Message from the School Captains
On Friday 28 August, SSC – and Australia at large – celebrates Wear It Purple Day, which is an annual day of national awareness and celebration for LGBTQIA+ youth. I think that it is especially important that SSC asserts the right for all members of the LGBTQIA+ to take pride in their identities, and actively showcase themselves, especially when current (and influential) political figures hold the antiquated view that sexuality “should be kept behind closed doors.” By disseminating Wear It Purple Day messaging throughout all form assemblies, and hosting a ‘Hot Mic’ to foster community engagement, I believe that Strathmore’s continued honouring of this annual occasion once again exhibits our unequivocal appreciation of Diversity, and sends a definitive message to all students that bigotry has no place at our school. Additionally, I would like to thank all teachers for their essential, unwavering dedication to the students amidst the industrial action, and hope that they know that we appreciate the extraordinary effort they put in for us so very much!
-Joseph Thorsen
Over the course of this week, from 17–21 August, we celebrate Anti-Bullying Week. Here at SSC, we are committed to fostering a school environment where every student and staff member feels safe, respected, included and valued. Unfortunately, we live in a time where individuality is increasingly undermined by societal pressures and expectations to conform to prevailing social norms. However as a School Captain team, we carry a passion to highlight the importance of creating a community where every individual feels welcomed, accepted and empowered to be themselves. This term, Junior and Senior School Council have come together to create a lunchtime activity that brings students and staff together to celebrate respect, diversity and friendship. Everyone was invited to come along, make friendship bracelets, get creative with colouring, play card games and enjoy a range of activities to help us build a school community where everyone feels welcome.
Diversity, as one of our PRIDE values, strengthens our community, and it is through understanding, kindness and mutual respect that we can ensure everyone feels that they belong. This Anti-Bullying Week, let us remember that creating a respectful and inclusive environment is not the responsibility of one person but rather it is something we all contribute to. Through our words, actions and willingness to include others, we will continue to make Strathmore a place where everyone feels safe, valued and proud to be themselves.
- Sophia Frank
This term, the school council has chosen to focus on mental health and wellbeing. On the 10th of September, Strathmore Secondary College will be celebrating R U OK? Day, with the pleasure of having Headspace join us. Mental health is an important part of our school community, and this day is a great opportunity to check in with those around us and simply ask, “Are you okay?” As integrity is one of Strathmore’s key values in PRIDE, R U OK? Day is a meaningful way to strengthen our community, build connections and support both our peers and teachers. The following week, we will also be holding a bake sale filled with delicious treats! We encourage everyone to be respectful and mindful when purchasing items and to appreciate the effort that goes into making these events possible. A huge thank you to everyone helping prepare the baked goods, as well as Gusto Bakery, Dairy Queen and Glory Us for their generous donations. We look forward to seeing Strathmore students and teachers come together to support mental health and wellbeing!
- Keira Seerungen
So far in 2026, the VCE Vocational Major (VCE VM) students have done a range of Applied Learning activities. We started off the year with working out scales and percentages in Numeracy. In teams, we explored value for money concepts and depreciation of assets. Real life scenarios about driving speeds and mapping tools that will help us navigate our future.
In Personal Development Skills (PDS), we are working in groups, developing community connections. Some students are visiting the Arcare Aged Care facility in Essendon to do a range of intergenerational activities: working across the different age groups and learning from each other. The weekly interactions have been benefited everyone by addressing loneliness, self-esteem, and cognitive training. Other groups of students are building a book cubby house for the library, running pilates classes and sport activities for junior levels. Year 12 work related skills is now all about presenting our Career Portfolios to a panel.
Year 11 VCE VM students are currently completing their Cert II in Public Safety (Firefighting operations). This certification will improve our resumes and is relevant across all VET areas. It teaches us about the behaviour of fire, ways to prevent fire and strategies for staying safe should a fire event occur. It is also a lot of fun, learning how to operate the fire truck hoses and fire extingishers. In Literacy and Numeracy, Year 11 students have interviewed adults about their career journeys and worked outthe area and perimeter of their surroundings, working towards designing a scaled drawing. In PDS, students have focused on healthy choices, emotional intelligences, and self awareness. They have mentored younger students through sport and movement.
In Work Related Skills students are converting a donated horse float into a mobile coffee cart. This has been an ongoing project that all VCE VM students have participated in designing, preparing and building. Students are applying their VET skills we hope will become a community hub. I have been working on the various stages of his project and enjoying applying the skills I'm learning at my part-time carpentry apprenticeship (SBAT). Our next stage of this project is a fundraising trivia night. Check your Compass feed for regular updates on this fun family night.
-Matthew Moncur
