I must start this newsletter article with acknowledgement of the fantastic experience had by all of our Year 7 campers last week. Upon departing, I spoke to the students about the opportunity that a camp offers students and in particular the lifelong memories that will remain with them from this experience. We all remember our Year 7 camp! The weather offered its challenges, but so too did the canoeing, high ropes, and mountain bike riding. Well done to all who tried something new, challenged themselves and had a great time doing so! A big thank you goes out to all the staff who attended the camp and our Peer Support leaders who enabled this experience to be realised for students.

Similarly, last Wednesday we had a number of our students take part in the Regional Aspirations Day. The Local Aboriginal Education Consultative Group (LAECG) staged Aspirations Day for Koorie secondary students enrolled at all schools in the Barwon Area in 2023. This year there was a strong focus on Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) pathways. The day, staged at the Geelong Technical School, featured presenters in technology and offered mathematical creative problem-solving workshops.

This week, we welcomed Amanda Rusiniak, a new staff member to the College. Amanda is a wonderful person and a very skilled teacher who will be teaching Science and Mathematics. Sadly, the College must say goodbye to Mr Ryan McGee (IT) and Mrs Adele McKiernan (Library) this week. Both have been great assets to the College over an extended period of time and we wish them all the best with the next chapter in life.

On Thursday, we will pause our regular learning program to celebrate Wellbeing Day. The day will focus on holistic wellbeing and will be an opportunity for staff and students to engage in many activities that promote and encourage us to all be our best self. Congratulations goes to our student leaders from our SLAM team, our wellbeing staff, Ms McInnes, and all those who have contributed to the planning of the day. I am certainly looking forward to the experience, but perhaps not so much the intended ‘dunk the teacher’ activity that I agreed to sign up to! It will be a great day!

Last week, you received the mid-term, third instalment of our Positive Learning Qualities (PLQ’s) on Compass. The information contained in the easy-to-read graphical presentation refers to our School Values of Learning, Respect and Working Together. Hopefully you have had an opportunity to reflect on the information shared with your student(s) and have been able to support in continuing our endeavours to maximise growth and outcomes. As always, please reach out to teachers should you wish to discuss any matter further.

Finally, whilst we are on the topic of feedback, I should say that I am very impressed with the collective focus on 'Good Order' in the classroom and student presentation regarding uniform. I thank you all for this collective approach and the continued understanding and support.

Have a great week!

Mr McLeod

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Mr Scott McLeod, Acting Principal
Mr James Murphy, Assistant Principal
Mr Jeremy Sinclair, Acting Assistant Principal