Principal's Report
With the school year almost at an end, it is time to reflect on 2019.
This year, the school’s ninth, was one of further growth and achievements. Schools are not static, they are constancy growing and changing and SCHS is no different in that respect.
One of the major changes for this year was the vertical House and Home Group system. The change has been a success and while there are still improvements to be made, the positive changes of the structure have already been seen and felt. The system has enabled more effective transition for all of our students; greater support for the students from their peers and a greater connection to the school and the house.
The success of the new House system has been possible sue to both staff and students. The Heads of House, their assistants and home group teachers, enthusiastically set about creating their ‘new’ Houses and the vertical home groups. The students also approached the change with positivity and the results have been outstanding.
When I consider the calendar of events for this year, I am heartened by the sheer breadth of opportunities the school provides for its students. The central tenet of the development of the culture of the school since 2015, the Renaissance person, is based on broad opportunities to expand the educational experience of the students. These opportunities are only possible due to the willingness of the staff to give their time and enthusiasm to ensure that such events run. I have lost count of the number of sporting teams that have represented the school, the numbers of subject based excursions, the camps, field trips and overseas trips that have all occurred in the school year. And all this has been achieved while our results remain outstanding.
At this time of the year the VCE results figure prominently. And while I am quite dismissive of the media’s focus on statistics about that the VCE that reduce our students to just a part of a percentage or number, I understand that we must deal with the public reality of the data. Well, the 2019 VCE cohort did exceptionally well; as we should expect! However, the metric that is of most importance to us as a school, and should be of most importance to the students, is the percentage of students that received one of their first three university course preferences. Interestingly, this year VTAC decided to make offers this week for 50% of the available places. We were very pleased to note that all but two of our students have received offers this week; an early Christmas present! It will not be until late January that we have a better understanding of the destination of our students; however, already we know that the vast majority of our students will be very happy with their offers this week.
I would like to acknowledge this year’s dux De Kai Chue, who achieved an ATAR of 99.8. Kai’s subjects were English, Maths Methods, Specialist Maths, Chemistry, Accounting and Legal Studies. And while he did extremely well in these subjects achieving study scores in all his subjects above 40, including two 49 scores, he was heavily involved in the wider school program. Kai was instrumental in the success of Bedside Buds, was a state finalist in the Plain English Speaking Awards, a debater and a member of the school orchestra; another truly Renaissance person.
This year, like any year, we have staff leaving to pursue other opportunities. After eight years at the school, Darren Nicholas will be leaving to take up the position of Assistant Principal at Williamstown High School. This is a fantastic achievement and we wish Darren all the best for the future. It is with sadness that we also farewell our communications and marketing guru, Jack Richardson, who is going to concentrate on his passion in theatre production at a new school. Matthew Janineh will be leaving for another school and Andrea Maher and John Trajanovski are on twelve month transfer to other schools. Finally, Anna Hamilton and Amy Rashid will be taking a period of leave. On behalf of the school I wish them all well in their future endeavours.
It is a privilege to be the principal of Suzanne Cory High School and I would like to thank all members of the school community for their ongoing support of the school. I wish you all the best for the festive season and hope that you all have a safe and enjoyable summer break. I look forward to 2020 and the tenth year of the school.
Colin Axup
Principal
Contact Us
Phone: (03) 8734 2800
Email: suzanne.cory.hs@edumail.vic.gov.au
School Website: www.suzannecoryhs.vic.edu.au