Dear Parents and Guardians,

As the 2024 school year draws to a close, I'm filled with pride reflecting on the numerous accomplishments of our students – both inside and outside the classroom. I hope you find reading this year’s newsletters rewarding, as they showcase the diverse and engaging ways our students are learning – from classroom lessons to exciting excursions, incursions, camps, and special events.

Our upcoming weShare@MRC parent/student/teacher interviews offer a valuable opportunity to celebrate your child's achievements this year and discuss their academic goals for 2025. Staff at the College look forward to seeing many of you then.

The past month has been a whirlwind of activity at the College. We've seen our secondary students tackle exams and participate in Step Up programs. We have welcomed new Preps with transition activities, hosted an Early Years Careers Day, celebrated Middle Years completions, and conducted "Get to Know You" interviews for our youngest learners. Recently, we also held our Year 7 2025 Orientation Day and celebrated the graduations of our Prep, Year 4, and Year 6 students. I extend my sincere thanks to all the dedicated staff who made these events possible.

Our Year 12 students marked the culmination of their 13-year educational journey with a memorable graduation ceremony in late November. This heartfelt tribute celebrated their dedication, growth, and remarkable achievements. Over 250 students received their diplomas, including 36 who have been with us since Prep. The elegant setting at Flemington Racecourse proved a popular choice for our 860+ attendees. I commend our Senior Years team and key personnel for their tireless efforts in organizing this special event. Thank you also to the many staff members who provided invaluable support throughout the planning and execution of the evening.

A highlight of the evening was the inspiring keynote address delivered by our esteemed alumnus, Daniel Amrein. His motivational speech encouraged graduates to embrace challenges, pursue their dreams, and persevere through adversity. Our College Captains eloquently shared their reflections on their time as a cohort, emphasising the shared experiences and resilience that defined their final year together.

Despite initial nerves, our graduating students confidently stepped onto the stage, and it was an absolute privilege to present each of them with their graduation sashes. The expressions of pride and joy on their faces were truly heartwarming. The ceremony also recognized outstanding academic achievements and celebrated the recipients of prestigious scholarships, acknowledging the hard work and dedication of many students.

For those unable to attend in person, a live stream brought the celebration to 198 homes across the globe. Viewers from over 10 countries, including India, the Philippines, France, New Zealand, Pakistan, Spain, and the United Arab Emirates, joined us in honouring this momentous occasion.

We congratulate the Class of 2024 and wish them every success in all their future endeavours. Results were released for our Year 12 VCE subjects on Thursday 12th December- congratulations to our Year 12 VCE students and Year 11s who completed a VCE Unit 3 and 4 subject this year. Over the past week, current Year 12 students requiring assistance for re-selection of pathways and tertiary courses for next year have been in contact with the Pathways team at the College. For your information, first round offers for tertiary places will be sent out to students on December 23rd. If students require further assistance, they are able to contact the Pathways team via Teams.

To recognise the exemplary achievements of our VCE students, further details will be published online early next year. We are so proud of our students and the whole College community is looking forward to celebrating the accomplishments of our Year 12 students then.

The College recently hosted its annual Secondhand Textbook Sale over two days. We were delighted to see a strong turnout, with parents and students lining up early to secure the available textbooks. The sale was a resounding success, with all items selling out quickly. I extend my sincere gratitude to Kirstie Wilson, Alex Kavanagh, Gurjit Singh, and Gemma Borchard for their exceptional work in organising this event. I also thank the dedicated staff members who volunteered their time to make this project a success.

I would like to express my deepest appreciation to our Parent and Friends Association (PFA) members for their unwavering support and valuable contributions to the College throughout this year. I also wish to acknowledge Mary-Anne Schmidt, President of the College Council, and all our esteemed Council members for their generous dedication and commitment to our students. Their invaluable contributions play a vital role in supporting our students as they strive to achieve their individual goals.

Our College Captains and Vice-Captains, Fatma Elserougi, Lucas Soe Chu-Shing, Daman Meet and Shalom Uatisone showed a strong commitment, purpose and adaptability in leading their peers through a number of initiatives and programs this year. Our Captains priority this year was to educate peers and staff on an understanding of how to use student voice, agency and leadership across the College, which they pushed tirelessly during the year through a range of professional development opportunities.

In addition, our student leaders across the College organised and ran the following projects:

Early Years: Students arranged Harmony Day initiatives across the Early Years campus, allowing staff and students to collaborate with a range of activities. Furthermore, students focused on world environment day which lead them to delve deep in to an understanding of their world around them and what environmental factors need solving. This then lead them to be designing, implementing and reviewing a school wide recycling program and promoting eco-friendly habits. This project involved identifying an area of need within the Early Years campus and proactively creating a system to recycle paper and cardboard. Students then assessed the effectiveness and created modifications. Additionally, students developed an Early Years Legacy Mural to commemorate the Grade 4 students moving campuses in 2025.
Junior Years: Students engaged in Harmony Day activities overseen by the senior years students. Additionally, Students have been working on initiatives to improve student engagement and motivation in class. Students analysed College data to identify concerns and develop strategies to implement within classes. Students have also been involved with a number of College celebrations, such as World Teachers Day whereby students were able to show their appreciation for their teachers.
Middle Years: Alongside their peers, students designed and implemented Harmony day activities that extended out to smaller programs across the mini school focusing on cultural inclusion. Additionally, students ran smaller initiatives in focal groups around national reconciliation week and NAIDOC week. Students also ran R U OK day initiatives alongside the senior years students and extended this to smaller focal groups with the student body on the importance of mental health awareness.
Senior Years: Our senior years students worked tirelessly this year to oversee all of the main campus events in addition to their own focal areas as a senior student body. Our senior students participated and lead the initiatives for Harmony Day, World Laughter Day, World Kindness Day, R U OK Day and World Teachers Day. Our senior students also collaborated with a number of staff across the College on other initiatives and programs, for example, the newly piloted student/teacher specific we-share conferencing. Furthermore, our senior student leaders held a strong desire to educate staff on the importance of prioritising student voice, leadership and agency strategies within their teaching. Our College Captains specifically saw this through by consistently collecting meaningful data to inform their planning that then translated to professional development programs. Additionally, members of our senior student leadership team have promoted their desire to add new curriculum to Mount Ridley College in the coming years. These students have worked with a larger student body within the school to collect extensive data on the promising enrolment of their new subject and have presented this to members of the principal class who have acknowledged the elaborate work involved in the promotion of this subject and identified that it could be a successful move for the College.

We also continued Student Learning Walks, in which students participated in classroom observations and provided feedback on possible methods which could be introduced to further enhance student engagement. Additionally, the regular College Principal Advisory Group meetings enabled student leaders to provide direct viewpoints to me in relation to the operation of the College. I anticipate expanding these partnerships further with our students in 2025.

Several projects have been underway around the College:

New Hard Ball Courts: Installation of additional hard ball courts on the Early Years site is complete, with line marking scheduled for early 2025.
Landscaping Enhancements: Ongoing landscaping projects across the College including mulching, edging, and asphalt repairs.
Increased Student Seating: Additional outdoor seating areas are being installed throughout the College for student use.
DICE Display Cabinet: The installation of a new display cabinet in the DICE building has been completed and will be used to showcase student work.
Office Space Upgrades: Enhancements and additions to several office spaces are currently underway.
Student Advocacy Hub: The new Student Advocacy Hub has been installed and is currently undergoing fitting-out.
STEM Classroom Construction: Construction of a state-of-the-art STEM classroom in the DICE building is progressing well.
Basketball Court Resurfacing: Resurfacing of the basketball courts adjacent to the main canteen is nearing completion.

At this time of the year it is always my pleasure to announce the following student recipients of the 2025 scholarships:

Early Years: Angadpreet Singh Bawa and Zahra Ammar
Junior Years: Stefani Alayek, Inaaya Imran and Karla Al-Kchela
Middle Years: Sebastian Bogoevski and Delylah Alisi Aiono
Senior Years: Haaniah Arslan, Jason Marogy and Darius Radulovich

I look forward to presenting these students with their Certificates of Acknowledgement at a special ceremony early next year. I also take this opportunity to thank all the students who applied for scholarships this year. There were many applications, and I commend them for applying and encourage them to apply again next year.

The start of the 2025 school year will follow this schedule:

Commencement of Years 3, 4, 5, 6, 11, and 12 students: Thursday, January 30th
Commencement of Years 8 and 10 students: Friday, January 31st
Years 1 and 2 students: Individual Assessments by appointment on either January 30th or 31st
Year 7 students: Ready to Learn interviews on either January 30th or 31st
Commencement of Prep students: Thursday, January 30th (staggered start times)
Commencement of Years 1, 2, 7 and 9 students: Monday, February 3rd

Families have already received detailed information about these arrangements via Compass and will receive a further reminder in the new year.

Several factors, including geographical location, career advancements (such as promotions or transfers to other schools), the conclusion of employment contracts, travel plans, and personal leave, will lead some of our valued teachers and support staff to depart from the College at the end of this year. While we will miss their contributions, we understand that pursuing new opportunities is an important part of personal and professional growth. We wish them all the very best in their future endeavours.

I would like to express my sincere gratitude to all our parents and carers for your ongoing support and trust in entrusting your children to our care. I hope you have witnessed your children's remarkable progress throughout the year. It has been a privilege for our staff to teach and guide these young learners, and we deeply value the strong home-school partnerships that have enriched the educational experience for all. To those families who are leaving us at the end of the year, we wish you all the very best in your future.

Our dedicated team of teachers and support staff has consistently demonstrated exceptional commitment to meeting the diverse learning needs of our students. They have tirelessly developed and implemented engaging programs that foster curiosity, encourage student voice, and create a challenging and exciting learning environment for all. Words cannot adequately express my gratitude for their hard work and dedication.

In closing, on behalf of the Principal Class team, I extend my sincere thanks to all our students, families, and staff for making 2024 a successful year. I wish our entire College community a joyous, safe, and relaxing festive and holiday season and a happy New Year. I look forward to welcoming you all back to school in 2025.

Lino Pagano

College Principal

MRC Kitchen Chronicles