PRINCIPAL

Dear Parents / Carers, Families and College Community

Welcome back to the start of Term 3. I trust that all students and staff who managed to have time off had a good break and have returned well rested and refreshed. Thank you to the staff who worked over the break to keep the College operating and preparing for the students' to return. 

College Ball

I had the privilege of attending the College Ball on the last Friday night of Term 2, where 192 students and their partners where in attendance. This is our biggest number to date. It was fantastic to see all the students well-presented and dressed up for the evening, looking very mature and grown up. 

The variety of transport which the students arrived at the Ball in or on was a highlight too. The old postie bike even got an outing with one of the students riding with his partner having to go side saddle. All were delivered safely. 

Students socialised and danced the night away, having a great meal and taking advantage of having their photo taken. Congratulations to Casey Cole and Blake Johnston for being awarded the Belle and Beau of the Ball. 

These events do not take place without the attendance of staff to provide supervision during the evening, so I thank the staff who attended.  A big thank you must go to the Ball Committee and particular Mrs Hickman and Mrs Fimmano for all their organisation, preparation and set up of the evening. You both do a fantastic job each year – great work!

COVID Update

Over the holidays and currently, we are experiencing the next wave of staff succumbing to the virus. Four staff who attended the College Ball tested positive in the first week of the holidays. During the latter half of the second week, five Farm staff tested positive. At the beginning of this week, another of our Class staff also tested positive. No doubt there will be more to come. 

This is a timely reminder for us all to continue to be vigilant in maintaining our personal hygiene by washing our hands and regularly sanitising. Students and staff are strongly encouraged to wear a mask indoors. Staff and students are still required to wear a mask when travelling in vehicles or on busses around the College. 

If a student or staff member is a close contact but does not have symptoms, they must return daily negative RATs each day for 7 days, to leave isolation and attend school.  They must also wear a mask when outside their home (usual exemptions apply), as per the testing and isolation protocols. Close contacts who have symptoms should not attend school. The previous processes that were in place at the end of Term 2 at the College for managing the virus will remain the same until further notice.

An information letter was emailed to parents/guardians on Wednesday. This is attached again for your reference.

The state government adjusted the possible reinfection window for COVID due to increasing cases of new variants spreading in the community and the chance of reinfection now more likely. The window for potential reinfection of COVID has been reduced from after 12 weeks to after four weeks (28 days) from recovering from an initial infection, based on the latest expert advice from the Australian Health Protection Principal Committee (AHPPC). 

This means that recovered COVID cases are now required to test for COVID after 4 weeks (28 days), if experiencing symptoms and follow the relevant advice if they test positive. 

Biosecurity - Foot and Mouth Disease

Thank you to the parents/guardians who provided the details of their child’s overseas travel destination and return dates in response to the information that was emailed out at the beginning of the week. As we are all immersed in the agricultural industry and understand the significance of the biosecurity threat, the College community needs to be aware that the College takes advice and direction from DPIRD and the Agricultural Directorate of Department of Education. We will keep you informed as required in relation to this biosecurity threat.

Prohibited and Banned Items

Unfortunately, this week we have had to deal with an incident in the residence where a student was found to have prohibited and banned items in their residential room. As a result the student has had their privilege to reside at College removed for a period of time, with the loss of their Good-Standing Status. 

The residential student body was addressed and informed of the incident on Thursday night at dinner time, where they were given the facts in relation to the incident, so as to dispel any incorrect information or rumours. The residential students were reminded of the College rules and expectations surrounding the prohibited and banned items.

This is a timely reminder to the students to make sure they do not use or are in possession of any prohibited or banned items at the College.  

Year 12 Students

Term 3 is the business end and home stretch of the year for the Year 12 students.  They should focus on their studies and aspire to achieve their best.  Combined with attendance at school, these are all strategies to ensure that they maximise their opportunity for success and to gain the most of their remaining time at the College. 

The official last date for Year 12 students is Friday 21st October (Week 2, Term 4). However, if a student has completed all of their course work and VET qualifications, they are eligible to leave on Friday 23rd September. Students and parents will receive notification from the school in the second half of this term as to the progress of their child and their eligibility to depart at the end of Term 3. 

Staffing Update

Mr Watt is on LSL this term and I have taken on the role as Principal. Shaun Cantwell is filling the role of Deputy Principal and Matt Depiazzi is filling in the role of HOD Trades. We have been able to secure the services of Keith Thompson and Shane McKenna, two experienced Trade staff, who will take on part time roles to cover the required classes in the Trades area.

We are currently working through the process of securing a permanent Mathematics/HASS replacement for Robert Cousins who left at the end of last term. For the first five weeks of this term,  the Maths classes will be covered with a combination of Tania Pfitzner, Katie Franco, Mel Butler and Lauren Day. Mike Spragg has returned to the College to take the Year 10 HASS on Fridays. 

As you are aware Greg Aiberti, previously our Chef, left the College at the end of last term. The Chef’s position was advertised and I am pleased to congratulate Kelly Genge in successfully attaining the Chef’s position on a permanent basis. This now has a knock on effect and Trish Yates is replacing Kelly on a fixed term basis for Term 3 as a Cook. Natalie Wallam has secured a permanent role as a Kitchen Hand and she is joined by Don Bamunuge who secured the recently advertised permanent Kitchen Hand position. 

Congratulations and welcome to all the new staff and staff taking on acting positions.

Bandwidth Upgrade

It is with great joy that I can let you know the College has finally received the upgrade to our bandwidth at the College over the holiday break.  The infrastructure is in place and we are monitoring the performance over the coming weeks. Please continue to be patient as there may be some teething problems. Thanks must go to Teresa Hickman for her persistence with this project over the last 2-3 years. 

Stay safe, look after each other and have a great weekend!