Principal's message
Dear Parents, Carers and Students
We are almost back together again and the staff are really looking forward to seeing all of the students in Years 7 to 10 join us on Wednesday 10 June. A reminder to families that Tuesday 9 June is Assessment and Reporting Days which means we are not running classes online or in person as it is a student free day.
I am hoping that the forecast of 14 degrees and sunny for Wednesday is as predicted so that all is perfect for our students on the day. The VCE students have settled in well and were extremely happy to see each other last week.
As per the Department of Education and Training (DET) directives, all students (except those who have a medical reason for not attending) are expected to return to school on this day. Remote teaching will cease at this time. If there is a medical reason as to why a student isn’t returning on that day this needs to be communicated to the relevant Student Manager.
Today, as I write this message to you all, the building works in the STEAM Centre are commencing. The construction site infrastructure is in place and 'ground broken' in the Art building foyer as we are creating the trench for the sewage system. Not a very exciting event for most, but a necessary one before we commence the larger part of the project. This $2.1 million project is possible due to many years of the school saving funds from revenue raising endeavours such as the hiring of our facilities and not through external funding sources. Our School Council hopes that one day in the future our 65 year old school will receive funding for significant upgrades to update our other buildings.
Our rear carpark leading to the oval (Gate 5) is closed due to construction. It needs to be kept clear. Parents are asked to not use it for drop offs or turn arounds. DET restricts visitors to the school which includes parents driving in the carpark next to the gymnasium and parking in the visitor’s carpark. These carparks need to be reserved for visitors who have made a prior appointment with the school. We do not currently have enough car parking for all of our staff so please be aware of this. The teacher on gate duty will redirect parents who are trying to drive into the grounds. Parents who are collecting their children need to arrange to meet in a nearby street and not to park in front of the residents driveways.
When students return on Wednesday they won’t be able to walk through the foyer of the Art Building but will be redirected to one of the many doors of the neighbouring classrooms or off the oval to reach rooms A6 and A3. The Ceramics room (A5) will be unavailable until Term 3 and students will be having these classes in T3 until the end of the term.
We are aware that returning to school will be a huge change for some of our students as they haven’t seen their friends in person for some time. The teachers are aware of this and we will be making sure that we aim for a good balance between student academic and wellbeing needs in their classes to ease them in.
The canteen is open next week and I encourage students to place a lunch order so that they don’t need to stand in a queue to order their lunch. Please also remember to walk on the left-side of the corridors to keep the foot traffic flowing and to prevent bottlenecks.
Finally, a reminder that students in Years 10 to 12 will commence their Period 4 class 15 minutes earlier than students in Years 7 to 9. We will ring the bell 5 minutes earlier so ask students in Years 10-12 to go to their period 4 class. These students will finish 15 minutes earlier which should help with congestion at public transport and the lockers as they collect their books.
Keep well.
Kind regards
Linda Brown
Principal