PRINCIPAL'S REPORT:

Staffing Challenges Impact the Start of the School Year:

The commencement of the school year has been affected by staffing challenges that were beyond the school’s control, resulting in some unavoidable changes to the delivery of classes.

Last year, the school successfully recruited two highly suitable applicants for advertised teaching positions. Both candidates were from overseas, and the process to secure their working visas began more than five months ago. Despite all documentation being submitted correctly and in a timely manner, delays in visa processing meant that neither applicant had received approval prior to the start of the School year.

As a result of being two teachers short, the School was required to make difficult decisions that affected the delivery of some classes. Unfortunately, due to the evolving nature of the situation and the timelines involved, notification of these changes occurred later than we would have preferred. We acknowledge the impact this has had on students and families and appreciate the community’s understanding.

In a positive development, one of the applicants received their working visa during the first week of school and has now commenced their role. This has helped to stabilise staffing in several areas. At present, we are still awaiting the final visa approval for the remaining applicant. All required information has been lodged with the Department of Home Affairs and has been on file since well before Christmas 2025.

As we always do, the School is committed to supporting students through any transitions and to making adjustments to learning programs as seamless as possible. Our priority remains ensuring continuity of learning and maintaining high-quality educational experiences for all students.

We thank our students, families, and staff for their patience and continued support as we work through these circumstances and look forward to a more settled period ahead.

Welcoming a New Staff Member:

This week, we were pleased to welcome a new member of our teaching staff, Ms Prenika Narayan, to the KTHS community.

Prenika is a Fijian national who has been working in Queensland for the past four years, gaining valuable experience in education. She is a dedicated Science and Mathematics teacher and we are excited about the knowledge, enthusiasm and fresh perspective she brings to our school.

We look forward to the positive impact Prenika will have in the classroom and the contribution she will make to our wider school community. Please join us in welcoming her to Kerang Technical high School.

PLEASE NOTE: NEW BELL TIMES as per School News page:

NO SCHOOL ACCIDENT or PERSONAL PROPERTY INSURANCE:

At times, the School is required to call an ambulance if a student is injured or sick.  The School will always err on the side of caution and call an ambulance.  The School will try to contact the respective parents but sometimes the phone is not answered.  Therefore, I would like to remind all parents and guardians that:

• Parents/Guardians of students, who do not have student accident insurance, are responsible for paying the cost of medical treatment for injured students, including the cost of ambulance attendance/transport and any other transport costs; and
• Parents/Guardians can purchase insurance policies from Commercial Insurers.

Further to this, the Department does not hold insurance for personal property brought to schools and it has no capacity to pay for any loss or damage to such property.

ANNUAL PRIVACY REMINDER FOR OUR SCHOOL COMMUNITY:

Our School collects, uses, discloses and stores student and parent personal information for standard School functions or where permitted by law, as stated in the Schools’ Privacy Policy.

Please take time to read our school’s collection notice, found on our website https://kerangths.vic.edu.au/resources/SchoolsPrivacyPolicy.pdf.  

We ask parents to also review the guidance we provide on how we use Digital Technologies safely at the school and what parents can do to further protect their child’s information. 

If after reviewing the guidance, you have any questions or concerns regarding your child using Digital Technologies, please contact the school. For more information about privacy, refer to: Schools’ Privacy Policy — information for parents. This information is also available in 10 (ten) community languages:

UPCOMING EVENTS:

Year 7 Camp:

The Year 7 camp is once again going to ‘Camp Kookaburra”. This is a three-day camp from Wednesday, 11th – Friday, 13th February.

This is when students complete bonding activities and challenges.  The camp incorporates only our School.  Some staff have volunteered to attend to help with supervision and I will be visiting the camp on Thursday. I anticipate that the students will have a memorable time. Thanks to Miss Ferrier for her organisation.

Disconnect from work outside of school.

At Kerang Technical High School, we value the dedication and professionalism of our staff, as well as their health and wellbeing. An important step taken by the Department of Education in maintaining a positive and sustainable work environment is ensuring that staff are able to disconnect from work outside of school hours.

Staff work hard to support students and families during the school day, and it is important that personal time in the evenings, on weekends, and during holidays is respected.

While communication is essential, we acknowledge that staff may not be able to respond to emails or messages outside of school hours.

Please note that staff will respond to communications at their earliest convenience during school hours. This approach supports staff wellbeing and helps ensure that they are rested, focused, and able to provide the best possible support to students.

Thank you for your understanding and for supporting a healthy work–life balance for our school community.