Dear LSC Community Members,
Term 2 is over halfway through, and it has been a very busy and exciting time. We have seen students engage in a wide range of both classroom, co-curricular and experiential learning opportunities, as well as engage in important work for their futures. Please find an update on key happenings below.
Facilities Upgrade Update
On Tuesday 7th May, the 2024-25 State Budget was delivered. I am very excited to announce that Lyndhurst Secondary College was granted the full $13.6M that was promised as an election commitment within this budget. This will see our college be able to proceed with our facilities upgrades, moving beyond the initial planning stage that was granted in last year’s budget.
We were also lucky to have the Deputy Premier and Minister for Education, the Honourable Ben Carroll MP, attend the college on Thursday 9th May alongside the Member of Parliament for Narre Warren South, Mr Gary Maas. During this visit, some of our students from Years 7 to 12 engaged in conversation about their learning at LSC before going on a tour of the college. We visited Auto, the new Hands On Learning precinct and discussed the exciting plans for education at the college. We finished the tour with a visit to the C Block and finally the Gym where the Minister was able to formally make the announcement we are receiving funding to our Year 7 Health and PE classes.
The initial planning funds released last year allowed us to engage with architectural firm Brand Architects to complete an updated Masterplan for the college. This outlined the potential future staged developments for the college over the next 10-15 years. With the allocation of the full funds in this budget, we have already met with the architects to discuss next steps and proceed with the next stage of planning which will hopefully see works commencing mid-2025 on our Gym space.
This is a very exciting time for our college and one I am looking forward to seeing come to fruition for our students.
Multicultural Week
From Monday 13th May to Friday 17th May, Lyndhurst Secondary College celebrated Multicultural Week. This was a massive week in the college calendar, with lots of exciting things occurring, from competitions related to world flags in the Library, to the hosting of an international delegate of Principals from India as part of the Women in School Leadership program.
On Tuesday 14th May, the college celebrated with a massive Multicultural Assembly. This included dance, musical and cultural performances by a number of our talented students, as well as a staff performance of an exciting and energetic Bollywood dance! Students celebrated our cultural diversity by wearing bright and beautiful cultural dress for the day.
The visiting delegation were blown away by the diversity in our college community, as well as the ways in which our students celebrated each other’s unique cultures so openly.
Annual Student Attitudes to School Survey
In the four weeks ending Friday 14th June, the college will be undertaking the annual Student Attitudes to School Survey (AToSS). This is a very important survey that we have all young people complete as it provides us with important information to guide our future work and improvement.
In 2023, our results in this survey were overwhelmingly positive, with students reporting their experiences at LSC to be higher than the average response across the state in every single measure!
As part of this work, members of the Executive Team will be visiting classes to explain the survey and its importance, unpack key terms and definitions and facilitate the survey itself.
I thank students in advance for their carefully considered responses to this important data set for our college.
Course Counselling – Important Dates and Events
Whilst it may seem like we have only really just begun the school year still, students will soon be selecting their 2025 subjects, courses and learning pathways! As part of this process, the college puts in a range of supports to ensure students are making informed and accurate decisions about their pathways. This includes Mentor sessions dedicated to pathways planning, publishing of 2025 Subject Handbooks online for students, parents and carers to read and sessions to explore subjects and pathways.
As such, I would like to promote two important dates occurring this term for students and parents/carers to attend. These include:
- Wednesday 12th June is our 2025 Subject Fair – students will attend specific periods as a year level and engage in activities to discover more about subjects and options for 2025. They will also have the chance to meet and chat with a range of further education providers including TAFE and university groups, as well as career options post-secondary schooling.
- Wednesday 12th June is our Middle School Information Night – students, parents and carers of students in Years 8 and 9 invited to attend to learn all about Year 9 and 10 programs, options and pathways
- Thursday 13th June is our Senior School Information Night – students, parents and carers of students in Years 10 and 11 invited to attend to learn all about Year 11 and 12 programs, options and pathways. Year 9 students and families wanting to get a head start in learning about VCE, VCE VM and VET can also attend.
We will also have special Course Counselling days in the first four weeks of Term 3 where students in Years 8 to 11 will have individual appointments to work with an experienced counsellor to help confirm their choices for 2025. We look forward to having as many parents and carers attend with their students to be a part of these important conversations.
Ms Eloise Haynes
Principal