Principal Report

A message from the Principal

Ms Nerina Pretlove

How wonderful it was to finish Term 2 with so many events reflecting the values of our school that make it such a great place for learning and work. As I have referred to previously, over the past two years we have been restricted to holding large scale events and this has been disappointing for students and staff alike. However, with the lifting of those pandemic related orders, we were able to celebrate Refugee Week along with our delayed Harmony Day celebrations; NAIDOC and the opening of our spectacular refurbished Science labs. 

It was both sad and wonderful to see the Ukrainian flag, along with those of 60 other nations which represent our students’ diverse backgrounds, flying around our quad during our Refugee Week celebrations. We were excited to have the Deputy Secretary of Education, Murat Dizdar join our Director of Education, Toni Kember, to hear of the incredible journeys which some of our students have undertaken to safety and to join us at Evans. They were stories of sadness and pain wrapped up in tenacity and resilience.

Later, the school’s stage exploded with colour, music and dance led by our First Nations students that demonstrated the amazing cultural diversity and talent of our students. We then poured out of the Hall to an international food fair with stalls all around the quad representing foods from all the populated continents of the world. The food quickly disappeared – we will have to make more next year! 

After a number of years’ work, we were able to unveil Mirrung – our Yarning Circle in time for NAIDOC week. We were thrilled to have Uncle Wes to lead the Smoking Ceremony. He brought his wisdom and started a culture of sharing our individual journey through the telling of some of his poetry from his recently released book ‘Through Old Eyes’. Uncle Wes shared Dreamtime stories with the students, guests and staff as they sat around Mirrung. Our Solid Ground dancers and singers showcased their skills to the music of Emily Wurramara who also joined us on the day. We were thrilled to have past Year 12 student Coda Ridley design the artwork for the plaque and complete two paintings which will hang in the Library. Debbie Higgison from Solid Ground was an immense support through our whole process. Uncle Wes requested that Mirrung be a place for all to share their stories and we will make that a practice. 

The realisation of Mirrung belongs to Jackie Smith, our Business Manager. From the time that she had arrived in our school three years ago, Jackie had a vision for the renovation of the TAS Quad to create a special space that recognised the First Nations people who had walked and learned on these lands for tens of thousands of years. She achieved that almost to the day that she left us to return to her previous position in another school!

 Jackie has worked tirelessly on many projects to provide state of the art learning spaces, and improved grounds in addition to the refinement of our administration and business processes. Jackie will be sorely missed and her impact on our school has been immeasurable. We wish her well and thank her for putting her heart into Evans. 

Our last big event was ceremonial hand over of the totally refurbished Science Labs. They have been on the drawing board for a number of years and it was with great pleasure that the Head Teacher, Chitra Marasinghe and her Science staff formalised the moment with ribbon cutting ceremony. A nice way to end the term! 

None of the above would have been possible without the incredible work of staff including IEC DP Ms Liau, HT CAPA, Mick Dempsey, Ms Liku, Ms Lloyd, Ms Dixon, Ms Kavanagh and many others. We have a great team here at Evans! 

Nerina Pretlove 

Principal