to Vermont Secondary College and this project is unparalleled and I personally thank him for the many battles he had to fight, meetings he attended, phone calls and emails he has made, site inspections he has attended, combined with a few sleepless nights to get to this outstanding end point. Hopefully Mike can now relax a little and enjoy the fruits of his labour with this magnificent school asset and valuable community asset for many years to come. Well done and thank you Mike! We look forward to many years of use by the college and local community of this outstanding facility.
The college will again hold its annual VCE Senior Social that commences at 7.00pm and concludes at 11:00pm at Leonda by the Yarra, 2 Wallen Rd, Hawthorn. Parents who are collecting students from the event are requested to arrive well in time for a prompt departure at the conclusion of the evening.
Your consideration and punctuality would be greatly appreciated taking into account the distance of the venue from the Vermont area. Parents must arrange for the collection of students between 11:00 and 11.30pm at the latest.
Students who are not picked up by 11.45pm may be sent home in a taxi/Uber at their own expense.
Students are strongly advised to have a warm coat to wear to and from the social.
It is to be remembered that many senior students are under the age of 18 and therefore activities such as ‘after parties’ are not endorsed by the college.
The wellbeing and safety of your child is of paramount importance and my recommendation would be that all students return to the family home following the social to a fully supervised adult environment.
Students are reminded that all normal school rules apply to this event.
SEMESTER TWO BEGINS – Monday 23 June 2025
Reminder to parents/guardians and students that the whole school (Years 7 – 12) moves into the second semester in the last week two weeks of this term starting on Monday the 23rd
of June.
A reminder to the school community that on the last day of Term 2, Friday 4th July, we have a 2:30pm finish. Term 3 begins on Monday the 21st of July, ending Friday 19th of September.
As tax time is approaching, parents/guardians are reminded that donations to Vermont Secondary College’s Library Fund and Building Fund are Tax Deductible and the College welcomes donations of any size.
Direct deposits to:
BSB 313-140
Account No: 12050892
Account Name: Vermont Secondary College.
Please use your child’s student code as the identifier. All money raised is used to enhance facilities for your child/ren.