Community News 

Calling all Former SOC Students!

Interested in joining our Alumni Community? We would love to hear what our former SOC students are up to! Fill out the following online form: https://forms.office.com/r/JakrRiSTFm if you are interested in sharing! 

Important Information for Schools and their Students Using Public Transport

Public Transport Victoria would like to share some public transport ticketing information which may be of use to your school and school community. 

Group Travel Authority 

School groups travelling on the metropolitan public transport network can now book online at ptv.vic.gov.au/grouptravel. Bookings must be made at least 5 business days prior to travel. Regional bookings with V/Line can also be made online at vline.com.au/Fares-general-info/Additional-pages/Group-Travel. Please note, that staffed stations and PTV Hubs no longer issue the Group Travel Authority. 

2024 Student Pass Fares 

2024 PTV School Student ID and Student Pass application form

The application form is available to download now at ptv.vic.gov.au/students 

Touching on and off 

PTV's data shows that passengers are not touching on as regularly as they were before the COVID-19 pandemic. Touch-on/off data is used to plan the level and frequency of services for your school and sends a positive message to the broader travelling public. We ask you to regularly remind students to touch on and off every time they use their Myki on public transport, even if they have a Myki Pass or Student Pass. 

30-Day Travel Passes 

Travel Passes are designed for community organisations and schools to provide a valid ticket for students in crisis or experiencing severe financial hardship to continue to attend school and access continued services. Schools can access 30-day Travel Passes and give them to the most vulnerable students so they can remain engaged in education. To be valid, the pass must have a hold punched on the date it is given to the student. For more information, visit ptv.vic.gov.ay/travel-pass or email ticketingservices@ptv.vic.gov.au. 

PTV Approved School Student ID 

Hundreds of Victorian schools have signed up to participate in the PTV Approved School Student ID program, making it easier for Victorian students and their parents to access concession fares and student pass products. 

The PTV Approved School Student ID is effectively your school's Student ID card with the PTV logo. This flexible option means students no longer need to arrange, pay for and carry the dedicated PTV School Student ID (available from stations/ticket agents for $9) to travel on student passes or concession fares. 

Schools must apply to PTV to include the PTV logo on the School ID card. For a school's ID to be approved by PTV, it must include: 

• the school's name
• the student's name
• the student's photo 
• an expiry date no later than 28 February of the year after the student finishes year 12 
• the PTV logo 

The ID may include other information that schools need, provided there's enough space for the PTV logo. 

The existing PTV School Student ID is an option for students should you or the school choose not to participate. 

It is the responsibility of the student to ensure they carry a valid proof of concession entitlement (PTV  Approved School Student ID or PTV School Student ID) when travelling with a Student Pass, or risk receiving a fine from an Authorised Officer. The PTV Approved School Student ID does not need to be valid for the duration of the student pass being purchased, only the time of purchase. 

For more information about having your School ID approved, email ticketingservices@ptv.vic.gov.au 

Prepay Buses 

A reminder that cash transactions were permanently removed from myki-enabled buses from 13 July 2020 in support of safer bus journeys and the rollout of all door boarding. 

So parents and students can ensure they continue to travel with a valid ticket, we request you communicate the many alternatives available to cash payments onboard buses, including: 

• Myki machines
• Online at ptv.vic.gov.au/myki 
• Auto top up 
• Myki retailers 
• Quick top-up machines
• Instant Myki Money top up via the PTV app 
• Ticket offices including train stations and PTV hubs 

Using the PTV app to check a Myki card balance and instantly top up with Myki Money is expected to be especially helpful for parents. For more information visit: ptv.vic.gov.au/tickets/myki/buy-a-myki-and-top-up/ 

Thank you for your support in sharing this information with your staff and students. 

Yours sincerely,

Tony McNamara 

Director, Ticketing & Retail 

Public Transport Victoria 

Breakfast Club 

In 2024, there have been multiple additions of portfolios to the SRC, one of which was the Breakfast Club portfolio. At South Oakleigh College, breakfast club is held every Thursday before school to provide food to students who might have difficulty getting breakfast in the morning. Breakfast club was unfortunately heavily affected by the storm a few weeks ago which has led to the decision to discontinue breakfast clubs for the rest of the term.

However, we still plan to run some alternate events in replacement of breakfast club for this term. We intend to restart activities on March 8th with an event held outside the canteen to distribute food to students during lunchtime as breakfast club is currently on hiatus. We also plan to investigate possible changes to the menu so that students enjoy various options when breakfast club returns. We look forward to a great term and a great year ahead.  

Breakfast club Portfolio 

Brick-by-Brick Fundraiser.

Be a part of SOC history and help pave the way for future students to come.

We invite our community members to purchase a commemorative brick engraved with your name, family name or your business and become immortalised at our College.

Payment and name submissions can be made at the general office.

Apply to be a homestay family for international students

We are seeking homestay families living in our local school community for students travelling here from overseas.

Homestays are more than just a room to sleep, they offer the safety, security and welcoming environment of a real family.

Homestay families go through strict screening and monitoring processes by the Department of Education. New homestay providers would participate in an interview with school representatives, as well as regular home visits by a school representative. Every member of a homestay household over the age of 18 years of age would also need to obtain a Working with Children’s Check card.

Homestay providers receive payment.

For more information on how to become a homestay provider, click here: Become a Homestay Family (study.vic.gov.au)

If you would be interested in becoming a homestay provider for our school, please send your expression of interest to sarah.crespo-liu@education.vic.gov.au

Follow us on Social Media

Sustainable Bookshop

A secondhand textbook trading system

• List Wanted & For Sale Ads
• The school’s booklists are loaded into the system to make the Ad listing process easy, fast and accurate
• Assistance is provided to accurately price items
• Our ad-matching service shows you
  • Exactly the right items to buy
  • Who has the most items you need
  • The cheapest items
• Buyers contact Sellers and arrange where and when to trade
• Excellent email and telephone helplines are provided: 1300 683 337

www.sustainableschoolshop.com.au  

Mobile phone recycling back at South Oakleigh

Many of us have discarded phones sitting in our drawers at home. Instead of your old phone taking up space bring it to school to recycle and help the environment at the same time. SOC is now part of the mobilemuster program and a collection point for mobile phones. Our school has already sent phones to mobilemuster for recycling.  

Why recycling mobile phones matters

Mobile phones are made from many materials, including precious metals, so by recycling there is less need for mining. The critically endangered Grauer’s gorilla has lost 77 percent of its population in the last 20 years due to habitat degradation because of mining minerals for mobile phones. Recycling also saves energy. If products are manufactured using recycled materials the energy required to extract and process materials is saved.

What happens when I recycle my phone?

Through recycling, MobileMuster transforms the components from mobile phone waste into valuable materials for reuse. By recycling your mobile phone today, you will be helping reduce the impact on the environment tomorrow. 

https://vimeo.com/265126143

https://vimeo.com/349554548

Where do I recycle my phone?

You can put your unused mobile phone/s into a recycling box in the library. They will be sent to Mobile muster and the components extracted and reused. Some of the components will be made into new mobile phones.

Remember you should wipe your data before recycling by going onto one of these websites:

iPhone: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g6tppaNiEHY

Android:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8RGoncGMFDM

Alison Jones

Sustainability Co-ordinator