Principal's Report

CHRISTMAS GREETINGS FROM THE PRINCIPAL

Once again, as I sit at my desk and ponder over the year, I find myself reflecting over the amazing events that we have enjoyed over 2016. I cannot help but smile, because at this moment I have nothing but pride, affection and joy towards this wonderful learning community.

The year was by far our best in over a decade in terms of the measures used to judge school performance. Our NAPLAN results were our best ever and something to be celebrated.  We will use our NAPLAN to plan for further school improvement. Our VCE results also exceeded expectation with our ranking jumping over 100 places and our Dux (a student of over 13 years at CC) receiving an ATAR of 97!

We believe in our students, we challenge our students, and we want our students to succeed in all aspects of their lives, whether at school or in the wider community. Lifelong skills are being instilled consistently and our aim, to create the best possible learning environment for our students to thrive in, is certainly being realised. When it comes to connectivity and relationship building, I cannot emphasise enough the strengths in this area at Collingwood College. The size of the school, despite experiencing strong growth, creates many opportunities for teachers to develop close, personal relationships with our student cohort and this contributes to a feeling of safety, comfort, responsibility and respect. We are still a medium sized school of 800 students but we deliver on every front when compared to the larger schools. We know Richmond high school with its $47M investment will present challenges for us but we know our two major drawcards – our quality workforce and our committed community- will not be achieved quickly by our neighbours.

I also want to acknowledge the constant support and encouragement of our parent community. Side by side we work together to attain the best possible results we can, whether it be a working bee or a School Council sub-committee, time and dedication are always the order of the day. I thank the parents who donate their time and efforts to keep the school moving forward.

Of course, at the heart of all this time, effort and striving for improvement and success, are our students. We are so proud of them! It is for their wellbeing and excellence we all strive for. They are our future and the school community is united in their endeavours to encourage, support, guide and help them achieve their dreams.  We as a school, are a vital part of their development and we do not take this responsibility lightly.

My report could have focused on the numerous successes and achievements we have had this year but it is impossible to capture the endless energy and full picture of what we achieve at Collingwood College. The wonderful positive outcome of our Parent, Teacher and Student Opinion Surveys, the phenomenal increase of student numbers, our stronger academic results and the amazing Spring Fair, events and developments, but I want to show my appreciation and acknowledge the efforts of all the hard working staff who make this a special place for the students. It is sad we say goodbye to Cat Stevenson, Catherine O’Reilly, Theresa Powell, Phoebe Lam, Beth Muldoon, Casey Taylor, Jessica Kelly, Martin Poeder, Kym Maxwell, Madonna Holmes and Wendy Lucas. I would like to acknowledge the efforts of this group who will leave us with fond memories and a fine sense of accomplishment.

Finally, the 803 champions in this school are the students. They are our inspiration and “our best friends”. I hope everyone has a safe and happy summer break. We will see you all for another exciting year in 2017.

Best wishes,

Dale Perichon