Star Performers
The VCE Season of Excellence is managed by Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority. The Season showcases work produced by outstanding VCE students who completed performing or visual arts, technology, design, or research studies in 2023. Events are presented at Melbourne’s major cultural venues, alongside associated education programs. Three of our 2023 students (who completed Unit 3&4 studies last year) have been invited to exhibit their works in their respective areas. This is a fantastic achievement and a credit to our Arts Program and staff who work tirelessly to promote the Arts across our school.
Congratulations to Ethan L, who has been selected to exhibit his VCE Visual Communication Design work in Top Designs 2024 at Melbourne Museum. This year, only 92 works were selected for the exhibition from over 1,000 applications. Selected works exemplify the innovation, skill and creativity that can be achieved within the Victorian Curriculum. Top Designs will run from Saturday 23 March until Sunday 14 July at the Melbourne Museum, 11 Nicholson St, Carlton.
Congratulations to Anne F, who has been selected to exhibit her VCE Art Making and Exhibiting work in Top Arts 2024 at the NGV. Top Arts 2024 features the most exceptional work from students who completed the new VCE Art study designs in 2023. The exhibition promises a fascinating survey of the curious, creative, and innovative spirit of young artists. Top Arts will run from Saturday 14 March until Sunday 14 July at the National Gallery of Victoria,180 St Kilda Road, Melbourne.
Congratulations to Madeleine D, who has been selected to perform their Drama solo at Top Class Drama 2024 at Melbourne Recital Centre. This year, 102 top performing students were invited to audition for Top Class Drama, and only 25 students were selected to perform. Selected performers exemplify the skill and creativity that can be achieved within the VCE curriculum. Top Class Drama takes place at Melbourne Recital Centre – 31 Sturt St, Southbank – on Friday 19 April 2024 at 10:00am and 6:00pm and Monday 22 April at 2:00pm.Tickets are now available via the Melbourne Recital Centre.
Communication is Vital
Mount Waverley Secondary College has a commitment to provide all the care and support necessary for each student to do their best and achieve the highest possible learning outcomes. It is important that when families have concerns about their children, they contact the relevant staff members immediately to ensure a quick supportive response. I encourage families to maintain open communication with staff members to ensure each student is provided with optimal support.
The most appropriate staff members to talk to when you have specific concerns are the classroom teachers, then Year Level Coordinator, then Sub School Leader or Head of Sub School prior to contacting one of the Campus Principals. These are the staff members who have a thorough understanding of the needs of the students in their care:
Year Level Coordinators
Year 7 Ms Danielle Robertson, Mr Patrick Thompson
Year 8 Mr Jackie Chan, Ms Eliza Yates
Year 9 Mr Aayush Khosla, Ms Stephanie Xing
Year 10 Mrs Juliz Mathew, Mr Adam Wheeler
Year 11 Mr Tristan Dunkley, Mrs Sunita Sewani
Year 12 Mr Chris Bamford, Mr Andrew Morton
Junior School Leader Mrs Danielle Mott
Head of Junior School Mrs Debbie Sekula
Acting Middle School Leader Mr Liam Wall
Head of Middle School Mrs Asha Vazirani
Acting Senior School Leader Mr James Johnston
Acting Head of Senior School Ms Jo Rogers
During the last few weeks, I have observed classrooms and I have been very impressed with how focussed the teaching and learning activities have been and have noted that our teachers and students have a lovely rapport in the classroom. Teachers and students are clearly demonstrating our motto ‘Community, Choice and Engagement’. I am particularly pleased to report our new Year 7 students are making a very smooth transition to the college.
Our college is a safe and caring learning community, and our students and staff believe that Mount Waverley Secondary College is a very special place which offers magnificent learning opportunities.
Dutch Educators Visit
On Monday 19 February 22 educators from the Netherlands came to visit our school to learn about how we are making our learning ‘visible’ to our students. The visitors toured our campuses, visited classes, and heard from our leaders about our Explicit Instructional, Student Learning and Student Wellbeing Models. They were able to spend some time with our College Captains over lunch and gave very positive feedback on what they had observed in our learning community.
Thank you to all the students and staff who were involved in this visit, which was arranged through a connection with Professor John Hattie from The University of Melbourne. We enjoy hosting international colleagues as we can learn so much from each other’s experiences.
Community Involvement
Research clearly indicates that if parents are involved in their child’s education, they enhance the learning outcomes for their students. I would like to thank all the parents who have already volunteered to be involved in our learning community.
2024 MWSC Secondhand Uniform/Book Shop
Thank you to all our wonderful parent volunteers who have been running the MWSC Secondhand Uniform/Book Shop this year. The shop is open on selected Wednesday mornings between 9am – 11am on the Senior Campus (refer to Compass posts for actual dates). For any queries regarding textbook and uniform availability please email pnf@mwsc.vic.edu.au
Ritchies – Community Benefits
I encourage all parents to patronise Ritchies Supermarkets and access a Community Benefits Card or you can download the Ritchies Loyalty App on your phone, nominating Mount Waverley Secondary College as your preferred beneficiary. Each time you shop at Ritchies you will be actively contributing to your child’s education by helping us continue to provide quality resources throughout the college.
MWSC Alumni
In 2024 we are continuing to build our MWSC Alumni (past students and staff association). There are three ways our alumni community can stay in touch.
They can register to receive a monthly MWSC Alumni newsletter, join the MWSC Alumni Facebook page or join the Mount Waverley Secondary College LinkedIn Group.
Student/ Parent/ Teacher Conferences
Our virtual student/parent/teacher conferences for the year will be held online via Webex on Wednesday 27 March from 1.00pm-7.30pm. Further information will be sent out closer to the time.
COVID-19 transmission measures
There is at present an increase in community transmission of COVID-19 in Victoria.You can help us keep our school as safe as possible by taking 2 important steps:
- Ensure your COVID-19 vaccinations are up to date. Information on how and where to get vaccinated is available on the Get vaccinated webpage.
- If your child shows symptoms of COVID-19, please ensure they stay home and get tested. The easiest way to test is to use a rapid antigen test (RAT).
You can buy RATs at supermarkets, pharmacies, and other retailers. If your child has symptoms but tests negative, please ensure they stay home until they no longer have symptoms.
If the RAT test result is positive, please ensure they stay at home for at least 5 days and until there are no more symptoms. Thank you for your support – these steps will help us all stay well.
Mrs Karen Wade
College Principal