Category: Education

Student goals supported

Six Northern Bay College students began the school year with the support of the Skyline Education Foundation Australia. The Year 11 students at the Goldsworthy Campus received scholarships aimed at making their dream of entering university a reality.

Skyline Education Foundation Australia launched in Geelong after 10 successful years of assisting some of Victoria’s most talented and dedicated students.

The Skyline Education Foundation Program assists VCE students who come from resource stretched families to make their aim of entering university a reality.

The Foundation is led by a group of accomplished Australians who recognise that completing VCE and gaining access to a tertiary education is crucial to a student’s lifelong success. Assisting these students often has a wider effect, strengthening and improving outcomes for the whole community.

Board Member and Chair, Dr Peter Hollingworth AC OBE, said Geelong was an obvious place for the Foundation to expand its scholarship program.

“Over the past 10 years of fine tuning what is a unique program, we looked for a community that might respond to this opportunity,” he said.

“We have been greatly encouraged by the warmth of our initial reception and now look forward to building new partnerships here in the Geelong Region. Our program will be grounded in local communities committed to improving educational opportunities for their young people who are facing difficult circumstances.”

Skyline Foundation has partnered with Geelong- based businesses and Deakin University to work with carefully chosen students and schools in the region.

Northern Bay College Goldsworthy Campus had six successful applicants to be Skyline Scholars and they will commence Year 11 in 2017 with this amazing support.

Campus Principal Ken Massari is confident that the 2017 students are outstanding representatives of the community who can complete their VCE years with the Foundation’s support. He hopes that students in Year 10 will seize the opportunity to study in 2017 with an aspiration to apply for the 2018 intake.

Stars with a message

The Northern Bay College community is supporting the One Million Stars project, which aims to raise awareness and promote education about the prevention of violence in the community.

One Million Stars to End Violence involves making eight-pointed stars that are symbols of light, courage and solidarity to end all forms of violence, including violence against women, bullying and racism.

The project is an opportunity to contribute to the promotion of safety for everyone, in our streets, homes, workplaces and schools. Every star woven is a symbolic representation that the community does not support any sort of violence and abuse.

Northern Bay College is aiming to weave at least 2000 stars that will be used in an installation then sent to the Gold Coast for a display at the Commonwealth Games in 2018. It has been running activities to include parents and students in the project.

Any volunteers who would like to become a star weaver must have current Working With Children Check and can contact Karen Uebergang at Hendy on Monday, Wednesday or Thursday, phone 5228-4200, for more information.

Exciting changes for families

The early years hub at Northern Bay College has undergone some exciting changes in recent months with a new name and new staff committed to support the school’s vision for a ‘cradle to career’ approach to education.

The newly-named Northern Bay Early Learning and Care Centre was originally an incorporated body on the school site. The school took on responsibility for the operations of the centre in May to further promote community inclusion and support for families.

The childcare centre and kindergarten offers a funded four-year-old kindergarten program and childcare for children from six weeks to five years old, for anyone in the community. Half and full day childcare places are available at competitive rates.

Among the new, friendly staff who arrived with the changes are director Narelle Langenberg and kindergarten teacher Vivian Kilpatrick.

Next door, the Northern Bay Family Centre continues to support families from pregnancy to five-year-olds with playgroups, parent support programs and drop-in activities. The family centre receives sponsorship from Barwon Child Youth and Family.

Family Centre co-ordinator Helen O’Connor said the changes have been positive for families in the area and fit with the College aim to promote a planned, seamless and integrated path of education, care and support for children and families from birth and kindergarten through to Year 12 and beyond.

Also based at the centre is Jo Ridgeway, who works with families in the Supporting Parents’ Access to Childcare and Education (SPACE) to help them engage with education and employment.

Families are welcome to call in any day to see the facilities and programs at work.

An Open Day will be held on October 27 from 10am until 1pm to showcase the programs, facilities and staff. There will be a range of activities and all families are invited to participate.

Learning through lunch

More than 250 children from primary schools in Corio and Norlane were recently taken on an innovative excursion – an experience in fine dining at the Davidson Restaurant of The Gordon Institute of TAFE.

The program, called Learning through Lunch, was organised by Ardoch Youth Foundation, an Australian charity that provides education support for children and young people in communities where resources are limited.

Ardoch has been partnering with early year services and schools in Geelong’s northern suburbs for eight years. It provides educational volunteers to support children’s literacy, numeracy and engagement with learning and also creates opportunities for the children to broaden their horizons through excursions, new activities and engagement with community and corporate volunteers as positive role models.

Learning through Lunch was created in Geelong in 2012 after a teacher approached Ardoch’s Education Programs Co-ordinator about creating an experience for his students that would challenge their everyday expectations and provide them with valuable life skills.

In collaboration with The Gordon Institute of TAFE, Ardoch developed an inspiring learning experience to take place at The Davidson Restaurant. The program introduces them to new experiences and food that they may never have tried before.

For many children, it is their first experience of fine dining. To help them, Ardoch recruits corporate, philanthropic and community volunteers, who mentor and support them through the experience, while also talking to them about their aspirations, dreams and ways to achieve them.

The program has been so well received it has now been rolled out in other parts of Victoria.

Ardoch’s strongest partnership is with the Davidson Restaurant, which helped to develop the original program and provides inspiring learning experiences for students from Corio and Norlane each year.

For more information on how Ardoch’s programs support the community, contact Mark Campbell Education Partnerships Co-ordinator at [email protected].

Extra activities for students

School days have become longer for large numbers of Northern Bay College students who are taking advantage of their school’s extended activity program.

Up to 500 students from across the college’s five campuses are staying at school until 5pm to learn and experience programs they haven’t had the chance to take part in before.

Extended School Day Co-ordinator Amanda Baulch said during planning for the program, every student from Year 3 to 8 was given the opportunity to say what they believed they were missing out on.

“From this feedback the first program was created with students having the opportunity to participate in French, cooking, drama, Auslan, boxing, music lessons, science programs, just to name a few,” Mrs Baulch said. “They are embracing every minute of it.”

The program runs at the Goldsworthy campus Monday to Thursday from 3.30pm, when the children are provided with afternoon tea, until 4.45, when parents come and collect them.
Mrs Baulch said Term 3 timetables are almost finished, ready for students to sign up for next term.

“Our students are hungry to learn and we are here to help provide a vast array of experiences. We are always looking for new experiences and programs to expose our students to and for facilitators to run them, which is very exciting for the Northern Bay College community.”

College’s winning formula

The Koorie Education Program at Northern Bay College has won a Victorian Education Excellence Award for its success in engaging aboriginal children to learn and focus on their future.

The award, announced in late 2015, includes a $25,000 grant for professional development for staff. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island Education Co-ordinator Carrie Tinning said the award was proof that Northern Bay College is a leader in indigenous education.

“We have 124 students across our campuses who are identified as aboriginal, which represents 5.5 per cent of our school population,” Carrie said. She said the award justifies the school’s decision to create a program aimed at improving attendance and outcomes for students.

The Koorie Education Program focuses on identity, culture and aspirations. Senior (Years 9-12) tutorial worker Audra Czyzewski and Early Years (Prep-Year 3) literacy and numeracy support teacher Karen Uebergang work with Carrie to ensure students stay engaged in learning and focussed on their future.

It includes forums, camps, leadership and career pathway programs to strengthen personal development, cultural pride and achievements for its indigenous students.

Carrie said the professional development grant will be used to research programs that are working well in Australia and in other indigenous education settings around the world.