eNewsletter

From the Principal - Catherine Lockhart Since Iast week’s eNews, we have welcomed several special visitors to the College. The first was the Deputy Premier and Minister for Education, Ben Carroll, joined by Member for Lara, Ella George, and representatives from the Department of Education, Independant Schools Victoria and Catholic Education. Minister Carroll announced during the visit that 81 additional schools had joined up with the Respectful Relationships Program, with over 2,000 schools…

From the Principal - Catherine Lockhart Last Friday and Saturday I had the opportunity to attend the IB Global Conference in Singapore. The speakers and workshops were excellent, and it was exciting to see how as an IB school (PYP and DP) we are connected to a global network of educators and scholars all with a common goal of developing inquiring, knowledgeable and caring young people who help to create a better and more peaceful world through intercultural understanding and respect. The…

From the Principal - Catherine Lockhart This week we celebrate Harmony Week with Friday being our official Harmony Day where we encourage everyone to wear a bit of orange. With our SPICE competencies we have chosen the colour orange for I (intercultural) because orange symbolises warmth, enthusiasm, inclusivity, and harmony. It encourages socialisation and friendliness, which are important for bridging cultural divides and fostering intercultural understanding. Speaking of socialisation and…

From the Principal - Catherine Lockhart Tonight, our fabulous Wellbeing Hub are hosting a webinar for families on emotional regulation - A Heart-Centred Approach to Supporting Your Child​ presented by Dr Justin Coulson, one of Australia’s leading parenting experts. The time of the webinar has been advertised incorrectly due to different times in Brisbane and Melbourne. The correct time is 8.00pm. I hope that many of our families can join in this wonderful opportunity to learn more about…

From the Principal - Catherine Lockhart Last Friday I attended the Independent Schools Australia (ISA) Association of Heads of Independent Schools Australia (AHISA) National Education Forum in Canberra. I was one of more than 300 independent school principals in attendance. We heard from politicians, the media, and experts in education about wide and varied topics. One of the hot topics with an election looming this year was about the misinformation and divisive stories circulating about…

From the Principal - Catherine Lockhart Tomorrow our whole school heads off to Adventure Park for the annual Founders’ Day event. We officially celebrate Founders’ Day on 28 April each year with our Founders’ Day assembly however, Adventure Park is not open at that time, hence why we start the celebrations early. During my recent visit to Japan, I had the privilege of spending time with Mr and Mrs Katsumata’s grandchildren, Emma, Nao, Aki, and Takahiro. Each of them works or continues to…

From the Principal - Catherine Lockhart This week our Student Leaders’ Investitures have taken place or will take place. The concept of leadership is an important one at the College and one in which we hope to instil in our students an understanding of what it takes to be a good leader and how to recognise and support good leaders. We have many formal leadership positions available for students such as Captains and Prefects and these play a significant role in our school and come with many…

From the Principal - Catherine Lockhart It is great to be back in school this week after a whirlwind visit to Japan last week. I first spent time with a colleague from the Council of International Schools (CIS) undertaking a pre-evaluation of a small elementary school in Tokyo. It was so interesting to see a school operating out of a high rise building and how they made it work so well. It also made me really appreciate the wonderful outdoor spaces and environment that our students get to…

From the Principal - Catherine Lockhart Welcome to the first e-news of 2025. If first impressions are anything to go by, 2025 is going to be a great year. Many of our staff have already been working for several weeks in preparation for our students returning to the campus. Our College Executive engaged in three days of professional learning and strategic planning sessions in the middle of January and all our staff engaged in various professional learning sessions last week. Our grounds and…