WELLINGTON JOURNAL – EDITION 7

November

• Monday November 3 – Pre-Melbourne Cup Day – no formal classes
• Tuesday November 4 – Melbourne Cup Public Holiday, no classes
• Friday November 7 – Wednesday November 12 – Year 10 Exams
• Monday November 10 – Tuesday November 11 – Year 9 Exams
• Wednesday November 12 – Thursday November 13 – Year 9 Design Sprint
• Thursday November 13 – Unit 2 Exams end
• Friday November 14 – Assessment & Report Writing Day – no students
• Monday November 17 – Early Commencement Program Years 7-11
• Tuesday November 18 – College Awards Night
• Wednesday November 19 – Late start 10:30am, due to Awards Night

December

• Monday December 1 – Friday December 5 – Year 10 Work Experience
• Monday December 8 – Year 7/8 End of Year Activities
• Wednesday December 10 – Year 7/8 End of Year Activities
• Thursday December 11 – Year 7/8 End of Year Activities
• Friday December 12 – Friday December 19 – Staff Planning (no classes)
• Friday December 19 – End of Term 4

---

Reminder

Please ensure you are checking Compass regularly for notifications and updates to events that are specific to your child, to avoid them missing out. It is how you are able to see, consent and pay for all events that effect your student.

If you miss consent and payment deadlines, your child will not be able to participate in the event.

Welcome back to Term 4 and I trust that your holiday break was a good one. We hope all our families enjoyed a refreshing break and are ready for an exciting final term of 2025!

This is always a special time in our school year as we celebrate student achievements, host end-of-year events, and enjoy the many opportunities that bring our community together such as Valedictory and Award Night events, and celebrations of learning, there will be plenty of moments to showcase the talents, growth, and spirit of our students.

We are especially looking forward to supporting our Year 12 students as they complete their final exams and recognising the efforts of every student who has worked so hard throughout the year.

Term 4 promises to be filled with energy, connection, and celebration. We look forward to sharing these experiences with you.

Wellington’s Got Talent

At the end of Term 3 we held the finals for Wellington’s Got Talent. Congratulations to all the students that participated in Wellington’s Got Talent. The semi-finals were hotly contested, and the final was spectacular. The talent of our students is amazing with fantastic dancing, singing, rapping and playing of instruments.

Congratulations to the winner – Preet Parmar for his rapping and jokes along with the other finalists – Georgie Karanasios, Minh Ho and Rosseka Hor. The performances were amazing. Well done also to the SRC and Performing Arts team for making this great event happen.

Visual Arts Exhibition
On Monday October 13, I had the pleasure of attending and celebrating the Annual VCE Art & Design Exhibition, where we were able to showcase the fine work of our senior Visual Arts students. The event was held in the Senior School precinct.

Congratulations to the students and their teachers on a fantastic exhibition. Congratulations to the Award winners. I congratulate Mr Nishioka, Ms Szabo, Mr Sakaris and Ms Fry for their leadership and dedication shown towards our arts students.

Year 12 Valedictory Celebrations
During Week two we celebrated the Class of 2025 with a range a events concluding with the Valedictory Assembly and inaugural Valedictory Ceremony with parents. Our students have behaved in an exemplary way. I was so proud that they were able to maintain the Wellington tradition of respect and ordered farewells to their last classes at secondary school. I am confident that they have been well prepared and that they will continue to conduct themselves in the ‘Wellington Way’ over the next few weeks and into the future. We wish the Year 12 students undertaking exams all the best in their upcoming weeks. We want to celebrate all students and hope they take what they have learned at Wellington to continue to apply themselves and make the most of their opportunities.

Save The Date – Awards Night (Tuesday November 18) and Late Start (Wednesday November 19)
This is to advise the Wellington community that our Awards Night is not far away. This year’s Awards Night will be held on Tuesday November 18 at a new venue, the Springvale City Main Hall (18 Grace Park Ave, Springvale). The evening of celebrating student achievement and performance begins at 6:45 pm for a 7:00 pm start. Award recipients will be notified individually. I encourage all members of our community to attend this great night.

As this is a whole of school event and in line with previous years, there will be a late start on Wednesday November 19. The Charter Buses will operate 2 hours later than normal. The school gates will open at 10:30 am, with recess scheduled at 10:45 am. Period 3 classes will commence at 11:10 am with Periods 4 and 5 following as usual. Dismissal will be at 3:00 pm.

Year 12 Exams
Year 12 VCAA exams will commence next week. We have many Year 12 and some Year 11 student undertaking these exams. I wish all our Senior students all the best over the next month. We are very proud about how our students have approached the challenges of study throughout their time at Wellington. I thank all teachers and tutors for their support of our students.

Parent/Caregiver/Guardian Survey
As mentioned in previous Journal articles the Department of Education Staff, and Parent/Caregiver/Guardian Opinion Surveys were conducted in Term 3. The Parent/Caregiver/Guardian Survey results are available, and it is fair to say they continue to paint a very positive picture regarding community satisfaction with our great school. Once again, I thank the 63 Parent/Caregiver/Guardians who completed this important survey. We will analyse the data and look for ways to continue to improve our school.

Celebrating Judy Drew
On September 18, Mr Butler and I had the pleasure at attending the Albany Rise Primary School assembly to farewell retiring Principal Mrs Judy Drew. Judy has been a strong pilar and advocate for the Albany Rise community. On behalf of the Wellington community, I want to thank and congratulate Judy for a wonderful career in leading her community. We wish Judy all the best for the future.

Rotary Club of Monash Glen Waverley
Congratulations to our community for supporting such a worthy cause. Our wonderful community donated a huge amount of pasta to the Rotary Club of Monash Glen Waverley. This will in turn be passed on to families of need. Thank you to all the students, staff and other community members for your support.

Monday November 3 – Pre-Cup Day
I would like to remind families of the plans for Monday November 3 ‘Pre-Cup Day’. Traditionally, our families at Wellington have taken the opportunity to take a ‘long weekend’ concluding with the Tuesday Melbourne Cup public holiday.

For those students who do attend on the Pre-Cup day, classes will operate, however we will decide on the day how they will be configured. This will be based on the number of students, if any, and the year levels in attendance. Senior School Exams will be running as scheduled, however please note:

• the College Canteen will NOT BE OPEN
• the College Charter Bus service WILL NOT OPERATE
• Public buses will run according to their published schedules.

Mr Chris Knight
Principal

Valedictory Day

Congratulations to the Class of 2025 for completing their studies. Good luck to all of those sitting their exams, we wish you all the best!

Learning Beyond the Classroom: VM Adventures in the Real World

During Term 3, VM students took their learning out of the classroom and into the real world through a range of fun and hands-on excursions. Each experience gave students the chance to see what they’ve been learning in class put into action. By getting involved, asking questions, and trying things out for themselves, students were able to learn in a way that felt real and relevant. These excursions showed that some of the best lessons happen when you step outside the classroom.

Ms Jaclyn Jacobs
Learning Specialist: Vocational Education and Pathways

Wellington’s Got Talent!

The SRC worked together with the Performing Arts leaders to put together our annual Wellingtons Got Talent show! Students were invited to perform in the theatre whatever talents they would like. Eight acts where selected to get through to the semi-finals. The audience was lively and packed during each lunchtime!  

The show ended with the finals on September 18th, with Preet Parma (Year 12) taking the first place with a very entertaining comedy and sing/dance routine. Georgie Karanasios took second place with a performance on Guitar with singing. Congratulations to all of our participants! 

The whole event raised over $500, with the proceeds donated to the Rotary Club Pasta Drive, and UNICEF. 

Mr Tray Driscoll-Plavins
Learning Specialist – Student Voice & Agency 

---

Baking Competition

The Baking Competition was an initiative that the SRC Caring Team created in inspiration of our tradition of hosting a Cookie Competition. SRC Caring Leaders came together to plan a baking competition that brings the familiar sense of passion for baking but creativity opening the horizons beyond cookies.

Students baked a variety of home-baked goods for our selection of panel teachers and students to judge. In recognition of higher stakes within this competition, congratulations to the earnest and well-deserved bakers!

Christine Pham and Phavin Ean
SRC Vice Captains – Caring

Overall Winners

First Place	Annalyn Eng, Year 11
Second Place	Danin Lim, Year 11
Third Place	Alina Pang, Year 11

Subcategory Winners

• Daniella Nikolaou, Year 11
• Aliya Kartel, Year 7
• Tharindi Handapangodage Dona, Year 7
• Lyheng Sou, Year 11
• Alisa Pang, Year 11
• Christina Yeon, Year 9
• Salina Horm, Year 10
• Su-Keira Sara, Year 11

Language Week

Our students had an amazing time exploring all the activities organised for Languages Week this year. Not only were there films and presentations of culture, but there was also lots of engagement in interactive activities! A huge congratulations to all the recipients of the Language Student of the Term, who were invited to join the languages morning tea.

Ms Hayley Dickinson
Teacher

---

Students of the Term – Term 3

Congratulations to the following students who have been awarded French and Mandarin Students of Term 3. Certificates are for their diligence, positive approach and grit to the study of French and Mandarin. We recognise their efforts in their application to work, perseverance, initiative, participation and co-operation. They also earn 10 points each for their respective houses.

ACACIA	DIANELLA	EUCALYPTUS	WARATAH
Braydon Dang, Year 7	Jacinta Tran, Year 7	Charlize Cheng, Year 7	Chi Luong, Year 7
Ray Ganas, Year 7	Maxim Loskutov, Year 7	Michael Taylor, Year 8	Daniel Choi, Year 7
Lyna Nguyen, Year 7	Konstantinos Tekes, Year 8	Jiyae Jang, Year 8	Ryan Le, Year 8
Lucy Thwaites, Year 7		Dorsa Al Tamimi, Year 8	Johnny Vo, Year 8
Alex Le, Year 7		Saanvi Vijay, Year 9	Aaliyah Say, Year 8
Oscar Yi, Year 7			Olivia Yim, Year 9
Stelios Atzemis, Year 8
William Tran, Year 8
Mingqi Duan, Year 8
Rithy Khov, Year 9

Mr Bushan Sookhareea
Languages Curriculum Area Leader

VCE Graduate Art and Design Exhibition

This year’s VCE Graduate Art and Design Exhibition opened on the 13th of October in B16 and 17 of the Senior Centre. The exhibition was a huge success drawing students, families, friends, staff and members of the wider community to celebrate the outstanding achievements of our year 12 students from Art Making and Exhibiting, and Visual Communication Design.

Award Recipients

Excellence in Art Making and Exhibiting	Niza Din
Excellence in Visual Communication Design	Anushri (Anu) Murali Krishnan
Acquisitive Award for Art Making and Exhibiting	Yuki Ly
Acquisitive Award for Visual Communication Design	Agustin Valverde Arqueros

Congratulations to all Year 12 students for their exceptional work, and sincere thanks to the Visual Arts teaching team for their commitment and support in making this exhibition a great success.

Special thanks to the Visual Arts Team for all their hard work – Mr Seijiro Nishioka, Ms Fiona Szabo, Mr Evagelos Sakaris, and Ms Melanie Fry.

Mr Seijiro Nishioka
Curriculum Area Leader – Arts

Australian Maths Competition

Wellington Secondary College had over one hundred students compete in the 2025 Australian Mathematics Competition. A number of students were awarded certificates to recognise their accomplishments, these students had results that were in the top tier of the nationally run competition. 

Wellington had more than 20% of student entrants achieve a distinction or above in the competition. Ethan Peng achieved a high distinction, his results were in the top 5% of students in Australia. He was recognised as the highest performing student at the college.

A big well done to all competitors that took part and a very big thank you to the mathematics staff and daily organisation team that helped supervise and assisted with the running of the competition.

Mr Cat Nguyen
Math and Science Teacher | Year 7 Coordinator

Nude Food Week

Sustainability Champions Leah Cheung and Saanvi Shaker communicated to junior students the importance of bringing ‘Nude Food’ (food without a disposable wrapper or container) to school as part of our pledge to reduce school waste. They asked the Junior students to bring their food without any wrappers for at least a week!

From September 15-19, different Sustainability Champions were stationed in front of the Junior School building to check who was participating in the Nude Food campaign. Only students bringing reusable containers or food items without a wrapper were awarded house points.

---

Food Plants in Bloom

Some students have been surprised to see the flowers blooming in the veggie garden, as the cauliflower plant is currently showing a beautiful display of yellow flowers and the native mint bush tucker has violet flowers. These flowers are attracting a larger number of honeybees (introduced species) who have been busy pollinating. We would love to see a diverse range of pollinators at our school, for example native bees! Their contribution to the ecosystem is vital to environmental health and human welfare. If you see them around, just keep your distance. Bees are generally not aggressive unless they feel threatened.

---

Waste Audit

On the last day of Term 3, Mr Serin’s Year 7 class conducted a waste audit facilitated by Sustainability and Recycling Educator from Monash City Council, Celina Samarakoon. The waste audit showed that as a school, every year we could divert from landfill approximately:

• 14,000 pieces of soft plastic
• 4,000 aluminium cans
• 72,000 pieces of paper and cardboard and
• 1,500 kg of food waste.

We need to do more to break the ‘take-make-consume-dispose’ pattern, and if we join the circular economy, we can reduce the environmental impacts of production and consumption. For example, if we all bring ‘nude food’ to school on a regular basis, we minimise the quantity of soft plastics. Aluminium cans and plastic bottles can be recycled via the container deposit scheme, and for convenience there is a collection point in the senior centre. The community garden has composting bins, but the most important thing is to reduce food waste.

Ms Bruna Amaral
Science Teacher | Sustainability Coordinator

We collected rubbish that was around the Agora locker bay and we inspected bins with the help of my classmates. Celina from the Monash City Council told us what is recyclable and non-recyclable. We separated the rubbish and put them in different categories like cardboard, paper, glass, metal and plastic. At the end of the day, we received ice creams donated by Bulla!

Paranitha Ramesh
Year 7

---

Spring Clean Up Day

Year 7 teachers and their classes spent a few minutes collecting litter in different areas of the school, as part of the Great Spring Clean Up Day. The enthusiasm of several keen students and their teachers was infectious and the litter that was hiding underneath plants and stairs disappeared. At the end of the day, teachers and students were rewarded with ice cream that was kindly donated by the Bulla branch in Mulgrave.

---

Sustainable Modes of Transport Presentation

During assembly, Camont Choeung, Danny Tran and Saanvi Shaker presented the results of the Sustainable Modes of Transport survey that was answered by students in June 2025.

Ms Bruna Amaral
Science Teacher | Sustainability Coordinator

It seems daunting, the fact that our contributions to the high levels of carbon emissions has such a detrimental impact on our world. But, we as a school and as our own individuals, can combat this issue. How? By choosing sustainable transport whenever we can. Whether it be walking or cycling to get to a nearby destination or taking public transport to travel longer distances. Recently, a couple of my classmates and I had an interview with Mr Knight in regards to implementing both Bike Education and Bike Shelters at Wellington.

Unfortunately, we won’t be doing Bike Education, however Mr Knight has agreed to build a roof for our bike area. So now if you decide to ride your bike to school, you won’t have to worry about your bike getting wet. This is just the start to Wellington’s journey into sustainable transport. Even though you may think that changing the way you get around has zero impact on the planet, I reassure you that by switching to sustainable transport you will be helping Australia reduce its carbon footprint and supporting the global fight against environmental and climate issues. So, let’s choose a greener future, let’s choose eco-friendly options, most importantly let’s choose sustainable transport.

Saanvi Shaker
Year 9

Sustainable Fashion Swap

Sustainability Champions organised the last pop-up shop of the year, motivating the school community to embrace Sustainable Fashion and avoid Fast Fashion. In the lead up to the event, we invited students across all year levels to bring some of their pre-loved clothes to swap.

Ms Bruna Amaral
Science Teacher | Sustainability Coordinator