From the Principal
Hello everyone,
I hope you have had a fantastic week. The week began with news of war in the Middle East. I’m certain you agree when I say, it has been awful to watch on the television and social media. Please reach out if you need support.
‘Many in our school community are affected by the devastating events in the Middle East.
All of us are upset and disturbed by the awful events depicted in media footage and images.
This time is particularly distressing for staff, students, families, and carers who have family and friends in Israel and Gaza.
We are also aware that students of diverse backgrounds, including Jewish and Muslim students, may be significantly affected by public events, mainstream media coverage and social media at this time.
Please be assured that all staff are aware of the extreme emotional toll on many in our community at this time. But please also feel free to get in contact with any of the staff at our school if you would like to ensure we are aware of what your child is going through at this time.
Our support staff will continue doing all they can to support all our students, and support is also available for our staff.
I also want to assure you that the department is monitoring the situation from a school security perspective and have advised there is no further action we need to take at this stage.
It is possible that extremely distressing scenes from the conflict may be posted online in coming days. Please ensure your children are aware of where they can find support in the event, they come across such images. At our school, this includes our wellbeing team and student managers’.
You may find some aspects of this resource helpful:
Helping my children after trauma: A guide for parents.
Support is also available through external services including:
headspace: 1800 650 890
Kids Helpline: 1800 551 800
Lifeline: 13 11 14
Beyond Blue: 1300 224 636.
Staff this week participated in Centre for Multicultural Youth (CMY) training, to raise awareness of the values, beliefs and attitudes of our diverse population so we become a more inclusive community. Students and staff will participate in units of work developed by CMY to reinforce the need for everyone to be an ‘upstander’ rather than a ‘bystander’.
This week also invited many of our new Year 7 students sit for an academic scholarship to the value of $350. The successful candidates will be notified in the next couple of weeks. Year 11 Outdoor Education students hiked through the Grampians. The weather was perfect as was the behaviour of all students.
Next week we say goodbye to our Year 12 students at their final assembly, and at the Valedictory dinner. Goodbyes are always filled with mixed emotions, filled with tears and good times. It will a celebration of 13 years and a time embedded in memories.
Thankyou for your ongoing support
Linda Stanton
Linda Stanton
Principal
Important Dates
OCTOBER
13/10/23 | Year 10 Formal
17/10/23 | Year 12 Valedictory Dinner
18/10/23 | Year 7 and Year 8 Student Showcase Afternoon
24/10/23 - 15/11/23 | VCAA Exams
NOVEMBER
06/11/23 | Student free day
07/11/23 | Melbourne Cup Public Holiday - Student free day
23/11/23 | Year 10 Graduation
24/11/23 | Student free day
27/11/23 | Fast Forward commences
29/11/23 - 1/12/23 | MSC Art Show
DECEMBER
08/12/23 | Last day for Year 10 and Year 11 students
11/12/23 | Presentation Evening
12/12/23 | Orientation Day 2024 Year 7 students
20/12/23 | Last Day of school for 2023
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Middle School
Year 7 and Year 8 Showcase
We are delighted to extend a warm invitation to you for our Year 7 and Year 8 Student Showcase Afternoon, where our talented young learners will be demonstrating their achievements and projects in both Science and Humanities. This event promises to be an exciting opportunity to witness the intellectual growth and creativity of your children.
Date: Wednesday 18th October
Time: 2:30pm till 5pm
Location: Mornington Secondary College Learning Centre
Our Year 7 and Year 8 students have been diligently exploring various topics and engaging in hands-on learning experiences throughout the academic year. This showcase will provide a platform for them to share their knowledge, discoveries, and innovative projects with you, their families, and fellow students. During the event, you can expect:
Science Exhibits:
Year 7-Science students have created a marketing campaign to raise awareness of an endangered Australian animal. Students will design a web page, marketing poster and model as part of this performance task.
Year 8- Students have selected a body system (from Digestive, Circulatory, Respiratory or Excretory system) they are interested in finding out more about. Students conducted research and created an A3 poster about their chosen body system. Based on this information students have built a model that demonstrates the function of the body system.
Humanities Displays
Year 7 – Ancient Rome. Students have created a model of something that the Romans have ‘left behind’ that we still use in some way today.
Year 8- Students have been working in groups covering a variety of different topics based on their allocated continent. Students have worked together, researching, planning and creating a variety of presentations to illustrate the ‘Geography’ of their continent. These presentations include mapping tasks, investigating a significant landform or landscape, reporting on a natural disaster and creating PowerPoints looking at how cities and megacities have changed / grown over time and each group will also create a model of their choice in relation to their continent.
Student Presentations
Selected students will give short presentations, offering insights into their work, findings, and the learning process. It's a chance to see your child's communication and presentation skills in action.
Teacher interaction
Feel free to engage with your child’s teacher, asking questions about their projects undertaken. This interactive dialogue will provide valuable insights into their academic journey.
Live music
There will be live music from the school band as well as students from our Drum Corp
Sausage Sizzle
Enjoy a free sausage for an afternoon snack.
Your presence at this event is vital to encourage and celebrate the hard work and dedication that our Year 7 and Year 8 students have put into their studies. It will also be an opportunity for you to gain a deeper understanding of the curriculum and learning experiences offered at our school.
Please RSVP to ensure we can adequately prepare for the event. You can RSVP by clicking the following link https://forms.office.com/r/exfrfcS2bS
We are excited to share this special afternoon with you and look forward to seeing you there. Together, we can inspire and support our students in their educational journey.
If you have any questions or need further information, please do not hesitate to contact us.
Joanne Reeman - Year 7 Team Leader
Adam Pirrie - Year 8 Team Leader
Wishing you a great week.
Denise Leggett
Middle School Assistant Principal
Senior School
To students and families of the Mornington Senior School,
I wanted to start this week’s edition by thanking our wonderful student leadership team for their efforts in 2023. Our Captain’s Council meet each fortnight, superbly led by our 2023 College Captains (Jess Randall & Edan Perry) and Vice-Captain (Hamish O’Shea). The captains at each year level have worked hard to listen to student voice throughout the year, by running student forums. They have run fundraisers at each year level and have openly contributed to discussions about issues impacting students at Mornington Secondary College throughout the year.
On Monday, the 2023 student leadership team had their final meeting as one team and a lunch to celebrate their achievements. Members of the Principal team attended the final meeting to thank students for their efforts. Unfortunately, I was unable to attend due to personal illness (it’s not Covid thank goodness, however it felt like it!) but I wanted to publicly pass on my personal thanks to each and every member of our student leadership team. They have been a delight to work with in 2023 and I look forward to working with many more student leaders for the rest of 2023 and beyond. The student leadership package for 2024 will be launched by the new college captains after the selection process has been completed over the next few days.
A big week awaits our Year 12s next week with their final day of classes happening on Monday 16th, before their final assembly and then Valedictory evening on Tuesday 17th. Then the Year 12s go into SWOTVAC as they prepare for their final exams. Every minute of preparation time can have a positive impact on their final results, and I wish them all best as they make their final push to complete their secondary schooling journey.
Kind regards,
Nick Evans
Senior School Assistant Principal
Key dates for Senior School in term 4
Fri Oct 13th – Year 10 Formal
Tues Oct 17th – Final whole school assembly for Year 12s and Year 12 Valedictory Night.
Tues Oct 24th – Year 12 VCAA exams commence.
Mon 6th Nov – Pupil Free Day
Tues 7th Nov – Melbourne Cup Day
Mon 13th and Tues 14th Nov – Year 11 SWOTVAC (study days for exams)
Wed 15th Nov to Thurs 23rd Nov – Year 10 and 11 exams.
Thurs 16th Nov – Thurs 21st Nov – VM Interview Presentations (1 half day per year 11 VM student)
Fri 24th Nov – PPD day (no classes)
Mon 27th Nov – Fri 8th Dec – Year 10-12 Fast Forward program
Mon 27th Nov – VCE Launch night
Fri 8th Dec – Last day for Year 10 and 11 students
Tues 12th Dec – Awards night
Nick Evans
Senior School Assistant Principal
From the Desk of Dr Keough
Starting next week and running for three weeks during Connect, students in both middle and senior school will be participating in engaging lessons on exploring culture. These lesson plans come from the Centre for Multicultural Youth's Stand Up Against Racism program. These were selected by the student representatives.
Culturally Sustaining Schools
This week we were fortunate enough to have two presenters from the Centre for Multicultural Youth come and present three hours of training for staff on building culturally sustaining schools. The workshops provide opportunities for us to explore what culture is and the ways we can see peoples differences as strengths. The workshops were designed to support staff as we continue to work with students in building a more inclusive and culturally sensitive school.
Kind regards,
Mike Parker
Assistant Principal
Southern Metropolitan Region - Athletics Championships at Ballam Park
Congratulations to all student who represented Mornington Secondary College last week at the Southern Metropolitan Region Athletics Championships at Ballam Park. All students demonstrated fantastic comradery throughout the day and over-all we received some outstanding results.
The following students placed in the top 3 for their events and received medals for their achievement:
12-13 Girls Hurdles – Zaya Lindsay- Rechter: 1st place
12-13 Boys 1500m – Ethan Sheen: 2nd place
16 Boys 1500m – Andrew Turver: 2nd place
18-20 Girls Hurdles – Zarah Carnie: 2nd place
12-13 Girls relay – Zaya Lindsay-Rechter, Ellie Smith, Alyssa Molyneaux, Leena N’Diaye: 2nd place
18-20 Boys Hurdles – Jagg Dunleavy: 3rd place
16 Boys High Jump – Jordy Burrell: 3rd place
14 Girls Hurdles – Milla Dooley: 3rd place
12-13 Boys 800m – Ethan Sheen: 3rd place
16 Boys 800m – Andrew Turver: 3rd place
18-20 Boys 200m – Rory Wagner-Watts: 3rd place
All the best to Ethan Sheen (1500m), Andrew Turver (1500m & steeple-chase) and Zaya Lindsay-Rechter (Hurdles) who will compete at the State Athletics Championship on Monday the 16th of October!!!
Marrung education scholarships
Applications are open for Marrung Education Scholarships, which provide financial support for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students to complete Years 11 and 12.
This year, there are 30 scholarships of $5,000 each, spread over 2 years.
The scholarships can be used for a range of education-related items, such as school equipment.
Please share this information with eligible students so they can consider applying for the scholarships.
Eligibility and selection
The scholarships recognise students who demonstrate high potential to succeed in their chosen pathway. Students eligible for scholarships are:
- Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander
- completing Year 10 at a Victorian government school
- planning on completing years 11 and 12 at a Victorian government school.
A selection panel of representatives from the department and the Victorian Aboriginal Education Association will review applications and select successful applicants using the following criteria:
- the student’s involvement in the Aboriginal community
- Year 10 academic results and school reports
- the student’s potential to succeed in a chosen pathway
- references from school and community representatives.
How to apply
To apply for a Marrung education scholarship, eligible students must complete and submit the Marrung education scholarship application form.
Applications close on Monday 30 October 2023.
Policy, guidance and resources
Our Policy and Advisory Library includes all related policy information, guidance and resources under the relevant menu tabs:
Find out more
For more information about the scholarships, including the school’s role and use of the funds, refer to Marrung education scholarship guidelines.
For further enquiries, contact Koorie Outcomes Division by email: marrung@education.vic.gov.au
Year 10
Mr Jake Uhlenberg
Our Formal celebrations are almost upon us and we hope each student attending this Friday is excited for this night to finally arrive. The theme is Red Carpet and we cannot wait to see how our students approach and interpret such a concept.
We have unfortunately had some issues recently with students electing to leave school grounds during the day to visit the nearby homemaker centre. This is something we take very seriously as it impacts on our duty of care to your children while they attend school. We are pushing a consistent message around this behaviour and consequences will be issued to those who choose to put themselves at risk by leaving the grounds. We would appreciate our message being mirrored at home as well emphasising the importance of everyone's safety while they attend school.
Year 11
Dr Jasmine Keough
It has been a quiet start to the second week of the final term. We are keeping on track with our attendance with 11F winning the attendance change for Week 1. Students are settling down into good habits (most of them!) focussing on getting Satisfactory results for Unit 2. It is vital that Year 11 students get into good habits to prepare them for their transition into Year 12 which takes place in Week 9.
The Coordination Teams have plans for a Wellbeing Day before the commencement of exams in Week 7. Students will have a chance to recharge and relax in preparation. We want to avoid our lovely students experiencing uhtceare - the state of lying awake anxiously before dawn because of exam stress! Our students need to focus on being successful (in their own way) to achieve their personal goals.
Year 12
Mr Scott Kirkby
The final days of Year 12 are exciting and challenging times.
Monday: October 16 is the final day for VCE ATAR students. A fancy-dress event will take place to celebrate their final day. The theme is 'Future careers'. Students are reminded that they need to be in class all day and revising with their teachers for exams.
Tuesday: October 17 (Morning) is a celebration morning for ATAR and VM students. An event has been placed on Compass. All parents need to consent to the day as this falls outside a normal instructional day. This will also help with catering for the breakfast. Students are again reminded of behavioural expectations which are outlined in the event. We want students to finish the year on a positive.
Tuesday: October 17 (Evening) is Year 12 Valedictory evening. This is a wonderful time to celebrate student achievement. The event is taking place at The New Baptist Church, Mount Martha. The event includes a three course meal and will be a wonderful full stop on the structured classes of Year 12.
Wednesday October 18- Monday October 23 is SWOT VAC. This time is used to study independently and prepare for VCE ATAR exams. Students may attend school and meet with their teachers during allocated class times or arrange a meeting in agreeance with their teachers. Students are welcome to use the Year 12 study space to study.
Tuesday: October 24: VCAA written exams commence. All details are available on the VCAA website. Exams will be taking place in the R block, aside from General Maths, which will be in the Robert Herbert Gymnasium. The internal exam timetable will be published before the end of next week and seating plans for each exam will be released the day prior, both via the Microsoft Teams page.
ADHD Awareness Week
Doctors in Schools
Mornington Secondary College is proud to be a provider of the government-led Doctors in Schools program, where students are able to access a GP specialising in adolescent health. The program is designed to make primary healthcare more accessible to students, help young people address health concerns promptly and ease pressure on working parents. Appointments can be made by emailing doctor@mornsc.vic.edu.au or contact Shellie in the General Office.
Students can also send a Microsoft Teams message to DoctorsInSchools.
For more information about the program, consent and confidentiality please see link below:
https://www.vic.gov.au/doctors-in-secondary-schools
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