Principal's Report

Dear Families and Friends,

In the first week of Term 2, our two Professional Learning (PL) days were planned to support all staff in our journey towards MYP authorisation. I met Jeremy Otto when I attended the MYP Leaders’ Workshop earlier this year and he was the facilitator. Jeremy worked with our staff on Inquiry Based Learning and this was followed by a session facilitated by our own Simon Gitson, who facilitated a session on Approaches to Learning. A number of our learning leaders also attended an MYP workshop in Sydney over the holidays to enhance their knowledge.

As a member of the NEAA Executive, I was also privileged to be part of the team that was involved in the “Heart of Action” Staff Conference, held in Brisbane. Our guest speakers were Brother Michael Green, fms, who presented on Faith/Charism, and Professor Donna Pendergast, whose fields of research expertise are educational transformation and efficacy and a focus on middle years’ education and student engagement. Dr Pete Stebbins, a leading expert on high performance teams in education gave a keynote presentation on how to achieve significant improvements in both staff engagement and student outcomes, and Marie-Therese Kilmartin, Principal of Colaiste Bride Presentation Secondary College, Ireland spoke about wellbeing for all. It was certainly an insightful and rewarding experience for Brenden Mair, Nathan Lane, Samantha Powell and myself and delegates from around Australia who attended.

Last week our Year 7s headed off to Phillip Island for camp, we were a bit uncertain about the weather, but our girls rose to the challenge and participated in all sorts of activities which required courage, determination and sometimes a little fear. These attributes and qualities foster and engender resilience, team building and leadership. As a school we recognise that the camp is an important transition experience for our girls.

We also held our Annual High Tea on Sunday and over 100 past and present students, their mothers and family members attended. These women, young and old, represent the rich tapestry that makes up the proud history and future of Presentation College Windsor. It was a wonderful community event giving us all an opportunity to share stories and connect with each other.

Demolition has been nearly completed on the Nagle Building refurbishment. As you can imagine, in these old buildings that haven’t been touched for years, we are discovering new and interesting things every day. Work has also begun on preparing the lift shaft for the new lift which will be installed. Once completed, this new space will be providing some amazing contemporary learning spaces for our students and staff. I will continue to keep you updated on the progress of the project.

I invite you to peruse this edition of the Lantern to see all the wonderful things going on at the College.

Filina Virgato

Principal