Principal's Update

We had a really smooth start to the 2021 school year. There was a sense of normality as all staff and students returned onsite after the disruptions and challenges of the last 12 months. Everyone seemed happy to be back with their friends and teachers. There is a sense of excitement and anticipation as the whole school community is onsite, working and learning together once again.

As we have done in previous years ,  we had a staggered start over two days for Year 7- 12 students and this gave staff and the year level coordinators the time and space to properly welcome students and support them with getting settled with lockers and school materials.

We also held assemblies for each year level to welcome students, reaffirm our school vision, values and expectations and also provide some gentle reminders about the new mobile phone ban. A strong focus during the assemblies was the work we are doing on Learner Behaviours and the active role students are expected to take in their learning. Making an effort and setting challenging personal goals for their learning is an area we will focus on with all students this year.

2021 Key Directions

In line with our Strategic Plan 2019-2022, we will have a strong focus on:

1. Learning Catch up and extension- ensuring that all students make progress in learning regardless of ability.

2. Happy, healthy and resilient students- engaging students with the peers, teachers and the school, strengthening their engagement in school community.

3. Connected communities – investigating partnerships with local organisations/businesses and engaging with hard to reach parents. 

Welcome to New Students and Families

We warmly welcome our Year 7 cohort as well as all other new students who have joined us at other year levels, and their families. We are so pleased that you have joined our community and we look forward to watching you grow and thrive at Box Hill High School.

Welcome New Staff

The arrival of new staff both, experienced and new graduate teachers, is always a great opportunity – new staff bring with them new ideas and perspectives provide us all with a sense of renewal. I am confident that all of our new staff members will bring great positivity, enthusiasm and commitment to the school.

New appointments are confirmed after a rigorous state-wide selection processes throughout the second semester last year. We are excited to welcome the following new staff.

•             Nicholas Barca 

•             Gabriella Bergman 

•             Nicholas Ford 

•             Rachel Grawich 

•             Elliot Le Grice 

•             Minnie Zheng 

•             Angela Brewer Fontana

•             Robyn Dyer 

•             Shelley Thacker 

•             Susanna Wailes 

•             Caroline Zhang 

Read more about some of our new staff in this newsletter.  Those not included in this issue will be profiled in next term's newsletter.

Student Leadership 

Congratulations to Ava White (Captain) and Avon Agsornwong ( Vice-Captain) for 2021. 

The selection process was rigorous, including speeches to the prefect group, a ranking process by their peers and finally an interview with leaders and the Principal. All candidates performed well and spoke passionately about the school values, and improvement projects that they would like to lead in 2021. We look forward to working with the captains as well as the prefect group this year.

School Council 2021

Farewell and thank you to Colin Lewis, outgoing School Council President 

On behalf of the Box Hill school community, I would like to thank Colin for his many years of service to the school, as a School Council member, Vice President and in the last two years as President. He has led many initiatives, including the changes to the House Names and has always made insightful contributions to many a lively discussion during council meetings. Colin has also participated in school recruitment, serving on both Principal and Assistant Principal selection panels. His calm, wise and thoughtful presence will be missed. We wish him all the best in this next chapter as he enjoys his ‘tree change’ to Healesville.

School Council Membership 

Congratulations to the following members for 2021:

• DET members are Theresa Iacopino, Kellie Ind, Katrina Young. Nick Carr continues his tenure for 2021.

• Student members are Sarah Lewis and Sam Gill who also continue their tenure for 2021.

• Newly elected parent members are Andrew Walton, Daniel Buick and Thuy Tran is a co-opted Community Member 

• The following parents continue their tenure for 2021: Kaajal Fox, Danny Koganti 

Parent members and Office Bearers are:

• School Council President - Kim Huett
• Vice President - Christiaan ‘O Dea
• Parent representative on Finance Committee- Daniel Buick

Congratulations to all new and current members of our School Council 2021. We are greatly looking forward to working with you all this year.

Issues of Consent

There has been much reported in the media  recently surrounding issues of sexual harassment and consent, particularly amongst high school students.

Box Hill High School is a lead school in implementing the Respectful Relationships program, a core component of the Victorian curriculum in state schools. We will continue to work with experts to continue to develop age-appropriate programs that meet the needs of students.

Parents play a critical role in teaching children about consent, respect and boundaries. We encourage all parents to work with us and to engage in vital, open and honest conversations with your sons and daughters. Expectations need to be reinforced and discussed regularly in the school and home environment. It might seem daunting to have these talks. The resources provided in this newsletter may help to support families with these conversations.  

Please refer to the 'Respectful Relationships & Talking about Consent with your Teenager' article by Assistant Principal Kellie Ind, on the next page.

COVID Safe Behaviours

We are continuing to promote COVID Safe behaviours for all students and visitors to the school. 

The most important action school communities can take to reduce the risk of spreading COVID-19 is to ensure that any unwell staff and students remain at home and get tested, even with the mildest of symptoms. It is also important to get tested when the Department of Health recommends it, for example, if you have visited an exposure site. 

 We encourage students and staff to:

•             stay home when unwell

•             practise good hygiene

•             ensure physical distancing where possible

•             wear a face mask when required and recommended

•             avoid interactions in enclosed spaces.

We are keeping a record of all visitors to the school and also ensuring appropriate cleaning each day.

Mental Health in Schools

On Tuesday 2nd March, The Royal Commission into Victoria's Mental Health System delivered its final report. The final report outlines a new approach to mental health and wellbeing treatment, care and support, including a focus on mental health promotion and early intervention.

The Royal Commission set out 65 recommendations, including one directly related to schools.

Recommendation 17: Supporting social and emotional wellbeing in schools. This recommendation calls for funding evidence-informed initiatives that support school leaders and staff to integrate the promotion of mental health and wellbeing into their planning and delivery across teaching and learning, school culture and environment, and to make referrals to treatment, care and support services where required.

The Royal Commission recognised the positive role schools have in promoting mental health and wellbeing for all students, parents and the broader community and outlined a future where schools will play a stronger role in promoting good mental health and wellbeing.

The report highlights the value of existing mental health and wellbeing support delivered through schools, including Respectful Relationships, Mental Health Practitioners in Secondary Schools and the Mental Health in Primary Schools pilot.

The Department is committed to creating a mentally healthy workplace, and will continue to expand the mental health and wellbeing support available to staff, in line with the Safe and Well in Education strategy.

Parents and Friends Association 

We are very keen to establish a parents and friend association at our school. This is an opportunity for parents who are not formally elected on school council to get involved in the school community in a range of ways, including:

• Involvement and contribution to  whole school events, eg. school production
• Organising events, eg. fundraising  to purchase much needed school equipment
• Assisting in the school canteen
• Supporting the school with the supervision of sporting activities and excursions

If you are interested in being a part of this initiative please see attached an expression of interest form. Please submit completed forms to the general office or email us at  box.hill.hs@education.vic.gov.au

Once we have a group of interested parents we will organise a meeting early in Term 2 for the group to meet and discuss how they will operate to support key school goals and priorities.

Thank you for everything you have done to ensure that all students have had a positive start to the school year. I look forward to meeting with more parents as the year unfolds. 

Should you have any questions regarding any of our programs this year, please contact the school.

All the best for a Happy Easter.

 - Losh 

Losh Pillay, Principal Box Hill High School