Principal's Report
Student Achievement: Community Enviro Expo
The Community Enviro Expo is taking place at Eltham High School on Wednesday 10 June. This Expo emphasises our school’s commitment to the value of Environmental Responsibility for a sustainable future.
I congratulate the Enviro Team and in particular Jarran Nolan (Year 11, Skipper House) who worked tirelessly alongside Hans Gregory from Edendale Farm, supported by Ross McKinnon to bring this event to fruition.
There were a number of stallholders including Native Fish Australia (Vic) Imagine Reevolution; Nillumbik Gardens for Wildlife; North Eat Melbourne Intrepid Landcare; Nillumbik Enviro Staff and the Edendale Youth Enviro Team showcasing their organisation at the expo.
Further to these a number of schools including Eltham High School, Briar Hill Primary School, and Our Lady Help of Christians Primary School (Eltham) will set up stalls at the Expo.
As I am writing this as the Expo is being set up, I will comment on the success of the venture on the next edition of the newsletter.
Congratulations to all involved for such an outstanding initiative and event.
Centenary Celebrations Community Reflections
The first of our community reflections comes from John Considine, teacher, father and school council member of Eltham High School:
It was in 1966 that I made my first visit to Eltham High School. I was a Form 2 (Year 8) student at Thornbury High School and was taken by bus on what seemed to be a longish journey to compete in the Regional Cross Country championships. The bus driver dropped us at the front of the Eltham school, below the old school bell and the modest front door. At that time, the school was just forty years old. I still recall standing in the shadow of the large eucalyptus tree which towers there yet outside the relatively new Room 616 and wondering what kind of treacherous bush trails I would soon be negotiating. There was a distinct feeling that I was about to embark on a run up and down through dark and narrow dirt tracks along the thick bush and the winding creek where I might very likely encounter wild serpents and monotremes.
Years later, in my 2018 satirical novel, High Street, I made a similar reference to a visit I had made to Eltham, taken as a young boy on a Sunday drive in the family car…
Once, when we were on a long country drive, venturing as far as Eltham, it had been necessary for my father to pull over to the side of the road, get out of the car and extend the aerial in order to improve the radio signal. It had been a sobering reminder to us all that we were well and truly in the wilderness. At the same time though, we were comforted by the idea that, even when you are completely isolated, miles from the nearest civilisation, you can still tune in to those Connie girls and hear them cooing warmly as you keep a look out through the trees for wild animals or bushrangers.
In 1981, I bought my current home in Briar Hill. The home is what remains of one of the original farms in the Briar Hill district and had been the childhood home of three times Archibald Prize winner, Clifton Pugh. This artistic connection suited me to the ground. I have always loved and been intrigued by the semi-rural and creative aesthetic which has helped to define the Eltham area. ‘It’s the vibe...' to recall some familiar words from a well known 1997 Australian film…
When my daughter, Catherine, was ready to begin secondary school, I had been teaching in a local high school for some years. Being a Subschool Leader, I was well aware of the reputations and performance histories of neighbouring schools. It didn’t take our family long to decide that Eltham High School would be the right place to send our daughter. Again, it was the cultural ‘vibe’ of creativity and free thinking that resonated most strongly with us. While Catherine was thriving in her new environment, showing very early signs of a love for language and high achievement, I secured a position on School Council and, again, had the opportunity to further understand the school’s aspirations and objectives.
A few years later, by the time my son, John, was ready to begin high school, he had already been playing percussion in the Eltham High School Concert Band for two years, having been recruited early by the masterful Ken Waterworth. John later went on to become leader of the school’s Symphonic Band and was a high achiever in a range of subjects. Since then, it has been no surprise for me to see Catherine now back and teaching at her alma mater.
At the time that I officially retired from my teaching career in early 2015, I very quickly realised that I wasn’t ready to withdraw entirely from school life. I was no longer thinking of teaching full classes, but I definitely felt the need to try to seal some of the many perilous cracks through which I had seen individual students slipping for so many decades.
I approached Vincent Sicari and outlined my plan and desire to work on a special 1:1 basis with students identified to be in need of additional curriculum support and personal mentoring. I am very grateful to Vincent and to Eltham High School for having the faith and the vision to allow me to design and devise my own programs of student support in consultation with teaching staff, students and parents. I can assure the Eltham community that the last ten years or more have been at least as rewarding for me on a personal basis as any in the many years of experience I have enjoyed in State Government secondary schools.
Happy Centennial, Eltham High School.
Your address may well be Withers Way… but I don’t think it will ever be Withers Away…
Centenary Concert 2026
You will be aware that the Centenary Celebration Concert will take place on Wednesday 17 June at the Melbourne Recital Centre.
I extend a personal invitation to all members of out community to attend the concert and be part of a wonderful night of music highlighting the last 43 years of Music at Eltham High School. A number of Alumni Bands will be performing conducted by exceptional alumni conductors. This is not an evening to be missed.
Tickets can be purchased from the Recital Centre Webpage below.
https://www.melbournerecital.com.au/whats-on/current-productions/eltham-high-centenary/
Once again, I strongly encourage you to embrace this opportunity to listen to past and current ensembles celebrating music together.
Year 9 Camp
It was great to see a very excited group of Year 9 students board their buses this morning for the start of the Year 9 Camp.
The three-day camp is held at Campaspe Downs in Tylden, and I am sure that the students will have a fabulous time. It will be an activity packed three days and I have to say that the staff appeared just as excited as the students.
Not having held a Year 9 Camp for the last couple of years, reinitiating this activity has been a pleasurable challenge for Erin Knight (Middle School Team Leader) and her team. They certainly rose to the occasion, the results of which have so far been extremely positive.
I will be visiting the group later in the week and I look forward to revisiting this site which I have become very familiar with over my teaching years.
A big thank you to all the staff who have volunteered their time away from their families and loved ones to participate in the camp and in so doing providing this very memorable experience for our students.
Again, a big thank you to Erin and the Middle School Team for their hard work in bringing this event to fruition.
Year 10 Exams
Year 10 students are currently sitting their exams. It is great to see the students approach these assessments with commitment and see them walk out of the exam room with a sense of achievement.
These exams provide a great experience for the students as they prepare to move into their senior years.
I acknowledge the work of the Senior School Team for their organisation of the exams and furthermore, I acknowledge the work of our Daily Organiser (Danka Kantarovski) not just for these exams but also for her scheduling and coverage of the Year 11 and Year 12 exams which took place in the preceding week.
Truly a group effort.
General Achievement Test (GAT)
The 2026 GAT is scheduled to take place on Tuesday 16 June. All students undertaking Units 3/4 in any study are required to sit the GAT. This generally means any student in year 12 and all year 11 enhancement students.
The General Achievement Test (GAT) is a pen-and-paper test of general knowledge and skills taken by students in the process of completing their senior secondary studies.
The GAT plays an important role in the quality assurance of VCE assessments and also provides students with an opportunity to demonstrate they meet the Victorian Literacy and Numeracy Standards expected at a senior secondary level.
No special study is needed. Past study of subjects like English, Mathematics, Science and History prepares students for the GAT by building their general knowledge and skills in writing, numeracy and reasoning.
The Senior School Team has spent time taking our students through the structure of the GAT supporting them to understand what is required of them so that they can approach this task with confidence in order to perform at their very best.
Furthermore, Tuesday the 16 June will also be a Teacher Professional Practice Day (TPPD), this means that outside of students involved in sitting the GAT no other students will be required at school on this day.
Teachers will be on site involved in collaborative planning, curriculum development, professional learning, marking assessments and preparing for the writing of reports.
I ask parents to ensure that students are supervised at home on this day.
Vincent Sicari, Principal
Eltham High School Reminders, including:
Protecting Against Mosquito-Borne Diseases
Staff Outside of Work Hours
Mobile Phone Policy
Privacy
Student Accident Insurance
Approved Student Exchange Organisations
Camps Sport & Excursions Fund (CSEF)
School Drop Off and Pick Up Times