PRINCIPAL'S REPORT

KUMMARGEE CLOSING CEREMONY 

The Year 8 Kummargee - Rise Up program concluded with a closing ceremony featuring a Welcome to Country by Bunurong elder Uncle Mark Brown and a presentation by Indigenous artist J-Milla. John Murray, our Bayside Peninsula - Koorie Engagement Support Officer (KESO) was also in attendance.

McKinnon continues to build its partnership with the Bunurong Land Council as we look to explore different ways to incorporate their wisdom, knowledge, and learnings into our inclusive curriculum. 

This year's challenges included Maths and Science, Sport and the Aquathon, Visual Communication and Design and History, Language Perfect, Rogaining and Geography.

Congratulations to 8D, who secured the victory, with Bodalook from 8A recognised as the best individual group. The winning T-shirt, designed by a Year 8 student, will be revealed at the East Campus Junior Art Show next Monday.

I'd like to thank Mr Paul King for his endless hard work in planning, organising and facilitating this program throughout the entire year. 

EXAMS

Well done to our Years 9, 10 and 11 students who undertook their end of semester exams last week at the McKinnon Rd Campus. This was our Year 9 students first experience of exam conditions, and they conducted themselves with maturity throughout both Numeracy and Literacy exams.

These exams are an important part of understanding areas of strength and areas for improvement as well as allowing students to reflect on their results and achievements. 

VCE ORIENTATION

Our most senior students spent the week engaging themselves with learning and understanding our VCE expectations. Our teachers have provided students with work to ensure a very successful 2026 program.

Thank you to Ms Felmingham and Ms Jobson, along with the Senior Student Managers for organising the VCE Orientation week.

END OF YEAR MUSIC CONCERT PERFORMANCES 

It has been a joy to see the musical growth, confidence, and enthusiasm of our students throughout the year. The dedication and teamwork of the Music Team and students have truly shone in our end-of-year concert series.

On Wednesday 12 November, the East Campus Concert was held in the Campus Gymnasium. The evening highlighted wonderful performances by the Year 8 Strings and Bands, Ovenden Band, Keenan Strings, World Music Ensembles (East and McKinnon Road groups), East Choir, and the Intermediate Stage Band, who provided an exciting finale. The concert was a highly enjoyable event and a testament to the hours of rehearsal and home practice put in by these emerging musicians.

We are excited for the final ensemble concert of the year - the Junior Ensembles Concert - which takes place tonight. This special event celebrates the achievements of our youngest musicians and marks the culmination of their efforts since the Winter Concert. Audiences can look forward to performances by the Year 7 Combined Bands and Strings Ensembles, Junior Stage Band, Year 7 Percussion, Junior Singers, and Extension Strings. It promises to be a fitting finale to what has been an active and rewarding year of music-making.

My sincere thanks go to Clare Bugeja and Dmitry Serebrianik for their leadership in organising these concerts, as well as to the AV and facilities teams, all ensemble directors, and the entire Performing Arts team for creating rich performance opportunities for our students.

SPORTING SUCCESS 

2025 has been our best yet in the Sporting arena with 16 teams making it to State Finals (top 8 in the State) and 4 teams being crowned State Champions. Congratulations to:

• Senior Baseball and Girls Volleyball

• Intermediate Boys Cricket, Girls Cricket, Boys Volleyball, Girls Volleyball and Baseball

• Year 8 Boys Tennis, Girls Tennis, Softball, Boys & Girls Table Tennis and Girls Hockey

• Year 7 Girls Volleyball, Girls Tennis and Boys Table Tennis

You can read all about this success in the Sports News page of the newsletter and see plenty of incredible photos in this year’s annual Thistle Yearbook.

STAFF V STUDENTS

It was fantastic to see so many people get involved in the Staff V Students events held at the East campus this week. These fun activities included a ‘Just Dance’ dance off, Trivia, and tomorrow will feature the Dodgeball event.

Thank you to the Year 9 Student Leadership team and Lee Laskaridis for arranging these events and to all the good sports who participated.

2025 THISTLE YEARBOOK

Our Thistle yearbook is a wonderful keepsake that captures the College’s events and highlights throughout the year, featuring impressive photos and student articles. The 2025 edition has now been printed and will be distributed at the end of the school year to those who have pre-paid online.

There is a limited number of copies still available. If you would like to purchase one, please make payment via the Compass Parent Portal by Wednesday 10 December.