Principal's Reflection

Dear families,

Welcome to Semester 2. We are battling through the coldest weeks of the year and the flu season is well upon us. Despite this, the show must go on and there has still been plenty to celebrate!

100 days of prep

Early this week we celebrated our 100 days of prep! It was strange to see so many ‘senior citizens’ in our foundation classrooms, along with lots of ‘100’ themed dress ups. Our newest learners are doing such a great job and it is a pleasure to see how settled, focused and hard working they all are.

Awards

Our secondary school acknowledged semester one award winners in todays assembly. Our college celebrates the following in this forum:

Values – students demonstrating our school values to a high standard.
Excellence – awarded to the highest scoring student in each study.
Endeavour – awarded to a student deemed to have made an outstanding commitment to growth in each class (with over 200 different classes now running at the College, there were a lot to award).
GPA – awarded to students based on assessment of habits we deem most likely to contribute to strong outcomes at school. These include attendance, organisation, respect, participation and learning progression.

While we want to ensure every child experiences success as part of our team, it is also nice to pause and recognise individual efforts. Congratulations to all award recipients.

EBA Update

As many families will be aware, there has been discussion about further strike action. Unions are required to provide 5 days’ notice to the Department of Education and at this stage, we have not been notified of any protected action scheduled for next Tuesday as has been reported. We will notify families when any actions are confirmed and do our best with the often-short timelines that apply. I am certainly hopeful that an agreement can be reached soon and we can return to a more predictable state of being!

Staying healthy

Earlier this week Sarra shared an update on the increase of cold, flu and even RSV cases around the area. While we understand that care and supervision is difficult, we also strongly urge families to consider the impact of sending sick children to school. Staff absences have increased significantly in recent weeks and this then flows on into disruption to learning programs, unsettled children and in the worst cases, tension and conflict among students. We know that when our students and staff are healthy, focused and working together, special things happen here.

It is also important to note that while schools do provide wellbeing support, care and supervision, it is not our primary purpose. Sending an unwell child who is not ready to learn, is a risk to the health and wellbeing of staff and students and is ultimately, prioritizing the needs of an individual family above those of the school community. If your child is sick and potentially contagious, please keep them home.

Where staff are unwell, I also encourage families to reserve their judgement and remain patient and considerate as we navigate the winter season.

The advice provided by Sarra includes:

Keep children home when they are unwell and allow them time to recover.
Encourage regular handwashing.
Remind children to cover coughs and sneezes with their elbow or a tissue.
Avoid sharing drink bottles, food and utensils.
Seek medical advice if your child is very unwell or you have concerns.
Flu vaccination is recommended for everyone aged 6 months and over and is available through GPs and participating pharmacies.

Thank you for helping us keep our students, staff and families healthy and well during the colder months.

Recruitment and planning for 2027

We are pleased to note that three new staff have already been hired for the 2027 school year and further positions will be advertised to accommodate our continued growth. As always, we welcome interest in our school, and I will be happy to discuss opportunities to join the team.

Course selection is almost complete for senior students, and a timetable will be constructed over the coming weeks. Thank you to the staff, students and families who have participated in the process.

I hope everyone stays healthy and well over the coming week!

Warmest regards,

Nathan Guthridge

Principal

Altona College