Principal's Report

The school of choice for the Cobram Community

Every child matters,

Every staff member cares,

Every opportunity taken.

Welcome back

Welcome back to Term Three.  It’s been a busy start to the new semester and students are settling into their new classes well.

This semester we’ve welcomed two new teachers, Hayley Strickland and Stephen Brooks, both have settled into the school and are enjoying their classes.  We farewell Amelia Slater in Wellbeing as she takes on further studies at University, and have commenced looking for her replacement.

Athletics Day

Thanks to the team who organised Athletics Day on 23rd July.  We were pleased with the team spirit and all of our students who “had a go”.  A special mention should be made of the huge turnout of parents and grandparents, some traveling hours to see their child/grandchild participate in sporting activities.  It was wonderful to see you there.

Subject Selections

This is an important week, as we continue our subject selections for 2020. Students in Years 8-11 are meeting with their parents and course counsellor to select subjects for next year. Next year, we’re increasing the range of subject choices for Years 9  &10, and we look forward to meeting with parents and students to select these subjects. If you are unable to attend your appointment, please contact the office to reschedule.

School Review

Our school review has concluded.  While we haven’t received the report as yet, initial briefings suggest that our focus on improving student engagement and student results will remain our focus for the next four years.  Once the report is provided, it will be available on the school Website.

Inquiry into Rural outcomes

Last Thursday, I took Teagan Mitchell (Rural Youth Ambassador) to participate in the Inquiry into the Rural and Regional Students – a consultation meeting held in Wangaratta.  The panel is looking at understanding the barriers preventing rural and regional students from meeting their aspirations and identifying the initiatives and supports to address the issue.  The meetings were held all over the state.  Our group identified a number of issues including teacher recruitment and retention,  student wellbeing, social disadvantage, mental health initiatives, aspiration vs opportunity, cost of post-compulsory studies & the need for students to move away, funding responsive to the particular needs of the rural & regional communities.  We hope to see some of the issues raised addressed in upcoming initiatives.