Principal's Report

Welcome Back

A very big and warm welcome back to all as we begin the 2018 academic year at the Park. I hope that all members of the Hampton Park Secondary College community are well rested after the break and ready for another year of celebration of success in both academic and social pursuits.

At this time of year, I especially welcome those 170 plus Year 7 students and the 60 plus students and their families entering the College in Years 8 to Year 12 this year, as they commence their journey with us on the road to undertaking or completing their secondary years of schooling.  We look forward to sharing the many and varied successes that you will be able to celebrate with us over the course of the next several years. 

Equally, I welcome our Year 12 students who return to the College to undertake their final year of secondary schooling with us – a year jam- packed with all of the pressures that the final year of schooling holds for them, whether that be through their VCAL or VCE studies.  The excitement of nearing the end of their formal years of school based studies and the anticipation of a future career or further study, needs to be balanced with the sheer workload and daunting pressure this brings upon each, to perform to their best. 

As a community, we are here for you, weare understanding of your needs and your apprehensions and ready to lend every assistance to you that we can, as you strive to achieve your goals and maximise your successes.

For Year 12 students there are no easy options:  whether your course is VCAL, VET or VCE or a combination of these, the commitment, required of you is the same and that commitment must already be understood and be in place, as I have said to you on several occasions already this year. 

I am pleased to say that our start of the new academic year has been very smooth indeed.  All of our students, from Year 7 through to Year 12, have quickly settled back into the routine of learning that will see them able to celebrate their achievements as the year draws to a close in Term 4.  The clear message now, is the need for all students to recognise and understand that the holidays are over!  It is now time to settle into positive work routines and to immediately begin the task of working toward achieving the maximum possible outcomes, at years end.

Equally, I cannot let the moment pass without celebrating the achievements of our class of 2017 as they move on into their next phase in life’s journey.  We again saw improvement in our results last year, with a top ATAR score of 94.75, a fantastic outcome.  While this of course is a great result, we are already working towards bettering this year. We wish each of our graduating students of 2017 well in their chosen studies and careers and would welcome each back at the College to chat about their achievements and future plans over a coffee. 

New and Returning Staff

I take this opportunity to welcome our new staff joining our learning community this year.

- Eloise Haynes (Assistant Principal)

- Jasmine Keough (English)

- Evan Lazarus (English)

- Ellen Newton (Health/PE)

- Matthew Hayward (Humanities)

- Nicole Saxton (Integration)

- Huiwen Bai (Maths)

- Damion Pelecanos (Maths)

I also give a warm welcome to our returning staff members.

- Barb Davies (Health/PE)

- Michelle Soo (English)

- Susannah Ritchie (English)

College Expectations

Our expectations for student behaviour and performance have been clearly spelled out to all students of the College.  As a community, I am sure that you will join me in seeking to establish the environment and context within which each child is supported in their learning and is able to maximise the knowledge and skills they are able to acquire throughout the year.  This does not just happen, it must be planned for. We are firmly of the view that as staff responsible for the instruction of your children, we are in partnership with you, our parents and guardians, to jointly support their learning and their development.  We seek your support throughout the year in ensuring the rights of all students of the College to learn and the rights of all teachers to teach.  A simple notion, but one that at times, students may forget and be in need of a gentle reminder. 

I look forward this year to working with all members of our college community in the interests of improving the learning opportunities for our students.  This indeed, is the sole reason for the College existing.  To support this, the college community continues to live by our values, Respect, Learning and Working Together.  These values are firmly embedded in daily practice at the College and our actions and interactions as members of our learning community will be measured against them.

This year, we will be constantly reminding our students of our expectations of them and seek your support in ensuring they understand what this means, in terms of their behaviour and performance.  We believe every student in our community has the capacity to work and to learn and we expect them to apply themselves to this simple task, to the best of their ability. There is no excuse that can be offered for learning outcomes that are second-rate or second best.

Our expectation is that every student will maximise their learning opportunities and will work to the best of their abilities at all times in all subjects. Second best is simply not acceptable.

Our aim in holding to these expectations strives to ensure that every student when they exit Hampton Park Secondary College, is adequately and effectively prepared for their role in community after schooling and they are able to compete in the jobs market on an equal footing with any student from anywhere in the state.

As a community, this requires everyone to commit to this position and to hold the same expectation of our students. I look forward to working with our College community to ensure that our students are adequately and effectively prepared for life’s journey.

David Finnerty

Principal