End of Term
Thank you to everyone for a successful Term 3. It has been a very busy time, with lots of events, excursions, camps and the production!
We would like to wish all of our staff and students a relaxing term break. We hope you get some time to relax and spend time doing things you enjoy.
Best wishes to the Class of ’24 as they complete their final preparations for the VCE exams.
Ms Andrea Coleridge & Ms Vicki Bunce will be on Long Service Leave for Term 4 and we extend best wishes to them for a enjoyable time. We look forward to seeing you back in 2025!
Youth Day
Every year, the College celebrates Youth Day as a way to acknowledge our young people and their achievements. We organise an extended lunch break and provide a range of fun activities and food items to students to purchase. This massive event held on 21 August, was a smashing success. Thank you to our VCE-VM team for their hard work in putting this day together. Also a big thank you to staff who bravely volunteered for the dunk tank!
Wear it Purple Day
Friday August 30, was Wear it Purple Day. Wear it Purple Day was founded in 2010 in response to global stories of real teenagers, real heartache and their very real responses. In 2010, several rainbow young people took their own lives following bullying and harassment resulting from the lack of acceptance of their sexuality or gender identity. This day is about showing LGBTIQA+ young people that they have the right to be proud of who they are. It is about creating safe spaces in schools, universities, workplaces and public spaces to show LGBTIQA+ young people that they are seen and supported.
At our school, this is fundamental to all students feeling Connected Protected and Respected. To celebrate the day the College shared a short slide show presentation in classes to promote Wear it Purple Day and its important message. Staff wore purple and students were invited to wear Purple accessories on the day to publicly show their support for rainbow students at the College. There was also a lunch time market day with music, activities, purple hair spray and nail stations run by our VCE-VM students and Wellbeing Staff. Congratulations to all involved as inclusion is what our school is all about!
R U OK Day
The last day in our College Connect Protect Respect (CPR) calendar for this Term was R U OK? Day.
R U OK? Day was celebrated at the College on Friday 13 September. R U OK? Day is a national day of action when we remind Australians that every day is the day to ask, ‘are you OK?’ and start a meaningful conversation whenever they spot the signs that someone they care about might be struggling with life. It is also a timely reminder that R U OK? Day, is just one day. For meaningful change R U OK? Day is also about reducing the stigma surrounding mental health and making R U OK?, part of your everyday!
You don’t need to be an expert to reach out – just a good friend and a great listener. Use these four steps and have a conversation that could change a life:
- Ask R U OK?
- Listen
- Encourage action
- Check in
During this day, at SASC we shared a mini-lesson with students on how to support their peers. Our VCE-VM students and Wellbeing Team also organised a lunchtime event with live music, a sausage sizzle, external visitors and activities. Well done to all involved!
If you need some help with your wellbeing click here for support services that you can access.
National Child Protection Week – 1 to 7 September 2024
National Child Protection Week is about raising awareness for child safety with the overarching message that ‘Every child, in every community, needs a fair go’. In 2024, the National Child Protection Week message will be complemented with the theme- Every conversation matters.
As we all know, children and young people thrive when they grow up safe, connected and supported in their family, community and culture. They have the right to grow up in environments that support them according to their needs, now and into the future.
As a College we take our responsibilities for Child Protection very seriously. Our child safety policies, are regularly reviewed by staff and all teachers complete annual training on child safety and mandatory reporting. Our child safety policies can be found on our website.
Child Protection week is a good time to stop and reflect on the role we all play in creating a supportive environment for every child so they feel Connected, Protected and Respected not just this week, but every week.
Yr 9 City Experience
This year’s city experience has proven to be a resounding success, thanks to the exemplary behaviour of our students, their reliability and the overwhelmingly positive feedback we’ve received from venues and the public.
One of the standout aspects of this City Experience was the outstanding behaviour exhibited by our students. Their enthusiasm and respect were evident from day one when they turned up on time and in full school uniform. We even received an email congratulating the school on the excellent behaviour of our students on the train. The email claimed that “their collective behaviour in every respect on that train was a credit to each of them and to your school”.
The success of the City Experience would not have been possible without the expert organisation from Katelyn Smith who presented at the parent information meeting. She made sure that every aspect of the program was planned to perfection. Katelyn was supported by Katie O’Connell who outlined the event and made all the initial bookings before taking leave this term. We thank them both for their dedication and commitment to the city experience program. Thank you also to the Middle Sub School team, the Humanities teachers, Inclusion team, and all staff who attended city experience and for making this year’s venture into the city such a success.
MAC We Will Rock You
This year St Albans Secondary College Music Appreciation Club presented the Queen inspired, We Will Rock You, as our performance piece. There were plenty of laughs and a great mix of well-known Queen songs as well as many lines from other songs and artists, cleverly woven into a dystopian future. The production ran over 3 evenings along with two matinee performances. We would like to take this opportunity to thank the cast and crew who did such a professional and entertaining job with the production. We particularly acknowledge the wonderful work of Ms Melissa Tamraz as the Director and Mr Nick D’Aglas as the Producer who was also the Artisitc Director and in charge of set design. The fabulous music was overseen by Ms Melrose Tran the Musical Director ably assisted by Mr James Orchard, Assistant Director. The band, consisting mainly of existing students were amazing, and we thank all those involved with the musical accompaniment. There were memorable performances by the lead singers and actors consisting of Qhnsa Ahmed, Talia Bui, Dt Cairns, Ryan Chang, Thien Doan, John Nguyen, Api Nicol and Luca Phuong. Well done to all involved.
You can see more about the MAC performance, including photos of the cast in action, further in the newsletter.
