Principal Update

Dear Families, Students and Community Members,

As we move past the mid-point of Term 2, it is great to check in with you all, showcase the great things that have been happening around the college, and highlight some pertinent information that I know will make things easier for you!

Hopefully by now you have heard our VERY exciting news, the Victorian Budget announced a $12.6 million upgrade at Mordialloc College!

This upgrade will demolish two of our older building spaces (the front half of the EZ and the front half of the S-block), and replace them with a double-storey Arts & Technology building that will provide our students with the amazing learning facilities that they absolutely deserve.

There will obviously be more news to follow but right now, I hope you will join us in celebrating this fantastic news for our wonderful Mordialloc College community; this is going to be transformative for our students!

End of Semester 1 – Reminder of Key Dates

As we creep ever closer to the end of Semester 1, here are some key dates that you will find useful to support your child with their organisation: 

• Monday 26th May to Friday 30th May: Revision week (Years 10 - 11) 
• Monday 2nd June to Friday 6th June and Tuesday 10th June to Thursday 12th June: Exams (Years 10 - 11) 
• Thursday 12th June: Year 11 Formal
• Friday 13th June: Professional Learning Day (Report Writing) - Student Free Day
• Friday 13th June: Semester 1 ends.
• Monday June 16th: Semester 2 starts 
• Tuesday 17th June: GAT (All Year 11/12 studying a VCE 3/4 subject and all Year 12 VM)

Year 10 and 11 Exams

All senior students have a copy of their exam timetable and you can also find the Exam Navigator here. I hope you will be able to make good use of this document; I know that currently in my house, my fridge is decorated with my own childrens’ exam timetables!

Year 10 and 11 students have classes cancelled during the examination fortnight, but must remain at school if they have more than one exam on any one day; the Hub and Senior School Centre will be available for their private study during this time.

If students only have one exam on a day, they should be at home for the remainder of the day, engaging in home study in preparation for their next exam.

As the gym is out of action during the exam period, all changing rooms will be closed from Monday 2nd June to Friday 6th June. For PE or Sports lessons this week only, students are allowed to arrive and leave school in their PE kit; please note that on days where they do not have PE or Sport, they should be wearing their normal school uniform. 

Please support us by using the timetable provided via the Compass App to ensure that your child wears the correct clothes, on the correct days, which are clearly identified as “PE” and/or “Sport”.

Report Writing Day

Please note we have a student free day on Friday 13th June as our designated Report Writing Day for staff. All staff will be onsite for the day, finalising Semester One reports and preparing for the beginning of Semester Two. 

VCE Community Projects

Dear Mordialloc College Community!

I’m pleased to share that our VCE Vocational Major students are currently participating in a number of meaningful community-based projects. These initiatives are designed not only to support those in need but also to help our students build valuable life and leadership skills through hands-on community engagement.

As part of these projects, students are running several donation drives to support various organisations and vulnerable groups. We invite and encourage you all to contribute if you’re in a position to do so. 

The current donation drives include:

• Food Drive: Non-perishable food items to assist local families in need.
• Clothing Drive: Donations going to the Salvos
• Winter Warmers: Scarves, beanies, gloves, and socks for people experiencing homelessness.
• Book Drive: New or gently used children’s and young adult books to be donated to Indigenous communities.
• Towel and Blanket Collection: Items going to support animals in care at the RSPCA.
• Hygiene Products: Toiletries and sanitary items to support individuals impacted by domestic violence.

Your generosity can make a real difference. We ask that all donated items are in good condition and fall within the categories listed above. Please leave your donations in the designated collection boxes located in the Senior Centre, Learning Centre, and Main Office by the end of Term 2.

Thank you for supporting our students as they take action to give back to the community. Your contributions, big or small, are truly appreciated.

Kind regards, Kodilee Strahan (VCE Vocational Major - Learning Area Leader)

World’s Greatest Shave

On Tuesday the 27th at lunchtime, Mordialloc College hosted the World's Greatest Shave. We had 5 students and 2 teachers put their hands up to shave their heads to help raise money. We want to thank all of those individuals for volunteering for this and collectively raising OVER $4000!

During the event we had wonderful VM students, as part of a community project, come in and do trivia with everyone. We would also like to quickly take a moment to thank all the individuals involved: Andrew from the Leukemia Foundation for talking to the students, Tamsyn from Art Hair Studios to help with the shaving of individual hair, the amazing staff and students who helped shave and cut hair, and also of course Julia Hockey the Director of Student Engagement for organising the event. Also a special shout out to the other teachers who took time out of their lunch to take pictures such as Bella Kennedy and Andrew Read, also to Kellie Goebel for being at the door helping during the event. This was an amazing lunchtime event that fostered school spirit and support for the Leukemia Foundation. Angela and myself are very appreciative and proud  of the Promotions and Fundraising committee for assisting in making the event amazing and run so smoothly.

There is still time to donate. Please visit this link: https://www.worldsgreatestshave.com/fundraisers/mordialloccollege Currently we have raised $4,549 and hope to reach over $5000!

With gratitude,

Kyle McDonald and Angela Mihas (Year 12)

LXRP Notifications on Mordialloc College Website 

I am well aware of concerns around unwanted emails from those who are not impacted by the Level Crossing Removal Project, and also feedback from those that feel as though the information is pertinent; it can be a challenge to balance both perspectives effectively!

 Moving forward, all information received from the Level Crossing Removal project will be shared via our Mordialloc College website (https://mcsc.vic.edu.au/), just scroll down the home page to ‘Level Crossing Removal Work Notifications’.

Of course, if we receive urgent notifications, we will continue to send that information via Compass.

Uniform and Jewellery

It is an absolute privilege to lead a fabulous school that has such an important role within the local community. 

This week, I have received emails from members of the wider school community, sharing their positive interactions with our students whilst our students were out on excursions, and also whilst using local public transport. 

Our uniform is part of what makes us ‘Mordialloc College’; we all know that connectedness to school positively impacts learning, and wellbeing. 

The School Council, our school community, the Mordialloc College Student Council, and staff spent six months creating a Uniform Policy that reflects the needs of our school community.

Wearing the correct school uniform embraces our values, promotes equity amongst our students, and reflects a real pride in belonging to our Mordialloc College community. We therefore have high expectations about wearing the correct school uniform.  

I would like to congratulate the majority of students who wear the correct College uniform and I thank those families for their support with this. 

Can I surmise:

• All students should be wearing black leather lace up school shoes not fabric sneakers. This is an OHS consideration, we want your child to be safe whilst working in spaces such as Science, Art, and Technology.
• On Sports days (Year 7 - Tuesday / Year 8 - Friday) students are allowed to wear their PE kit all day. 
• Your child should not be wearing their PE kit to school unless you have been notified about a specific event (e.g. exam week, an excursion). If students have PE Period 4, they are allowed to wear their PE kit home. 
• There are OHS issues associated with wearing jewellery in many of our learning spaces; we really would appreciate family support in keeping our school a safe space to move around. Jewellery is not to be worn apart from a wristwatch, a plain stud or sleeper for students with pierced ears, and one plain stud or sleeper for a nose piercing.  

Thank you for your continued support of the college; please remember that I can always be contacted via the college email address mordialloc.co@education.vic.gov.au .

Rachael Stone

Principal