Principal Report

With 8 weeks of the 2018 school year to go there is still a lot happening at Mooroolbark College. 

Our Year 12 students who are doing their VCE commenced their exams this week.  They have worked hard and prepared well with the support of their teachers.  We look forward to farewelling them formally at the Valedictory Dinner on Friday 23rd November at Sandown Racecourse. We congratulate and thank them for their contribution in adding to the rich tradition of Mooroolbark College.  We wish them well and look forward to hearing about their future successes and achievements.

2019 COURSE CONFIRMATION DATES

Year 12 VCE/VCAL  2019 – 20TH November 3-7pm
Year 11 VCE/VCAL  2019 – 29TH November 3-7pm
Year 10 2019 – 6th December 3-7pm
Year 8 & 9 2019 – 10th December 11am – 7pm

Course Confirmation packages which includes their re-enrolment booklets will be handed out to students as follows:

• Year 12 2019 - was handed out on Monday 29th 

• Year 11 2019 - 9th November

• Year 10 2019 - 12th November

• Year 9 2019 - 19th November

• Year 8 2019 -  23rd November

Please make sure you child have these packages signed and returned on the day of their Course Confirmation.

If you have any concerns or queries please do not hesitate to contact your child’s coordinator at the College on 9727 8100.

Preparing for 2019

We are currently planning budget, staffing and forms for the coming year.  If your child is not returning for 2019 could you please notify us as soon as possible.

Student Leadership

Congratulations to the following students for being selected for the leadership role in the College for 2019.

2019 COLLEGE CAPTAINS

Jordan Daniels & Taylah McOwan

SENIOR HOUSE CAPTAINS

Green House      - Lana Hawkins & Jayan Hartwick

Blue House         - Kim Barkwith & Tom Hadstaff

Red House           - Jack Schofield & Kellie Stevens

Yellow House     - Caleb Schwab & Ashlinn Walker

Arts Captains     - Kyle Wahrenberger & Jamie Cathie

Sports Captains – Tyler Charlton & Georgia Gray

2019 MIDDLE SCHOOL CAPTAINS

Green House     - Mel Tisch & Travis Moir

Blue House         - Hayley Knight & Ben Graaf

Red House           - Charlotte Murray & Forum Patel

Yellow House     - Jackson Addicott & Tanayah Godley

 On Monday 12th November, the College is sending 10 students on a two-week tour of China as part of our Sister School arrangement with Wujiang Senior Middle School.  Accompanied by Mr John Nichol and Mr Paul Ryan, our students will have a wonderful experience developing an appreciation of the Chinese culture.  They will have the opportunity to experience different customs and traditions and spend time living with families from our Sister School, This is a great opportunity for our students to challenge themselves and develop new friendships.  I am eager to hear their stories upon their return. 

This week the Year 9 Duke of Edinburgh class went on a three-day challenge camp to Wilson Promontory.  Again our students demonstrated outstanding commitment to their learning, development of new skills and to challenging themselves.  Thank you to Luke McCormick who led this experience for Mooroolbark College students.

Ann Stratford 
Principal

Reminders – from the Accounts Department

Reminders – From the Accounts Department

Thursday 1st November                 Year 11 Vic West Coast Tour Instalment                 $200.00

Thursday 8th November                 Arts Camp Balance Due                                          $200.00

Wednesday 14th November          Year 10 2019 Central Deposit Due                           $400.00

Thursday 15th November              Year 9 2019 Tassie Tour Instalment                         $270.00

Tuesday 20th November                Year 12 2019 Course Confirmation                          3.00pm-6.00pm

Thursday 22nd November              Year 11 Vic West Coast Tour Balance Due              $200.00

Monday 26th November                 EAL Course Confirmation (Appointment Only)        3.15pm-5.00pm

Monday 26th November                Year 7 2019 Parent Information Night                       7.00pm

Thursday 29th November              Year 11 2019 Course Confirmation                           3.00pm-7.00pm

Thursday 6th December                Year 10 2019 Course Confirmation                           3.00pm-7.00pm

Monday 10th December                Year 8 & 9 2019 Course Confirmation                       11.00am-7.00pm

Thursday 21st February                 Year 9 2019 Tassie Tour Balance Due                      $250.00

School Captain

Captain Profile Questions – Caitlyn O’Rorke

Middle Blue House Captain 

What do you hope to achieve this year in your role?

This year, I hope to make our school a more kind, positive and inclusive place. I also hope to become a better leader and person from having this role.  I would also  like to improve my public speaking.

Who is a leader you admire and why?

A leader I admire is Wendy Kopp. Wendy Kopp is both the CEO and Co-Founder of the organisation ‘Teach For All’, who’s aim is “to narrow educational disparities around the world”. I admire her because she has had such an impact on so many people and countries with ‘Teach for All’ and has been able to get social entrepreneurs in 32 different countries to become teachers in underfunded public schools.

What are some of your goals for the future?

I hope to graduate high school and attend university in the future, although I’m not sure what for yet. In the future I hope to be involved in my community, and would love to travel when I’m older, possibly to help the less fortunate in third world countries.

Final sentence for readers.

I would just like to end by saying that I hope that everyone has a wonderful year and takes every opportunity they can get to make 2018 the best year yet.

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Visitors to the College

It is essential that all visitors to the College must sign in at the General Office.  If you need to see any member of staff please be aware that an appointment is necessary due to timetable commitments and meetings before and after school.  It is inappropriate for visitors to go directly to individual staff offices or to stop staff in the College grounds.  The General Office will call staff to check their availability for an appropriate meeting time.  If you would like to make an appointment please do not hesitate to contact the College on 9727 8100.

Thank you for your continued support of the College.

Rachael Williams
Assistant Principal

Night of Excellence

Congratulations to the staff and students involved in the highly successful Night of Excellence.  The inaugural event was embraced by the whole school community and was a wonderful opportunity for parents to see the culture of excellence.
Parents were exposed to a culmination of a year’s work from our senior students, along with the Year 7 Showcase, The Great Mooroolbark College Literacy Bake Off, Artwork Exhibition presented in the library, Numeracy and Science. Many of these areas were engaging students and parents with hands-on activities. The 3D printer was working on overdrive in the Technology display, the Humanities area looked fantastic with the Past, Present, and Future presentation, and the Mandarin display show-cased our developing languages program.  The MMADDD performances encompassing dance, musical performance, multimedia, drama and senior art held in the Multi-Purpose room and was a huge success. The activity in the north quadrangle was created by the Sports Leadership team and was enjoyed by all. It was pleasing to see all staff and students working together on all activities and presentations that took place that evening. During the night, the College was a hub of activities, with a endless supply of activities, performances and presentations to be involved in. On behalf of the College, I would like to thank the tireless effort of the college community and look forward to seeing what the 2019 Night of Excellence will bring.
Ms Samantha Mcintosh
Assistant Principal

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Night of Excellence (Visual Arts)

This year, we had our first Visual Arts display in the College library, to help celebrate the Night of Excellence.

The display was a great success and we had a large number of students, parents, friends and relatives walk through the display on the night.

It was encouraging to see and hear the comments from all who attended and the praise everyone had for the outstanding work reflects the students’ efforts and talents on display.

Thank you to all involved.

Mark Quigley 
Arts KLA Head

Year 7 Showcase night

On Thursday 20th October, we conducted our 5th annual Year 7 Showcase night. This is a great opportunity for students to present work that they are proud of and continue to build on the culture we want at the College.  A culture where hard work and effort is acknowledged, celebrated and valued. Inviting parents to see and ask questions about our students work is an integral part of this ongoing push to really value learning and the education process.

A huge well done to the students who were brave enough to present their work. Being part of a community involves making a contribution to that community if it is to thrive and flourish. Which is what makes the effort of all students involved so admirable. It demonstrates a willingness to give and add to our school culture. There were some terrific pieces of work on display and it was great to see parents/carers interacting with our students and conversing over their learning experience in Year 7.

I would also like to acknowledge and thank the parents of all the students involved in the night for supporting the event. Through supporting your student’s participation, it demonstrates a high value on not only education but also the worth of contributing to our college community.

Again, it was a privilege to work with terrific young people who are eager to become the best they can be. An enormous well done to all our students involved in the evening and the support given from their teachers.

Adam Lorkin
Assistant Principal/Year 7 Transition Coordinator

VCE Arts Exhibition

On Thursday 11th October, we held our annual VCE Arts exhibition. The evening was a massive success with both students and their families filling the new exhibition space. An eclectic array of work was on display from VCD, Media and Studio Arts, and included paintings, sculptures, photographs, as well as both 2d and 3d printing formats. The feedback from everyone who attended the evening was overwhelmingly positive and a number of artworks were sold, which is a credit to the hard work and creativity of our senior arts students. Well done to everyone involved!

Tracey D’Unienville
Teacher in Charge

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Film Festival

On Thursday 11th October, the 6th annual Mooroolbark College Film Festival was held showcasing the amazing films completed by students in Years 10, 11 and 12 Media. A huge congratulations to all of budding filmmakers that had their films shown to an enthusiastic packed audience on the night.

Well done to all of the category winners.

Best Year 11 film - Gemini by Sam Allen, Josh Johansen and Caleb Schwab.

Best Year 12 film - Film: The Movie by Josh Doolan.

Audience Award for Year 11 - The Bedilemma by Jaida Elliott, Molly Payne, Alyhurt Smith-Foley and Madeleine Thompson.

Audience Award for Year 11 runner-up - Gemini by Sam Allen, Josh Johansen and Caleb Schwab.

Audience Award for Year 12 – Wild Tings by Bradley Williams-Cameron.

Audience Award for Year 12 runner-up - Film: The Movie by Josh Doolan.

Matthew Neil-Holland
Media Teacher

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Music News

Congratulations to Cerae McDonald who received 91% for her First Grade Modern Piano exam and Honey Cin Zah who received 82% for her Second Grade piano exam.

Well done also to Jaymie Cathie who received an ‘A’ for her Third Grade AMEB flute exam.

It is wonderful to see our students doing so well in their music studies and being rewarded for their hard work and commitment.

Lisa Gaudian
Instrumental Music Coordinator

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Year 12 Outdoor and Environmental Excursion

Students along with Mr Olarenshaw, Mr Unland and Mr Knoll met at the school at 7:30 am and set off for a day of adventure and learning. Stop one was the Wonthaggi Desalination plant where students underwent a tour and an education session about how the plant was built, why it was needed, impact on the environment and the process of turning salt water into fresh via reverse osmosis.

Students then headed off to the Wonthaggi wind farm where the focus was on understanding how these 69-meter-high windmills worked and could produce enough energy to power 5200 houses each without carbon emissions once fully installed

From there a quick dash was made to San-Remo to catch the feeding of the pelicans before a well-deserved lunch break and coffee.

Driving onto the island the Mooroolbark cohort met up with a ranger on Cape Woolamai where they explored the impacts of pests and biohazards on the environment such as Marran grass, rabbits, oil spills and marine debris.  It was great for students to get hands on with their learning particularly when hunting for micro plastics on the shoreline.  They began to realise just how big the issue of micro plastics and its impact on the environment has become.  Students found hundreds of small plastic pieces in just a few hundred meters.

After grabbing some dinner, it was time for the grand finale and students headed out to the end of the Cape to watch the sun set. Close to a million short tailed shearwaters lifted of the water to come in to their nests for the night. Students and teachers lay on the ground watching the sky as birds circled lower and lower literally skimming the students faces as they came into land.

It was a weary but very happy group that arrived back at school at 11:45pm.  A wonderful day of learning and new experiences that will not be forgotten any time soon.

Thanks to Matthew Bethell for the great photos.

Luke Knoll
Teacher in Charge

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The Great Mooroolbark College Literacy Bake off

Thank you to everyone who created beautiful cakes based on a book for our 5th Annual Literacy Bake off. With so many talented students (and staff) across the school the standard of cakes was amazing. Voting was very well supported with nearly 700 votes cast from across our Night of Excellence, Facebook and Library, with the final results being very close.

Congratulations to all of our winners and everyone that entered.

• Student People’s Choice Winner – Chloe Bellinger

• Student Individual Winner – Zoe Hawkins

• Student Individual Runner-up – Inica Smit

• Student Team Winners – Ciara Delaney and Ella Tuppenney

• Student Cupcake Winner – Sharni Webb

• Student Encouragement Award – Bianka Hazeldene

• Teacher Winner – Perie Edmonds

Matthew Neil-Holland
Library Coordinator

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Year 7 State Library

On Tuesday 16th October 50 Year 7 students, including the ASPIRE class, ventured into the city to visit the Victorian State Library. They got the opportunity to hear about the history of the State Library and all the amazing artefacts that are stored there…not just books! The students then undertook a research program to enhance their research skills; discerning between good quality research and suspect information. They looked at the validity and reliability of internet sources while researching information on important Australian historical figures. These skills are currently being put to the test in Science as the students undertake their own research investigation! 

James Taylor & Denise Raven
Teachers in Charge

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Mt Buller Day Trip

On Thursday 13th September, 63 students and 8 staff left Mooroolbark College at 5am to hit the slopes at Mt Buller for the day. The day was spectacular – with over 1.5m of snow and the sun shining! Students started their day with a ski or snowboard lesson. For some students this was their very first time seeing snow, for others they had been up a few times before. Every student was determined to learn or enhance their skills and it was great to see students giving it their all. After lunch, students used their skills of skiing and snowboarding to explore Mt Buller and try out some new runs. The whole day was filled with teamwork as students helped and encouraged each other down the slopes. Quotes from students that sum up the day – “I can’t wait for next years trip!”, “I’m calling Dad now to ask for a snowboard” and “When I am 18, I am going to get my own gear and drive up here with mates on the weekends, this is amazing!”. We are looking forward to running the trip again next year. Keep your eyes peeled for information and get in fast (limited spots available)!

Allie Grey-Smith and Matthew Bell
Annual Mt Buller Day Trip Organisers

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Year 12 Outdoor Ed

The Year 12 Outdoor and environmental class has visited a range of outdoor environments this year, including Mt Stirling, Mt Buller, Howqua Hills, Swan Bay, Ocean Grove, Bells Beach, and Port Phillip Bay to learn about Victorian's diverse range of ecosystems and the biodiversity within them. The Year 12 students have grown strong bonds with each other and the outdoor environment. The last excursion included a visit to Queenscliff to swim in Marine National Parks with native fish, seals and dolphins. We learnt about the different social groups that use Port Phillip Bay and the management strategies needed to maintain this healthy outdoor environment. It has been my pleasure teaching such a wonderful bunch of students and I wish them all the best in their exams.

Matt Bell
Outdoor Ed Teacher 

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Duke of Ed

On Monday 17th September, this year's Duke of Ed team ventured to the 1000 steps in Ferntree Gully for some quality hiking training for our Wilson Prom Camp/Hike in Term 4.
We also added some extra training which included approx. 12kms of hiking around the area. The team did an amazing job. Some sore legs the next day - but very prepared for our camp!

Luke McCormick  
Duke of Ed Teacher

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Calendar Term Four 2018

College Office Hours

College Office Hours

MONDAY- THURSDAY: 8.15AM- 4.00PM

FRIDAY 8.15AM- 3.30PM

Calendar

TERM FOUR

November

6             Melbourne Cup day

11- 23    China Tour

13           Year 11 exams begin

13           Education meeting 6pm

20           Resources meeting 7pm

21           Year 10 exams begin

23           Valedictory Dinner

25- 9 Dec -  Cambodia Camp 2018

26           Year 7 2019 Parent Information Evening 7pm

27           College Council Meeting 7pm    

29           Yr 11 (2019) course confirmation VCE & VCAL 3-7pm

December

3-5        Arts Camp

6            Yr 10 (2019) course confirmation 3-7pm

7            Newsletter

9-14       West Coast Tour

10          Yr 8-9 (2019) course confirmation 11- 7pm

10-21     End of Year program

10-14     S.A. Heritage Tour

11          Yr 7 (2019) Orientation Day
11          Council meeting 7pm

19          AWARDS NIGHT

Community Circle

Mooroolbark College is committed to supporting our local community. Please see below for our community notices:

Pick my Project
Mullum Primary School Fun & Food Fair
Mooroolbark Soccer Club
Danielle Sargent Photography

Pick my Project

Mooroolbark Traders & Community Group have partnered with Yarra Art Ranges to apply for funding to rejuvenate the many blank or graffitied walls of Mooroolbark. It's now up to public vote as to whether or not the funding is received and the project goes ahead.

If successful, the community and traders of Mooroolbark will be given the opportunity to be involved in creating a brief to which artists will apply. Some artworks will be community driven under the guidance of professional artists, others will be curated and carried out by high profile artists according to the brief written by our community. This is an amazing opportunity and we hope that you will all be as excited by the prospect as we are about it!

For more information, visit the Facebook group:  https://www.facebook.com/groups/activatingMooroolbark/?source_id=1648396768708939

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Mullum Primary School Fun & Food Fair

Mullum Primary School Fun & Food Fair on Friday 16 November

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Mooroolbark Soccer Club

MSC are having their Registration Day on Sunday 9th of December from 10.00am to 2.00pm.

We are a community club with students from your school playing in junior teams.  The club focusses heavily on developing our juniors and is run entirely by dedicated volunteers.

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Danielle Sargent Photography

Looking for a photographer to capture special memories of the family, newborn, glamour, portfoilio or event?  Contact Danielle Sargent 

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