9 November 2018

Newsletter Articles

PRINCIPAL’S REPORT

Mackay State High’s 2018 Awards Night celebrated the outstanding achievements of our students, staff and school over the year and recognised the performance of our students in academic, leadership and cultural fields across the year. Mr Col Meng shared some of his memories of his days as a students at our great school and his journey since leaving. He shared some advice for our graduating Year 12 students and to the wider school community. Congratulations to our 2018 Dux Kasey Westcott for her outstanding year and to those Academic Excellence winners in the other years Year 7 - Charlise Altobar , Year 8 - Tasma Levitz, Year 9 - Dan Kevin Asuncion, Year 10 - Thanh Huynh, Year 11 - Lauren Anderson. We also had the announcement of our 2019 School Captains - Mayson Armstrong and Blaize Grant, Vice Captains Caitlyn Ebner and Alec Scott. At Awards Night it is lovely to see many former students attend and come and share their stories of their studies or advances in their trade training as well as plans for the future.

An audience of over 300 were treated to a showcase of the talents of the students and staff in our Arts faculty. The Visual Arts painting, photography, sculpture and digital displays were on show in the entrance to the hall. The performances in the program to follow featured singers, speakers, short films, and some outstanding performances by our instrumental groups. The quality of the individual parts was only possible by the links and hosting by Mr Patti, with the students playing for their families and themselves.

The Year 12 students who have been completing Vocational courses through the Mackay Engineering College in Engineering Practices, Automotive and Electro Technology had their graduation this week also. Their parents and the teachers from MEC were very pleased to recognise the efforts of these students over the two years, with some of these students already engaged in School-based apprenticeships while several are awaiting interviews.

New enrolments for 2019 are a priority at this stage of our school year. In the past few months staff have interviewed most of our new Year 7 students and parents for 2019 to have their details ready for the new school year. However if there are further enrolments across all year levels, I encourage parents to contact the school Office to make arrangements for the interview. Subjects can be selected, uniforms purchased and the Enrolment details finalised, rather than a rush at the start of next year. Call 49579179 soon.

During this busy week, our school has successfully undergone a Financial Audit. This process reviews the financial management, budgeting, accountability processes required for an organisation of our size. The report has been provided and it shows a very positive feedback and I congratulate all staff involved, especially Troy Twomey our Business Manager and his office team for their thorough attention to detail on behalf of the students, their families and staff.

I received some information from Haard Shah our 2017 School Captain. He is currently studying at QUT and has recently been advised that he was selected for the QUT 2019 Deans Program, offered to a small number of high performing students from the institution. Congratulations Haard.

Reminder to any families looking to purchase a laptop in the near future for their students, the BYOx Information Evening will be held in our Auditorium at 6pm on Tues 13th November. I encourage you to attend to receive the information to ensure that you make the best decision for your child.

Congratulations to Tahlee Durelli, who has been selected to represent Queensland in the Under 17 team following selection at State trials in Caboolture in September vacation. She will now go on to compete in the National trials in Adelaide in early January 2019. We look forward to hearing of her experiences next year. Well done.

George Christensen, Federal Member for Dawson spoke to our Year 12 students on Tuesday and provided each of the students with a School Leavers Guide 2018 booklet. The booklet provides information on pathway options with links for students, financial considerations as well as general support around transition.

Mr Steve Paulger
Principal

STYMIE

ACCESS CENTRE

MACKAY REGIONAL TRANSITION NETWORK

In a bid to assist students with disabilities to transition into work or study options post-secondary school, the local schools have formed the MRTN – MACKAY REGIONAL TRANSITION NETWORK. On the 18th of October the combined Mackay High schools hosted an Expo at the Mackay Senior Citizens’ Hall. Students heard the stories of past Mackay students with disabilities who have gone on to do great things, and they, and their parents, had the opportunity to speak with a wide range of organisations about what is on offer in our region for them. Our café, The Ugly Duckling Café, provided lunch to all stall holders and ran the coffee and sweet shop, whilst Chappy Phil cooked up a complimentary sausage sizzle for all in attendance. Students and parents from all the local secondary schools got to meet and speak so, not only was information passed on, friendships were forged and networks developed. It was a truly worthwhile experience for all.

Vikki Kane
Experienced Senior Teacher ACCESS Centre

Camp

From the beginning of Term the Access Centre have been very busy building resilience and relationships at Kinchant Dam, camping out at Camp Eagle, to thinking about possibilities for diverse learners, what supports are out there and life after school. All these opportunities are very valuable for the growth of our students from juniors to those who are to leave us very soon, the seniors. Thank you to all teachers and students who have worked hard to make Alternate and Cross Curricula Educational supports inclusive for all.

‘Senior Pathways Expo’ proudly brought together by MRTN – Mackay Regional Transition Network consisting of CQU, NDCO and all the Head of Special Educational Services, in surrounding high schools came together again to create an Expo that opens local pathway opportunities for senior students with diverse needs. We see and hear of many individual events / programs / information sessions and believe this to be a worthwhile occasion to bring multiple services together to a wider audience. Years 10/11 and 12 students from every high school came along to the ‘Senior Pathways Expo’ to talk, met and plan for supports from agencies available to us in the community. Parents and students were provided with inspirational speeches, current information, local accessible agencies and goodies to take home. Thank you to all involved especially the ‘Ugly Duckling Café’ who did all the catering/selling of coffee and slices to all stall holders. Praise and wonderfully positive comments from other schools/teachers/students and the community were very much appreciated.

On the 18th October CQU ConnectAbility was a very rewarding excursion for our diverse year 12 students. It was a great opportunity for students to participate in interactive career focused sessions, tour a university and explore opportunities for further education and training, to find support and information regarding transitioning into life after school. Thank you to Nat at CQU for a great day visiting our local University.

The coming together of the ‘Strength’ program, ‘ASDAN’ program and ‘Real Me’ program lead to a highly successful camp for our junior students. Two nights at Camp Eagle and three very big days of fun filled activities lead to stronger relationships and building resilience in students that find challenges in everyday life. The tribal shelters tested everybody’s skills! A huge thank you to Chappy Phil (Leader/Guru) Mr Lee (Head Chef) Mary Muirhead (Mother figure) and Alan (Calming volunteer)

VET UPDATE

Term 4 is a very busy time for our Vocational Education and Training Students. Students undergoing school based courses in Skills for Work and Vocational Pathways, Business and Information, Digital Media and Technology will all be tidying up the year’s units of competency and those in year 11 will be looking to complete the course, whilst those in year 10 will be ensuring that they are up to date to finish the course in 2019.

Given that this year’s cohort of Year 10 students are moving to a new system and the Year 11’s are entering their final year of studies, we want to ensure that all students are up to date. Students who have not completed the required competencies by the end of term may be required to return in the final two weeks whilst the junior students are still at school (December 3 – 14). During this time, students will be supervised until they complete all required tasks. Parents will be contacted in the coming weeks if their child is required to attend.

Year 10 in 2019

In 2019 the school will be enrolling all year 10 students in the Certificate II in Skills for Work and Vocational Pathways course. This course allows students who successfully complete it to obtain the Literacy and Numeracy competencies required for the Queensland Certificate of Education as well as four valuable QCE points.

A large component of this course is about digital technologies in the workplace therefore all students are required to have a BYOx device or be part of the school’s Equity Program. BYOx information can be found on the school website at the following address:

Changes to the BSB Training Package

Students currently enrolled in our school VET classes will have some changes to the units of competency in which they are trained and assessed due to the update of the Business Services Training Package. Students who have already obtained the superseded units will be eligible for the new units and will receive these on their Certificates or Statements of Attainment once the units are added to the school’s Scope of Registration. Students will receive information in class from their teachers’ regarding the changes that may impact them specifically. Units that have been updated and impact our students are:

Year 12 School Based Apprentices

Students currently in a School-Based Apprenticeship in Year 12 should be starting to have discussions with their Apprenticeship providers regarding transitioning to part time or full time apprenticeships at the conclusion of their schooling. Students who have questions regarding this, or have not yet had conversations, are encouraged to speak with their providers to ensure that required transitions can take place.

SENIOR SCHOOLING

Year 10 Work Experience

About one hundred Year 10 students have just completed a week of work experience.

These work placements allow students to experience time in the workforce and to develop a positive work ethic for future employment.

We have had many success stories from students participating in work experience with placements leading to part time work or school based apprenticeships and traineeships.

Here are a few good news stories from some of our students and their Work Experience Employers.

Candace Blake - Ooralea Education and Care Centre

Candace said “The children were amazing. I enjoyed each day watching them achieve their daily goals. The experience was good and I hope to be able to do it again sometime.”

Candace’s supervisor said “Candace was very enthusiastic. She was eager to listen and learn. She showed great initiative and asked how to help and what to do next. It was lovely to have Candace in the room.”

Jarrid Wheeler – Tony Cook Building Design

Jarrid wants to follow his dream of being an architect. He phoned around and found his own work placement. Jarrid received excellent feedback from his supervisor.

Jarrid’s supervisor said “Double credit to any student who rings around to find his own placement. Jarrid has a real passion for the industry. He is polite, well organized and capable.”

Jarrid is now doing work experience one day a week until the end of school and will also be doing some work in the holidays.

Thomas Camp – Inspire Accounting & Business Services

Thomas said “It was a pleasure to work at Inspire Accounting. I learnt so much about accounting and I feel more confident about my decision to pursue accounting as a future career. My co-workers have made me realise that working in an office can be an enjoyable experience.”

Thomas’s supervisor said “Tom carried himself really well and showed great keenness to learn about what we do. His attitude was excellent and his work skills were very impressive. Tom was excellent - great attitude, great willingness to learn, fast learner and great workmanship.”

Skye Bajada – Absolute Enterprises

Skye chose to do Boiler Making for her work experience. She is very keen to obtain an apprenticeship in this field and has always been interested in this sort of work.

Skye’s supervisor said “I am very impressed with Skye’s great work ethic. She has fit in well with the team and is working really well with the guys in the workshop.”

Skye will do another week of work experience in the holidays and has been offered a School Based Apprenticeship as a Boiler Maker next year.

Skye Bajada (centre) with the boys in the workshop

Position Vacant

BYOx eLearning Info Evening

There will be an Information Evening held at Mackay State High School for any students in Year 6 coming to Mackay SHS in Year 7 2019.

This evening is for parents and students interested in information about choosing the correct device, device specifications, software requirements, using your laptop in the classroom, as well as, information on devices available through the school’s Portal. Come along and get your questions answered and receive documentation on the BYOx eLearning Program.

AWARDS NIGHT

Wednesday 7 November was our Annual Awards night. This is a prestigious night on the school calendar with many students receiving awards in Leadership, School Achievement, Academic and Special Awards. There are many sponsors who make this night possible, Thank you to:

2ND HAND UNIFORMS

We are always in need of any 2nd hand uniforms, for students that have the incorrect uniform, we can do a quick fix with a loan uniform through the Year Coordinators room. The loan uniform is then returned to the school in a clean condition. If you have any Senior or Junior shirts and shorts we would be most grateful, just bring into the General office.

MATHS DEPARTMENT

ENGLISH DEPARTMENT

TUCKSHOP

How can I get involved?

Volunteering is time willingly given for the common good and without financial gain.

The parents and citizens’ association at Mackay State High School appreciate any volunteer contribution that you can make. Can you help at tuckshop? Do you like planning or assisting at functions and special events? There are so many ways in which you can help our P&C email pandc@mackayshs.eq.edu.au for more information

COMMUNITY NOTICES