From the Principal

It is with a degree of sadness that I announce that at the end of their contracts, our Deputy Principal Students, Mr Robert Blackley (pictured below left), and Deputy Principal Staff, Mr John Christie will step down from their roles.

Both Mr Blackley and Mr Christie are men of incredible integrity. They have offered untold wisdom, humour and loyal support both to myself in my first year, and to former principal Mark Sheehan over many years.

They demonstrate true servant leadership and have placed the College in a wonderful position due to their work ethic and innovation. Their corporate wisdom and calm heads will certainly be missed.

It is with pleasure that I announce the appointment of the following positions from the beginning of 2021:

Deputy Principal Operations, Staffing and Strategic Intent - Mr Michael Wilcock

Mr Wilcock has been an educator in South Australia for more than 30 years. He brings a wealth of leadership experience, having held roles as Deputy Principal Staff, Director of Teaching and Learning, Head of Senior School, Year 10-12 Coordinator and Head of Science. Mr Wilcock holds a Masters in Teacher Development and will bring energy and experience to the role.

Deputy Principal Student Wellbeing - Mrs Cheryl Bullen

Mrs Bullen also comes to CRC with a wide variety of experience, including Acting Assistant Principal Wellbeing, Year Level Coordinator experience and Head of Physical Education. Mrs Bullen brings experience from both the United Kingdom and Australia and is currently studying her Masters of Educational Leadership.

Director of Faith and Mission – Mr Shaun Coates

Mr Coates will take up this newly created position of Director of Faith and Mission. A current and valued member of the leadership team, Mr Coates brings many years of experience, good humour and temperance to the role together with a deep understanding of the different faith positions of our staff and students.

COVID-19 update

Thank you to our students, staff and parents who have continued to be agile during the pandemic.

As the situation changes daily, adjustments to arrangements are closely monitored by the Leadership Team. I thank our Year 11 and 12 students who are transitioning to Distance Learning Mode (DLM) this week.

I know that for some of our Year 12 students, the return to DLM will be disappointing. But one thing I know for certain about young people is that they are resilient, flexible and optimistic.

During my recess morning tea sessions with the student leaders, I have been inspired by the positivity and hopefulness of our students. Some even mentioned the benefits of lockdown: “With no 18^th birthday parties, no training for sport midweek, no Saturday sport I am more inclined to study. With no distractions, I have been able to study more than I would have without a lockdown”.

For our teaching staff, it has provided an opportunity for innovation and collaboration. I remain confident that this second round of distance learning will deliver excellent learning experiences for our students.

Looking Ahead

From the Deputy Principal Learning and Teaching

We live in everchanging times and as we move into Week 4, our Year 11 and Year 12 students join Year 7 to 10 in Distance Learning Mode (DLM).

Today classes for Year 7 to 11 students were undertaken in DLM with Year 12 students on-site for their lessons and to collect their resources. Our Year 12s will begin DLM from tomorrow, Wednesday 5 August.

The College continually reviews the way students are managing distance learning and will make adjustments as required. Our teachers regularly reflect on how engaged students are ways they can encourage creativity while delivering their lessons.

Parents can support their child’s learning and concerns through these uncertain times by highlighting the positive opportunities that arise.

Online information evenings

COVID-19 has resulted in restrictions at the College site, which has presented many new challenges this year.

While changes have occurred to the way we deliver our lessons, the restrictions have also affected the way we provide our subject, elective and pathway information for 2021.

Our Year 9 students and their families will take part in the Year 10 2021 Information Night online tomorrow (Wednesday 5 August) from 7pm to 8pm via Teams.

The presentation will cover the many choices available to students as they move into their senior years of schooling. If students choose to undertake either the Vincit or Year 10 VCAL pathway, interviews are required. More information will be made available tomorrow evening.

Last Wednesday our Year 11 2021 subject selection interviews took place with Year 10 students, parents and guardians via Teams.

Families welcomed the format and appreciated the change from being required on-site. These invaluable conversations help guide students as they select subjects and pathways to achieve success. Many thanks to all the teachers and families who participated.

Please contact Year 10 Coordinator Ms Rebecca Cassar if you have any further questions on the information received during the interviews.

May we all support each other as we navigate another interesting and newly challenging term.

From the Deputy Principal Staff

2021 Subject Selection

Year 10 and 11 students must finalise their 2021 subject selections by this Friday 7 August. 

Please ensure the student Subject Selection page and Web Preferences receipt are submitted to the relevant Homeroom teacher.

From the Front Office

School Fee Payments

Families who make school fee payments directly through an ATM cash deposit should advise the front office of their payment.

Screen Time App

With a return to Distance Learning Mode in Term 3, students will spend more time in front of a screen as part of their daily classes.

Learning from home may also present students with many distractions that can inhibit their productivity and work completion. Distractions may include YouTube, FaceTime, games, social media apps and streaming platforms (ie Netflix).

To minimise distractions and support their learning, parents and guardians may find the Screen Time app useful. It can be activated on Apple devices.

To set Screen Time on your child’s iPad:

• Go to Settings
• Scroll down to the Screen Time app (purple hourglass icon)
• Follow the prompts to set time limits for apps. You can also set a code to restrict your child from changing or removing the limit

There are several settings you can apply, the two most important being:

Downtime - during set times, only apps you choose to allow and phone calls will be accessible. An idea could be to select school hours as downtime.

App Limits – set a time limit for the use of chosen apps each day (ie two hours a day for YouTube). The limit resets at midnight. When the time limit has been reached, the app can no longer be used.

For more detail and instructions on how to set up Screen Time follow this link- https://support.apple.com/en-au/HT208982

Positive Social Media Practices

Year 10 students Nathan Furtado and Sara Mantilla Mesa took part in a Facebook Safety by Design report presentation held by Trust, Transparency, Control Labs last week.

The online conference discussed ways that social media platforms can design their applications for trust, transparency and control for young people who use them.

This was a follow-up conference to one Nathan and Sara attended at Facebook’s Sydney office last year.

Concepts and ideas raised last year were taken into consideration and implemented by the design team for Facebook and Instagram. The newly launched Messenger Kids was influenced by ideas from last year’s design jam. Various new ideas were discussed and brainstormed, with a focus on screen time and privacy.

Congratulations to Nathan and Sara for representing CRC and contributing to the development of good social media practice.

Year 8 Class Captain Program

Our new Year 8 class captains have been appointed for Semester 2.

Up to two students in each homeroom can be elected under the leadership program, which aims to develop students’ communication, public speaking, organisation and problem-solving skills. It also helps students prepare for leadership opportunities in their senior years at the College.

Students can nominate themselves for class captain and are elected by their homeroom.

Captains help run the Recognition and Domestique Awards, pass on ideas from their homeroom to the Year Level Coordinator, collect resources and notes, encourage and assist their peers and can be selected for additional experiences and opportunities.

On behalf of the Year 8 cohort, including staff and students, we would also like to congratulate the following students who have been elected Class Captains for Semester 2:

We would also like to thank the Semester 1 Class Captains for their efforts.

Drawing Competition

Entries for the CRC Melton House Mascot Drawing Competition are now open.

This year we are holding a drawing competition that will earn students house points for creating a team mascot for their house. The mascots are:

REED -Sharks

GLASHEEN -- Bulls

FITZGERALD -- Bulldogs

DAFFEY -- Dragons

Your artwork can be created using pen and paper or digitally. Entries close on Monday 17 August at 3pm. Winners will receive a gift card and have their work published on the school’s social media pages.

Students should submit their best work to Miss Segrave at jsegrave@sfcc.vic.edu.au or Arts and Culture Captain Elizabeth McKay at 528651@sfcc.vic.edu.au

A Message From Our Student Support Services Team

Here’s what we want students and parents to know when we’re not together:

You matter, and we miss you.

The whole purpose of the COVID-19 restrictions is to keep us safe and healthy. We miss being in the classroom with students. However, we are now learning together in an online environment. We know that being at home is tough on everyone, so now is the time to dig deep and be kind.

School is important, but so is your health. Take care of yourself and each other. And, no matter what happens this year, be proud of yourself, your resilience, and your ability to adapt to these extreme circumstances we are all experiencing. 

Support staff are waiting in the wings of each class and will assist students remotely until it’s safe enough to be back in the classroom. 

Although there is considerable anxiety and uncertainty at this time, our focus is to support each other, our students, families and the CRC community. We call on everyone to pull together in a spirit of collaboration, a characteristic for which CRC Melton is known.

We realise online learning cannot fully substitute the quality of a face-to-face classroom. However, we are well prepared to provide students with creative and unique opportunities to continue their education while the College is in Distance Learning Mode.

Who can I talk to?

For learning-related concerns please message the classroom teacher first and then support staff.

If you see or hear something online that you are worried about please message your child’s Year Level Coordinator.

Our school psychologists (Sarah Abass and Rachel DiNatale) are also available via email as normal.

For any IT issues email itsupport@sfcc.vic.edu.au or phone the College directly for urgent cases.

VET During Distance Learning

The College currently has 108 Year 10 to 12 students participating in Vocational Education and Training (VET) or School Based Apprenticeships and Traineeships (SBAT).

VET and SBAT subjects are delivered by CRC Melton and CRC Sydenham, institutions within the Western Edge Cluster (WEC), Victoria University Polytechnic (Sunshine), Apprenticeships Group Australia (AGA), TMG and U-Train (City), Mambourin (Derrimut) and Kangan TAFE (City, Richmond and Broadmeadows).

COVID-19 and the implementation of Distant Learning Mode (DLM) has resulted in a complete overhaul of how VET and SBAT are currently being delivered.

These subjects are recognised as being hands-on, which has proved challenging during online learning. However, the implementation of online lessons provides students with the opportunity to focus on the theory components of the course or complete practical tasks at home.

Trainers and students have still been hard at work learning new skills and applications. Below are some of the tasks VET and SBAT students have completed while in DLM.

2020 Non Government School Census

The Australian Government provides funding to Australian schools under the Australian Education Act 2013 (AE Act). The AE Act and the associated Australian Education Regulation 2013 (the AE Regulation) require that a school authority provides the Australian Government with certain information about the school, its staff, and student body to ensure the school’s funding is properly calculated and appropriately managed. This information is collected by the Department of Education, Skills and Employment (the department) on behalf of the Australian Government.

More information is available below. 

2020 Census Privacy Notice

Community Notices

Data Collection on Students with a Disability

Every year, all schools in Australia participate in the Nationally Consistent Collection of Data on School Students with Disability (NCCD).For more information please view the letter below.

NCCD Letter to Parents