From the Principal
photo taken by Leon in the Lofties
The beginning of a new year always brings with it much excitement, anticipation and, if 2020 taught us anything, the great unknown. While last year was filled with new ways of learning, creative ways of being social, cries of ‘hey, you’re on mute’ and getting to know our local area and people in our bubble, it certainly was an important teacher to us all. We take everything we have learned into this year. Our dedicated staff has been working hard in preparation for the upcoming year, and it was with great delight finally to hear the excited hum of the students at both Arlington and Blackhall Kalimna this week.
I extend a warm welcome to everyone returning to the Preshil community and a special welcome to our new families, especially those joining us in the Kindergarten, the 5s (Prep) and Year 7. We hope that your time at Preshil is a treasured one.
Each year, as a staff, we come together before the students return to attend professional development days and collaborative planning meetings. This year our focus was on student wellbeing, developing a rigorous curriculum and preparing for our first evaluation of the Middle Years Programme. With the challenges faced last year, we spent time inquiring into the impact of stress and trauma on learning, through sessions facilitated by Brendan Bailey from Berry Street Education as well as strategies to support students' mindful focus and self-regulatory capacities. As always, the children are at the heart of all that we do.
I am extremely proud to be part of this wonderful school community and am so pleased to take on the role of interim Principal for 2021. Throughout my eight years here I have experienced Preshil from many perspectives. Having the privileged opportunity to work in a number of leadership positions across both Arlington and Blackhall Kalimna campuses has enabled me a unique understanding and appreciation of the continuum of learning, culture and progressive nature of Preshil, as well as the importance of nurturing one school on two campuses.
The leadership team has worked hard throughout the holiday break and I am thrilled to return to this enthusiastic, motivated, dedicated and hard-working group. Cressida Batterham-Wilson will continue in her position as the Head of Campus at Arlington and we warmly welcome Victor Toufas to the Head of Campus position at Blackhall Kalimna. Please do not hesitate to contact us if you have any questions, concerns or celebrations.
As well as our new students and families, we warmly welcome a number of colleagues who join us for 2021:
ARLINGTON CAMPUS
Amanda Barnetby – PE Specialist
Nanaki Kaur – Classroom Teacher
BLACKHALL KALIMNA CAMPUS
Virginia Barro – Art/Design (four week replacement for Fleur Fogarty)
Rob Grundy – Spanish/French
Lewis Kingston – Art/Design
Julia Madden – Japanese/Individuals and Societies
Nellie Muldoon – French Language Assistant
Please make them feel welcome and we hope they all enjoy their time with us at Preshil.
Graduating class of 2020
Congratulations to the Preshil graduating class of 2020. Despite the challenges that 2020 threw them, they did us proud.
We are delighted to share with you that, of the 19 students who applied, 89% received first round offers; 71% received their first preference and a further 21% their second preference. At Preshil, our students are supported to make course decisions; choosing pathways they find interesting and ones they will enjoy and that will excite them - that’s the goal.
The University of Melbourne and ACU equalled popularity, followed by Monash, Deakin and Collarts, along with Latrobe, Swinburne, RMIT and ANU in Canberra. Our top ATAR was 99.55, with over 65% of students receiving ATARS over 80. Our students have taken up places in a range of studies which include:
• Science
• Biomedical Science
• Biomedicine
• Health Science
• Music Performance
• Audio Engineering
• Fine Arts
• Film & Television
• Design
• Arts
• Arts/Law
• Arts/Social Science/Business
The most popular courses were Nursing, Nursing/Midwifery, Nursing/Psychological Sciences followed equally by Arts, Arts/Law, Arts/Education, Arts/Social Sciences and Business.
Several of our students received scholarships, including La Trobe University Vice Chancellor's Excellence Scholarship (Aspire Program) and University of Melbourne’s Principal’s Scholarship. Of the students who achieved less than 24 for their Diploma Programme (but who gain an IB certificate), one has received a pathway course through Deakin College which, on completion, transitions to second year entry of the Bachelor's degree, with the added bonus of receiving a Diploma qualification at the end of the first eight months. The remaining students are exercising their choice to re-sit elected exams in May this year – an option which further sets the IB apart as a very attractive fall-back to have a second chance to fulfil requirements or improve a particular subject result. This was the result for one of our 2019 cohort students who has now taken up an offer at their first preference.
The increased flexibility of tertiary pathways, entry points and transferability between courses and institutions align completely with our approach to preparing students for a much more diverse and rapidly changing career landscape, and the IB is the perfect vehicle for this journey.
We celebrate your achievements with you and know that your contributions to the world will be as active, compassionate and courageous lifelong learners.
Natalie Jensen
Interim Principal