A MESSAGE FROM THE PRINCIPAL

PARENT SURVEY

Results have been received from our 2016 Parent Opinion Survey. Families were randomly selected to respond to this survey and the results are very pleasing. Thank you to all families who participated. Your feedback enables us to reflect and make improvements. Parent confidence in our school vision, values and commitment is very reassuring. Our staff work tirelessly to bring about the best educational outcomes for students and the confidence, gratitude and support that is demonstrated by parents is much appreciated.

CLASS OF 2016

We farewelled the class of 2016 in a formal manner with the Valedictory dinner held at the Crown Palladium and the evening was enjoyed by students, parents and teachers.

Many staff have played a significant role in educating and supporting these students over their years at McKinnon, however I would like to acknowledge the senior team in particular Lachlan Noble, Kellie Felmingham, Chris Hudd and Catherine Cozens for their support of the Class of 2016.

Our Valedictorian for this year was Maggie Zhou and her reflection on the years at McKinnon included the following:

"Like Alex Hutton rightfully said about our final days here, “I have not cried that much since coming out of the womb.” Like Jessie Quirk said, “It's sad to close this chapter of our lives but we will all cross paths again and it'll be wonderful.” Like Jess Williams said, “this year has just been more than I could ask for.” Like Omer Gonen said, “Each of you will forever have a place in my heart.” Like Emily Harbis said, “This is only the beginning.”

"Right now, It can be so easy to fixate on our past, or even our hopes or worries for the future. But don’t let these moments pass you by, don’t ignore the present. Because when we look back at these times, we aren’t going to recall our results or even our ATARS, we are going to remember these moments we shared so fondly."

"We have all been so lucky to call McKinnon home. With teachers who would happily trade an arm and a leg to help us, to a culture which values respect, resilience, integrity, community, creativity and success, we should never take these privileges for granted. Possibly without even realising it, McKinnon has helped shape who we all are today. School has taught us more than the four digit numbers, certificate and handshake we receive at the end of the year can ever show. It has taught us how to treat others with empathy, how to work hard, how to strive to become better people."

Thank you to the many parents who expressed such gratitude and appreciation to me for the positive difference that has been made to their children’s lives because of the experiences at McKinnon.

To all the teachers and staff at McKinnon, thank you - keep doing all you can!

Click here to see more images of the 2016 Valedictory Dinner on our webiste.

THISTLELONIAN REUNION

This annual event was held again last Saturday 22 October and it was a very successful evening. It really is a point of difference for McKinnon.

The Thistlelonian committee work tirelessly to make this event possible.

Having ex-students back is truly heart-warming and brings all an opportunity to connect and share great memories. The atmosphere and laughter was wonderful.

In particular I would like to thank and acknowledge Melanie Lynch, Geoff Woolnough, Pam Dickfos, Jenny Cooke, Ian Jackson, Andrew Newton, Lee Xanthoudakis, Jennie Kim-Ross, Eddie Mest, Les McLeod, Jason Evans, Michael Kan, Ash Evans, Lachlan Noble, Andrew Krause, Nick Xanthoudakis, Callum Lloyd, Matthew Shaw, Marie Landini, Tania Burnell and Raelene Evans. It is a team effort. I also appreciate our teachers who attend and who enjoy the conversation with so many ex-students.

Click here to see more images on the Thistlelonians Facebook page.

YEAR 12 THEATRE STUDIES

Congratulations to all students with their monologues last week. Their talent has definitely developed and it was a most entertaining evening.

Thank you to the parents, grandparents and friends who were in attendance. Special thanks to Ms Glanville for her guidance of this class.

BENTLEIGH RSL

The RSL Community Presentation Night was held last week, and the school has been presented with a $3000 donation from the Bentleigh RSL.

This donation will be awarded on Presentation Night to music students to ensure they continue with their commitment and pursuit of musical excellence.

It is awarded in memory of the late Perc Brierley from the Bentleigh RSL.

I thank the Bentleigh RSL for their generosity and support.

BEBRAS WINNER

Bebras is an international organisation who run an annual Maths and Computational Thinking Challenge.

McKinnon entered all Year 7 students through their ICT classes and all Year 8 students through their Maths classes. The Year 9 and 10 Computing and Control Tech students were also entered.

We had fourteen students from the Year 7-8 level and seven students from the Year 9-10 level who were in the Top 50 students in Victoria and they were invited to Monash University for the State Finals. McKinnon was one of the best represented schools.

Congratulations to Stefan Simic of Year 9 who won the State Final for the Year 9-10 category. What a fantastic achievement.

Thank you to the teachers Mrs Shirley Munro and Mr Callum Munro for their support.

VICTORIAN SECONDARY SCHOOLS PARLIAMENTARY CONVENTION

The topic of this year’s convention ´Equal Rights - Myth or Reality’ was discussed with 24 participating schools from Private, Catholic and Government sector.

McKinnon was represented by Anita Voloshin (Year 10), Claire Pardo, Bridget Schwerdt and Gideon Stein (Year 11). Their performance on the day was outstanding and I would like to thank each one of them for their excellent contribution to this program. I also acknowledge Ms Fowler for facilitating this event.

All four students have now been invited to apply for the National Schools Constitutional Convention which will be held in Canberra from 15 - 17 March 2017. We wish all applicants good luck with their application!

NOROVIRUS AND HAND HYGIENE POLICY

The Department of Health and Human Services has identified a new strain of norovirus that may lead to gastroenteritis outbreaks.

Norovirus is characterised by acute onset of nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea. Other symptoms may include fever, headaches and muscle aches. Symptoms usually resolve after 48 hours, but if a parent is concerned about their child’s symptoms they should seek medical attention.

Throughout the year it is important to remind staff and students of the importance of good hygiene at school and at home.

To help prevent the spread of norovirus, everyone, including all staff and students, should:

avoid attending work or school when experiencing gastroenteritis symptoms and advise the school of their illness;
stay away from school until they have been free of symptoms for 48 hours;
maintain strict hand hygiene procedures at all times. Hands must be washed with soap and water, especially after going to the toilet and before eating or preparing food;
if staff are required to help attend to students with gastroenteritis symptoms, use of personal protective equipment such as aprons or gloves is recommended.

Schools have a responsibility to provide soap and running water. If running water is temporarily not available, alcohol-based hand sanitiser should be provided until running water can be supplied.

Schools must provide soap, as soap and running water have been clinically shown to be more effective for preventing norovirus transmission than alcohol-based hand sanitisers. Alcohol-based hand sanitisers are also not as effective in cleaning hands when hands are visibly dirty or soiled.

YEAR 8 CAMP

Congratulations to our Year 8 students and their teachers who participated in the Year 8 camp. Thank you to Les McLeod, Ray Braniska, Brendan Hislop, Daniel Carroll, Kate Brown, Brock Lynch, Lauren Mellios, David Strehlau, Olivia Edwards, Emily Nicholls, Persefoni Apostolellis, Liam Adlington, Joshua Kamener, Lauren Mauger, Renee Gordon and student teachers Emma Robinson and Beth Mammos.

I acknowledge the tremendous efforts of the Year 8 Leadership team Greg Hoskin, Lauren Brown and Phil de Salvo.