As appears to be the norm these days, the alumni program got off to yet another flying start this term. First up, there was alumni presence at our Community Partners and Business Breakfast, Wednesday May 2, with Mariah Magri (Class of 2013) representing Brimbank Youth Services, and Eangano Singehebhuye (Class of 2015) flying the Western Chances flag along with his own as founder of charity Acts of Random Kindness (ARK).  It was wonderful to catch up with them both and to hear about all the good works they’re doing in community.

On another note, I am always on the scout for prospective future Q&A candidates, and the two year 12 students, Brendan Dang 12X and Crystal Nguyen 12W, have most certainly secured a spot on the list! They engaged and captured the audience completely with their eloquence and authenticity and left many with overwhelming feelings of awe and admiration. Bravo to Brendan and Crystal, we look forward to hearing about their future endeavours in the years to come.

Next, we invited Jason Nguyen (Class of 2020) to come back for a Q&A with VCE maths students. Jason, who is studying a Bachelor of Biomedicine at the Monash University, met with the students Thursday May 4th (be with you!) to chat about his study habits (good and bad) during Y12 and university preparation. He passed on many hot tips for effective study practice during SACs and exams and offered practical recommendations for settling into university.  He offered sage advice on being an intentional learner and taking responsibility for your learning now before you realise the hard way that the university environment is very different to high school, and one where you won’t succeed unless you can be self-driven. HOT TIP #1: Using a digital calendar, time block everything! From specific subject study time to hanging out with your friends – and put your phone away during those blocks.

 

And finally, Wednesday May 10, we had a session in the Performing Arts Centre with former SASC student and TikTok sensation Vincent Ton (Class of 2014), aka @Vindooly. To say the students were excited is an understatement! With a hefty turnout of 270 students, the crowd listened intently as Vincent gave a colourful account of how he creates content for TikTok and how he broke into the e-sports world. Although he advised against creating content for attention, he urged students to just keep trying and to dare to be different.  There were those that won a PWR pack, and those that won posters, but in the end, we were all winners! What an amazing session! A big thank you to all the staff that played a hand in making a calm but swift entry for.

 

 

 

Ms Nicole Gurd – Alumni Coordinator