3 February 2017

Newsletter Articles

PRINCIPAL’S REPORT

Principal’s Report – January

Happy New Year to all returning students and families, and welcome to our new students and their families. In this special edition of the newsletter we will be welcoming our new staff to the school as well.

School Results

However, before I introduce our staff, allow me to promote our end of Year 12 results for the class of 2016.

The percentage of Year 12 students who left with a QCE (Queensland Certificate of Education) was 93%. This was a tremendous result – an increase of 15% on the previous year. Congratulations to all students and staff who worked so hard to achieve this outstanding achievement. Our OP data was also up on previous years with 86% of our OP eligible students receiving OPs in the 1-15 category. The percentage of students receiving a single digit OP was 52%. Again, I stress that this is an outstanding result that compares favourably and, more often than not, exceeds our private and public school competitors.

School Focus

Last year the Year Level Coordinators worked hard to lead the school community in lifting our attendance rates. We achieved our target of 92%. Ensuring that students attend every day is a very important aspect of student life. When students stay away they naturally fall behind and it takes a lot more effort to catch up. So parents, I strongly encourage you to say ‘No’ to your students when they ask to stay at home.

This year we continue our focus on:

• Attendance
• Reading – improving our academic results
• High Order Thinking Skills – ensuring that we are developing young people who question and think for themselves
• Reaching 100% QCE attainment

Welcome to our New Staff

Mr David O’Shea is our new Deputy Principal, replacing Mr Brian Wilkinson. Mr O’Shea is an experienced Deputy Principal and comes to us from Palm Island. Mr O’Shea will be looking after our Junior Secondary sector of the school.

Mrs Lyn Stevens replaces Ms Connie Robins as our new Guidance Officer. Mrs Stevens brings over 35 years of guidance experience to Maleny High. Mrs Stevens previously worked at Maleny SHS as part of the Learning Support team.

Mr Travis Pinney comes from Spinifex College in Mt Isa as a HPE teacher and replaces Mr Nic Hodgson.

Miss Gemma Candish and Mr Brandon Lutze are graduate teachers joining the Mathematics and Science departments. As this is their first placement, we wish our new teachers the very best for a long career in education.

Mr Tim Barclay also joins the Maths and Science departments.

Mr David Cooper who will be teaching Science.

Farwell to our Retiring Staff

On Friday of the Student Free Day our staff farewelled Mrs Dagmar Ryan and Mr Bill Holland. Mrs Ryan served the Maleny High School community as the Head of Science for over 25 years. This is a remarkable milestone and this level of commitment to a school is not often seen. Maleny High has a strong history of achieving strong results in our Science subjects and I believe much of these were because of Mrs Ryan’s hard work and dedication to her staff and her department. Thank you, Mrs Ryan, for this devotion and our school community wishes you a retirement full of happiness and good health.

Another teacher, Mr Bill Holland, also retired on the same day. Mr Holland is still a passionate teacher for Mathematics after 40 plus years of teaching. He started his teaching career as a primary school teacher, but soon saw the light and made his move to secondary teaching. Mr Holland has held several different roles within Education Queensland. The one he remembers fondly is his coordination of the Sunshine Coast Mathematics competition. Before he relinquished this role after many years, he had over 1000 students from schools across the Sunshine Coast competing. I hope, when I retire, that I still have the same level of enthusiasm for educating students. Thank you Mr Holland for all the students you’ve taught and for passing on your love of Mathematics.

Roles within the School

Acting Principal: Deborah Stewart. I will know, by the end of the semester, how the position of Principal will be filled. I will keep you up-to-date when I know myself. I would like the opportunity to apply for the position, but this decision is out of my hands.

Junior Secondary Deputy Principal: Mr David O’Shea. If you have any questions about what is happening in Years 7 to 9, then Mr O’Shea is the person to contact.

Senior Deputy Principal: Mr Ian Fitton. Mr Fitton is overseeing the senior school and if you have any inquiries about senior schooling events please contact Mr Fitton.

Pedagogy, Teaching and Learning Deputy Principal: Mr Glenn McIntosh: Mr McIntosh will continue at Maleny and will lead pedagogical improvement across the school.

Heads of Department

This group of hard working staff are in charge of overseeing each faculty’s curriculum and the teaching staff. Therefore, if parents have any questions about the curriculum, assessment or teaching, these are the people to contact:

English & Languages: Mrs Peta Fredericks pfred2@eq.edu.au
Mathematics & IT: Mrs Krystina Barker kbark65@eq.edu.au
Science & STEaM: Mr Brad Patton bpatt85@eq.edu.au
Humanities Mr Mark Camman mcamm2@eq.edu.au
HPE & Social Justice Ms Kerry Hindle khind20@eq.edu.au
Technology & VET Tech Mr Wade Jacobsen wjaco3@eq.edu.au
The Arts & Junior Secondary Ms Cath Gray cgray44@eq.edu.au
Diverse Learning: Mrs Kate Masson kmass18@eq.edu.au

Year Level Coordinators.

We have 6 YLCs - one for each year level. These staff get to know their students and families very well. They will be in contact with parents when there are concerns over matters such as attendance, uniform and behaviours. They work very hard to keep students on track.

Year 7 Mrs Namoi Leach nleac8@eq.edu.au
Year 8 Mr Adrian Cerda acerd2@eq.edu.au
Year 9 Mrs Heidi Young (Wegert) hwege2@eq.edu.au
Year 10 Mr Simon Kranz skran6@eq.edu.au
Year 11 Ms Jo Henderson jhend142@eq.edu.au
Year 12 Mrs Amanda Edwards aedwa140@eq.edu.au

Student Support Services

This team of staff look after the wellbeing of students and are also working with our ‘at risk’ students:

Guidance Officer Mrs Lyn Stevens lstev47@eq.edu.au
HOD Social Justice Ms Kerry Hindle khind20@eq.edu.au
HOD Diverse Learning Mrs Kate Masson kmass18@eq.edu.au
Behaviour Management Mrs Deb Price
RTC Coordinator Mrs Chris Rand
School Nurse Ms Jenny Morris
School Chaplain

Throughout Term One, I will be working with the Chaplaincy Committee to interview and select the most appropriate employing agency. Next we will advertise for the position of School Chaplain. We hope to have these processes completed as soon as possible. Over 40 people from the community attended the community consultation late last year. The overwhelming response from community members was to continue with a school Chaplain at Maleny State High School.

To speak with any of the above staff, please call the school (5499 8111) and our office staff will put you in touch with the appropriate staff member.

Semester One Parent / Teacher Interviews

Last year during a P&C meeting, I raised the issue of when parents wanted to attend face-to-face parent/teacher interviews. As background for our new families, for the past few years the school has conducted the first interviews of the year around week 5 or week 6 of Term One. This allows parents to meet their students’ teachers early in the year and to discuss any issues or concerns the teacher may have observed. This has been seen as an opportunity for parents and teachers to share information regarding their child/ren and introduce themselves.

Some parents indicated that they would prefer to have the parent/teacher interviews after the mid-semester report cards have been issued. The interviews would then be run around week 3 or week 4 of Term Two. This would allow parents to discuss specific issues and student progress with each teacher.

At the P&C meeting parents were divided, with some seeing the value of early interviews in Term One, while others wished to have student assessment completed and have more targeted conversations regarding results and progress. Therefore, I am asking the whole parent body, via a survey, in the left hand side in our first newsletter for the year, to indicate their preference. Please cast your vote and voice your opinion. I will announce the results of the parent survey in our next edition.

I hope this special early edition of Maleny High’s newsletter helps clarify information for parents and hope that you have all had a smooth ‘back-to-school’ for 2017. Please ‘like’ the school’s Facebook Page for updates and add our website to your list of ‘favourites’.

Until next edition, stay safe.

Regards,

Deborah Stewart

IMPORTANT INFORMATION

Absence Line: Ph: 5499 8101

Please leave a message before 8am if your student will be absent from school on that day.

Collection of Students during school hours:

If you wish to collect your student(s) during school hours, please ensure that all arrangements are made prior to the student attending school, as we do not have phones in classrooms. Please provide a note or a phone call to the school detailing/outlining the departure time, reason and who will be collecting the student.

Office Hours

• Our office is open from 8am to 4pm daily.
• All payments are to be made between 8am and 12.30pm, daily.

Introducing our New Staff

David O’Shea

I would like to take this opportunity to introduce myself as the newly appointed Deputy Principal at Maleny State High School.

I will be specifically working with the Year 7-9 Junior Secondary cohort and have very much enjoyed meeting these students.

My background is as a Maths and Science teacher with a passion for the biological sciences, in particular evolutionary genetics. I have enjoyed diverse roles within state schools, beginning with an appointment to Coolum SHS and, more recently Beerwah SHS, within the Sunshine Coast region.

I firmly believe that education is a vehicle of societal change and have spent much of the last decade leading academic improvement in the remote indigenous communities of Mornington Island and Palm Island.

I am excited at the opportunity to once again expand my skills and deliver educational excellence within the Maleny context.

Name: Krystina Barker

HOD of Mathematics/IT.

Teaching year 7, 10 and 12Math A.

Which staff room you are in: H Block

Previously HOD of Mathematics at Bray Park SHS. I love spending my free time with my husband, little boy and dog.

Ms Lyn Stevens

Guidance Officer

Available 5 days per week. Situated in the Admin block.

Appointments welcome – made through support services or me directly

I have worked over the past 5 years at a large North Brisbane school and previously spent 24 years in rural Queensland.

I am very happy to be here at Maleny.

Tim Barclay

Teaching: Year 12, Year 10 and Year 9 Maths, Year 11 Biology and Year 10 Science

Staff Room: L Block

Previous Schools: Bribie Island & Morayfield, Burnside, Narangba Valley, Caboolture, Nambour, Mountain Creek and Caloundra

Interests: Surfing with my daughters aged 5 & 7, medieval genealogy

David Cooper

Dave has joined Maleny High for this semester.

He will be teaching Year7, 8 and 9 science.

He is located in D Block Staffroom.

Gem Candish

Subjects: 07 Math, 08 Math, 11 Math A, 08 Science.
Staffroom: H block

Previously at James Nash SHS Teaching Mathematics and History. I'm a new Teacher recently moved to beautiful Maleny. Looking forward to getting to know students and families of Maleny SHS.

Brendon Lutze

Brendon is a first year teacher and is teaching Maths and Science to various year levels.

Staffroom: H Block

YEAR LEVEL COORDINATORS

Year 7 Parent Welcome BBQ & Information Night, 2017

When: Monday, 6th February from 5-7pm
Where: Maleny SHS Junior Secondary Zone (Canteen area)

Maleny State High School invites you to come and meet your child’s teachers and

find out what Year 7 will look like for 2017.

BBQ provided by the Maleny SHS P&C (5-6PM)

RSVP : Please call 5499 8111 or email: info@malenyshs.eq.edu.au (for catering)

FROM THE P & C

2017
UNIFORM SHOP OPENING HOURS

TUESDAY AND WEDNESDAY
8.30AM – 9.30AM

Why not register for ‘Flexischools’ to purchase your school uniforms online, 24 hours, 7 days a week! Pick up is available 5 days a week.

Once registered, you can purchase uniforms OR pre-order your tuckshop!

Flexischools

Online ordering is a convenient way to place orders, providing a 24/7 payment and ordering system that can be accessed from home, work or a mobile device.

Online ordering is faster and more accurate, giving parents peace of mind that their order and payment is received accurately at the school.

This service is available for canteen and uniform orders for Maleny State High School.

Registration Instructions:

Free, easy, online registration.

Step 1: Click the REGISTER button below.
Step 2: Enter your email.
Step 3: You will be emailed a link to an online form - follow the link.
Step 4: Choose a username and password and complete the form.
Step 5: Add each student and their class.
Step 6: Top-up the account - VISA, Mastercard or Direct Deposit.

COMMUNITY NOTICES

Range United Soccer Club

Range United Soccer Club's official sign on will be at their home ground (Montville Sports Grounds) on Saturday 4 February 2017 from 9.00am -12.00pm.

All registrations will be completed online this year. Past players, please check your email this week for logon details. New players can click here to register:

The 25 January is when ‘Get Started’ vouchers launch. Get in early as they did not last long last year. To see if you qualify for the $150 government voucher... follow the link:

We are looking forward to catching up with past players and parents and meeting new players for 2017.

If you would like more information, please check our Facebook page

or call Cindy on 0487-041274

Kind regards,

Cindy New
Registrar and Treasurer
Range United Soccer Club Inc.

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