Dear Parents & Guardians

It has been a week of celebration and recognition, tinged with a little sadness, as we farewelled the Year 12 class of 2016.

Whilst students often dream about the last day of school and how wonderful it will be to be free of books & bells, this group was very reluctant to go home last Wednesday. They just wanted to enjoy their final time together as a whole year level, and that was lovely to see.

Year 12 Awards Night

Parents, staff, School Councillors and special guests joined the graduating VCAL and VCE students on Wednesday 12 October at the Clocktower Centre in Moonee Ponds in a celebration of their academic, leadership and citizenship achievements, both individually and as a group.

The Senior School team, led by Ms Stav Bekiaris and Ms Anna Woods, together with School Council President, Dr Tracy Nero, presented the Graduation Certificate and gifts to the Year 12’s. Also recognised were the award winners for each subject, as well as the special achievement and scholarship recipients.

We were delighted to welcome former student, Ms Simela Karasividis, as our guest speaker for the evening. Simela’s background is as a commercial lawyer specialising in the infrastructure sector. She has worked on major projects in Australia, the UK, the Middle East, Europe and Africa.

After 15 years in London as an International partner with law firm, White & Case, Simela recently returned to Australia as a founding partner of Pinset Masons Australian Operatons. When she burst back on the scene a couple of years ago to renew her ties with the school, it was her genuine enthusiasm for and commitment to opportunities for young people that stood out. Simela is a passionate advocate for education, equal opportunity, and for making a positive difference in your community.

And this is what she spoke about at the Awards Night. She encouraged the Year 12’s to dream big, to take every opportunity presented to them, and to be persistent in working towards achieving their goals, particularly in the face of opposition or setbacks. This was very much Simela’s personal experience. It was inspiring to hear about her career pathway, and the truly unexpected places it has taken her. And it was a pleasure to be able to welcome her back to St Albans.

School Captains, Caroline Vo and Chris Mabiala, spoke beautifully on behalf of the Year 12’s students, reflecting on six years of friendship, achievement and personal growth. Vice Captains, Annie Pham and Warkaw Admassu, captured the group’s six years in their photo story. And, of course, no graduation would be complete without musical performances.

We were entertained by the Year 12 Vet Music students – Georgette Pavlides, Christopher Mabiala, Tafania Aumua Aigofie, Jimmy Vuong & Paris Guanzon.

Our very special congratulations to each of the subject award winners, and to the following award winners:

VCAL Excellence Award – Abdi Mohamed

VCE Academic Excellence Award – Garry Nguyen

Caltex Best All Rounder – Czarina Estores

Long Tan Leadership & Teamwork Award – Caroline Vo

A list of subject prize winners appears on the Senior Sub School Report on page 16.

Whole School Assembly

The next event to farewell the Year 12's was the whole School Assembly to acknowledge the contributions of our graduating Year 12 students. It was a highlight event for the school community as the Year 12 students entered wearing costumes which varied from famous film characters to ballerinas to a scary looking tiger shark. We were entertained by a beautiful rendition of our National Anthem and musical presentations from Year 9, 11 & 12 bands.

Students from Years 11, Danya Gessesse & Fai Srikhum & 7 Fenella Tran & Steven Le, thanked the Year 12's for their leadership and the School Captains Chris Mabiala & Caroline Vo responded on behalf of the Year 12 cohort.

With the assistance of staff and our special guest, School Council President, Dr Tracy Nero, the college awarded Leadership and Citizenship certificates to students nominated by their classroom teachers, and the prestigious Roger Martin award went to Julie Vo for her passion for and potential in science. Caroline Vo of Year 12 and Ling Sun of Year 10 were awarded the Long Tan Leadership & Teamwork awards in recognition of their qualities of leadership, respect for others, friendship and a commitment to doing their best.

We were treated to a parade of the fashion creations of our VET Fashion students who came within a point of winning the recent Fashion Awards Australia event. Year 11 designer Kim Hoang proudly carried her award for Young Designer of the Year that she won on the night. Nhi Tran of 8B & My Phung Dang of 11A were very excited students who took home special prizes by having their names drawn from all students who have met our attendance requirements and distinguished themselves by meeting the school’s expectations on behaviour and community responsibility.

Nhi Tran of 8B & My Phung Dang of 11A

A big thank you to everyone involved in the assembly, staff and students, which allowed us once again to come together as a school community and, not only celebrate our values of support and respect for each other, but also to have the opportunity to let the students know how proud we are of them all.

Year 12 Celebration Day

The class of 2016 marked their last day as students at St Albans Secondary College with a wonderful celebration on the college green. The day began with students arriving early to school with big smiles and dressed in an impressive array of colourful costumes. The cool weather certainly did not dampen their enthusiasm as they took this final opportunity to take lots of photos with their peers and teachers.

Students enjoyed a BBQ lunch, especially cooked for them by Ms Deb Pane and Ms Susan White, enjoyed music and dancing and, of course, there were lots of selfies taken by all. The positive, inclusive and harmonious atmosphere was lovely to see.

A highlight was the Greek dance “The Zorba” led by Ms Stav Bekiaris and an energetic group of students from all cultural backgrounds. This created some memorable moments for the students.

Thank you to all of our Year 12 students for your excellent behaviour in your final weeks at school. You have maintained the tradition at St Albans, of remaining focussed to the end and celebrating your years at school with respect and fun.

Big Day In – Grade 6 Transition News

Earlier this week, we welcomed our incoming Year 7’s for 2017 to the college as part of our annual Big Day In.

The day is an opportunity for the new Year 7’s to become more familiar with the school, our staff, and, most importantly, their peers from other schools. They played games & took part in a range of fun activities, and enjoyed musical presentations by our current students.

Their feedback at the end of the day was that they felt more comfortable about starting secondary school.

Congratulations & thank you to our Transition Coordinator, Ms Marlene Cassar, and her team of student leaders, and to our Wellbeing Team for their organisation of the Big Day In.

The next event in our Transistion program is the Parent Information Morning on Monday 5 December, followed by Grade 6 Orientaton Day on Tuesday 6 December.

Kicking GOALS

Over the last 6 months, 20 of our Year 9 students have participated in the ABCN Goals Program.

GOALS provides selected students with the opportunity to work with a mentor from the business community, through our partnership with Australian Business & Community Network (ABCN).

It was such a pleasure to be part of the closing Ceremony and to hear participants talk about how their confidence, communication, and interview skills, and their understanding of the business world have grown and developed throughout the program.

Thank you to ABCN, business partners Ernst & Young and Norton Roase FUllbright, and to Assistant Sub School Leaders, Ms Shone Cowell, for their organistion of GOALS.

And congratulations to the Year 9 participants!

Year 8E Strathbogie Camp