Principals Report

Welcome

It is a pleasure and a privilege as Principal to welcome the Homestead community back for another year at Homestead Senior Secondary College. 

I would like to extend my extra warm welcome to our new students. It is always a challenge to join a new school but may I say, our Year 10 students in particular have made such a positive impact on the atmosphere at Homestead already. I am enjoying getting to know them throughout the breaks especially.

Also a warm welcome to all our new staff. This year we continued to grow and I am so pleased with our recruitment. Our new staff include:

• Alison Boxer, English, Humanities and Psychology teacher
• Brad McCall, IT teacher
• Bethany Collier, Wellbeing Counsellor
• Fiona Martin, Food Technology and Art teacher
• Tesfaye Seyoum Hailu, Math teacher
• Nasser Cura, Chemistry teacher
• Adel Soliman, Math teacher
• Angie Chan, Math teacher
• Aimee Underwood, English and Psychology teacher
• Manik Tamanam, Biology teacher
• Harneet Bedi, Math teacher and student manager of Year 10
• Charles Go, Tutor
• Puja Miglani, Studdent Support
• Sarah Wilson, Humanities and VCE VM Teacher

As we get into this new term, I wanted to express how impressed I am with the start we have had. 

The behaviour of students has been exceptional, both social and academic, with students showing a high level of respect and consideration for others. I am also thrilled to see the high standards of uniform being upheld, which reflects the pride you have in our school. 

Period 0

The introduction of Period 0 has been an overwhelming success. 

Studies have long shown the benefits of a later start for teenage students. While 15mins later than last year does not sound like much, the majority of our students arrive by 8:45am. During this time in the morning they either study or socialise in the library. The allows thier brain to wake up prior to attending class at 9:15am. Feedback from teachers has been that students are very ready for learning at the beginning of class, which is fantastic to hear. 

Our first compulsory Period 0 whole school event was very well attended, a testament to our students and our community. Thank you. The use of Period 0 in this way is enormously beneficial as it means the school does not need to cut into class time to run these important events. 

While our students attend, it is a good time to remind our community that although detentions are given for lates after 9:15am, the school day does start at 8:45am and students are expected to attend period 0 every day, on time. They should attend not because they have to, rather they should want to!

Saltwater Year 9 Campus

After much work late in 2023, the Year 9 Campus of Saltwater P-9 has successfully delivered for a Day 1 start. I have been enjoying my chat with the Year 9 students and getting to know them slowly.

The two schools have been in constant communication and the transition of Year 9s has been smooth as a result. We have completely opposing timetables and so the two schools are co-existing harmoniously. We are looking forward to continuing our work with the Saltwater staff to further develop the partnership. 

School Council

School council plays a profound role in supporting the college to adhere to DET guidelines, particularly around finances and Child Safety law. It also provides the opportunity for the college to gain vital feedback to support a positive culture for our whole community. Our AGM is on March 20 at 6pm in the conference room, community members are welcome to attend.

Very soon, I will be announcing the process to nominate for, and subsequent elections for vacancies on the school council. We have one vacancy in the parent category and two in the student category. Positions are for two years.

I strongly encourage anyone who is interested to nominate themselves and join the enthusiastic and supportive parent team we already have.

Homestead Instagram

After requests from our parents on school council, we started our instagram account in 2023, it has been very well received since.

Many day to day celebrations and announcements are made via the account. We understand that not everyone is on instagram however highly encourage all community members to follow the account and join us in celebrating the wonderful things our students achieve.

In conclusion, I am so proud to be a part of this school community, and I look forward to the amazing journey we will embark on together this year. Let’s continue to strive for excellence in all that we do, and to live our lives with purpose and meaning. 

Thank you

Danijel

Principal