Principal's Report

Farewell to the Class of 2019

This Monday we celebrated the final school day for the class of 2019.

In front of family, friends and our school community we thanked them for the energy and life they have brought to our school over the last six years and extended to them our best wishes and prayers as they prepare for their final exams.

Highlights of the final assembly included a welcome to the Alumni Association from former student, Mr Tony Biviano, a farewell address by parent, Mr Tony Cerra and a guard of honour conducted by our Teaching Staff and Year 9 students.

I thank our Director of Faith and Mission, Mr Rhynehart, and our Deputy Principal of Students, Mr Greg Van Es, for facilitating our final assembly and all of our Staff who played an important role in the growth and development of our Year 12 students over the last six years.

Year 12 Exams begin on Wednesday 30 October and our final celebration for our Year 12 Students, the Graduation Mass and Dinner, will take place on 22 November.

SIS Book in A Day Competition

One of the many cultural events that the SIS runs each year is the Book in a Day Competition which was held at St John’s Regional College last week. The competition which saw each of the 12 competing schools form teams of 4-5 students who have the task of  brainstorming and writing a novel in one day. Collaborative teamwork is a high priority as students are given  a number of prompts, and must work together to write and illustrate their short story which can vary in size from 4000-6000 words. This wonderfully creative competition is a must for all students who have a passion for writing and storytelling. I thank staff member, Ms Sue Keel, for her preparation and encouragement of our team, our VCAL students for their preparation of afternoon tea and our CLC team for ensuring everything ran smoothly on the day.

SIS Debating 

I congratulate our Junior SIS Debating team who defeated Woodleigh College to win the Junior SIS Debating title this year. Under the tutelage of Ms Rachel Towns and Mr Patrick O’Connell, our team debated the topic in the affirmative “That we should teach current affairs instead of history" and should be congratulated on an outstanding effort. The team consisting of Hannah Fagan, Tristan Longmuir, Kimberley Suson, Jeovine Suleiman and Angelo Mijares started debating last year and have developed from a team that did not win a debate in Year 7 to champions in Year 8. A great lesson in perseverance and determination!

Battle of the Bands 

On 19 October, SJRC Battle of the Bands took place in the Lecture Theatre with five very loud bands taking part. Boston Harbour, MJ and the Hees, HP Boys and Girls, The Bandit and Whatever, all containing students from our VET Music Classes, performed a series of songs to enthusiastic crowds in the lecture theatre.  This year MJ and the Hees and the HP Boys and Girls were joint winners of the coveted Battle of the Bands trophy. I thank Mr Boswell, Mr Perryman and Ms. Robinson as well as our creativity Captains, Neve Biggin and Ace Mehegan, for bringing these talented bands together for the entertainment of our students.

CSIRO Scientist in Schools Program

The CSIRO Scientist in schools program has been running at St John’s throughout 2019 giving opportunities for our gifted science students to depth their knowledge and skills with experts from the field of Science.  In Semester 1, Dr. Sukhvinder Badwal, a CSIRO scientist with extensive experience in scientific research, worked with a group of Year 9 students on a project which investigated alternative energy sources. In Semester 2, our Year 7 students have commenced a focused study on Brain Science facilitated by Dr Elizabeth Thomas who is the Women’s Mental Health Team Manager at Monash Alfred Psychiatry Research Centre (MAPrc). In their study this term our students will look at ways to improve cognition and design experiments to test and measure their results.

2020/2021 New Enrolments Morning

Yesterday our first open morning for Term 4 was held giving new families the opportunity to meet members of the College leadership team and senior student leaders, followed by a tour highlighting our facilities and engaging curriculum opportunities. Our next enrolment event for this year will take place on Tuesday 19 November at 6pm. For any enrolment enquiries please contact Registrar Ms Symone Goodwin on (03)8793 2000 or to book a school tour: https://www.trybooking.com/BALBU