Message from the Principal

David Reynolds

Principal

MSC Winner of Victoria's Multicultural Excellence Awards

The wonderful work our College does to celebrate diverse cultures and make all students feel like they belong received a huge acknowledgement at last week's 2019 Victorian Multicultural Awards for Excellence. Assistant Principal, Jenny Buckle, 2020 School Captain Jean Tafa, Community Liaison Coordinator Robert Aduer and Mentor Malaz Dewanyang and I attended the award ceremony at Government House. It was an incredibly proud moment to accept the Education and Early Childhood Award  in the presence of the Governor of Victoria, Her Excellency the Honourable Linda Dessau AC. In conferring the award, the Victorian Multicultural Commission noted the outstanding commitment our College has to cultural diversity, the many programs and events we run such as Diversity Week and the African Student Conference and the way we share this learning with other Victorian schools . It was doubly wonderful to see our amazing Community Engagement Coordinator, Robert Aduer receive a Meritorious Service Award for the tireless work he does for our school and the wider community. Well done to Melton Secondary College and Robert Aduer!

Melton Secondary College achieves Improved Results

Each government school is provided with an annual report card from the Department of Education and this year's report for Melton Secondary College shows continued improvement in every area of measure:

- an increase in the percentage of students achieving at the highest levels of reading and mathematics.

- an increase in positive student opinion about the quality of teaching and learning and peer relationships.

- a significant increase in the percentage of student attending school regularly

- a significant increase in the percentage of students achieving strong results in VCE English and successfully completing their VCE and VCAL certificates.

These strong and sustained improvements reflect the talent and consistent efforts of our students, the incredible dedication of college staff, and the vital support of parents and carers. It is a strong vindication of the approaches the College has been implementing over the past three years. Well done Melton Secondary College!

Student use of Mobile Phones Ban

IT

n October this year the Victorian Minister of Education announced that from the start of 2020, mobile phones will be banned during the school day in all government schools. The policy has been instituted so that schools can provide:

- a safe environment for students to learn without inappropriate mobile phone use (including cyber-bullying) or distractions to learning.

- greater opportunities for social interaction and physical activity during recess and lunchtime.

The Department of Education has provided a series of resources and advice for parents/carers and schools. 

The Melton Secondary College School Council endorsed the attached policy on 26th November 2019. All parents/carers and students are asked to read the policy so that they understand the changes that will take effect from the start of 2020.

The policy outlines the following expectations:

• Students who choose to bring mobile phones and personal mobile devices to school must have them switched off and securely stored in their lockers during school hours.
• School hours are from first bell at 8.45 am to last bell at 3.10 pm (Mon, Tues, Thurs & Fri) and 2.30 pm (Wed).
• Students leaving the school during school hours may not use their personal mobile device while on school grounds.
• Students who choose to bring ‘smart watches’ to school may wear this device, but must disable cellular network connections during school hours and make the device visible to staff if requested.
• Accessories (including earphones/earbuds and speakers) are only permitted for use when under direct supervision of a teacher and connected to a school approved device in the Library, Senior Study Area or other area approved by the Principal.
• Should parents, or carers wish to communicate with their child during school hours, they must do so by contacting the school office on 9743 3322.
• Exceptions to this policy may only be granted by the Principal and must be officially documented.

Oval Redevelopment/Old Admin refurbishment

Melton Secondary College is working closely with Melton City Council to build a brand new $3.3m AFL standard synthetic oval funded by the Victorian Government Shared Community Facility fund. Planning has commenced in earnest with the designs for the oval, lighting and a pavilion/change rooms now in place and construction to commence in January 2020. Once completed, the oval will be available for use by the College and  local sporting clubs.

Work has also commenced on the refurbishment of the old Administration Office and we expect that this will be completed for the start of the 2020 school year. The building will house the new Junior Sub-School Office, the Wellbeing Team and staff work room.

Year 12 last day

Our Year 12s came dressed for fun on their last day of school. There were plenty of laughs, releasing some of the pressure of exams. With exams now over, our VCE students are awaiting the release of results which will happen in the last week of term.  

On behalf of the college community, I would like to wish the amazing graduating year of 2019 the greatest success in everything they do in the future!