Careers

Careers Report

Year 12

I would like to wish our 2019 Year 12 cohort the best of luck after successfully completing 13 years of school. This is a great achievement and you should be proud!

ATAR results are released on Thursday 12th December and after this time I will be available for students to help with any course preference changes or sourcing different pathway options.

As I have previously mentioned to the Year 12 group, I am here to assist everyone with careers support regardless of whether they are current students at Lowanna College. I want students to know they can contact me anytime in the future and I will be here to help in any way I can. This could include resumes, TAFE courses, or job applications just to name a few. The Careers door is always open to past and present students!

“Success doesn’t just find you. You have to go out and get it.”

BrainSTEM 12 week Food & Fibre challenge

The BrainSTEM mission is to ‘build a global STEM collaboration platform where students from all over the world are inspired to think and innovate by solving real world problems that matter to them – Engage – Inspire – Innovation’

On Wednesday 30th October the BrainSTEM Regional Innovation Challenge presentation event was held. Lowanna had two teams representing the College and they did a fantastic job! Both teams worked extremely hard over the 12 week challenge and did themselves and Lowanna proud. The BrainSTEM challenge area of participation included South Gippsland, East Gippsland, Baw Baw Shire and Latrobe Valley, with 9 teams being a part of the challenge. Participating schools included catholic, independent and the public sector.Taking this into account having 2 teams represent Lowanna is a fantastic achievement.

Teams:

‘Reducing greenhouse gases in the world’ : Ian Savige, Bibek Gaire & Malakai Ross Spicer

‘Measurement and control of Botrytis cinerea in Greenhouse Tomatoes’ : Mackenzie Moir & Talisha Egginton.

Our students gained some valuable skills from this challenge including team work, critical thinking, problem solving, initiative, research and presentation skills along with developing working relationships with their mentors.

Well done!

VEET Program (Victorian Energy & Education Training)

A Celebration evening was held to acknowledge the students participation along with thanking the businesses that support this fantastic program. It was a great way to wrap up after some amazing experiences for our students.

Congratulations to Zac Skinner, Zoe Mitrovic and Jacob Johnson for undertaking and successfully completing the 2019 VEET program.

A huge thank you to AusNet, AGL and Baw Baw Latrobe LLEN for making this program possible.

Ecolinc

Ecolinc is a Science and Technology Innovations Centre in Bacchus Marsh which provides sustainable environmental programs for students. It was an early start at 5.30am to ensure we arrived by 9am to attend the “Emerging Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) for Women Program” The day consisted of guest speakers, a range of workshops and a ‘STEM Careers speed-dating’ session where the students got to meet, talk with, and learn from, a range of women in the STEM fields. Some of the fantastic activities included making green biodegradable plastic, which is made from potato starch, vinegar and glycerine. Students then learned how this impacts our environment and which parts of the world this plastic is being used. Careers speed dating was a great opportunity for our students to ask lots of questions to the guest speakers about their careers, likes, pathways and journey. Another activity was the ‘space glove challenge’, this involved students using their design thinking ability to problem solve and create a glove that could withstand the testing process of space requirements. Students needed to ensure the glove included all 4 elements: dexterity, flexibility, temperature control and comfort all while collaborating within their group. Please see the link below to the Ecolinc website for further information about this program.

https://www.ecolinc.vic.edu.au/news/ecolinc-women-stem-program-2019

Work Experience

Group 2 completed their work experience placement last week. We conducted site visits or calls to see how students were enjoying their time and chat with them about their experience in the workforce. It was great to see and hear so many students giving positive feedback. The employers also gave great feedback on how well the students had been working. Congratulations Year 10’s on a wonderful week of discovering the world of work and learning new employability skills while establishing a great rapport with local businesses.

On behalf of Lowanna College I would like to thank and recognise the following local businesses:

Moe Veterinary Centre, Moe Childcare and Kindergarten Centre, Trafalgar Primary School, Gauci’s Electrics P/L, Valley Computer Solutions, Safetech, Robbie J’s Automotive, Little Saints Early Learning Centre, Curly & George Hair on Rutherglen, Evolution by Ebony, South Street Primary School, Onsite Machining & Pipeline Services, Moe Bowling Club, Newborough East Primary School, Latrobe Community Health Services, Latrobe City, Newborough Primary School, Coles, Jump & Climb, Powersauce Electrical, Images Skin and Waxing Centre, Harvey Norman, Ridley’s Plumbing, DELWP, Hydraulic & Pneumatic Pty Ltd, Preston Coe & Ring, Petbarn, Paul Graham Building, Hot FX, AGL Loy Yang, Narracan Primary School, Bunnings, Paint Spot, Speedweb, old Sale Road Veterinary Services, Latrobe Valley Machining, Prezioso Transport Pty Ltd, Elizabeth Street Primary School, Nuggies Roofing, McDonalds, The Dark Horse, Sparrow Early Learning, Leicester Plumbing, Albert Street Primary School, Deans Smash Repairs, Billie Vic Pty Ltd, Vinnies, Gippsland Tennis Coaching, Willow Grove Primary School, Indulge Yourself Beauty Therapy Spa & Laser Clinic, Latrobe Regional Hospital and Verhoeven & Curtain

HMAS Cerberus

HMAS Cerberus is a Royal Australian Navy base that serves as the primary training establishment for Royal Australian Navy (RAN) personnel and is located adjacent to Crib Point on the Mornington Peninsula. Lowanna students had the opportunity to visit and participate in a tour of the base and it was amazing! We started the day with at ‘recruitment school’ where students heard about the entry requirements into the defence force and what is needed to be a successful recruit. Following this we moved into the dormitories to see how a ‘recruits’ reside, seeing how their beds need to made, wardrobe organised and general expectations of the RAN. Next was a visit to the School of survivability and ship safety. Students watched training demonstrations that included ‘plugging holes’, fire management and water flooding drills. Lunch was held in the Sailors Café and students dinned with all defence force personnel experiencing what it would be like in real life. After lunch we went to the marine technical workshop where students looked at all the different trades available through the defence forces. Students were shown the weapons unit and had the chance to look at torpedos, how they are stored and the process in firing. A demonstration was given to manage a fire given this part of a ship is high danger risk to fire outbreak, this included working the sprinkler and hose system. RAN personnel conducted a ‘dry’ firing from the torpedo case – it was really loud! Once this concluded we then moved on the Boatswain facility to hear about seamen sailors training, which includes all aspects of safety along with some of their other duties. Students participated in a simulated boat driving drill which sailors train on. To conclude the day we went to Music Hall to hear the RAN band in action. Who would have thought you could join the Navy as a musician? The band wer