SCHOOL COUNCIL ELECTIONS

Congratulations to the School Council Members for 2014. Elections were held and I thank all who nominated.

2014 School Council members:

Parent Representatives:

William Confalonieri (President)

Alan Limpyer (Treasurer)

Gill Highnam

Demetrios Stoupas

Jim Magee (Vice President)

Shirley Jiang

Alan Bullas

Lana Kaper

Staff Representatives:

Kellie Felmingham

Eddie Mest

Les McLeod

Lachlan Noble

Co-opted Thistlelonians:

Geoff Woolnough

I look forward to working with School Council and thank all of you for your willingness to serve this community in this capacity.

COUNCIL OF INTERNATIONAL SCHOOLS

As many of you already know we are seeking International Accreditation with the Council of International Schools.

Last week we hosted a visit by CIS representatives Ray Davis, Associate Director of CIS School Support and Evaluation Services and Mark Rickard, Executive Principal, Benowa State High School, Queensland. As part of our preliminary visit all week they consulted with staff, students and parents. This will culminate in a detailed self study.

The detailed self-study will enable our school to reflect on our practices and create plans to bring about improvements validated by external visitors.

Our school is one that is on a continuous improvement journey and this process has highlighted both strengths and weaknesses.

A global perspective is crucial in a school that is educating young people who will live and work as global citizens. I am very proud of all members of our community who have been involved in this process and I especially thank Mr Simon Hughes, who co-ordinated the visit and Mr Adrian D’Ambra who ably assisted.

I look forward to our journey in becoming a world class school.

VCE FORMAL

Our Annual VCE formal was held on Thursday 6 March at the Brighton International. As always, much effort was undertaken to ensure this event was a tremendous success.

Students looked glamorous and I was very grateful for the efforts of Mr Noble, Ms Felmingham, Mr Hudd, Mr Blackmore and Ms Andrieux for their organisational skills.

I also thank and acknowledge School Captains Rachel Walker, Nick Parkinson, Georgia Riordan and Ainslie Ponsford. Students enjoyed this wonderful event and have been left with lifelong memories.

LIBRARY PROJECT

We sought and received DEECD permission to go to tender for our library project. Our Library Refurbishment School Council Project went out for official tender and the project has now been awarded to 2Construct Pty Ltd.

The project commenced on 8 March, 2014 and should take approximately 3 months.

MCKINNON 60TH BIRTHDAY CELEBRATION

Our school’s 60th birthday will be celebrated this year. The event will be held on Sunday 31 August – between 3.00pm – 5.00pm. Please keep the date free. The ‘History of McKinnon’ has been captured in our first ever book celebrating the wonderful 60 years of our school.

YEAR 7 PARENT INFORMATION NIGHT

Thank you to Year 7 parents who attended the evening held on Tuesday 11 March.

It was wonderful for all Year 7 teachers, Mr Kan, Mr Evans and myself to meet so many new parents to our College. The Year 7s have definitely transitioned smoothly into secondary school life and I thank Mr Van Langenberg, Ms Lehmann and our peer support leaders for assisting in this capacity.

I also thank Student Managers, Mrs Sargent, Mr Pantelios, Head of Junior School, Mr McLeod, and Transition Coordinator, Mrs De Kretser, for all their wonderful work with our Year 7s.

It is one of the strengths of McKinnon that we build very positive partnerships with our parents. Excellent student achievement is definitely linked to the strong commitment parents show to the school and the strong relationships formed with staff. I continue to be so grateful for the parent support that is evident at our school. A strong sense of community and a strong partnership was definitely evident.

I hope the year continues to be one filled with good friendships, great learning and success.

VISIT TO PARLIAMENT

Georgia Riordan and Agnes Evangelista (Year 12) were invited by Ms Elizabeth Miller, State Member for Bentleigh and Mr David Southwick, State Member for Caulfield, to discuss their leadership goals for the new school year.

The evening included a tour of Parliament House and an opportunity for students to discuss their leadership vision for their schools. Along with students from local schools in Bentleigh and Caulfield both Georgia and Agnes were taken on a tour of the Parliamentary Library, the Legislative Assembly and the Legislative Council where they also had an opportunity to question their local MPs. Georgia and Agnes were wonderful ambassadors for our school community.

DEAN’S HONOUR LIST

Jessica McLaren, an ex-student from the Class of 2008 was recently awarded a place on the Dean’s Honour List for her academic achievement in the Honours degree of Bachelor of Commerce at Monash University.

The Dean’s Honour List recognises graduates whose consistently high academic performance places them within the top 2 per cent of their course, which is an outstanding achievement.

Congratulations Jessica on this wonderful achievement! We wish you well in your future endeavours!

MONASH SCHOLARS’ PROGRAM

Sarah Mullane, Bianca Pardo and Sarah Andrew (Year 10 students) have been accepted to join the prestigious Monash Scholars’ Program for 2014.

Congratulations to these students on their wonderful achievement! Well done!

CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR YEAR 9s

Congratulations to all staff and students involved in the 9UP excursions to the city. I have received numerous phone calls from people who had witnessed exceptional conduct, behaviour and good manners from our students. They have shown respect when dealing with people, courtesy on the train and I congratulate all for being exceptional ambassadors for our school.

It is always wonderful to receive these compliments from people in the community.

UBS YOUNG WOMEN’S LEADERSHIP ACADEMY 2014

Congratulations to Alicja Gibert (Year 11) who has been invited to attend the UBS Young Women’s Leadership Academy which will be held at Sydney University from Monday 7 April until Friday 11 April this year.

The objective of the Academy is to introduce Year 11 students to a diverse group of contemporary women leaders, to demonstrate the possibilities and satisfaction of a career in business, to encourage leadership aspirations in young women and to provide leadership skills development. Well done Alicja on this fine achievement.

INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY

On Friday, 7 March, I was accompanied by Monique Kostelac and Ellen Kalaja (Year 11) to an International Women’s Day breakfast organised by the Bentleigh/Moorabbin Rotary Club held at Hemisphere Conference Centre in Moorabbin.

It was a stunning occasion and we had the pleasure of listening to some moving personal reflections from some key note speakers in our community. I will be inviting one of these amazing women speakers to attend General Assembly to relay a powerful message to both students and staff about how ‘work empowers women’.

CONGRATULATIONS

Two Australian researchers, Professor Graham Farquhar and Dr Richard Richards, have become the latest recipients of an award regarded as the equivalent of a Nobel Prize for agriculture. Graham and Richard first met as students at McKinnon Secondary College and graduated Class of 1964. This is such a magnificent achievement! Congratulations to you both on this very fine achievement!

HOUSE MUSIC FESTIVAL

Tuesday 18 March at 7:00pm