The Arrow Term 1, NO. 2

Principal Report

Dear Parents & Carers,

As we move forward into the second half of term 1, I am delighted to share some significant updates and celebrations from our school community. The long weekend has passed us, and this signals that we are already seven weeks into the school year. Most classes have reached a point where assessment has taken place, and students have received feedback. New topics are underway, and the rhythm of school life is fully embedded. Summer sports have become a key feature of our school weeks, with teams competing in the Mullum division. Our swimming team recently competed at Aquanation Ringwood with distinction, with many students progressing to regional finals. Camps have also been an important part of the term, with Year 12 students travelling to Cowes, Phillip Island, and Year 7s attending Camp Rumbug in Gippsland. These experiences are invaluable, fostering social connections, personal growth, and a strong sense of belonging.

We extend our thanks to parents for nominating for the School Council elections. Congratulations to our newly elected School Council representatives. Our Parent Representatives include Prof. Reza Hoseinnezhad, Prof. Isabelle Lucet, Catherine Krestyn, and Leo Pappas. Our Student Representatives, Ramakrishna (Rushil) Gundubilli and Brigitte Godfred-Spenning, will bring a valuable student voice to our council. Representing our dedicated staff are Genevieve Papon and Ella Price. At the same time, we take this opportunity to express our gratitude to Joanne Ryan and Sue Haralambopoulos for their dedicated service. Joanne for two terms of School Council. Sue for over a decade has been a pillar of our school community, serving as School Council President for an incredible eight years. We thank them both for their outstanding contributions, commitment, and leadership. We also wish our student representatives Cayden Lange and Ruby Robertson all the best as they begin their tertiary studies.

Our student leaders continue to be actively engaged in significant initiatives, including participation in activities led by the Hon. John Pesutto, where they had the opportunity to discuss leadership, advocacy, and the role of young voices in shaping the future. In addition, I had the pleasure of visiting our Year 9 students at the City Cite program last week. It was inspiring to see them immersed in their research and presentations, demonstrating impressive critical thinking, perspective, and engagement with their city. This week, parents and family members will have the chance to hear from students as they present their findings—a wonderful demonstration of our Auburn Learner Quality of Citizenship. Thank you to Greg Leach, Leon Raymond, and the dedicated staff who facilitated this outstanding experience.

We were honoured to host the French Consul of Melbourne in an event that celebrated French bilingual schools across the city. It was a fantastic occasion to showcase our new building and highlight our commitment to fostering global education. Seeing our new facilities in action for such an esteemed event was a proud moment for our school community.

Meanwhile, we are also preparing to host the Hawthorn Relay for Life on Saturday, March 22. This meaningful event raises funds for the Cancer Council, supporting both vital research and families affected by cancer. It is always inspiring to see our students, staff, and community come together for such an important cause, and we encourage everyone to participate. When our students represent Auburn High at events such as City Cite, sporting competitions, Rotary Club events, and leadership forums, they receive glowing praise for their conduct and community-mindedness. Through our community-building sessions, E4L, and wellbeing programs, we continue to reinforce safe behaviours and our school values. We ask parents to engage in regular conversations with their young people about making curriculum and extracurricular choices. Experience shows that multiple discussions from different sources are highly effective in shaping positive behaviour and positive risk taking academically, socially and with hobbies/interests. We deeply appreciate the partnership between home and school in fostering the best outcomes for our students.

Investing in our staff’s professional learning remains a priority, ensuring that teaching and learning continue to evolve in response to new challenges and opportunities. School funds are being strategically allocated to the implementation of the new Victorian Curriculum 2.0, supporting contemporary learning frameworks. Additionally, we are focusing on Disability and Inclusion reform, equipping our teachers with the tools to create inclusive classrooms that cater to all students. Training in Individual Learning Plans (ILPs) is being enhanced to ensure a more personalized learning experience for students. Further professional learning is centered on teaching strategies that enhance adjustments for learning diversity, reinforcing our commitment to fostering an environment where every student can thrive.

Presently we have the Parent-Student-Teacher Conferences being held, which provide an important opportunity for families to receive specific feedback on their child’s progress. These five-minute interviews offer a valuable snapshot, and for longer conversations, we encourage parents to reach out to teachers or Year Level Leaders.

Finally, I would like to comment on the transport situation for students to and from school. It is great to see over 60 students riding their bikes, and hundreds of students walking as part of active transport. This independent travel reduces traffic in the area. There is a continual issue with the public transport service to the school around our start and finish times. The issue is capacity on the buses. Over the last six years population growth in suburbs within our zone, and our increased student population has led to the over crowding of the Bus 624 route. I am currently lobbying the PTV, our local politician Mr John Pesutto, and the Minister for Transport, the Hon. Gabrielle Williams MP to increase the number of buses servicing the school zone. There are several parents who have contacted me about the issue and I suggest that if you are wanting change, you can assist by contacting relevant politicians.

Until next time,

All the best,

Ross Pritchard

Junior School

International Women’s Day 2025 celebrations last weekend provided the perfect opportunity to honour the remarkable women in our student’s lives. Students took the opportunity on Tuesday morning, to share a woman in their life who has inspired them. It was wonderful to see many Mothers, Aunties, Friends, Teachers and Carers being acknowledge for their contribution.

The start to the year has involved lots of exciting opportunities for our students to connect. A big thank you to our staff for facilitating a wonderful experience at CAMP Rumbug in week 3 of the term.

Year 7 Update

Our Year 7 students returned from Camp and have jumped into many activities and opportunities: joining clubs as a part of extra-curricular program, engaging in preparations for our year-level term assemblies next week, school production auditions and contributing to a number of fundraising activities for our Relay for Life Event that we are hosting this Saturday, 22nd March on the Auburn High School Oval. As our Year 7s adjust more into high school life, we are working diligently to support them to develop strong habits in the use of their diary. There are two ways that you can support this work from home:

• Ensure that students take their diaries home every night to check they are recording and completing homework
• Using their diary to ensure they are bringing the required materials to school: e.g. PE uniform or items needed for school events just as house colours

Year 8 Update

Our Year 8 students are in the full swing of term 1. It has been such a joy to sit in as a guest judge on students’ PE dance assessments! The creativity, courage and humility is high!

Our focus as a year level this term is to celebrate, recognise and reward our students for displaying our DARE values and demonstrating growth and persistence in their learning. Attending Tutor Group every morning is so important so that students have the opportunity to positively connect with their teacher and peers, feel organise and prepared for the day and be recognised for their achievements.

Year 9 Update

Our Year 9 students have returned from City Project, and it was a delight to watch their presentations last week and hear about their experiences and learnings. City Project is a highlight of our year 9 program, students spend a week in the city exploring a social or environmental issue in the broader Melbourne community. They conduct research, seek input from the Melbourne community and present their findings to their peers and families. Students also go on a number of excursions including Melbourne Magistrates Court, the Big Issue, Front Yard and hear from a number of speakers including the Police and adults who share their perspective on recovering from Gambling and being a Muslim in Melbourne.

NAPLAN:

Year 7&9 students commence NAPLAN on Thursday 13th March. Students have been engaging with NAPLAN based skills in their English and Maths classes and have had the opportunity to practice the use of this platform so that they are able to navigate the online platform with ease. I have been so pleased with the responsibility and aspiration demonstrated by our students during the testing period. Students who were absent form NAPLAN will have the opportunity to catch up on Friday 21st March and Monday 24th March.

Senior School

Overall statement

Year 12 Study Camp

Year 11 Study Success Seminar

Year 10 Study Success Seminar & PIVOT Wellbeing

Learning Behaviour Reports:

Curriculum review Focus Group:

Celebrating Cultural Diversity at Our School

Cultural Diversity Week, observed March17-23 this year, is an annual event that celebrates our rich multicultural heritage. To mark this occasion, our school hosted Cultural Diversity Day on March 20, 2025, offering students and staff an opportunity to engage in a variety of activities that celebrated our diverse backgrounds. The event featured face and hand painting, mandala colouring, and live music at the student entry, creating a vibrant and welcoming atmosphere. A central feature of the day was the Diversity Tree, where students reflected on their cultural heritage by writing what they love about their culture on symbolic leaves. These contributions were then displayed at the school entrance, serving as a powerful visual representation of the many cultures that make up our school community. Through these activities, students and staff were encouraged to explore different traditions, share their experiences, and appreciate the unique cultural identities that enrich our learning environment.

Cultural Diversity in Victoria

Victoria is one of the most multicultural regions in the world, home to people from a wide range of cultural and linguistic backgrounds. Some key facts about cultural diversity in our state include:

• 290 languages are spoken, and people from 314 different ancestries live in Victoria.
• Over the past 70 years, more than 7.5 million migrants have made Australia their home.
• Nearly half of Australians were either born overseas or have a parent who was.
• In addition to English, the most commonly spoken languages in Australia include Mandarin, Arabic, Cantonese, Vietnamese, Italian, Greek, Tagalog/Filipino, Hindi, Spanish, and Punjabi.

At our school, we recognise that cultural diversity strengthens our community by fostering greater understanding, respect, and collaboration. Events like Cultural Diversity Day provide an opportunity to reflect on the importance of inclusion and to celebrate the traditions, languages, and stories that shape our shared experiences. This also aligns with the message of the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (IDERD), which serves as a reminder of the ongoing need to challenge discrimination, promote equality, and foster a society where all individuals are treated with dignity and respect.

• AHS Wellbeing Team

Thursday 21 March marks the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (IDERD). This is sometimes known as ‘Harmony Day’ in Australia, but the use of ‘harmony’ as a focus on this day can gloss over racism, stop people from discussing it or cause people to think that speaking up upsets the idea of a ‘harmonious’ Australian society.

On the International Day of the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (IDERD) this year, Auburn High School is committed to:

• Learning more about racism and anti-racism
• Acknowledging and calling out racism
• Centring the voices of people who are negatively impacted by racism

We are doing this by:

• Celebrating Auburn High School’s cultural diverse community for Cultural Diversity Week 17th- 23rd March
• Collecting feedback on a new addition to our Bullying Prevention Policy that specifically defines identity-based bullying and highlights how the repetitive and systemic nature of this bullying results in cumulative harm

You can use the Australian Human Rights Commission’s IDERD resources to learn about the history and true meaning of IDERD. These resources include a fact sheet and a lesson plan for schools, which you can share with students, teachers and your community to learn about the history and true meaning of IDERD. They also include a general IDERD fact sheet to share with your colleagues.

It is important that we come together on this day to challenge racism. It will take a combined, collective effort to effect meaningful change across Australia.

Student Leadership Team

I am excited to introduce myself as Auburn High School’s Student Leadership Coordinator this year. Alongside my role as a Health and PE teacher, I have the privilege of working with our incredible Student Leadership Team alongside Mr. Lanfrachi.

It has been fantastic to see our student leaders working so well in their action groups, bringing their ideas to life and making a real impact in our school community. It is particularly admirable to see our year 7 students integrate so well within the Student Leadership team and demonstrate an eagerness to make a difference as newcomers to AHS. Already this term, the team have achieved some amazing milestones, including organizing fundraising events such as a BBQ and bake sale for Relay for Life, playing a key role in the Swimming Carnival, and successfully participating in our first leadership conference.

I have been so impressed by their enthusiasm, teamwork, and dedication, and I am excited to continue supporting them throughout the year. I look forward to seeing what we can accomplish together and can’t wait to share more updates on our initiatives!

Ms Hall.

Now, a note from our action groups!

Philanthropy

Throughout term, Philanthropy has been working hard on the Relay For Life. Relay for Life is an important annual event for AHS calendar with cancer having touched our school community. It is a fun community event where everyone is welcomed as we raise money and awareness for Cancer Council.

We have organised multiple fundraising events in the lead up to Relay for Life:

• Friday the 7th of March – Bake sale at the student entrance!
• Friday the 14th of March – BBQ at the student courtyard!

On the day of the relay, we will also have a bake sale and a chocolate toss happening.

On top of these fundraisers, we have a strong team of both students and staff who will be participating at the relay on Saturday the 22nd.

Simultaneously, one of our Student Leaders has also put a ‘Volunteering Club’ in action.  The club acts as a stepping stone to the Leadership team and provides opportunities for students to help, not only around the school, but also to participate in volunteering opportunities outside of school.

Looking ahead, our action group is working on the Push-up challenge which will be happening in June, and we are also working on the World’s Greatest Shave, which will be happening at the end of term 2!

Welling and Inclusion

Last week, the Wellbeing and Inclusion team actively contributed to fostering a stronger sense of community and promoting positive change within our school. In preparation for International Women’s Day and Cultural Day, we engaged in a meaningful discussion with Leah to explore ways to celebrate these events more effectively. This conversation allowed us to refine ideas that encourage greater student participation and awareness.

On Friday, we also supported the Relay for Life fundraiser by assisting with the barbecue sale, which turned out to be a great success thanks to the enthusiastic participation of students and staff. Additionally, in celebration of International Women’s Day, we organized a bake sale in the main building to raise awareness about gender equality and women’s rights.

Through these initiatives, the Wellbeing and Inclusion team has played a vital role in fostering a more inclusive and connected school community while also contributing to the overall improvement of student well-being. We are committed to continuing our efforts to create an environment where everyone feels valued and supported.

Looking ahead, we are preparing for upcoming events such as Cultural Day, Neurodiversity Awareness Week, Anti-Racism Initiatives, and Sleep Day. These events will provide further opportunities to promote inclusion and well-being across our school.

We encourage everyone to participate and be part of these meaningful initiatives!

Community

In the Community action group, we are working towards establishing a mentorship program. This will consist of year sevens being mentored by year nines and tens. We intend on collaborating with teachers and students to create this initiative which will benefit many students in our school and strengthen our learning environment. We are also working with the Philanthropy action group for Relay For Life, organising activities for the day to bring people of all ages together. We are excited for the Auburn High School community to come together for a great cause, as well as making new friends!

Sustainability

The Sustainability Action Group begun the year by promoting awareness on the correct use of different bins in our school environment. The significant impact that students have on our Auburn High School environment when disposing of rubbish was communicated to students during their weekly E4L class. The group organised a powerpoint that reminded students of the correct use of the bins provided, which was implemented into the E4L curriculum this term.

House Spirit

Throughout term one, the House Spirit Action Group has encouraged  the engagement, inclusivity and competitiveness of the houses in Auburn High School. By creating the foundations for many projects to be implemented throughout the year such as the showcasing of house points every fortnight, as well as house mascot competition that is set to begin in term two. Also the creation of similar competitions throughout the years that will be more inclusive to a broader area of students which will promote the cooperation and fostering of house spirit. Along with the planning of designing a house specific uniform that will lead to a more visible and viable way of identifying the students in each house.

What’s happening in our French classrooms?

La journée de la francophonie

On Thursday 20 March, we celebrate the journée internationale de la francophonie. This day celebrates all French-speaking countries and the over 300 million French people who speak French around the world! French is the fifth most spoken language in the world. At AHS, this day holds a special place as three of our French staff are native to French Islands, including Mauritius Island, Reunion Island and New Caledonia/Tahiti.

On Tuesday 18 March, Mme Paule Ignatio, Consul General of France in Melbourne and current Auburn High School parent invited French teachers from bilingual schools in Melbourne to the Soirée festive de la francophonie. This special event, which was held at Auburn High School, was part of the Francophonie Week celebrations to honour the richness and diversity of the French language. This was a wonderful opportunity for French teachers and educators to connect and exchange in a festive atmosphere.

In preparation for this week of celebrations, Year 7 French students created flags of francophone countries which were on display in the student entrance, while Year 8 students learnt and made posters about Francophonie!

Continuing on the theme of francophonie, our Year 12 VCE French students have just finished their first SAC, persuading a parent to let them do an exchange in a French-speaking country overseas. As part of their next unit, they will interview a member of their family to reflect on the differences between generations.

Our Year 7 Immersion class have started their new unit, Enfants du Monde, which is looking at Rights of Children around the world. They are getting ready to write petition letters and do a presentation in class to persuade students to take action. A lot of interesting, persuasive and also creative work coming ahead!

Ambassadeurs en herbe 2025 – French Debating Competition

For the first time this year, Auburn High School and Caulfield Junior College have joined forces to participate in the highly anticipated French Debating Competition organised by the AEFE. This international competition will take place in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, from Wednesday 26 March to Friday 28 March. A group of 10 students, including 6 students from AHS (Year 7 and Year 9 Binational) and 4 students from CJC (Grade 6) will be travelling in the next few days, accompanied by two teachers, Madame Oldfield (AHS) and Monsieur Prevet (CJC). We wish them well in their debating adventures, on the theme La francophonie, un voyage dans le temps et dans l’espace. Bonne chance!

Auburn High School Community Event – French Movie Night

📜INVITATION📜

Join us for a special Auburn High School Community Event celebrating French culture and the love of learning!✨

🎬 Private Screening of En fanfare / My Brother’s Band (Classification TBC)
📅 Wednesday, 26 March 2025
⏰ 5:45 PM arrival | 6:30 PM movie start
📍 Como Cinema, South Yarra

This event complements the 2025 Alliance Française French Film Festival – an opportunity to immerse yourself in French cinema and culture!

Term 1 was an exciting and enriching time for our international students at Auburn High School.

Lunar New Year 2025: A Celebration of Culture and Community!

Auburn High School came alive with festive spirit as we celebrated Lunar New Year 2025 – the Year of the Snake! Students and staff gathered in the Student Foyer to take part in traditional activities and embrace the rich cultural heritage of this important festival.

One of the highlights was the Lucky Red Envelope giveaway, where Mr Pritchard handed out red envelopes, symbolising good fortune and prosperity for the year ahead. The traditional tea ceremony offered a moment of mindfulness, allowing students to appreciate the art of tea-making and its cultural significance. Meanwhile, the calligraphy demonstration was a hit, with many students trying their hand at writing Chinese characters for the first time!

It was a fantastic way to welcome the new year, bringing our school community together to celebrate diversity and tradition. Thank you to everyone who joined in and made the event so special!

Peer Support Program Kicks Off with Success!

Our New Student Peer Support Program is off to a fantastic start! This initiative, designed to help new students feel welcome at AHS, has already sparked wonderful connections through culture-sharing and fun activities.

In the first two sessions, students broke the ice with engaging games and conversations. A highlight was our international students introducing their peers to Mahjong, a traditional Chinese strategy game, as well as a variety of board games. It was fantastic to see students from different backgrounds learning from each other, engaging in friendly competition, and developing strategic thinking skills through these shared experiences.

A massive thank you to Elsa Otto, Brigitte Godfred-Spenning, Elle Inglis, Seohyun Lee, and Lakshanya (Lakhi) Balachandar for their contributions in brainstorming ideas and facilitating activities, and to Mr Ashley Lanfranchi for his ongoing support.

With sessions running fortnightly, we can’t wait to see more students get involved and continue building a welcoming and inclusive community at AHS!

Jean ZHANG

International Student Coordinator

Year 7 Camp Adventure at Camp Rumbug!

In week 5, our Year 7 students embarked on an unforgettable three-day adventure at Camp Rumbug! From the moment they arrived, excitement filled the air as they took on a range of thrilling activities—canoeing, giant swings, raft building, and even a mud run that left everyone covered in mud but with the biggest smiles!

Students worked together to build shelters, mastered the art of knot-tying, and put their deep-thinking skills to the test to achieve team goals. Evenings were just as special, with time spent sharing stories and laughter around the campfire, discovering world flags, with the orienteering course with a “passport of the world.”

Each morning kicked off with wake-up music and dance, setting the tone for another fun-filled day. Of course, no camp experience would be complete without some playful antics—especially attempts to push teachers off their canoes into the lake! And let’s not forget the special moments spent spotting kangaroos in their natural habitat.

It was truly a camp to remember, filled with adventure, teamwork, and endless fun. What an incredible way to bond, learn, and create lasting memories!

Here some students feedback:

“I really liked the food they gave and the activities like the leap of faith and the giant swing were my most favourite activities.”

“The activities because they were really fun and the next time i see a giant swing or the leap of faith, I’ll be excited instead of scared because I’ve already done them”

“Making new friends and exploring during recess, talking to new people, and talking to people late at night. And that’s what made my experience memorable. Doing something fun because I’ll never be this age again.”

“the mud run was one of them because I got to break out of my comfort zone and do something I would’ve never done if it weren’t part of the camp”

“The most memorable part of camp was having new experiences and seeing new things because looking at the bush and feeling the breeze is really calming.”

“The most memorable part of camp for me was definitely spending time with my friend. We had a lot of good conversations, especially when we were hanging out after activities. It made the camp experience even more fun and memorable.””

“I enjoyed the giant swing the most because the feeling of sudden zero-gravity when you pull the string give the BEST dopamine effect, and will be forever replayed in my hard times” “I enjoyed the most was the mud run i found it really amusing because we got run around the camp covered in mud and climb ropes, crawl in the mud and heaps more!”

Fanny Beck,

Year 7 Year Level Coordinator Assistant

Whats happening in the AHS library?

The Auburn High School Library remains a vibrant hub of activity and engagement,  It is delightful to see keen Year 7 student readers this year. These students along with all the other strong active library users are taking up the opportunity of utilising the amazing free resources in our library and building a stronger reading culture at the school.

Students can access the Library Catalogue via Compass

1.Click on to Favourites (Star).

2. Scroll down to AHS Digital Library.

3.Students use your numerical Compass Login for the Username and Password is your date of birth eg: 18052012.

4. Staff use your numerical Compass username and password.
5. Click on Discover
6. Circulation
7. EPlatform Ebooks and Audiobooks

Take a moment to explore.

The furniture and shelving in the Library has been moved around. From the entrance of the library: on the left is non fiction which features the French Collection, (IB) International Baccalaureate, STEM. On the right is the fiction collection. The long red couch is placed in between the fiction collection and is facing towards Library1 classroom to inspire potential readers and sight supervision.

As a reminder Daily Opening Hours of the Library are:

8:30am

Recess 10:51am to 11:15am,

Lunchtime 1:35 to 1:50pm

3:00 to 4:00pm

Our English teachers asked students for requests of new books in their English classes.  These new books are on display in the Library in the New Books white bookcase near the Loans Desk.

During February the Library celebrated “Love Your Library Day” on

14^th February.  Students who visited the library at lunchtime kindly filled in hearts to write a sentence on what they liked about the library or their favourite book. Blind Date with a Book. Students were asked to write review. We also had a display of books with romance

If your child has any overdue books, we kindly ask that they return them as soon as possible or contact me direct. We would prefer to work together to resolve this matter rather than issuing an invoice.

Shirley Wong

Librarian

Careers & Pathways

All activities and events are free unless otherwise stated in the description.

All Students

Years 9 – 12

Years 10 – 12

Year 10 Work Experience

Work experience is an important part of our career education program at Auburn High School. It helps students to explore potential jobs, develop employability skills, understand workplace expectations and make informed education and career choices.

Key Dates

• Applications due: 22 April 2025
• Work experience week: 30 June – 4 July 2025

New: Online Applications

Our school is lucky to have early access to the Department of Education’s new digital work experience application portal. The portal replaces paper forms and is designed to save time by simplifying the process for families and employers. Families can fill out and sign the form from a mobile phone or computer. The digital work experience forms are securely stored in line with Victorian privacy laws. Please download the 2025 AHS Work Experience Handbook V2 for details. Please download the 2025 AHS Work Experience Handbook V2 for details. You may also like to download the Study Work Grow Work Experience Guide for students and their families as an additional resource.

*Students whose families and host employer have already completed the paper-based forms are not required to use the new process. However, they should book a 15-minute appointment (bring laptop, completed forms and OHS certificates) so I can assist them to correctly follow the submission process.

New: IELLEN Opportunities

Our Work Experience Programs and Opportunities spreadsheet has been updated to include the 2025 IELLEN Listings.

To apply, students must complete the Google Form linked at the top of the spreadsheet (please don’t contact employers directly) and attach a resume and cover letter. After receiving a student’s expression of interest, the IELLEN contacts the employer on behalf of the student to see if they can host. As host employers exceed their capacity they will be removed and as new host employers are acquired, they will be added.

There are 2500+ students requiring work experience placements in the IELLEN network area, so we encourage students to use their personal networks to secure a placement in the first instance.

We are always on the lookout for quality work experience opportunities for our students, so if you think you can provide a placement, please contact me: [email protected]

Many thanks for supporting our work experience program.

Years 11-12

Year 12

Female Identifying Students

Kindest Regards,

Anna Langley

Careers & Pathways Manager

Women in Conversation Breakfast

On Friday the 28^th of February, Brigitte Godfred-Spenning, Anais Bachelet and I were lucky enough to attend the annual Women in Conservation Breakfast at the Sofitel Grand Ballroom. Hosted by Rachel Lowry and Corinne Proske (the latter being a parent at AHS who generously invited us), the convention was both a celebration of the women pioneering sustainable practices as well as a way to raise awareness of the importance of Indigenous wisdom in protecting our planet.

From left to right: Anais, Sophia, Ms Proske, Brigitte

The luxurious space was filled with energy from start to finish, from loud cheering in celebration of the amazing women pioneering this cause, to the chatter in between the speeches for people to network.

During one of these breaks, we managed to talk to Travis Lovett, the Commissioner of the Yoorrook Justice Commission, the first formal truth telling process into historical and ongoing injustices experienced by First Peoples in Victoria. We learnt how incredibly relevant and important “embracing the wisdom of Indigenous knowledge” is, to quote Teagan Shields, the keynote speaker from the convention.

From left to right: Travis, Anais, Sophia, Ash Bartley (from Trust for Nature)

One of the facts that stuck with me most was that it took 34 years to stop people from climbing Uluru from when the indigenous Anangu peoples first asked. It’s interesting to note that from a young age, Australian children learn about the horrors that were inflicted on the Indigenous peoples of Australia, but less the injustice that still pervades Australian laws and rules.

However, it was reassuring to hear of the incredible work organisations like Trust for Nature and Bush Heritage Australia, buying land to protect it from being logged, as well as another 1700 private land holders forming conservation covenants to help us create sustainable futures here in Australia.

Teagan Shields, keynote speaker

Kindest,

Sophia

Year 12 Student Leader

Dear Parents and Guardians,

We would like to remind families that students are not permitted to charge their laptops in classrooms. To ensure uninterrupted learning, all students must bring their laptops to school fully charged each day.

This policy is in place for several important reasons:

• Electrical Safety Risks: Student chargers are not subject to annual testing, increasing the risk of electrical faults or potential fire hazards.
• Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) Concerns: Cables running across classrooms pose a trip hazard to students and staff.
• Classroom Disruptions: Searching for power outlets and plugging in devices takes away from valuable learning time.

To reinforce our students’ laptops battery running out during the day:

• Students using school-managed device runs out of battery during the day, they may bring it to the IT office for charging with their teacher’s permission, for one period.
• Students using self-managed devices may also charge their laptops in the IT office with their teacher’s permission, for one period; however, this is at their own risk, as we cannot guarantee the charger compatibility with their laptops. The school IT department only provide the tested genuine Lenovo USB-C type charger.

This policy aligns with the Auburn High School Acceptable Use Agreement which has been signed by all parents prior to the devices using at school, refer to the AHS student Laptop Information Pack on school Compass, which clearly states that students are not permitted to charge their laptops in classrooms. We appreciate your support in reinforcing this expectation at home to ensure your child’s device is ready for learning each day.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact the IT office.

CSEF 2025 Applications

Dear Parents/Guardians,

If you qualify for CSEF and have not yet applied since your student started high school, please fill in the attached form and return it to reception or email it though to [email protected] 

CSEF Aplication Auburn High School 

Applications automatically roll over as long as you remain eligible and funds come though at the start of Term 2.

Kindest Regards,

Ellie Archambault, Accounts Receivable