Parent Bulletin 8
Friday 7 May
Jenny Atta, Secretary, Department of Education and TrainingThe Secretary of the Department of Education and Training, Jenny Atta, and Acting Regional Director South West Victoria, John Dainutis, visited the College to tour the school’s new infrastructure and the Victorian Space Science Education Centre.
The Secretary was very impressed with the pedagogy used to underpin our teaching programs at both Strathmore and VSSEC. During her visit, she also had the opportunity to speak to our students.
Report from School Council May MeetingUpdate on Building Project -Stage 2
The construction program continues to progress well. The first and second floor ceiling and wall linings are complete and have been painted. The screed has been installed on these floors and they are ready for carpet to be laid. The electrical light fit out is almost complete throughout the building. 2020 Annual Report to the School Community The Annual Report to the school community provides an opportunity for the community to celebrate achievements, reflect on the school’s performance, and understand where and how improvement efforts have enhanced student achievement, engagement and wellbeing. The Annual General Meeting will be held at the College from 6pm-6.45pm on 10 June. Please notify Rebecca Oosterhof via the school email of your attendance by 3 June so that a suitable venue can be arranged. School zone safety improvement works on Pascoe Vale Road in Strathmore. To improve safety for pedestrians and school children, VicRoads will replace existing speed limit signs with electronic speed limit signs that flash during peak school hours, on Pascoe Vale Road between Bell Street and Rosebank Avenue. Works on this project will commence on 10 May and construction is expected to finish by the end of June, 2021. One lane will be closed at a time during works and traffic controllers will be onsite to help pedestrians and drivers move through the area safely. Jillian English Principal Department of Education and Training Contact TracingNew guidelines for contact tracing from the Department of Education and Training when students are attending excursions/camps.
From 27 April schools are now required to provide excursion/camp venues with a hard copy list of students’ names and contact numbers at the time of the excursion/camp. Students are not required to individually check into a venue. The phone number on school file for the students will be provided as the nominated contact number. Venues will be collecting student names and contact phone numbers for a legitimate purpose and are subject to Victorian privacy laws, so will handle the information securely and only retain it for the required 28-day period. The process for giving approval for your child to attend an excursion/camp will involve parents or carers acknowledging this requirement as part of the school’s processes when giving consent on Compass. Excursions that appeared on Compass prior to 27 April did not have the acknowledgement step; however, the student contact details as outlined above will need to be given to the venue. Jillian English Principal Year 12 Food TechnologyYear 12 Food Studies Students were hard at work last week making pasta from scratch. They worked in pairs to tackle the pasta machine.
A new appreciation for fresh pasta was developed by all. Kyla ForbesCongratulations to Kyla Forbes, Year 9, who has been selected to represent Victoria in the 15 years and under Australian Football School Sports Victoria team.
Kyla was one of 23 young footballers selected from over 150 applicants and plays locally for Aberfeldie. We wish Kyla all the best for her upcoming games and for her very bright future in football. 
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Radio Astronomy - The Invisible UniverseA free opportunity for all students.
The VSSEC Radio Telescope is now available to all students in government secondary schools in Victoria. Take complete control of the telescope to view objects of your choice. Work by yourself, with a group of friends, or your entire class. This is the only radio telescope in the world exclusively for school students. And it’s free to use! Operate the telescope from your own home after school and at weekends. Radio telescopes work day and night and can see through cloudy skies so time and weather don’t matter. Use the telescope to reveal the hydrogen in space, invisible to human eyes. View hydrogen clouds (nebulas) in the Milky Way Galaxy, remnants of supernovas (exploding stars) and the centre of the Milky Way. VSSEC astronomers are here to help. More information is available here on the VSSEC website (click to open). Or contact Ian Christie at VSSEC (click to email) This program is part of the Victorian Challenge and Enrichment Series, a new series of FREE, high-quality extension activities for Victorian students.
Year 12 Ensemble PerformanceThe Year 12 Drama class will perform ‘What We’ll Build’ – the 2021 Ensemble Performance, on Tuesday 17th May 6pm-7pm in M2 at Strathmore Secondary College. Two groups will present a collection of scenes in the style of Bertolt Brecht’s Epic Theatre, including exploration of their chosen social issue, a bit of magic from picture story books and their predictions for the future of Gen Z. The students collaborate, create, rehearse and perform this task as part of their VCE Assessment.
Cast: Jack Diffey, Tilly Hill, Zoe Novacek, Gabriel Olivier-Hernandez, Emily Rosewall, Swopnil Shrestha, Emily Tikulin, Melina Vampatella, Olivia Vecchiarelli. If you’d like to come along, please RSVP via this link: ‘What We’ll Build’ RSVP. Attendees will need to sign in using a QR code on arrival. 
Man Up - Visiting PerformanceOn Tuesday 27th April, the Year 10, 11 & 12 Drama students were treated to a performance of Jeremy Ives’ play ‘Man Up.’
The play explored current societal views and norms around the way men behave and questions where men and masculinity are headed. Based on interviews with real people, the performance reflected the way people have perceived men in their lives and what the future holds for young boys as they become men. The performance was followed by a lively Q&A, where the students discussed with the performers the content and conventions used to communicate a message. Students are required to analyse and evaluate the work they have seen, and will use the knowledge they’ve gained to their own performances. 
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