Coburg High School Newsletter

Principal's Report

Principal's Update

Welcome back to school everyone and we look forward to a fantastic term two.

 

It is a pleasure to welcome Belinda Parini to Coburg High School as the Assistant Principal of Curriculum, Teaching & Learning. Belinda brings extensive experience in educational leadership and will be responsible for overall leadership of our curriculum structures, our teaching and learning framework, assessment and reporting processes, staff professional development, Parent Student Teacher conferences, and the pre-service teaching candidate programs.

Gary Vella, Assistant Principal of Student Support and Engagement, continues with overall leadership of our student engagement and wellbeing policies, structures and programs, enrolment processes, camps and excursions, emergency management, security and minor works.

 

There has been significant work at our school over the autumn holidays, particularly with the removal of the old basketball courts and the (temporary) removal of the path beside the gym in readiness for the laying of the four new outdoor courts, a new bicycle path and team shelters. 

 

 

OUTDOOR COURT CONSTRUCTION STARTS

 

To mark and celebrate the commencement of works on our $560,000 netball & multipurpose court construction project, we were honoured to have a visit to the school by the Minister of Sports & Recreation, John Eren, the Mayor of Moreland, John Kavanagh and Moreland Councillor Natalie Abboud, for the ‘turning of the sod’ event at the start of term.

The project is a partnership with Sports & Recreation Victoria, Netball Victoria, Moreland City Council and the Coburg High School Council. Thank you to Cate Hall (School Council Vice President) as well as our school captains, Dilara Seyis and Spud Harrap, and three of our keen student netballers, Mackenzie Toyer, Sophie Breen and Sophie Carter for welcoming our visitors and joining the event. 

 

 

These four new courts are scheduled to be completed by the beginning of August, if not earlier, weather permitting. They will make a significant difference to the expansion of our sporting facilities as we continue to grow in enrolments.

 

 

 

One of our four core values as a school is ‘Community’ because we expect students to be community-minded, we believe that our school fulfils an integral role within the wider Coburg community, and we aim to actively contribute to the the wider world. Over the past two years we have developed a positive relationship with Moreland council through programs and opportunities at Oxygen Youth Space, MoreArt, the Leisure Centre and the Library as well as involvement in community events such as the Rainbow Parade. We are proud to have partnered with Moreland Council to develop these new courts and it is pleasing to see that work come to fruition with the commencement of construction works.

 

These new state-of-the-art sport courts will enable our students to play netball, basketball, tennis and futsal here at school and, in the evenings and on the weekends, we anticipate that the court hire will lead to a renewal of participation in physical activity within the Moreland community through regular netball training and competition. 

 

During the course of the court construction and until the reinstatement of the path, student access from the front of the school will have to be across the oval or via the pathway from Alva Grove. 

 

 

ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

 

On Wednesday 9 May, we will hold our school council’s Annual General Meeting with the tabling of our Annual Report (for 2017/2018) from 6.00 to 6.30pm, directly followed by a Uniform Forum for parent consultation and feedback on the Coburg High School Uniform Policy from 6.30 to 7.30pm. All members of the Coburg High School community are invited to attend the AGM and/or the Uniform Forum, which will be held in Building A here at school.

 

 

Our existing Uniform Policy—which is available on the school’s website—will be reviewed this term by school council, following consultation and feedback from students, staff and parents. Just as we held community consultation last year on our planned renovations and facility upgrades with the architects, this term we will hold an open and public discussion about the Uniform Policy and, in particular, whether additional items will be incorporated into the uniform at the junior and middle years (such as pants, dresses and skirts) and whether there ought to be a uniform policy in the senior year levels (Years 11 & 12).

 

 

 

Currently, students in Years 7 to 10 are required to wear the school uniform and students in the senior levels (Year 11 and 12) may wear casual clothes in line with the minimum standards in the Dress Code.

 

 

 

The Uniform Policy outlines the reasons for our student uniform, and the rationale includes a number of aims:

 

  • Fostering a sense of community and belonging and showing that, despite individual differences, students are proud of, and unified in, their membership of Coburg High School;
  • Staff duty of care for student safety: Enabling staff to effectively supervise students and ensure their safety by being able to quickly identify and account for students both within the school grounds and when out on excursions (and, similarly, members of the wider community can look out for our students when they are walking, riding, scooting or taking public transport to and from school) and this includes being able to quickly identify any strangers on or around school grounds;
  • Pride in appearance: Ensuring that the uniform is one that students can feel proud and comfortable to wear and that it reflects our school ethos and values and is suited to an active and interactive education;
  • Fostering consistency in expectations and clarity for everyone about acceptable attire at school so that all students are wearing clothes that are safe and appropriate;
  • Promoting equality and inclusion by ensuring that, regardless of gender, cultural background and socio-economic status, students are on an equal footing with clothing at school; and preventing bullying and competition on the basis of clothing;
  • Enabling students to learn that clothing is multidimensional and to develop a sense of occasion and a recognition that there are times and places for dressing casually, for dressing to express individuality, and for expressing solidarity with others and fitting in with workplace dress standards, because many organisations, professions, sports, and performance arenas require members or participants to wear uniforms;
  • Meeting community standards of dress and presentation and enhancing the profile and identity of Coburg High School and our students within the wider community;
  • Potentially reducing the time and costs involved in decision-making and purchasing of alternative clothing for school;
  • Promoting sustainability by facilitating the sharing and distribution of second-hand items between families within t