Weekly Wrap
Welcome to week 6.
The first term has been busy and focused. Our students are doing well in class. The long weekend is a great opportunity for everyone to take a collective breath, have a mini break, and refresh for the final few weeks before school holidays.
The Year 7 Leonardo Centre work made some progress across week 6. A timeline and project plan for restoration works was developed and we hope to be able to announce that next week. Our plan has been to get our Year 7 students back in their centre in Term 2, and we are still hopeful of this.
This week our staff participated in some cultural safety training specifically focused around Deaf Culture. We are very proud of our students in the Deaf Facility, and the staff at the College are committed to ensuring they get the same access to quality education as their hearing peers. Next week the staff who are new to the College will do some training in indigenous cultural safety. The College strives to be an inclusive environment for all learners. Developing staff capacity in a formal sense to implement challenging curriculum for all learners in a culturally safe space is a very important element of inclusiveness. We are excited to announce the College has purchase two additional flag poles to further represent the diversity of the cohort. These should be installed in the coming weeks.
Next week a group of students will be working on the formalizing of a story around William Barack,(1824-1903), and Aboriginal spokesman, and last chief of the Yarra Yarra tribe. Barak is now best remembered for his artworks, which show both traditional Indigenous life and encounters with Europeans. They are now highly prized and exhibited in leading public galleries in Australia. His work is on permanent display in the National Gallery of Victoria Ian Potter Centre at Federation Square, Melbourne. In 2005 a 525-metre footbridge called the ‘William Barak Bridge’ was constructed stretching from Birrarung Marr to the MCG, improving the link between some of Melbourne’s biggest sports and entertainment venues and the heart of the CBD. He is reputed to have predicted his death would coincide with the flowering of the wattle. Local Wurundjeri have used the flowering of the wattle as a time to check in with family and friends to monitor their health in his honour. The College has planted a wattle beneath our flag poles, and the students developing a link between the wattle tree, the colour yellow and ‘Are You Ok Day’. This story will be written on a plaque and placed on a rock by two seats outside the front office as a symbol of the College’s commitment to supporting the mental health of all its members.
On Monday this week our Year 9 and 10 students had the opportunity to represent the College in inter school sport. Our Cricket, Volleyball and Tennis teams competed well and represented the College in the manner we expect. Congratulations to our Tennis Team on their success. They will now advance to the next level of competition. This is a very strong team, as you would expect, given we have a tennis academy. The students in this team all commence training around 7:45am four days a week and are very highly ranked in the country, and we are very proud of their efforts.
Our Debating teams met during the week in preparation for their next debate.
Division swimming was held on Friday, and the College had 13 competitors representing us.
Notable results:
Madeleine C – 1st 13yr Female Butterfly / 1st 13yr Female Freestyle / 1st 13Yr Female Backstroke
Arnon W, Jasper M, Ethan J , James E – 1st 13yr Male 4 x 50m Relay
Other results:
Madeleine C– 3rd 13Yr Female 50m Breastroke
Arnon Ws – 4th 13Yr Male Breastroke / 3rd 50m Butterfly / 3rd 50m Freestyle
Tahlia C – 3rd 14Yr Female 50m Breastroke / 2nd 50m Butterfly / 5th 50m Freestyle / 5th 50m Backstroke
Ewan H – 4th 14Yr Male 50m Breastroke / 5th 50m Backstroke
Iefan G – 3rd 16Yr Male 50m Breastroke / 3rd 50m Freestyle / 4th 50m Backstroke
William P – 5th 14Yr Male 50m Butterfly / 5th 50m Freestyle
Hunter T – 5th 13Yr Male Backstroke
College Council Election Outcome
Following the close of voting, I would like to congratulate Lyndell and Bronwyn on their return to Council. I would like to thank all members of the community who voted and of course the unsuccessful candidates for putting themselves forward. I really appreciate the interest in Council that has been shown through this process.
Have a happy and safe weekend.
David Rogers – Principal