Student Wellbeing News

Dear Year 12 Students,

Congratulations. You did it! Under the most extraordinary of circumstances, you navigated your way through your final two years and you did it! Regardless of whether or not you had an early exit or are sticking around for your exams, you should feel a sense of great pride and accomplishment. A sincere and heartfelt thank you to all of your family, friends, teachers, supports and loved ones who played a critical role in walking some of this journey with you. But ultimately, it was YOU. Here YOU are – completing your schooling and ready for what comes next – as an adult – in the big, wide world. You should be incredibly proud of yourself.

I still fondly remember that last day of Year 12 for me in 1996 (yes, I’m that old), when we all counted down from 10 to 1 to that final bell, before we all ran screaming and laughing out of the school grounds – we’d done it! However, in the weeks that followed, we all finished our exams on different days, at different times and I remember feeling something very different after my final exam as I walked out of the school for the last time by myself. No cheers, no laughter. It was a feeling of great freedom, but also one of great trepidation, as I suddenly found myself thinking… what comes next? 

The biggest issue of concern for most of our final year students is the big “what if?” What if I don’t pass that SAC? What if I don’t get the ATAR I need? What if I don’t get into the course I want to do? Our senior students feel so much pressure on them as they head towards what my Dad would describe as “the final quarter of the Grand Final,” and often most of all, this pressure comes from themselves. Yes, the ‘pointy end’ or ‘final quarter’ of school is an important one, but we also need to remind our students that life is about the journey, not the destination. Whilst this may sound rather simplistic or even ‘pithy,’ it is absolutely the case.

My younger brother Adrian currently lives in the East Village of New York City, heading up the American office for a leading British design firm based in London. I have often used his story with many of the senior students I work with who are grappling with that big ‘what if?’ because for my brother, he was forced to face that head on and his story is an important one to share with you right now, at this point.

In 1998, my brother completed his VCE with average results, far below what he was expecting and as a result, he did not get into any of the graphic design undergraduate degrees at University he was aiming for. My brother was (and is) a bit of a perfectionist, but had a rough few years at school and struggled with the pressure he put himself under in that final year. He was however offered a place at the Brighton Bay School of Design, to undertake a 12-month course in all aspects of design, from photography, to fashion, to typography, art, etc. Adrian felt incredibly down on himself and saw this as a huge kick in the guts, as though he’d failed. However, he decided to accept the offer and try again for Uni the following year. Adrian immersed himself entirely in his studies that year, working hard to learn as much as he could, and was successful the following year with an application for entry straight into second year graphic design at Monash University. Adrian went on to graduate with Honours a number of years later and started working for a small graphic design firm in Melbourne, where he continued to work hard and learn as much as he could. 

In 2008, my brother flew to London on a one-way ticket, eager to further develop his skills abroad. For the first 12-months, he struggled to find employment in a design firm, and instead worked on the street, trying to drum up memberships for a number of British charities, a thankless task that saw him even being assaulted by random strangers on a couple of occasions. Adrian persevered however and remained doggedly determined until he finally got a role with a British design firm, and the rest as they say is history. 

Before I write about where Adrian is now, my brother has often spoken of that time in Year 12, where he thought his dreams had ended, and how pointless he thought that year at Brighton Bay School of Design would be. However, it is only because of that year, that he became the designer he is today. Being exposed to all those other elements of design, took his graphic design career in a very different direction to what he would have done had he just gone straight to Uni. Sometimes rejection gives you the determination you need to never give up and only try even harder, there are many paths one can take to achieve your dreams and Adrian worked out a different path was in fact the right one for him. And now after working hard and always thinking about what he wanted to achieve he has become one of the most sought-after designer specialists and creative directors based in New York, across American and the UK. 

I don’t want to brag, and I know I am biased, but I really am so proud of what my brother has achieved. Just before COVID shut everything down, he’d sent me a photo of himself on the red carpet at the annual Dior launch at the Guggenheim in NYC, with Madonna and Gwyneth Paltrow standing nearby. He was in San Francisco not long after that, where he won the pitch to the San Francisco Giants for a new place making and branding campaign, and one he likes to brag about is he worked for The Crown Estates, all the property owned by the Royal Family in Britain and worked on designs for them! – yeah, my brother did all that! 

My brother’s journey is a great example of someone who didn’t hit the mark in high school, but it was because of this, he is where he is today. Others take a different route. I was one of “those” students who decided in my final year of Uni, I didn’t actually want to do what I thought I did at 17 when I left school. With ADHD, I really struggled with so many aspects academically anyway. So I dropped out (much to my Mum’s horror). I took a gap year in the UK and then came back, found my passion and picked up studies in something entirely different and have never looked back. 

My point is, as important as this moment is, it’s not your only moment. Please, enjoy this sense of accomplishment, but life really is a journey. At 43, no one asks me what my ATAR was – or even cares for that matter. That number doesn’t tell me anything about you – about who you are and the journey you’ve been on. It doesn’t tell me about the good values you hold, or the hobbies you have, or your passions or the kind thing that you did for that person earlier in the year. It is just what it is - a number.

Enjoy your life ahead; enjoy the ongoing journey you are on and all the very best wishes. 

Michael Colling

Director of Wellbeing

Wellbeing Staff

For more information about Wellbeing at the College, please visit the following link .. 

Child Safety Standards

East Doncaster Secondary College is committed to the safety and wellbeing of all children and young people. This will be the primary focus of our care and decision making.

East Doncaster Secondary College has zero tolerance for child abuse.

East Doncaster Secondary College is committed to providing a child safe environment where children and young people are safe and feel safe, and their voices are heard about decisions that affect their lives. Particular attention will be paid to the cultural safety of Aboriginal children and children from culturally and/or linguistically diverse backgrounds, as well as the safety of children with a disability.

Every person involved in East Doncaster Secondary College has a responsibility to understand the important and specific role he/she plays individually and collectively to ensure that the wellbeing and safety of all children and young people is at the forefront of all they do and every decision they make.

In our planning, decision making and operations, all personnel at East Doncaster Secondary College will;

• Take a preventative, proactive and participatory approach to child safety;
• Value and empower children to participate in decisions which affect their lives;
• Foster a culture of openness that supports all persons to safely disclose risks of harm to children
• Respect diversity in cultures and child rearing practices while keeping child safety paramount;
• Provide written guidance on appropriate conduct and behaviour towards children;
• Engage only the most suitable people to work with children and have high quality staff and volunteer supervision and professional development;
• Ensure children know who to talk with if they are worried or are feeling unsafe, and that they are comfortable and encouraged to raise such issues;
• Report suspected abuse, neglect or mistreatment promptly to the appropriate authorities;
• Share information appropriately and lawfully with other organisations where the safety and wellbeing of children is at risk; and
• Value the input of and communicate regularly with families and carers.