Principal's Report
Middle East Crisis
Dear parents and carers,
Many in our school community are affected by the devastating events in the Middle East.
All of us are upset and disturbed by the awful events depicted in media footage and images.
This time is particularly distressing for staff, students, families, and carers who have family and friends in Israel and Gaza.
We are also aware that students of diverse backgrounds, including Jewish and Muslim students, may be significantly affected by public events, mainstream media coverage and social media at this time.
Please be assured that all staff are aware of the extreme emotional toll on many in our community, but please also feel free to get in contact with any of our staff if you would like to ensure we are aware of what your child is feeling or experiencing at this time.
Our support staff will continue doing all they can to support all our students, and equally, support is also available for our staff.
I also want to assure you that the Department is monitoring the situation from a school security perspective and have advised there is no further action we need to take at this stage.
It is possible that extremely distressing scenes from the conflict may be posted online in coming days. Please ensure your children are aware of where they can find support in the event they come across such images. At our school, this includes the Student Services Team as well as the Sub-school Coordination Team.
You may find some aspects of this resource helpful:
Support is also available through external services including:
- Headspace: 1800 650 890
- Kids Helpline: 1800 551 800
- Lifeline: 13 11 14
- Beyond Blue: 1300 224 636
My door is always open, and I am sure we will all look to support one another in this very difficult time.
Student Achievement: Aged Care High
You may recall from earlier this year that a small group of Year 9 students attended the Gnurad-Gundidj Campus of the Leadership School. Part of their experience involved the development of a Community Learning Project.
Ella Andrew (Year 9, Everard House), Abi Johnson (Year 9, Rutter House), Jake Wilson (Year 9, Andrew House), Raph Hendry (Year 9, Stewart House) and AJ Moon (Year 9, Andrew House), created a community project focusing on Aged Care.
To date, the students have been on two visits to Greenview Aged Care facility to socialise and partake in fun activities with the residents.
On their first trip, they got to know residents over a game of word jumble. This week, alongside the residents and staff, they created and painted Halloween decorations while engaging in meaningful conversations.
Thes students and residents are looking forward to the next fortnightly visit where they will be nurturing the relationships already built between students and residents and playing more games.
These wonderful young people have been excellent ambassadors for our school and for our community.
A big thank you to Lauren McNally, Acting Student Agency and Growth Leader, who has supported the students to bring their Community Learning Project to life. A great achievement on the part of everyone.
Our students with some of the residents at the Greenview Aged Care facility.
Student Achievement: State Karate Championships
Congratulations to Sam Tindal (Year 7, Everard House), who over the term break competed in the State Karate Championships.
Sam’s skill and competitive prowess afforded him a state title in his division in Kata - an outstanding achievement.
Following this, Sam came second in his division in Kumite (sparring) as well as taking out two third places in the team events.
Sam with his medals
All these achievements do not just happen. They come about through commitment, hard work, perseverance, resilience and a growth mindset.
Well done, Sam. We are all proud of you!
VCE-Vocational Major (VM) Fundraiser
A group of VCE-VM students, as part of their course of study, ran a fundraiser for The Salvation Army. They led a community effort to collect a range of clothes, food, other dontables, as well as some money to support families in need.
Keagan Pearce (Year 11, Andrew House), Nicholas James (Year 11, Rutter House), Jack Brooksby (Year 11, Everard House) and Dylan Morter (Year 11, Andrew House) are very grateful for the support that they received from the community and wish to express their sincere thanks to everyone who contributed. They know that everyone’s effort will support people in need.
I congratulate the students on their initiative and on demonstrating yet another way in which to live the school value of social responsibility.
Keagan, Nicholas, and Jack with some of the goods they collected.
National Lacrosse Tournament
Over the September holidays, some of our students competed in the National Lacrosse Tournament. Eight teams competed from across the country together with one team from New Zealand. From Eltham High School, the people competing where Zane Templeton (Year 9, Rutter House), Sam Tindal (Year 7, Everard House) and Alicia Deans (Year 9, Stewart House).
There were two different pools of teams who played across three consecutive days followed by the semi-finals and on the last day of the tournament the Grand Final was played.
The competition was great fun and provided our lacrosse enthusiasts with an experience of a lifetime. They represented their team with pride and commitment and will no doubt bring their lacrosse skills to our interschool team and to their sport classes.
They should be very proud of their achievements; we are proud of them.
VCE Exams
The Year 12 exams began on the 24 October and are well and truly on the way. The last exam for some of our students will be on Wednesday 15 November although some students may finish well before this.
The Year 11 exams began today, 31 October and they are scheduled to be completed by Friday 10 November after which the Year 12 (2024) HeadStart program will be begin.
The students are engaging well, and we wish them all the very best with their results and their future pathway.
STEAM Centre development
The planning work for the development of the Eltham High School STEAM Centre is progressing well.
We are well into the development of the School Master Plan, and will soon be able to identify the best, cost-effective location for the building to be constructed on.
Design work will then begin. We are so looking forward to this development which will provide state of the art facilities for the learning of all our students.
I will keep you informed as we progress.
Planning for 2024
It is at this time of the year when I put out a request for information from parents. Due to the high demand for places at the school, we have a number of students in Year 8-12 for 2024 waiting for a place in the school. Whilst we are mindful of managing student numbers, we do want to give students and families who want to be part of the Eltham High School Learning Community the opportunity to do so. However, we cannot offer a place until we are know that a vacancy exists.
Can I ask all parents of students currently in Year 7-11 to please communicate with us if you know that your child will definitely not be attending Eltham High School in 2024. This may be because you will be moving address, possibly moving interstate, or perhaps your child will be pursuing an enrolment in TAFE, into an apprenticeship or other pathway.
Please contact the relevant person below to provide this information only if you know that your child will not be attending Eltham High School in 2024.
Junior School (Year 7 only) - Mrs Melissa Hughes – melissa.hughes@education.vic.gov.au
Middle School (Years 8 & 9) - Mr Ross McKinnon – ross.mckinnon@education.vic.gov.au
Senior School (Years 10 & 11) - Ms Amanda Saliba – amanda.saliba@education.vic.gov.au
I thank you for your cooperation.
Day Before Melbourne Cup Day – 6 November
Historically the day before the Melbourne Cup holiday has had very poor student attendance. Consequently, and as a way of causing the least disruption to the educational program of the school, the last few years have seen this day used as time-in-lieu for teachers. As clearly expressed in the Victorian Government Schools Agreement 2022 and supported by the Department of Education and Training, this compensates teachers for the time they allocate beyond work hours throughout the year to student progress interviews involving students, parents, and staff.
In the past, irrespective of the time-in-lieu arrangement, the school has remained open on the Monday before Melbourne Cup Day as Year 12 exams are generally on during that time, and the school is an examination centre. This will also be the case this year.
However, while this day would seem to be the most appropriate in terms of minimising disruption to the educational program of the school in the provision of time-in-lieu, I am writing to ascertain your intention as to your child’s/children’s attendance on Monday, 6 November for us to plan effectively. The school will be open on this day and based on previous experience, due to the small numbers of students in attendance, it is most likely that an alternative educational program will be in place. Your information will be valuable in ascertaining staffing requirements for this day.
I ask you to confirm with us only if child will be attending on Monday, 6 November 2023 by contacting the appropriate Sub-School Office either by telephone on 9430 5111 or by email through each of the Sub-School Team Leaders by Wednesday, 1 November.
Junior School (Year 7 only) - Mrs Melissa Hughes – melissa.hughes@education.vic.gov.au
Middle School (Years 8 & 9) - Mr Ross McKinnon – ross.mckinnon@education.vic.gov.au
Senior School (Years 10 & 11) - Ms Amanda Saliba – amanda.saliba@education.vic.gov.au
I thank you for your cooperation with this matter.
VINCENT SICARI, Principal