Onnected... We Are All Connected

Pgreat expectations aND... PP orrorte For tent n tFF uro is to be acknowledged as a leading, contemporary australian school with an international outlook, specialising in girls’ education and developing our students as through our staff professionalism and service, and the personalised quality of our learning environment and communications. uro is to prepare our students to , to and, as , to to the challenges of their times. We will be: • and in everything we do. • r and e in our communications with students, parents, colleagues and peers. • C e and in our approach to our work. e C t ve ve C e t r C t F e e a major part of achieving our strategic priorities is This year, we launched our new global Learning our next strategic endeavour is to enhance our sporting programs to deliver an appropriate maintenance and building Centre (gLC) for Years 9 & 10, together with a with some exciting new initiatives for next year, and significant program that enables us to deliver an excellent WaVes contemporary food & Nutrition Centre. This has enhancement of our facilities with the commencement of our learning experience, that enhances our position as a enabled us to realise innovative curriculum, offer an new Wellbeing Centre (Phase 1) as an extension of our current market leader and ensures our sustainable growth now after-hours certificate in hospitality, and complete gym. This exciting project will bring together indoor and outdoor and well into the future. our strategic intent to provide outstanding ‘every day’ spaces in the one location for our sport and Physical education learning spaces for every girl from eLC to Year 12. (Pe) classes, and will include a studio for yoga/pilates, a fitness gym, additional toilets, change rooms and a home for our Health Centre and school Psychologist, linking these important wellbeing services. ee Fro te rnC ConC ne tent eer entone r e FFerenCe rere on Cretve ConneCton Croo on te eC te or te Fonton CrrC nnovton or o ve oC rt to r rn t or Cont rent oCton o r C Front Cover ofue The whole school ‘guard of honour’ farewelling the Class of 2013 on Valedictory Day. tearao tr e t vCe troteaoere # oourtuetattaeter toe # uoraeeao t teauorepoe # oteaaeeo ereetoereuau # oteaaeeo # oteaaeeo re # oteaaeeo Message froM PP Victoria.2 our enrolments continue to grow, and in 2014 e n we will be offering an additional class in both Years 5 & 9 C as we accommodate demand for our quality education. The Year 12 Class of 2012 certainly set the standard of at the beginning of this year, after an extensive 12 month achievement for this year. our school Dux achieved a consultation period, we launched our new strategic Plan, perfect aTar score of 99.95, and students were awarded ‘Great Expectations AND...’. We articulated our Vision, Mission, University scholarships and accepted into some very and Behaviours and identified our goals for the next five years prestigious courses including Biomedicine and science/ (see inside cover for details). our planning took into account engineering. But more important than the aTar scores is that our digitally connected young people are entering the fact that every one of our Year 12 students gained a place a world full of amazing possibilities and unprecedented in a tertiary course related to her area of interest. These opportunities brought on by advances in technology. are remarkable successes given that we are not a selective- However, these exciting possibilities are coupled with entry school. our students are aspiring to excellence and, some incredibly daunting challenges. We now live in a world importantly, breaking stereotypes about what girls can do. which is hyper-connected, in an era where “facebook has spawned 150 billion ‘connections’ and where we collectively shell out 4.5 billion ‘likes’ on status updates, every single day.”1 The vastness of this new world coupled with a lack of interpersonal To balance the constant evolution of our initiatives in technology, contact can leave us with a profound feeling of disconnection. a and in keeping with our priority on wellbeing, we successfully growing body of science is showing we are more isolated than gained status as an esmart school, recognising our work to ever before, with mental health issues on the rise. support responsible use of our highly technological environment. one of the most important things we can give to our With the help of a number of experts, our introduction students is a sense of authentic connectedness. a greaT of Mindfulness training from eLC to Year 12 has helped school teaches them how all things hang together, how students learn to focus more productively, approach exams different facts and knowledge relate to one another, and how more effectively, better manage their thinking, emotions people are connected – locally, nationally, and internationally and reactions, and essentially, to re-connect with themselves. – in their daily learning, in leadership, and in life. skills in leadership have also been a focus, and students have benefitted from new leadership development sessions and as you will see in this edition of well RED, we are constantly conferences, and a more streamlined student leadership selection striving to connect with our community and further our journey process. Indeed, there has been much work on our school-wide as a great school. although we are early in the implementation WaVes Care & Leadership Program, helping us to connect cycle of our ambitious new strategic Plan, with a very parents, staff and community experts to enhance the wellbeing supportive school Council, a committed team of staff and a of our students throughout their total school experience. positive school community, we have already achieved some great results, from science to sport and everything in between! C With the importance of connections in mind, we have been developing and re-aligning our curriculum to help each We believe in the quality of our educational offering, but Mentone girl become a true global citizen. it is always gratifying to see our own beliefs reflected in external benchmarks. our early Learning Centre (eLC) for the first time in Mentone’s history, we welcomed our has been independently assessed as “exceeding National friends from China; Vice Principal Hong Xia, three of her Quality standards”. In The Australian newspaper’s top 100 colleagues and 12 students from our new sister-school, schools, our Junior school featured in the ToP 40 schools Huaxia girls’ school in Beijing, and next year a group of our nationally, and our senior school in the ToP 10 schools in staff and students will return the visit. Just as generous families NeWs in our community have provided homestays for Huaxia’s Your Board of Directors students, they will reciprocate for us. The result is rich and is committed to ensuring engaging intercultural experiences for all concerned. earlier that the school is properly in the year we hosted a group of 19 Japanese students from supported and able to Yamanashi eiwa, our sister-school in Japan, and an enthusiastic deliver the highest level group of our students participated in a highly successful of educational and life Japanese study tour, linking with Yamanashi eiwa and our experience to all of our friendship school, soshin Junior and senior girls’ High school. wonderful students. We have hosted german and french students this year, and some of our students will visit st aspais in france and We are delighted to make gymnasium Hochrad in germany over the Christmas break. our collective contribution to these outcomes, and we We have also developed some highly innovative global curriculum continue to provide a strong for Year 8, and for Year 9 in 2014, thus increasing the number of focus on both strategy and international options available to our students in senior school. our Year 9s will also connect with like-minded peers through a governance in support of the unique partnership with Young People Without Borders. These school, the executive leadership team, our wonderful experiences will stay with the students for life and enrich their educators and professional support staff. journey to become more active citizens of the world. We have adopted a disciplined approach to the We are working with Deakin University on a three year setting of business strategy, governance and risk program to encourage the development of intercultural management in support of the Principal, Mrs fran understanding and competence in our students, key reddan and the strategic Management Team. attributes of a global citizen. as part of this quest, we have In 2013, I am pleased to report that the school again sought to create opportunities for our students to engage exceeded expectations in a number of key areas in authentic, positive and supported interactions with including enrolments, academic performance and the people of other cultures, including Indigenous australians. built environment. My thanks to all Directors for their The Junior school has successfully completed a formal evaluation continued tireless efforts. with

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