Further Victorian School Music Festival (VSMF) Success
In the last two newsletters I announced that 3 ensembles had achieved success in the Victorian School Music Festival. Since then, four more ensembles have performed and achieved outstanding results.
Congratulations to our Senior Chamber Strings who were presented with a Gold Award. This is the first Gold Award that a string group has ever received at our college. The Intermediate Presto Strings also performed and received a Silver Award which is a great achievement. Both groups participated in an on-stage tutorial with the chief adjudicator following their performances and had the opportunity to hear other groups perform. Congratulations to Mr Tim O Connor, our Head of Strings for directing these ensembles.
Our Concert Band, directed by Mrs Melissa Knowles competed last Wednesday and won a Gold Award. This group of 63 students is the largest the college has ever sent to the Victorian School Music Festival and is a testament to the success of the program.
The MWSC Symphonic Band followed with a performance on Wednesday night. The ensemble performed to an excellent standard and won a Gold Award. The chief adjudicator, Albert Nguyen from the University of Memphis was extremely impressed with not only the group, but by the conducting style and skills of Mr Joseph Yu.
Overall, 7 groups involving 238 students travelled to VSMF competitions in the past month and we were awarded 6 Golds and 1 Silver which is the best result the school has ever achieved in this event.
My sincere thanks go to all of my instrumental music staff who volunteered their time (sometimes out of hours) to accompany our students to these events. Congratulations to all students involved!
Term 3 College Raffle Winners
A special thank you to everyone who purchased tickets in our recent Term 3 College Raffle. We raised over $3480 which will go towards student led initiatives. Congratulations to our raffle winners.
Our winners are:
| 1st Prize: | Fiona Kelly | Interior/Exterior Painting valued at $1500, sponsored by Master Colour Pty Ltd |
| 2nd Prize: | Yunnie Yap | Winery Tour valued at $1400, sponsored by Quinces Bus Hire |
| 3rd Prize: | Enza Rezaee | Soniq 55” (139cm) 4K Ultra HD TV valued at $600, sponsored by Learning with Technologies |
| 4th Prize: | Rekha Sundara Rajah | Novotel Accommodation Package and $200 Gift Card valued at $475, sponsored by Novotel Glen Waverley and Premier Waste |
| 5th Prize: | Stuart Robinson | Teens Gift Card $250 and Texas Calculator and Notebooks valued at $343, sponsored by School Furn, Texas Instruments and Premier Paper |
| 6th Prize: | Narelle Mcgeehan | Ultimate Gift Card $250 and Texas Calculator and Notebooks valued at $343 sponsored by School Furn, Texas Instruments and Premier Paper |
| 7th Prize: | Kate Askew | JBL by Harman Xtreme 3 Portable Bluetooth Speaker and Gift Card $50 valued at $329, sponsored by Maps Marketing and Driver Bus Lines |
| 8th Prize: | Dallas Watts | Village Cinema Gold Indulgence Voucher and Gift Card $100 valued at $319 sponsored by Toshiba and Driver Bus Lines |
| 9th Prize: | Maggie Choy | Pegasus Leisure Group $200 Dining Voucher and Gift Card $100 valued at $300, sponsored by Melbourne Racing Club and Driver Bus Lines |
| 10th Prize: | Sarah Li | Gumbuya Junior tickets, Bounce Passes, Texas Calculator & Notebooks valued at $250, sponsored by Sponsored by Gumbuya Park, Bounce Inc, Texas Instruments & Premier Paper |
| 11th Prize: | Rochelle Wickramaratchi | Funfields Adventure Park Pass and Hardcover Notebooks valued at $248 sponsored by Funfields Adventure Park & Premier Paper |
| 12th Prize: | Srinivas Sundaresan | Ross Haywood Sporting Equipment & bag, Texas Calculator & Notebooks valued at $230, sponsored by Ross Haywood Sports & Texas Instruments |
| 13th Prize: | Lisa Bryant | Gift Card $150 and Texas Calculator and Notebooks valued at $223 sponsored by Bud to Bloom and Texas Instruments |
| 14th Prize: | Jean Lee | Wine, Campion Vouchers and Stationary Basket valued at $150, sponsored by Campion Education |
| 15th Prize: | Sulakshana Dabholkar | Texas Calculator and Notebooks valued at $100, sponsored by Texas Instruments & Premier Paper |
We would sincerely like to thank the generous sponsors (listed above), for supporting our learning community with this fundraising event.
Book Week
Well done to our library team and student library leaders for organising great activities in both libraries last week during Book Week. The theme for the week was “Reading is Magic” Special thanks to all the students and staff who joined in to celebrate our love of reading.
Division Athletics
Over 130 students attended the Division Athletics at the Bill Stewart Athletics track on Friday 23 August. Well done to Mr Danny Gwynne and Mr Jay Newport our Sports Leaders for their great work in organising this event.
Wear it Purple Day
On Friday 30 August the college celebrated ‘Wear it Purple’ day. It was great to see students and staff wearing purple to celebrate diversity and inclusion. Well done to the Wellbeing Team and students on both campuses who helped organise lunch time celebration activities.
Student Parent Teacher Conferences
A reminder that Semester Two Student Parent Teacher conferences are scheduled for Thursday 12 September between 1pm and 7.30pm. Conferences will once again be held online via Webex links. Thursday 12 September is a student free day, and no classes will be held. Please encourage your child/ren to attend these conferences with you, so that they can receive feedback and take ownership of their learning.
Curriculum Day
A whole school Curriculum Day (student free day) will be held on Friday 13 September. Teachers will be working on developing curriculum in line with the new Victorian Curriculum 2.0.
2024 Parent/Caregiver/Guardian Opinion Survey
Invitations to the 2024 Parent/Caregiver/Guardian Opinion Survey (previously known as the Parent Opinion Survey) link has been emailed out again this week via Compass. Each year the school conducts an opinion survey amongst a sample of our learning community. Results will be used to inform and direct our future school planning and improvement. The survey will be conducted online and should only take 20 minutes to complete. Please take the time to respond to this important survey as we value your feedback.
Message from Our Nurses
Just a friendly reminder on what the protocol is for when your child is feeling unwell and would like to go home. Should your child fall ill during the day they must attend the First Aid Office on their respective campus for care. The Nurse will then assess them and if they are deemed too unwell to be at school, you will be contacted by the Nurse to arrange for them to be collected. If your child is under 16 years of age they will need to be physically picked up and signed out from school, they are not to leave the school grounds without being picked up by an adult.
Students should not be using any form of electronic device (mobile, laptop etc.) to contact their own parents/carers to arrange to be collected. If this occurs, we request your support to direct them to the Nurse.
We would also ask for your cooperation in not sending your child to school if they are unwell. Please do not give them medication to reduce fever and symptoms of viral illness before school in the hope that they can ‘push through’ the day. This will assist us in reducing the spread of illness at school and help your child recover and to feel their best whilst learning.
Please also note that a medical certificate will be required if your child does not attend a scheduled VCE SAC.
Your support in this matter would be greatly appreciated as we are trying to keep our learning community safe and stop the spread of Whooping Cough, Covid and other illnesses.
School Saving Bonus
In Term 4, 2024, families with a child enrolled in a government school from Prep to Year 12 in 2025 will receive the one-off $400 School Saving Bonus.
The $400 School Saving Bonus provides families with support for education-related costs, such as school activities and/or school uniforms and textbooks.
The School Saving Bonus is not available for full-fee international students, home schooled students, TAFE students and students attending kindergarten in 2025.
Actions for parents and carers
Before 18 October 2024, the Department of Education is asking parents and carers to:
- Complete enrolment: If your child, or children are changing government school for Term 1 2025, or starting Prep or Year 7 in 2025. For more information, read about Enrolling in School.
- Check your contact information: Ensure your email address and phone number is up to date with us. You can check this information by contacting us directly.
We need to ensure your contact information is up to date as the Department of Education will email you twice:
- in October, to verify your email address
- in November, with your $400 School Saving Bonus.
Please check your junk mail regularly to make sure you do not miss an important email.
To learn more about the School Saving Bonus, download the School Saving Bonus Information sheet for government school parents and carers or visit vic.gov.au/school-saving-bonus.
The David Burgess Foundation Scholarships
It is now over 30 years since The David Burgess Foundation was established in 1991. In this period, they have provided scholarships to nearly eighty extraordinary and well deserving disadvantaged students.
The Foundation was established in memory of the late David Burgess MBE, who made a major contribution to youth, education and the community in general. It has become well known throughout the Victorian education community for its longstanding and enduring commitment to worthy secondary school students in need.
The Foundation aims to assist young people from State Secondary Schools who have had to struggle to overcome adversity, who have shown commitment to their goals and those of the community, and who, with some help, can succeed in their studies and future life. To this end the Foundation makes annual awards to Year 12 students who gain entry to tertiary course at Victorian Universities and/or TAFE Institutes. Each award-winner receives $5,500 each year towards the cost of their course.
The Foundation aims to help these students make the transition from a supportive school environment to a tertiary educational setting. What makes them unique in this regard is the mentoring support that is provided alongside the financial assistance. The mentor system is a non-professional service, and their mentors provide friendly, concerned help and advice to award winners throughout the duration of their tertiary studies.
This is a comprehensive package of services for deserving students in our State Education System and is a fitting tribute to David Burgess, who was a strong advocate of State Schools.
How to apply
Applications can be submitted via the SmartyGrants platform, which is administered by Equity Trustees. To apply, please copy the following link into your browser https://equitytrustees.smartygrants.com.au/Burgess
MWSC 60th Anniversary Celebration – Wednesday 4 September at 3pm
Mount Waverley Secondary College is celebrating 60 years! Come along and join us for a memorable afternoon. Tour our brand-new STEAM centre, view our historical displays and listen to musical performances from our very talented students.
There will also be a sausage sizzle, bake sale and commemorative wine and glasses available to purchase on the day.
Date: Wednesday, 4 September 2024
Time: From 3pm to 6pm
Venue: MWSC Senior Campus, enter via Gate 1 Lechte Road, Gate 6 Beaufort Street or Gate 7 Gordon Street Carpark.
We look forward to seeing you there!
Mrs Karen Wade
College Principal