CEO's Update

Last week our students arrived home to the families and communities – by air, land and even sea! – for a very well-deserved Term 3 break.  To our MITS families, we hope you have a wonderful time together over the break.  I know that many of our NT families will make the most of the start of the Magpie Goose hunting season, and our Victorian families will enjoy the growing warmth of Poorneet (Tadpole season) as it is known on Wurundjeri Country.

This Term 3 has been filled with milestones and celebrations.  Our MITS Celebration of the Arts – now in its second year – was a joyous expression of the ideas, creativity and skill of our MITS students across the boarding houses.  In the Yarra Junior Football League finals, the Richmond Junior Football Club U12 Fellas, U13 Fellas and U14 Fellas, all won Premierships, and the U15 Fellas came so close in a nail-biting final game for the day.  And, our seven Year 12 students completed their final full term in Melbourne – when they return in Term 4 there will be only a handful of days left on their school journey. 

We are also busily preparing for our 2025 MITS Gala Dinner, on 23 October at Carousel on Albert Park Lake.  If you’ve not yet bought your tickets, head to https://www.trybooking.com/DEDDH - they are selling fast!

Amongst the many happy events, I acknowledge the deep worry and upset caused by the disturbing attack on Camp Sovereignty in Melbourne in late August.  Every Australian has the right to freely and safely express themselves and their culture, and we stand in solidarity with the leaders of Camp Sovereignty and all mob here on Victorian Aboriginal land.  Earlier this week we met with leaders from Victoria Police, including Aboriginal Community Liaison Officer Aunty Eva-Jo Edwards, who have confirmed the following: our MITS school and boarding houses are exceptionally safe and secure places for our students, and Melbourne remains a safe and culturally embracing place for our students to continue to pursue their educational aspirations. 

Both the joyous and the challenging events of Term 3 reaffirm my great belief in MITS’s broader purpose.  Beyond our core business of providing brilliant schooling and boarding, our school is a tower for reconciliation in Melbourne.  Through MITS, our students share of themselves, their communities and their cultures with the wider Melbourne community.  And that community rallies behind MITS and our students with generosity, respect and care. 

Across our society, the more we know one other, the more we will understand, respect and embrace one other.  At MITS, we should all – students, families, staff, volunteers, supporters and Melbourne community – feel proud that, together, we are living reconciliation and contributing to a more compassionate, connected and cohesive Australia. 

To our students and families, we hope you have a very happy and restful break, and we are excited to see you back in Melbourne on Monday 6 October, ready for Term 4 together.

Ed Tudor

CEO