Connections Magazine December 2022

An ELTHAM College Publication

CONTENTS

Principal’s Message

From the Director of Music House Music

What we will be known for – a Connected and Engaged Community

Our Observatory Donors Deserve a Thank You

Alumni Association News

Alumni Reflection Class of 1981 and 1982 Reunion

Class of 1990, 1991, and 1992 Reunion

Class of 2002 Reunion Class of 2012 Reunion

Community Notices

Alumni Sporting Club – Research Eltham Collegians Cricket Club

Alumni Sporting Club – Old Eltham Turtles

Swipers Gully Recipe Foundation News

Welcome, Connect and Support – the ECCA Way

Benefits of Co-Curricular Involvement Get Connected

PRINCIPAL’S MESSAGE

To truly listen to young people is to welcome their contributions and place worth on their ideas and opinions. Empowering the ‘student voice’ fosters a positive community.

Over recent weeks, I met with our Year 6 and Year 8 students in small groups, taking the opportunity to ask them what they like about ELTHAM College. These meetings are a tradition I commenced in 2015. I am always curious to find out what they would like to change, and what they’d like to see stay the same.

Speaking to the Year 6 and Year 8 students helps me gauge how students are feeling at these two milestones. Year 6 students represent the voice of the Junior School and they are on the cusp of entering Senior School. In contrast, the Year 8 students have settled into their routine, but approach their new adventure at our City Campus in Year 9.

Through these conversations, I have learned exactly what these students love about ELTHAM College. The constant and overwhelming theme that emerges is that students love the opportunities they are exposed to. As educators, we know that every time a student tries a new skill, joins a group, or takes on a new role, they are enriching their learning experience.

Our students speak with enthusiasm of the science labs, equipment and technology that expands their learning. The astronomy offerings and our telescope fuels exploration beyond their imagination.

I am equally pleased to hear students express their passion for co-curricular programsmusic, performing arts, sports, and community endeavours. This tells us our students are eager to push beyond traditional academic boundaries.

Reflecting on what makes them happy, students can easily compile a list - the open outdoor spaces, Junior School playground, camps, as well as working in the Coffee Shop, to name just a few.

Most importantly, the students speak glowingly of their teachers and the supportive relationships they build. This is the heartbeat of any school – without connection we cannot learn and grow together.

This positivity helps students find their sense of belonging – the feeling of being accepted in a group and comfortable in an environment. I look forward to continuing these conversations each year, as our students grow and learn to express themselves.

When we welcome the voices of our students, we forge connections that in turn will shape the conversations of tomorrow.

Simon Le Plastrier Principal

I find it both essential and invaluable to listen to our students.

FROM THE DIRECTOR OF MUSIC

As the year winds down, we are already busy planning for House Music 2023. As Mel Lee explains in the following article, House Music has had a long history at ELTHAM, going back more than three decades. During that time, the format of the competition has changed several times.

For 2023, we are tweaking the format once again, to create a structure in

which our advanced musicians can be challenged, while still creating an opportunity for all students, regardless of their ability level, to contribute to the result of the competition and achieve a great outcome. The new format will comprise four competitive sections: Choir, Instrumental, Solo and Dance. There will also be noncompetition performances from the Year 5 & 6 students, and Year 9

students. We can’t wait to get back into Hamer Hall, one of Australia’s top performance venues, and we look forward to seeing you all there on the evening of Tuesday, March 21. It will be a night to remember.

From the Director of Music

Aaron Searle

HOUSE MUSIC

When House Music began at ELTHAM back in 1990, no one could have imagined how big and important this event would become in the history of the College.

From its small beginning as part of the annual Celebration Night, House Music has grown over the last 32 years into a major event at ELTHAM, allowing students to dance, sing and act their way around the school for four weeks each year.

This performing arts showcase allows our students to shine across all areas from singing, dancing, acting, and more recently the creation of multimedia, script development and lighting design.

The corridors are full of dance moves, chamber items madly trying to grab the best rehearsal venue possible and senior leaders realising the challenges of taking rehearsals full of energetic students.

It is not unusual the week after House Music to find the younger students already planning what they will do when they are seniors and leading each house. The Year 10 and 11 students… well, they are already planning for 2023.

This is my 23rd year of being involved with House Music, and I can say truthfully that it evolves and presents new challenges every year. Last year I was fortunate to work with an amazing production team that created a brand new version of House Music in just 10 days. We look forward to returning to Hamer Hall in 2023, but there has already been countless hours of planning to bring you an even better version of the campus based event with all the bells and whistles we can muster to make this a special occasion for the ELTHAM community.

There will be an amazing team working frantically behind the scenes again this year to bring the stage items to life on the Clarke Stage and chamber items will be broadcast from the Recital Hall. Working alongside them in the Littlefield Room will be the House Music orchestra featuring a mix of students and professional musicians.

What you won’t see are the technicians working their magic to bring you the vision from six different livestream cameras, vision mixers, follow spot operators, head mic technicians, audio engineers, runners and stage managers who make the magic happen. Having a live orchestra produce the live music for stage items whilst being in a different room in the building, always makes for some interesting challenges.

House Music lives on in the hearts of our alumni, and some of their fondest memories of ELTHAM are attached to this event. House Music has given countless alumni the chance to shine bright on the stage, and many performers such as William McKenna (Class of 2018), Jeremy Diffey (Class of 1996), Andrew Marshall (Class of 2013), James Gilligan (Class of 2008), Kasey Lack (Class of 2007), Sean Donehue (Class of 2015) and Rachel Tunaley (Class of 2016) have gone on to be well respected members of the Australian Performing Arts industry.

I respect House Music greatly for what it gives our students at ELTHAM. Leadership opportunities, working as part of a team towards a goal, peer mentoring, creating a dream from scratch and being resilient in knowing that not everyone can win.

House Music is the epitome of the concept that the journey is the most important part. Watching the camaraderie develop across all year levels, and seeing students re-engaging in the performing arts after two difficult years… that’s priceless.

Mel Lee Music Teacher

WHAT WILL WE BE KNOWN FOR – A CONNECTED AND ENGAGED COMMUNITY

ELTHAM has always had community at its heart. This year the Board committed to building an enduring culture of philanthropy at ELTHAM. At its most pure, philanthropy is defined as the love of humankind.

It comes from two Greek words. Philos, love and anthros (anthropology) people. The College has been well served by groups aligned with this philosophy; for example, ECCA, our Alumni, the Foundation, our many volunteers and other friends in our community.

A school with a culture of philanthropy proactively asks itself:

• How can we improve our community engagement?

• How do we bring philanthropy to life amongst our students?

• What does our community need, and what do we need from our community?

To act as a sounding board for these questions and support our activities related to Philanthropy, the College has formed a new group called the ELTHAM College Philanthropy Working Party (ECPWP).

The ECPWP has representatives from our parent group, alumni, staff, past staff and friends. This group has met twice and has been discussing things like student engagement in philanthropy, the College’s 50th Anniversary in 2024, being advocates for the School, and

the new College master plan to be launched in 2023.

The ECPWP is a collective forum that will bring diverse perspectives, experiences and knowledge to the fore for the betterment of the College and its philanthropic objectives.

I would welcome hearing from you if you are interested in joining the ECPWP in 2023.

Gabby Montagnese Chair ECPWP Director, ELTHAM College Board

OUR OBSERVATORY DONORS DESERVE A THANK YOU

In 2018, the ELTHAM College community joined together to support the rebuild of our College Observatory. The launch of our new Observatory in May 2019, thanks to the generosity of the College community, was a wonderful celebration, bringing together founding families, alumni, current families and local astronomy enthusiasts.

The purpose of the re-build was not only to enhance the science curriculum for ELTHAM College, but to grow spark imagination and generate interest in astronomy, amongst our young people and broader community, and today we are seeing the benefits.

Since launching our Observatory, we have celebrated the following achievements:

• Astronomy has been integrated into the science curriculum throughout Years 5 – 10.

• In 2021, Year 12 students Darcy Wenn, Oscar Geerts and Derrick Liu discovered and have been researching Jupiter-sized exoplanet TOI-2341.01. With the help of local astronomers (Michael Fitzgerald, Saeed Salimpour and Andrew Yen) the students wrote an academic paper, detailing their discovery and properties of the planet, and have recently been published in the Journal of the American Association of Variable Star Observers (JAAVSO) for their work.

• In 2021, The Astronomical Society of Australia approved our Observatory to be considered a “designated optical observatory”. This is a significant national recognition, ELTHAM College is one of three schools on the list.

• Michael Fitzgerald, an Eltham-based astronomer and educator, hosted the Robotic Telescopes Student Research and Education Conference (RTSRE) in June 2022 in Santa Barbara, California, with Head of Science, Stella D’Amico and our Year 12 students Darcy Wenn, Oscar Geerts and Derrick Liu attending to present their

work on TOI-2341.01 to experts in the field of astronomy from all over the world!

• 2022 saw the launch of the Astrophotography Club, which enables students to practice capturing images of deep sky objects using our research grade telescopes.

• Also in 2022 a Year 8 student and Year 10 student are collaborating and using our Observatory to investigate variable stars. The American Association of Variable Star Observers defines variable star astronomy as “the study of how and why stars change on measurable timescales. A star is a variable star if we can measure its brightness changing over time, and those brightness changes are caused by things happening inside, on the surface of, or around that star”

Stella D’Amico, Head of Science at ELTHAM College remarks “as a science teacher, it is incredible to teach at a school that has its own

observatory. We have equipment that ignites students’ curious minds. They quite literally can explore the universe and take risks by learning and understanding what is involved in scientific method”.

Due to the Philanthropic efforts and vision of our community in 2018, our students have benefited from exciting opportunities, found new interests and received significant national and international recognition in the field of astronomy. Thank you for helping us grow hearts and minds.

Image L to R: Emily Barker Year 12, Josephine Smith Year 5, Orlando McCrohan Year 6, Cole Spencer Year 6, Alexandra Pellegrino Year 9, Oscar Geerts Year 12, Head of Science Stella D’Amico, Darcy Wenn Year 12, Derrick Liu Year 12, Ada Whitwell Year 12, Liza Kelly Year 12

ALUMNI ASSOCIATION NEWS

The committee for 2022 has been a hard-working and enthusiastic group. I thank all our committee members for their contributions on various projects, and the operations of our association.

As the committee continues to grow in 2023, I look forward to the diversity in experiences, skills, knowledge and expertise that will be brought in.

How have ELTHAM Alumni supported our current students in 2022?

• Simone Kenny, Year 12 Coordinator invited Harvey Littlefield and Ainsley O’Sullivan (both Class of 2021) to share their tips for getting through Year 12.

• The Alumni Association hosted the 1, 5, 10, 20, 30 and 40 year reunions at Swipers Gully Training Restaurant and The Rochester Hotel. Thank you to Rory Braniff and Jack Duncan (both Class of 2019) for hosting the 1 Year Reunion.

• At our annual careers assembly, Emily Pendlebury (Class of 2015), Annabelle Pendlebury (Class of 2012) Kardelen Kara (Class of 2013) and Jack Jarman (Class of 2011) talked about their career journeys following graduation.

• The Alumni Association continues to sponsor one of the four year 12 dinners held annually. This year actor and comedian, Will Mckenna (Class of 2018) generously gave up his time to be our special guest speaker for the night.

• Career Counsellor and Co-Founder of Arrive and Thrive, Tyson Day (Class of 2007) returned to ELTHAM College to

speak to students on personal branding, networking and habits.

• The Alumni Associating gifted a good luck pack to the Class of 2022 following their final assembly. The pack included items required for their exams and a few sweet treats.

• This year ELTHAM College launched AMPED music conference with the volunteer support from our Alumni Music and Performing Arts Group (ECAMP) members Devlin Stewart (Class of 2018) Ceyda Demir (class of 2019), Sean Donehue (Class of 2015). Devlin and Ceyda also performed at ECCA’s Biggest Morning Tea.

• Our College Captains interviewed recent graduates Brandon Iredale (Class of 2021), Will O’Brien (Class of 2021) Kate Sharpe (Class of 2020), Scarlett Cummane (Class of 2019), Maiya Tozer (Class of 2020) and Isabella Figgins (Class of 2020) on their experience transitioning from ELTHAM College to University, Tafe or a Gap year.

• On Friday 18 November at their Valedictory Dinner, the Class of 2021 was welcomed into the Alumni Association.

Initiatives for 2023

• University mentoring groups

• Year 10 ‘Get Involved’ sessions

• ECAMP Open Mic Night and workshops

• Career Networking Events

• ELTHAM College Community Event

I would like to extend an open invitation to any interested past students, staff or parents, to attend a committee meeting in 2023. We are always open to new ideas, and expertise across age ranges, and look forward to the contributions of our community in guiding our activities. Please contact alumni@ elthamcollege.vic.edu.au if you would like to contribute to our committee in the future.

Naomi Taranto (Class of 2016)

ELTHAM College Alumni Association President

Row 1 L-R: Alumni Association President, Naomi Taranto (Class of 2016) speaking at Valedictory Dinner

Turin Zobil, Ari Daniher-Flavell, Tom Grabau (all Year 12)

Kiara Tooley (Year 12) receiving her Good Luck Pack from Ayden Taranto (Class of 2021)

Row 2 L-R: Good Luck Pack from ELTHAM Alumni Association

Devlin Stewart (Class of 2018) and Ceyda Demir (Class of 2019) performing at ECCA’s A Biggest Morning Tea

ELTHAM Alumnus Jack Jarman (Class of 2011) presenting at the Year 12 Career Assembly

Row 3 L-R: ELTHAM Alumnus Annabelle Pendlebury (Class of 2012) presenting at the Year 12 Careers Assembly

ELTHAM College Alumni and the Class of 2021 College Captains at the Transition Assembly

Tyson Day (Class of 2007) returned to ELTHAM College to present to our Year 12 cohort.

ALUMNI REFLECTION

KATHIE VAN VUGT (RITTER, CLASS OF 1993)

If my future self had visited me in high school and told me I would become a leader in the Australian space sector, I would not have believed it - me? Don’t be ridiculous!

And yet, here I am - Director of Corporate Strategy at the Australian Space Agency.

I am from neither a STEM nor a research background, so you may wonder how I managed to land this job - the space sector, like any other, is an ecosystem and requires input from various disciplines to thrive.

My career has been what I describe as ‘nonlinear’- traversing tourism, tech startups, health regulation, co-working and now space; in customer service, marketing, administration, management and strategic leadership roles. I have come to love technology from an entrepreneurial perspective, and this diversity of experience provides me unique insights.

I credit my unconventional approach to developing my career to the lessons learned from ELTHAM College: You don’t need to know exactly where you’re going before you start; do the hard work and results will follow; think with an entrepreneurial mindset; collaborate to leverage the differences you and your colleagues bring to the table.

I still recall the lyrics of the school song: Onward still striving, no matter how far; we’re all different people, we’ll show what we are.

Vugt (Ritter, Class of 1993)

Kathie van

CELEBRATING REUNIONS

CLASS OF 1990, 1991 & 1992 (30 YEAR) - FRIDAY 7 OCTOBER 2022

CLASS OF 2012 (10 YEAR)

- FRIDAY 20 MAY 2022

COMMUNITY NOTICES

CONGRATULATING OUR COMMUNITY

Alana Scott (Class of 2013) and Emilio Frediani (Class of 2013) married on 5 February 2022. Max Gibson (Class of 2013), Massimo Frediani (Class of 2011), Bec Watson (Class of 2011), Matt Wilson (Class of 2013), Gemma Cleary (Class of 2013), Elliot Bennie (Class of 2013) and Brooke Carlile (Class of 2013) all attended the wedding.

Brooke Carlile and Matt Wilson (both Class of 2013) got engaged on 30 July 2022.

Ella Rae McGovern, born 26 November 2021 to Jess Burke (Class of 2007) and Ryan McGovern. A niece for Melissa (Class of 2010) and a granddaughter for Sandra Burke, ELTHAM College staff member

Congratulations to Dr Dave Tonkin for being nominated and winning RACI Chemistry Teacher of the Year 2022.

Dave is an invaluable member of the Science faculty at ELTHAM College and has pioneered numerous Chemistry initiatives including countless projects in the Chemistry Hub. He remains a positive influence in the Science department amongst both students and his colleagues.

We are so proud of his efforts and achievements in this field and his students are so lucky to have him!

Stella D’Amico Head of Science

ALUMNI SPORTING CLUBS

RECCC News

After what was a successful 2021/22 cricket season which resulted in four premierships for the Research Eltham Collegians Cricket Club, Season 2022/23 has kicked off in wintry conditions.

With the very damp start to the season and only a handful of games being played to date, we will again be offering cricketers of all ages and abilities the opportunity to play cricket across 5 senior and 8 junior sides (Under 10’s, 12’s, 14’s, 16’s, 18’s and Level 2 and Level 3 Girls).

We even cater for our older members and this season have 2 Over 40’s teams and 1 Over 60’s team!

For younger players, our Blaster program run by Nick Hardy (Class of 2017) is perfect for players of ages 5 to 10 to learn the basic cricket skills whilst having heaps of fun (places are still available). We also offer this program to young children with a disability.

Our All-Abilities team is up and running for the season and we were so pleased to see our coach Wayne Jessop recognised recently for his volunteer work in this space.

On Friday 25 November, we joined Anthony Panou in the hosting of a Cricket Cup for the year 5 and 6 students. Luckily the weather held off and a great day was had by all who participated.

It’s never too late to give cricket a go, so if you want to play, please contact us at RECCC. general@gmail or for junior players at RECCC. junior@gmail.com.

Philip Timewell – President

RECCC’s Jeremy Klaster, Steve Horn, Sean Lamb (Class of 2018) and RECCC Junior Coordinator and current parent, Chris Cunningham with the winning ‘Strikers ‘ team of Lily Yap- Nelson (Year 5), Orlando Miraglia (Year 6), Mitch Smith (Year 6), Keira Knight (Year 6), Ashleigh Barton (Year 6), Tex Turney (Year 5), Lachlan Gledhill (Year 5) and Kaya Clark (Year 5).

Turtles News

2022 was an incredibly exciting year at 'Turtleland'. Just three seasons after joining the NFNL with the club on its knees, we played in our first Senior final series, winning our first final and playing off in a preliminary final. This onfield success was validation of our direction of valuing individuality, inclusion and care to create and sustain culture.

Life Membership

At the annual Turtle Ball in June, we were privileged to induct 4 new life members to our football club. Life membership rewards 10 years of onfield and offield service to the club. Amongst those inducted were Jackson Bevilacqua (class of 2008) and Zac Cole (class of 2007). Both Jackson and Zac have been pivotal members of the Turtles, both as players and committee members. Jackson has played 150+ games, as well as serving as the merchandise manager and general committee member for numerous years. Zac played 150+ games, captained and coached the Reserves, is the current assistant coach of the seniors and is the Vice President.

Indigenous Round

In round 8, our club held our first Sir Doug Nicholls Round. It was an incredible week, beginning with Grant Hansen (Host of the Marngrook Footy Show and proud Taungurung man) speaking to the club after training. Grant’s talk was entertaining, informative and thought provoking. He encouraged us to ask any questions- 45 minutes later, he might have been regretting his decision! The conversations that ensued around the club as a result were deep and meaningful, and made me very proud to be a Turtle. On matchday, we wore an

amazing jumper designed by local Gundjitmara artist Stephanie Clarke Thompson. Aunty Joy Murphy conducted a Welcome to Country and Smoking Ceremony, and Nicky Winmar tossed the coin to start the game. Both spoke of the effect that community groups, and in particular sporting clubs, can have on healing and our responsibilities to learn and question. This was a special day that won’t be forgotten by those in attendance.

Vale Doug Hargrave

Lastly, at the end of July we lost a club stalwart, Doug Hargrave. Whilst his children didn’t attend the College, Doug has had a lasting impact on the Turtles as a major sponsor, life member, coterie group supporter and die hard fan. His construction company were also contracted to build the Pavillion. Anyone who has spent any time at the football club would have very fond memories of a passionate, loving, inclusive and thoughtful man. We’re going to miss Doug incredibly.

Preseason training is running Tuesdays and Thursdays up until Christmas on the Swipers Gully Oval (6.00pm8.00pm). We’re always looking for people to be involved- as players, trainers, photographers, journalists etc. If you are interested, please get in touch via Facebook or on 0414 547 637.

Shells on, Ben Crellin President

SWIPERS GULLY RECIPE STICKY DATE PUDDING WITH CHANTILLY CREAM AND BUTTERSCOTCH SAUCE

(SERVES 6 PEOPLE)

Ingredients

Unsalted soften butter 75g

Brown sugar 110g Eggs beaten 3

Self-raising flour 145g

Bicarbonate soda 1tsp

Dates 45g

Boiling water 175ml

Butterscotch sauce

Butter 100g Brown sugar 120g

Thickened cream 50ml

Crème Chantilly

Thickened cream 125ml Icing sugar 25g Vanilla essence 1tsp

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C. Spray 6 dario moulds with oil.

2. Use a food mixer.

3. Whisk to cream the butter and sugar until sugar has desolved. Slowly add the beaten eggs until combined and carefully fold in the sieved flour and set aside.

4. Meanwhile, mix together the bicarbonate of soda and dates, water, followed by the boiling water . Stir gently, allow to cool for 10 minutes and then pour into the creamed pudding mixture.

5. Bring together to create a very runny batter. Pour into the prepared moulds. Bake for 20 minutes, or until springy to the touch.

Butterscotch sauce

6. Combine the butter and sugar in a small pot and place on a low heat. Stir to dissolve and combine, then mix in the cream to finish and bring back to the boil and reduce until it coats the back of a spoon. Keep warm for service

Crème Chantilly

7. Whisk the cream until it forms thick peaks. 8. Stir in the vanilla and the icing sugar.

To serve

Reheat butterscotch sauce and spoon on the plate. Remove pudding form the moulds and place in the centre of the plate. Make a quenelle of cream. Drizzle some of the remaining sauce on the pudding. Add some berries and Enjoy!

FOUNDATION NEWS

The ELTHAM College Foundation (the Company) operates 4 Long Day Care Centres across Melbourne under the banner of Little Flyers Learning Centres and our iconic Centre, Kids on Collins, situated in the CBD. Our Little Flyers centres are located in Eltham North, Caroline Springs and two in Doreen. Other than providing a high quality early education to children from 6 weeks to 6 years of age, our purpose is to raise funds for the benefit of ELTHAM College.

Since 2020, the early education sector has been significantly impacted by COVID-19 resulting in lower attendances and surpluses. This has not prevented us from fulfilling our donation goals for the College. This year has been the most negatively impacted year as a result of staffing issues. The impact of Covid on the sector caused many early educators to decide to change their careers causing a significant shortage of staff available to the sector, particularly suitably qualified staff. Like ELTHAM College, we will only employ quality, highly qualified educators to care for and educate the children entrusted to our care. The Government has launched many initiatives to boost the number of available staff in the sector but most of their initiatives will not bear fruit until 2024 or beyond. Despite these challenges, we are proud to announce that all of our Centres are fully staffed with suitably qualified and highly skilled educators with whom we were excited to share Early Educator’s Day on 7 September 2022.

Whilst many Long Day Care and sessional Kindergartens had to close on 7 September as their staff elected to join the National Strike, we were proud to have all of our Centres open and did not have one staff member elect to stand down on the day, a function of having staff who are happy to come to work and feeling suitably rewarded for their endeavours.

Whilst two of our Centres are at maximum occupancy and two are performing adequately,

our CBD Centre has struggled for occupancy due to so few CBD workers returning to their City offices, choosing to work from home. From the last survey, only 38% of City offices are occupied. This will remain our greatest challenge for the immediate future.

We are excited to report that our Eltham North Centre has just been awarded the Kindicare Excellence Award 2022. Congratulations to our team at Eltham North.

To further enhance a culture of philanthropy at ELTHAM College, the school has recently formed the ELTHAM College Philanthropy Working Party (ECPWP). This group will bring together key stakeholders representing all sections of the College community to have a voice regarding socially impactful initiatives that will help the College thrive. Through this initiative, stronger bonds across the College will be forged and philanthropic activities will have a clear channel for consultation and implementation. The Eltham College Foundation is proud to be associated with the ECPWP and will be actively involved in achieving its success.

Iain Cowan, CEO

WELCOME, CONNECT & SUPPORT – THE ECCA WAY

History of ELTHAM College Community Association (ECCA) –where it started

As part of supporting the ELTHAM College community to connect, in the 1970s and 1980s ECCA ran a leisure centre, called the ECCA centre. At the ECCA Centre community members could pay to use leisure facilities including squash courts, a gym, and a pool. In order to do this, at the time ECCA was an incorporated body. Today ECCA no longer operates a leisure centre as part of its activities.

ECCA Today

In 2021, the College worked with ECCA to unincorporate in order to remove all legal responsibilities from committee members and ensure they could concentrate on what they do best; welcoming, connecting and supporting the ELTHAM Community.

ECCA has been successfully doing this in 2022, hosting welcome events for our community, a Mother’s Day morning tea, Father’s Day breakfast and raising much needed funds to support the Cancer Council at ECCA’s Biggest Morning Tea. Our ECCA Social Reps in each year level have been busy throughout the year organising year level events to help connect our community. Our Year 12 Social Reps, Sophie Whitwell and Jen Bradshaw, ended the year handing out a special care pack to each year 12 student. The pack was made up of generous gifts organised and donated by community members.

ECCA’s popular A Novel Bunch Book Club continues to bring together members of our community across all year levels. It marked it’s 5-year anniversary this year, with the launch of the Book Tree in Swipers Gully Training Restaurant. ECCA also launched Nature’s Pace, a walking group for staff and all parents, grandparents, and guardians of students at the College.

The College greatly thanks all of its ECCA representatives for the impact that they’ve had in 2022, in supporting ELTHAM to have a connected and engaged community.

ECCA welcomes a diverse membership, including gender, ethnicity and age. Please get in touch at ecca@elthamcollege.vic.edu.au if you are a family member/guardian of student/s currently attending ELTHAM College and would like to be part of;

• Welcoming, Connecting and Supporting the ELTHAM College community

• Establishing relations and building engagement with ELTHAM College families and extended families

• Working with ELTHAM College staff and students to deliver activities which enhance the community connectedness of the College

• Be an active contributor to the success of the ELTHAM College strategy

• Working alongside the ELTHAM College Philanthropy Working Party (ECPWP) to create an enduring culture of philanthropy at ELTHAM

Bronwyn Neeson Head of Community Engagement

Images: Our community enjoying various school and social events in 2022

CO-CURRICULAR BENEFITS OF CO-CURRICULAR INVOLVEMENT

Co-curricular opportunities are plentiful at ELTHAM.

As a college community we highly value the benefits of co-curricular involvement. You will find most students will be partaking in a variety of activities, clubs, groups and trips to broaden their horizons and make deeper connections with others. Co-curricular programs allow students to uncover new passions, to dive deeper into already established interests and to meet like-minded staff and students to form meaningful and authentic social connections.

There is much to celebrate from 2022 in the co-curricular landscape. Our students have embraced being back on-site with their peers and have put themselves forward for weekly activities, special events, productions, groups, clubs, trips and new experiences.

From working with clay, to kayaking, to playing in a band or singing in a choir, to going on the Snow Trip or the Great Vic Bike Ride, to participating in the Model United Nations or any of our four College Productions. To playing D&D or volleyball or 3x3 basketball, to volunteering for Big Group Hug, or being in the Garden Club, the Coding Club, the Chess Club or Cooking with Colleen, our students have embraced every opportunity and thrived.

For 2023 we will have on offer 8 different categories of co-curricular; active, belong, communicate, community, create, discover, explore and outreach. This will allow our students to easily locate an activity they may be interested in.

It also allows students to extend their learning by exploring areas they may not have explored before.

Co-curricular programs foster student engagement and social connectedness and contribute to the creation of well-rounded and fulfilled young people.

We look forward to unveiling a full and vibrant co-curricular program for 2023.

Nicole Howard Student Activity Coordinator

GET CONNECTED

ELTHAM COLLEGE

Enrolments and Tours

03 9437 1421 enrolments@elthamcollege.vic.edu.au

Swipers Gully Training Restaurant 03 9437 2222 elthamcollege.vic.edu.au

ALUMNI alumni@elthamcollege.vic.edu.au

ECCA ecca@elthamcollege.vic.edu.au

Eltham College Foundation 03 9437 1421 icowan@elthamcollege.vic.edu.au

Little Flyers Learning Centres littleflyers.vic.edu.au

Caroline Springs 03 9363 7622 Eltham North 03 9431 4947 Laurimar 03 9717 3741

Laurimar Township 03 9717 8074 Kids of Collins 03 9629 4099