PRINCIPAL'S REPORT

Bradley Headlam

Acting Principal

2023 Key Dates

Acting Principal

I have been the Principal this week in Mr Adamou’s absence and the lengthy list above is perhaps a result of this responsibility…I do not want to miss anything! 

I keep hearing the words “with great power comes great responsibility”, not Mr Adamou’s words, but Stan Lee’s, through the character of Spiderman. Whilst I have experienced the high level expectation of managing such a fantastic school I also have been reminded of the incredible selfless efforts of our staff in all areas of the school. Their dedication, organisation, initiative and proactive communication has enabled the school to continue providing exceptional teaching and learning programs. This was also highlighted by a recent visit from Charles Branciforte. Charles is the acting Area Executive Director of the Barwon South-West Victoria Region and he could not speak more highly of the school, its students, staff and the environment. 

Changing Circumstances

You may have heard in the media that teachers are hard to find at the moment. This is certainly the case, but we are very fortunate to have filled all our teaching loads with high quality staff. From time to time however, there have been changes which result in Timetable changes and impacts to students. We do our best to limit these but often it is for the better, meaning it might be a more suitable room or more accessible space. The next major timetable change will occur on 19th June when we start Semester 2. This will be when all the electives change and classes in years 7-10 will receive a new timetable. As always, there are opportunities for changes and swaps, and these are managed by the sub schools.

JUNIOR SUB SCHOOL

It is with great pleasure that I share with you a change to the Junior Sub School Student Management Team. Mr Bennett Thompson will become the Junior Sub School Leader, Mrs Tara Mcleod the Year 8 Level Coordinator and Mr Blake Fairchild the Year 8 Level Assistant Coordinator. I congratulate these staff and am excited for the enthusiasm and energy they will continue to bring with them to the team.

Parents Onsite

Now that we are into term 2 it is important to recall the process for parents being on school premises. Parents are required to sign in if they enter the school boundaries and do so at the office. This means that if a parent/family member is simply waiting for their child they must wait outside the gates. Should they need to be onsite, please head to our friendly Administration Team who will support the process and communicate with those involved.

Excursion Process

Department of Education and Training has increased its expectations on schools in order to ensure that our students are safe, and risks are managed accordingly. This is a fantastic initiative that ensures staff are well trained before taking on such a responsibility. The implications for parents is that we are required to have consent for all events a week out from the event. This supports us with appropriate planning and management of the activity. Can I please encourage all parents to organise their children’s permissions ahead of the event. 

Student Voice and Agency

Students will be surveyed on their perceptions of student voice and agency this term via the Attitudes to School Survey. From my perspective students are strongly encouraged to speak up about matters that concern them in our school and there are a range of opportunities throughout the college. SRC, Student E-Leaders, Year Level Captains and Be Bold Be Heard enable great access for students to develop their voice but also provide avenues for students to share their opinion to support change. I would like to encourage students to use this survey to give honest feedback on the school programs. 

During the week I observed two students from the Be Bold Be Heard initiative share their journey to get a new sports uniform for girls organised. They told their story via an online collaboration with other schools in the region. In one year, they surveyed students, voiced their opinion in various forums across the school and eventually lobbied the school council to enact the change. Next week these sports uniforms will be available to students, and hence was a fantastic success.