Leadership Report

Welcome to all students, parents and carers to the 2020 school year. At our assembly on Wednesday 29 January, it was exciting to see all of our returning students, and to welcome both our new Foundation class and our many new students in the Year 7 group.

It was also a pleasure to introduce to the student body a number of new staff.

Kat Close has been appointed to a position in the Year 1-2 classroom. Kat worked at the school last year as she was finalising her education studies. We are very lucky to have her, though it may be for a short time only, as she has recently applied for maternity leave later in the semester.

Alannah Pearson is a new graduate teacher who has taken on our Year 3-4 class. She recently graduated from Australian Catholic University in Ballarat, and has a keen interest in the performing arts. She and Kat Close have, perhaps, created the most visually exciting classrooms in our school at the moment.

Phil Sanders will be at Edenhope College for three days a week, working as a PE teacher across the school, including the challenging role of Sports Coordinator. He comes to us having much experience as Head of Physical Education at Baimbridge College in Hamilton, and prior to that many years of teaching at Hamilton and Alexandra College.

Lastly, we have appointed former Edenhope College student James Rowe as our Student Wellbeing and Support Officer. James comes to us having worked as a Youth Worker at Uniting Wimmera in Horsham over the last seven years, and has a wealth of experience in supporting young people in the Wimmera area.

We are also excited to announce the reappointment of some new faces from last year, Tania Shalders, Phil Irvin, and Victoria Brennan. Our staff is more the stronger for all of these additions, and I am excited to have so many new faces on board.

At our assembly, I asked that our students try every day to think, in some way or another, about our College Values. I asked them to think about the words at the end of the values statements, not necessarily those at the beginning. All of us, every day should perhaps ask how we can be more: kind, courteous and accepting, more thoughtful and compassionate, and more attentive, curious and creative. We should all ask ourselves: what can I do to demonstrate those values? The recent ongoing bushfire crisis has shown many Australians working alongside each other demonstrating those same values. I put it to the students that if every one of us did that each day, staff and students, our school would be an amazing place to be.

As we begin the new school year, it is important to revisit our broad focus for 2020. We will continue working to make this school a place where students feel safe, happy and above all, proud. The teachers will continue working on being more responsive to their needs as learners, particularly as individuals, in the classroom. More importantly, we will continue our process of becoming a School Wide Positive Behaviour Support School. Last year we worked solidly on gaining Tier 1 validation for SWPBS, a goal that we hope to achieve in 2020. This year, you will continue to see much more physical and cultural changes to the school, and to the way we do things. We hope our students like some of the changes, and if they, or you as parents, want to get involved in those changes, come and see me, or give me a call, and I’ll let you know how you can.

I wish all of our students and their teachers the best for the term and for the year.

Jon Neall

Principal