Issue 2 2024 - Principal
Principal
Rebecca Kirkwood
I start this newsletter by celebrating our hard-working team of staff. As I mentioned in our last newsletter, our College was due to engage in a Public School Review. As you know, these occur in public schools every three or four years. The routine nature of reviews are meant to be reflective of the improvement cycles we have occurring in schools. They aren’t supposed to be huge impositions, rather a validation of work already happening at the school. During the recent publication, I also mentioned that we were due to undergo an audit by the Training Accreditation Council (TAC) that related directly to our status as a Registered Training Organisation. I expected this to be quite a large review given one had not been conducted for seven years and there had been several significant legislative changes across the Standards.
What I didn’t realise at the time of writing was an aligning of the stars that would see both reviews occur in the same week, and not just any week, but in Week 1! As parents and community members, you probably know what great staff we have and won’t be surprised to hear that we did incredibly well with both review teams being impressed by our commitment to teaching and training. Dr Russell Docking, the TAC auditor, said it best in his summation to the leadership team, ‘you’ve got one impressive organisation here’.
The final report has been released by the Public School Review team and endorsed by the Deputy Director General of Schools - Melesha Sands. It is a requirement that the document is published publicly and will be readily accessible on our website until the next review in 2027. I have attached the review and our Annual Report to this newsletter for your reading. I hope when you read it you will see our staff’s passion towards our College and your children, facilitated through the leadership team’s commitment to continual school improvement. It’s only through this continual improvement that we are able to provide your child with the best education and the widest possible post-school options.
In terms of the TAC review, I am pleased to report that we passed every single area – a feat rarely replicated in industry. With so many complex layers to training, this achievement is a testament to our committed vocational teachers lead by our Vocational Team. A formal report will be forthcoming. I expect to be in a position to release that in July 2024.
All of this has me reflecting on how incredibly lucky I am to lead such a fantastic organisation built on our commitment to strong student outcomes. It was important to me that we engaged in the reviews authentically and transparently. Thank you to the 34 staff, students and community members who met personally with the review team members across the three days that they were on site.
What better way to end a busy week than with a school ball! This year saw us venture to a new venue, The Old Dairy, and what a great choice that was. I’m sure I’m not alone in saying it was a spectacular night. The students looked stunning and matched their dress with their exemplary behaviour. Each and every one was a testament to the work we do here at the College to produce young men and women ready for the world. Congratulations and huge thanks must go to John Overton and Keir Mulder who coordinated the ball along with our Student Ball Chair, Sam Wimpenny. She led her team of students (and staff!) into shape to create the most sensational night. Well done everyone.
Rebecca Kirkwood
Principal
WACOA - Denmark