From the Principal's desk

Principal Update

It has been so fantastic to have such a positive start to this year. Our entire school community have again demonstrated their capacity to just get on with the job and adapt to the new conditions thrust upon us all. The introduction of ‘surveillance’ testing has been a significant change in the way COVID is managed at schools and has certainly allowed us all to play a proactive role in helping to decrease the spread of this virus. We thank all staff who contributed to the distribution of the RA tests, a task that has been completed over such a short time span. We are also grateful to every member of our school community who commits to this testing and to those who have fallen ill we wish a speedy and healthy recovery.

A huge congratulations for the positive start our students have all experienced through this term. It has been so great to see and hear of the calm, focused manner with which students have returned to their studies this year. Our entire school community should feel extremely proud of this achievement - it certainly bodes well for a wonderful 2022.

Year 7 Scholarship Recipients

Eighteen of our Year 7 students across our four Prep - Year 8 Campuses received their NBC Scholarships. These scholarships, sponsored by the Northern Bay Challenge, will provide students with some wonderful opportunities over the next two years as we look to establish this group as ‘leaders of learning’ across our Year 7 and 8 program over the next two years.

It goes without saying that scholarship programs are a key tool in recognising talented students at our school and in ensuring our retention of these outstanding members of our community remains high. We look forward to the enormous contribution these brilliant students will make to our school through their Secondary years journey at NBC.

CORE Values

For the 2022 school year, Northern Bay College will update its existing values that had been in use since the college started 10 years ago. This work started during 2021; with a team consisting of Steven ‘Stoofa’ Lewry, Jessie Blackney and Jack Hall seeking student voice around their own personal beliefs of what values are important to them while at school. This led into our College staff workshop, where as a staff we gave input to our own values around schooling and then narrowing these down to key themes reflected by our entire school community. A working party was then formed to workshop these new values and from this work we now haveGrowth, Collaboration, Persistence and Kindnessas the school values that will underpin our work from here on.

During Term 1 and 2 of this year, embedding our new school values will be a key piece of work moving forward. Focusing on developing a School Wide Positive Behaviours matrix which reflects our new values - seeking student input on what these values mean through focus groups and allowing staff and families across NBC to have the same input into this matrix. The college will work towards completing this key piece of work by the end of Semester 1.

2022 AIP (Annual Implementation Plan)

The Annual implementation plan outlines the key work for the college each year. This work is drawn from the overall school Strategic Plan which is a 4 year document. This year is the final year of our current Strategic Plan. It is encouraging to highlight that the targets set in this plan four years ago are genuinely in reach and we look forward to this year working as ‘One Team’ to achieve what were aspirational goals before setting a course for the next four years.

Key work across the college includes a continued focus on Writing with work to awards a college wide writing model being a key outcome we will look to complete; increasing engagement for all students including a focus on attendance and on the re-invigoration of our SWPBS matrix that is used to positively reinforce expected behaviours and continued work in developing consistent and agreed Learning and Teaching models using the DET High Impact Teaching Strategies as a basis.

This AIP will be shared with School Council this month and will then become a public document via our College Website.

Congratulations

We congratulate Juanita Mountjoy who has been successfully appointed to the role of Campus Assistant Principal at Wexford Campus. We are positive Juanita will fill this role with great distinction and compassion for the school community she works with. Congratulations Juanita. We have advertise a replacement for the now vacant Year 3-6 LCL role to back fill Juanita.

Regards,

Scott Diamond

College Principal