Report to the Association AGM

It is my pleasure to address the Association AGM 50 years after its first meeting following the school’s opening in 1975.

I can’t say it’s the 50th AGM – I would definitely be wrong. And, in the end, the idea for the placement of a school on the hill in Donvale was well and truly in place more than 60 years ago, given the archival documents I poured over a few years ago at John Kroon’s encouragement. AGM’s for the Association for Christian Education in Box Hill were held in the 1960s – the business of this school was well underway before students arrived!

This is God’s work – not ours, God’s. In Genesis 2:15, it says: “The Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to till it and keep it”.  

God’s imagebearer was to share in the work God deemed as necessary and important. It was a sharing in the mission of God. God’s work.

In Ephesians 2:10, Paul reminds us: “For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” 

God had already prepared this school to be set up, built, grown and nurtured, towards its current flourishing manifestation, long before we even had the idea to set it up.

This is God’s work. And we are here by His grace. Many more things could have gone wrong than have gone right. But they didn’t – God’s grace abounds, and we are here – in His presence tonight, and in fellowship with one another – because He has protected us and protected us. He is at the centre of this work; our own personal endeavours as disciples of Jesus should be a worshipful act of obedience to His call.

It is not our work, it is God’s.

Some of you would know that I am a school history geek. This is the seventh school I’ve worked in. I have joined each school I’ve been part of, determined to know its backstory deeply. I love hearing how God worked in the early days of emerging schools. 

I have had the deep privilege of sitting with many of those who were part of the creation of the early history of this College – for example, and as a sidenote, it was my deepest privilege to sit, again, with John Kroon for our Jubilee Year Board Dinner a few weeks ago and hear him recount stories of the early days of the school; and, as always, to see the glint of excitement in his eyes, mixed with the occasional tear, as he marvelled again at how God good has been to our College community.

Grace abounds. Through our endeavours (honourable or otherwise), and mindful at all times of our shortcomings, God extends His goodness to us. It is His work; we get to share in it! Wow.

There is one member of our community who recently led a beautiful staff devotion – this person who has so many elements of our history wrapped up in her own personal story; I have asked her to step in and mark this Jubilee Year AGM with a story of the way God works in our College’s families.

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At this point in the evening, Ingrid shared her story of four generations of family connection with DCC – her Opa’s work building alongside other founders and fundraising once the school opened, her own parents sacrifices to send her family to the College, her own involvements – as student, parent, volunteer and staff member, and her own children’s journey through the College.  

She was so excited to show her Year 12 photo – that included four of her peers who are (or were) staff at DCC, one who is a Board member – and two staff in her Year 12 days who are still on staff!  

IN all her reflections, the centrality of witness to the Lordship of Christ in the lives of those she was taught by, taught her children or who she has worked alongside, came through again and again. Praise God for all his work – in Ingrid’s family, and in so many generations of so many families. 

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I deeply appreciate Ingrid’s perspective as a microcosm of God’s work within our College community. From foundation, through our early years, two generations of students, volunteering, working – in all things, a story of God’s grace at work – her’s was a multigenerational family testimony. And we are endeavouring to capture these threads in our four focal points this year, term by term, recapping the history of our College through the lens of God’s grace 

• Term 1: Hopeful Heritage - built on Christ, grounded in purpose
• Term 2: Growing in Grace - from seeds to strong branches
• Term 3: Flourishing by Faith - strengthened in grace and fellowship
• Term 4: A Legacy of Love - the story unfolding

At it’s heart, all our College operations are all about the faith development of our children; surrounded by staff and families who all love Jesus and want to see Him known by all in our community. Everyone with their unique story, their family background, their church story, interests, emphases and emerging story – building one another up.

At the heart of it, young imagebearers called to share in God’s work here. With their parents, sharing in God’s work here. And this AGM forms part of that work.

One of our annual rhythms recently adopted has been to reflect at this meeting on the Christian Foundations Policy. It is my pleasure to take you through these.

The five headings are:

• Teaching Practice
• Staff Employment
• Staff Spiritual Development & Welfare
• Student Spiritual Development & Welfare
• Budget and Resourcing

I can report the following: 

Under Teaching Practice – within the rhythm of our regular sub-school meetings, week by week, there is a continual circling back to the biblical grounding of all of our curriculum, from Prep to Year 12, a revisiting discipline that takes on lessons learnt from feedback and seeks to discern what God would have us do in the next season of delivering any particular part of our curriculum.

More staff than ever are engaging in study as part of the National Institute of Christian Education’s Masters programs. Other staff are undertaking study in other tertiary locations, too. These endeavours are supported in keeping with our policies for staff professional learning.

We have added, since 2024, the possibility of experienced DCC staff being able to mentor trainee teachers who are participating in the Christian Initial Teacher Education Alliance program run out of Eastern College Australia. DCC is one of five schools in this alliance -we are committed together to ensuring a steady supply of graduate teachers who are mature in their Christian faith and teaching practices.

Under Staff Employment – I report that all final staff interviews continue to have a Board member present with the Principal; they are then affirmed via a Board poll before appointment is made. The documentation within our staff contracts align with our College’s purposes, as outlined in the DCC Constitution. All staff participate in DCC and Christian Education National induction programs; staff with interest in pursuing leadership opportunities are encouraged and supported in these endeavours.

Staff Spiritual Development and Welfare is of the utmost importance.  We continue to adopt a multi-modal approach – utilising worship opportunities, all staff and subschool devotions, prayer meetings, an annual two-day retreat for all staff, “tribes” (all staff are put into small groups that adopt spiritual practices similar to your church’s home group approach) and emotional and spiritual wellbeing assistance programs. 

So, too, Student Spiritual Development and Welfare is of the utmost importance. We see this as the highest order of partnership engagement with parents; this is very much a shared responsibility – for the students, it is also a multi-modal approach. Subschool worship, homeroom devotions, and prayer – organised as well as spontaneous – are key pillars.  

The Homegroup (Secondary), classroom (Primary) and assembly (Primary and Secondary) settings are key places for program delivery and focussed messaging of key spiritual emphases we see as important in building up the students. So, too, is the provision of wellbeing support – an extensive program, now, of educational support, counselling, social work and other targeted strategies in both the Primary and Secondary Schools.

And, finally – under Budgeting and Resourcing, we confirm the continued resourcing of a dedicated role – the Director of Christian Foundations (held by Viv Stapleton) – who does a superb job as she oversees, in partnership with the me as Executive Principal, all activities of the school through the lens of this policy. Key discussions this year under the budgeting and resourcing heading have focussed on staffing levels, workload, welfare and leadership provisions. 

In conclusion, quoting again from Ephesians 2:10 “For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” 

That is a great promise! That is a great reminder! We are here because God put us here – not forever, but for a season, for a reason of His deciding, as part of His perfect plan.  

We are here, as part of His work, under His Lordship.

How will we respond? I trust it is always in faith, obedient to His call at all times. This is my prayer for this community, for the next 50 years.

Shalom.