Senior School – Term 4 Week 4

Student Leadership

Christian College believes servant leadership, team cohesion and participation in our College community are important facets of our students’ educational journey. Through both the formal leadership structures and other initiatives we encourage all students to be informed, aware, compassionate and participative.

The Christian College prefect leadership structure provides opportunities for our students to proactively influence our staff and student community by becoming advocates for positive change in our community. Our prefects will have the trust and respect of the community and will be entrusted with responsibilities aligned with their strengths and abilities.

The 2024 Christian College Prefect Team will consist of 24 Prefects, 8 College Prefects and 16 House Prefects.

This year over 60 quality applications were received from our Year 11 students who clearly demonstrated a dedication to their college and the opportunity to serve others. We are grateful and very proud of all students who submitted applications.

Parent Survey Reminder: Generative AI, Education, Society and Future 

A reminder that all Christian College parents are invited to participate in a survey on generative artificial intelligence (AI), education, society and future to inform the College’s forward planning. 

• Take the CCG parent survey 

The parent survey is for all parents, regardless of their level of exposure to or confidence with generative AI. The survey closes this coming Monday, November 6 at 5.00pm. 

Thank you to parents who have already completed the survey. Your participation is appreciated. 

Parents who have not yet responded are encouraged to do so via the survey link above. The average response time for parents who have responded so far has been less than four minutes. We ask that you please contribute your perspective. 

Feed Me Geelong

As part of Unit 2 Personal Development Skills students recently volunteered at Feed Me Geelong to engage with and support community. This feedback was received from two of the volunteers at the organisation. “We were impressed by how respectfully they listened to the volunteers speaking, and how they asked thoughtful questions about the people who receive help from Feed Me and the situation in Geelong. The students were so respectful of the volunteers, all of whom are over 60. The students hopped in and helped us decant dry food items and packed meal bags very efficiently. Their work meant that some of volunteers could leave an hour or so earlier than usual, which was a real bonus! As a former teacher myself, I know young people don’t always get good coverage in the media, but these young people conducted themselves very well. They were helpful, well-mannered, and good-humoured- great representatives of your school.”

Following on from our visit we received a request from Feed Me Geelong to carry out a food drive at our school. They are currently at capacity with their funding whilst the need for help is ever increasing. Feed Me Geelong currently provides food relief support to 600 local families every week. Involving our school not only helps those less fortunate but also provides a valuable educational experience for students, teaching them the importance of giving back to the community.

Product Design at the Villa

As the Art Technology and Design Festival 2023 bears down on us like a freight train, students in Year 10 are busy working on their final projects, extending skills they have honed during Term 3. These projects range from laser-etched footy memorials to lazy-susans, epoxy river tables and assorted individual projects.

Year 11 students are working hard to get their group-product-line prototypes ready to display. The chosen product line is a variety of lamps with a theme of graffiti street art and the chosen material is moulded concrete. Students have experimented with moulding their hands using seaweed based moulding gel then casting replicas in concrete. They have also learnt about reinforcement, concrete mixes and formwork construction.

The Year 12s have completed their products and are well into exam season as this goes to print. We wish them luck with the rest of their exams.

All of us from the ADTEC faculty look forward to seeing you at our annual Art and Technology Festival in Week 7!

Sharing Christmas Cheer 

Christian College staff and students are initiating a ‘Christmas Drive’ that works with the North Geelong Salvation Army to support those who need it in our community in the holiday season. To do this we are promoting donations throughout the Senior campus. As newly elected prefects, our duty begins with volunteering our time to pack hampers to support the Salvation Army. The Salvation Army is a charity that works very hard to support the less fortunate in our community through weekly food donations from supermarkets which tend to be just out of date food. During Christmas, the North Geelong Salvation Army makes up 250 hampers to bless families for the holidays. What has been noticed from these however, is that the food tends to be generic and not a “special” Christmas lunch like we might be used to at our own family Christmas. Hence, we as a campus are looking to donate 250 Christmas cakes to make these families’ Christmas that bit more special. During the Christmas season, generous members of the community also donate lots of toys to underprivileged families to give their children a present for Christmas. As much of a blessing as this is, teens are often forgotten so, to make sure the teens are remembered this year we are raising money to buy $30 teen vouchers to let the teens make a purchase for themselves. This may be the only present they will receive. The prefect-led Christmas drive begins on Monday next week and will continue for two weeks and it is easy to help out! You and your family can bring actual Christmas cakes and vouchers, or just bring monetary donations to school where they will be stored and then used. You can also donate using EFTPOS at the office or over the phone. Help us reach our target of a Christmas cake for each hamper (250) and as many teen vouchers as possible. It is a small way to support families in need this Christmas. 

Samuel Francis and the 2024 Taylor House Prefects 

World Teachers Day

In classrooms across Australia today, a dedicated, passionate and well-trained group of people, around 450,000 in fact, went about their work, teaching and guiding our nation’s four million young learners. These incredible humans perhaps chose their profession for a multitude of reasons, but I suspect one of the primary motivations was a love of learning and discovery that they wish to pass on to the next generation of young people.

Today, Friday, October 27th, is World Teachers Day. It’s an opportunity to celebrate the contributions and achievements of our teachers, and the positive impact they have on the education, character development and future pathways of young lives.

Christian College Geelong is blessed to have an amazing group of teachers – from Kinder all the way through to Year 12. As you immerse yourself in this week’s Vine, can I encourage you to do two things. Firstly, as you read each article, give thanks for the teacher or teachers who wrote it. If the article is written by a student, give thanks for the teacher behind the story. And secondly, be encouraged to branch out beyond the campus your young person attends, and take in the incredible depth and breadth of learning experiences and opportunities for students across all our campuses. Articles made possible because of the wonderful work of our teachers. Articles that celebrate the learning that takes place daily, led by our teachers, in the hundred or so classrooms across our College. And articles that bear witness to the rich, diverse experiences that students gain outside the classroom – the camps, the excursions, the incursions, the music events, sports activities and so on – all thanks to the teachers who plan, organise and supervise them.

I’m so grateful the teachers we have at Christian College.

So, hats off to our teachers.

The Importance of CPR Training and AEDs

You may have read a media report recently where CPR was administered to a cyclist in Highton, following a cardiac arrest. The incident took place just outside the Middle School Highton campus. 

The first person on the scene was Associate Professor at Deakin University – and Senior School parent – Lara Fuller, who had just dropped her son off at school and was driving on Thornhill Road when she saw the cyclist fall from his bike. Whilst Lara administered CPR, a Middle School maintenance team member quickly accessed one of the campus’ strategically placed AEDs – automated external defibrillators – and brought it to the scene. According to Lara, the AED played a vital role in saving the man’s life.

The incident was a timely reminder of the importance for schools and other community organisations to be prepared in the event of a life-threatening emergency. It is a requirement of our school’s registration that all staff undergo Basic First Aid training every three years, with CPR refresher courses required annually. And each of our campuses are fitted out with one or more defibrillators (AEDs) depending on the size of the campus, as per government requirements. For the one located in the Sports and Aquatic Centre at Highton campus, it proved to be a lifesaver. 

Ambulance Victoria is currently running a month-long awareness campaign, called “Shocktober”, which highlights the importance of learning CPR and how to use an AED. They have included this story on their website, which you can read here. 

To quote Lara: “I really encourage people to do CPR training because it’s actually not hard and it’s such an important skill.”

Get Some Unique Christmas Cards and Support Williams House

This year Williams House is selling packets of Christmas cards designed by our own little artists!

We are selling our Angel/Shepherd cards for $5 for a pkt of 6 and our Nativity cards are $7 for a pkt of 10. Each packet contains either 6 or 10 different designs.

If you would like to support the kinder and share our creations with the community this Christmas, the cards are available at all CCG campus receptions and of course at Williams House. Payment can be made with cash or card.

We also take over-the-phone orders with direct deposit. Phone 5241 3556

All money raised will go towards making some new additions to our outdoor yards!

We hope you love these gorgeous creations and enjoy sharing them with your family and the community this Christmas!

With thanks from all the children and the team at WH!

We’re Hiring – Canteen Assistants

Are you looking for a fun and fulfilling casual job within a vibrant school environment? Join our team as a School Canteen Assistant and make a positive impact on the daily lives of our students.

We are currently in search of enthusiastic canteen assistants to join our team at our Middle School-Highton canteen.

Applicants are required to hold a valid Working With Children Check. Previous experience working in a canteen setting or Level 1 Food Safety Certificate would be advantageous but not essential. Responsibilities will encompass a range of tasks, including food preparation, customer service, cleaning, and stock control.

Shifts are available throughout Monday to Friday, aligned with the school calendar which constitutes 38 weeks per year. Hours are generally 9-2pm.

For a Position Description and how to apply, visit this page on our website.

Qustodio Parent App Resources

Supervise and Support Your Children on School and Personal Digital Devices

A reminder to parents that the Qustodio Parent App is available to all parents to help them supervise and support their children with their online and digital interactions at home, on both school laptops and on personal devices.

In addition to information available on the College’s Online Safety Hub, parents also have access to some helpful ‘bite-size learning’ video tutorials to help them navigate and user the Qustodio Parent App as part of our school program. There are lots of short videos to help parents get the most out of the app and use it confidently.

• Browse all the Qustodio bite-sized learning video tutorials

Some recent additions to these tutorial videos for parents include:

• • How to view your child’s online activity through the parent app
  • How to configure and use the Qustodio daily time limit feature (for personal devices)
  • How to configure and use the Qustodio restricted times features (for personal devices)

I hope that these resources empower parents to continue to supervise and support their young people at home and engage in supportive and positive dialogue about digital wellbeing.

Jam for Refugees

Tomorrow, Saturday October 28, at St Paul’s Church in Latrobe Tce Geelong, two Christian College ensembles are part of the lineup at Jam for Refugees, a fundraiser to support the work of Geelong’s Combined Refugee Action Group. It’s a full day of diverse music featuring our’s and other school ensembles, various choirs and performers, and sharing by local people who are active in refugee advocacy in Geelong and the region. It runs from 11am to 9pm – entry is by donation – come when you can, leave when you must…enjoy some great music, thought-provoking messages and support an important local cause. 

VET Information

Students who have applied for a VET course for 2024 should now know if they have been offered a position or have been put on to a waitlist. Students who have been waitlisted will be put into one of their reserved CCG subjects until a position becomes available.

Students and parents should regularly check emails as the training organisations will be in touch directly with course specific information this term. The Gordon will be inviting new first year students and parents to an information session and tour at the City Campus on November 22 from 5.30 – 6.45pm and at East Campus on November 27 from 5.30 – 6.45pm.

The training organisations prefer that all VET correspondence comes through the school. If you have any questions or require any further information, please do not hesitate to contact me, k.fearnsides@ccg.vic.edu.au or Cathy Brew c.brew@ccg.vic.edu.au in the student office.

College Production 2024 – Update

As published in The Vine at the end of Term 3, the College will be staging Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Cinderella (Broadway Version) at the Geelong Arts Centre from May 2 – 4, 2004.

Audition Registration

All students from Years 5 – 11 (in 2023) across the College will receive an email early next week, with information and a link to an online registration form. Auditions will commence across the College on designated days from Sunday October 22. To register for an audition, students must complete the online form on/by Friday October 13.

There will be an information session held at each campus for students to have an opportunity to ask questions and learn more about the show. These will be held at:

Highton MS Campus Chapel                   Monday October 9 12.40

Senior Campus Music Department         Tuesday October 10 1.20pm

Bellarine Campus Auditorium                Tuesday October 10 at Lunchtime

Surf Coast Campus – Ms Notini will visit the Year 5 classroom next week.

Foundation Golf Day 2023

Following the success of last year’s inaugural event, we are delighted to announce the Christian College Foundation Golf Day tournament for 2023.

Save the date: Thursday November 9.

We are seeking prizes for this event – if you own a local business and are interested in creating partnership opportunities with Christian College, please contact Fiona Provan on 0400 477 467, or email f.provan@ccg.vic.edu.au