Principal's Report 

WELCOME BACK 

Welcome back to all students ready for Term Two which runs for 10 weeks and will conclude on Friday the 28th of June. Term 3 will commence on Monday the 15th of July. I commend the students on how well they have settled into this school year and look forward to the continued positive contribution you are making to the college both within the classroom and in the broader co-curricular program. 

In some exciting news the new build on the double gymnasium is well in progress and we look forward to the continued progress. We are hopeful the build will be complete by very early Term One, 2025. 

VSC MARCHING BAND AND VSC ANZAC ASSEMBLY 

Congratulations to Vermont Secondary College music students who were involved in the annual ANZAC Day Parade with Ringwood RSL last Sunday and again in the city on Thursday in cool but dry conditions. On both events our talented marching band lead by Ben Muddyman performed superbly marching and playing along St. Kilda Road. Ben has put unbelievable hours into getting the students trained up for these two prestigious events as well as for our two school assemblies. 

Thank you also to Khristian Mizzi our Instrumental Music Leader for all his work and support behind the scenes and for his yearly planning of our involvement in these significant and esteemed events. Well done also to our School Captains Akhila G. and Amelia R. proudly marching up front and to the parents who were present and supported our school on the two days.  

Vermont Secondary College also commemorated ANZAC Day on Monday at our official Junior and Senior college assemblies. I thank the student population for their formal participation in this annual event and I again thank the college band, led by Ben Muddyman, for their excellent musical accompaniment of the official ceremony. Special thanks to Jorja S. for singing the national anthem and to Tim Turakulov and Hiu Yan Chung for playing The Last Post and The Rouse.  

As part of our ANZAC commemorations and under the ‘adopt an ex-service organisation’ program Vermont Secondary College formed a partnership with the 10th Australian (AIF) Field Ambulance Association in 2014. We have their Honour Roll in the college and a range of memorabilia on display as well as a painting of their President and veteran Ted Young representing the Tenth Field Ambulance Association. Ted turned 100 in December 2023.  

As part of this association in 2015, following the ANZAC Day assemblies, we planted a descendant of the ‘Lone Pine’ on the front lawn near the flagpoles/Year 7 area with Wendy Ward representing the 10th Australian (AIF) Field Ambulance Association. Despite the very exposed position the pine was planted in, the descendant of the ‘Lone Pine’ has well and truly taken off. 

The relationship with the 10th Australian (AIF) Field Ambulance Association is one we will continue to honour. 

WELL DONE TO THE VSC SWIMMING & DIVING TEAM  

Congratulations to the Vermont Secondary College students who competed this term in the State swimming and diving finals at MSAC.  

It was an outstanding individual and team effort and well done to Amy Malander and Shaun Gillespie (Sports Coordinators) for organising and supporting the teams over term one and early term two as well as all other staff involved in the program. 

The students involved achieved some amazing individual and team results and for a full report of their outstanding effort in the State Swimming Championships go to page ---- of the VSC Sports section in this newsletter. 

COLLEGE COUNCIL - COMMUNITY REPORTING MEETING 

The VSC annual Community Reporting Meeting was held on Tuesday 16th April, 2024 at 6.45pm. At this meeting the VSC 2023 Annual Report was presented and ratified by the College Council and president. 

Once fully ratified by the DE (Department of Education) the 2023 Annual Report will be available on the college website and it is a snapshot of the 2023 school year including a wide range of data sets. To read the report, once available, go to the College website and click on ‘About Us’, then ‘School Accountability and Improvement Framework, then ‘Vermont SC 2023 Annual Report’. Currently the 2021 and 2022 Annual reports sit on this website. 

COLLEGE COUNCIL MEETING 

The School Council had their second meeting for the year on Tuesday 16th April.  

Council received an update on the state of the development of our new gym. As the mountain of dirt at the back of the college suggests, work is progressing and it is hoped that the new gym will be ready by early 2025. 

Council approved the reports of the subcommittees of the Finance Committee and the VSCCA (AGM, the minutes of the meeting, President and Treasurer’s report), received the student reports presented by the elected student council members and the School Captains, and received the Principal report covering the previous weeks. There were no reports from the subcommittees Canteen, Health and Safety and the School Improvement Team as they had no meetings over the last month due to the term break.  

The School Council regularly updates and verifies college policies (usually every 1 to 3 years). At this meeting, the School Council approved the updated policy “VSC Student Wellbeing & Engagement Policy 2024”. Updated, and other relevant policies can be found on the VSC website at https://www.vermontsc.vic.edu.au/policies/. 

Report by Frank Drost – College Council President 

SCHOOL ATTENDANCE 

Every day away is a day you potentially fall behind and in all year levels, particularly Year 12, all days are important. 

The following is an excerpt from the DE (Department of Education) website: 

The importance of full-time attendance  

We all want our students to get a great education, and the building blocks for a great education begin with students coming to school each and every day.  

School participation helps people to develop important skills, knowledge and values which set them up for further learning and participation in their community. Children and young people who regularly attend school and complete Year 12 or an equivalent qualification have better health outcomes, better employment outcomes, and higher incomes across their lives.  

Missing school can have a major impact on a child’s future – a student missing one day a fortnight will miss four full weeks by the end of the year. By the end of Year 10 they’ll have missed more some 16 weeks of school. It is important that children develop habits of regular attendance at an early age.  

There is no safe number of days for missing school. Every Day Counts. 

Each day a student misses puts them behind, and can affect their educational outcomes. Limited school participation is associated with a greater chance of dropping out of school, disruptive and delinquent behaviour and may lead to a cycle of rebellion against authority. 

I thank the school community in anticipation and/or your continued support in this matter.