Principal’s Report

Dear MAC Community,

We are now well into Term 2, and it’s been a productive and energising start to the term. Students have settled into a steady learning rhythm, and there’s a strong sense of purpose and engagement throughout the school.

Midway through the term is a valuable time to reflect on progress, reassess goals, and look ahead to what’s still to come. Teachers have been working closely with students to provide targeted feedback and support, and we’re seeing a growing sense of confidence and independence in how students are approaching their learning.

We’ve also had a number of highlights so far this term:

• Auditions and rehearsals are now underway for our upcoming production of Mamma Mia!. A heartfelt thank you to Ms Ruwandhi Fernando, who is directing the show, and to School Captain Amelia Kenny in her role as Assistant Director. We’re also excited to see a number of students taking on leadership roles in choreography, as well as contributing behind the scenes in areas such as costumes, hair and makeup, set design, and props. It’s shaping up to be a fantastic team effort!
• Pathways Expo for the senior students with over 20 representations from universities, TAFEs and employer groups.
• Our Year 12 VCE and VM students continue to demonstrate focus and leadership as they move through key assessment tasks and major projects, including Year 12 VM Car Race Day and Year 12 VM excursion to South Melbourne Market to give the students insights into setting up their own stalls and assist in the planning process for upcoming VM MAC Market Day.
• Excursions and enrichment activities have provided rich learning experiences across subjects, helping students make real-world connections.
• A well-attended and fun Athletics Carnival.
• Our student leadership team remain active and vibrant, contributing positively to school culture and student voice, including running a BBQ and Bake Sale at the Athletics Carnival and organising a teacher auction for the MAC Big Pour.

We also celebrated Education Support Staff Day this term — a wonderful opportunity to acknowledge and thank our dedicated ES team for the invaluable support they provide to both students and staff every day. Their contribution plays a vital role in the smooth running of the school and in supporting the wellbeing and learning of our students.

Looking ahead, the second half of the term will include semester assessments and reporting, and I encourage families to stay connected through Compass to keep up to date with progress and key dates. It’s also a good time to check in with your child about how they’re tracking, and to reach out if any extra support is needed.

This term, we were pleased to install new and much-needed bookshelves and signage in the Resource Centre. I’d like to sincerely thank the families who have contributed to the Library Fund — your generous support has made this upgrade possible and has also helped us expand our fiction collection with a range of new titles for students to enjoy.

Thank you, as always, for your continued support. The partnership between home and school is essential to student success, and we value the role you play in your child’s education.

Dani Angelico, Principal

Administration Notices

MSP School Photograph Orders

The School Photograph orders were distributed in Mentoring last week.

If your child is yet to receive your order, the photos are now available for collection from the School Office.

School Saving Bonus reminder and allocation to school activities

The Victorian Government is delivering the School Saving Bonus (SSB) – a one-off support of $400 for eligible government school students from Prep to Year 12 in 2025.

The SSB can be used for uniforms and textbooks until Monday 30 June 2025.

Any funds remaining after 30 June 2025, including online voucher amounts that have not been redeemed, will become a credit to use on school activities. However, the credit will not be available on your family account at our school until late July.

To use any remaining SSB funds to cover the cost of school activities in July, please refer to the SSB online system and allocate the funds to school activities before 30 June 2025.

To learn more about the SSB online system, download the step-by-step System guide for parents and carers (DOCX, 945KB) or watch this School Saving Bonus video. System guide translations are also available in 14 languages.

The Department of Education’s SSB contact centre will remain available until 30 June 2025. The contact centre can be reached by:

• completing the School Saving Bonus enquiry form 
• calling 1800 338 663, between 8:30 am and 4:30 pm on weekdays.

After this date, please contact our administration team for any SSB related questions.

Camps, Sports and Excursions Fund – 2025 Applications close Friday 4 July 2025

The Camps, Sports and Excursions Fund (CSEF) helps eligible families to cover the costs of school trips, camps and sporting activities.

If you have a valid means-tested concession card, or are a temporary foster parent, you may be eligible. A special consideration category also exists for asylum seeker and refugee families. Means-tested concession cards must be valid on the first day of Term 1, 2025 (Tuesday 28 January 2025) or Term 2, 2025 (Tuesday 22 April 2025). 

A student aged 16 years and over who is considered a mature minor and holds a valid concession card is also eligible to apply.

Eligible families will receive a payment $256 per year for secondary school students. The funds will be paid directly to the school to be used towards camps, sports and excursion costs for the benefit of your child. 

If you applied for CSEF through our school last year, you do not need to complete an application form this year, unless there has been a change in your family circumstances. 

If you would like to apply for the first time, please contact the school office on 9376-1622 and ask for an application form. Please return completed application forms to the school office as soon as possible. 

General Office Staff

School Council Meeting – President’s Report

Dear MAC community, I feel honoured and privileged to be this year’s School Council President. In this role, I’m keen to widely communicate and engage by keeping you up to date with the School Council deliberations and decisions.

Our second meeting of the new 2025 School Council was on Tuesday, May 21. Four matters of interest are as follows:

• Solar panels for the gym-hall – motions were accepted for developing a business proposal to recommend a supplier with cost-benefits of installing solar panels on the gym-hall roof. The School has a hefty annual electricity bill, and its daytime energy usage aligns well with solar energy generation. A system of up to 99kW or 198 panels ($500 each installed) would reduce MAC’s electricity bill by about 25% annually and provide ongoing savings benefits for up to 30 years. The desired funding source will be community-wide tax-deductible donations to the School’s Buildings and Grounds fund. Fundraising activities will commence shortly, focusing on the end-of-financial-year donation benefits. Please stay tuned for more.
• Grounds master plan renewal – with the completion of the new building and a growing school population, the school grounds are overdue for a much-needed refresh. In coming meetings, the School Council will be supporting the development of a refreshed/new grounds master plan that will prioritise staged funding and delivery of key projects. Initial scoping is underway by the School Council Building and Grounds subcommittee, which includes student representatives.
• School Production – The School Council was excited to receive a student update about the new school production of Mamma Mia. Thanks to all involved, especially Ruwandhi Fernando (staff) and Amelia Kenny (student), for taking on directorship responsibilities. The organisation and the delivery on the day will need help from the wider community, and we encourage everyone to get involved in this fun social activity.
• 2024 Annual Report – The School Council reviewed and accepted the school’s 2024 Annual Report as presented by Principal Dani Angelico. The final report to the school community will be presented via Zoom at the Annual General Meeting, 5pm on June 24. School Council would encourage your attendance to find out more and ask questions. The report will also be published on the school website on the School Council webpage.

The next School Council meeting is on 24 June. Community attendance as guest-observers is always welcomed (except for any closed agenda items, which are rare). Please let the School know in advance if you would like to attend.

For more information about the School Council, including membership, subcommittees, meeting dates and documents, see the School’s website here.

Yours sincerely, Peter Hormann – School Council President 2025

Semester Report Changes

Dear students, parents, guardians and carers,

I am writing to let you know about the changes to student reporting for mathematics in Victorian government schools.

The Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority (VCAA) recently published its revised mathematics curriculum (Mathematics curriculum 2.0).

All Victorian government schools will start using the Mathematics curriculum 2.0 in 2024 or 2025. At Mount Alexander College, we are migrating to the revised mathematics curriculum for school reporting from Semester 1 2025.

On your child’s previous report, the teacher reported against the 3 strands of the achievement standard for mathematics (Number and Algebra, Measurement and Geometry, and Statistics and Probability). Under the Mathematics curriculum 2.0, your child’s teacher will report against the achievement standard as a whole, providing a single, aggregated score. This year, you may see a mixture of these results as we update our curriculum.

As the achievement standards reported on have changed, the first time you receive a report under the Mathematics 2.0 curriculum, it will only show achievement and not progress. For all reports after this, progress will be shown against the single achievement standard. 

The VCAA made these changes to help teachers plan their teaching and learning programs in mathematics, giving them more flexibility to support students to link ideas within mathematics and also with other curriculum areas.

For further information, refer to the department’s policy on Reporting Student Achievement and Progress Foundation to 10.

If you have any queries about your child’s report, please contact the school.

Kind regards,

Louise Leong, Leading Teacher Curriculum and Assessment

Whole School Anzac Day Assembly

Student Leadership

Voices of the Valley Conference at Lowther Hall Anglican Grammar School

On Friday 6 June, 12 members of the MAC Leadership Team attended the Valley Voices conference at Lowther Hall. This event brought together students from multiple schools and the Mayor of Moonee Valley to discuss positive changes that we can all make in our schools and communities.

Students from many different schools split into groups and each made a proposal for something that they would like to see happen in our community. This event underscored the importance of adopting a unified approach to issues that impact our schools and communities.

Elliot Mohummadally, Debating, Technology, and English Captain

The Big Pour – Apollo House MND Fundraiser

Whole School Athletics Carnival

Athena House Bake Sale

At the Athletics Carnival on 30 May, Athena House hosted a sausage sizzle and bake sale to raise money for our house charity, Doctors Without Borders. We raised more than $1,000 for this charity, which will go toward providing medical care to people affected by armed conflict, epidemics, and disasters.

We ran the bake sale from 10am-2pm, selling hundreds of sausages, soft drinks and baked goods. Students and teachers volunteered to run this stand throughout the day and to support the Athena House charity.

Elliot Mohummadally, Debating, Technology, and English Captain

MAC Cross Country

Divisional Cross Country Carnival

2025 University Expo Open Day

Our students met with representatives from major universities across Australia to learn about scholarships, the application process, and what various courses had to offer.

Sophy Xu, International Student Coordinator

The What’s Next Expo 2025

VM Team Building and Leadership Events 

Cardboard Cars 

Tyra Norsetter

This term we have created race cars out of cardboard boxes, this task has helped us in our ability to work effectively in a group and encourage others. We worked in groups of 3-4 over the span of 4 weeks to create our car from a shared design, we each had different roles to create the car and set up the track and create the rules on the day, we learnt how to resolve conflict and problems.  

Rock Climbing 

Cindo Nguyen 

In VCE V.M. we have been participating in multiple teamwork assessments and last Monday we went rock climbing. It was a good experience to improve my verbal and communication skills. Being in a situation where my teammate relied on me to keep them safe and not falling off the wall made me realise, how important it is to keep talking to my partner and letting them know when I needed a break and double checking with each other to make sure both of us were alright. 

Rock Climbing

Taha Hasmaden

In VCE VM we attended a rock climbing excursion – one of the coolest experiences we have done so far. We picked our partners and we were ready to start climbing! The beginning was very exciting as everyone glanced at how high you can go, communicating with each other was also the most challenging part. I remember making it to the top by talking to my partner on making the rope tighter so I would not fall. It was really annoying with some rocks as it was very thin and falling was very possible. However it worked out! I also motivated our teacher who was anxious to do it but it led them to have a memorable day. 

Working in my group was also the most interesting part, it taught me that everyone has a different approach to working. Some prefer to be the leader and some just want to be just given roles. Some of us didn’t want to go very high and were even worried about going down but calming down and slowly going down made it better. Fun experience though.

Wheelchair Basketball

Ryan Leonard

Playing wheelchair basketball gave us a new perspective regarding the diverse needs of different people. For a very long time, I’ve always had a mental disconnect when seeing wheelchair users. I was under the impression that because walking was an activity that I had partaken in with every moment of my day, then if someone had a different method of moving around meant that their life would be unimaginably different in every other way. I had imagined that I would only see failure and struggle if I was ever placed in one. However, using an actual wheelchair for the first time felt natural. Steering was exactly how my body thought it would and eventually became muscle memory. Steering backwards took a while to get right but even that revealed itself to be seemingly effortless. With each turn of the wheels my body adjusted to how best to make use of its new methods of mobility and as a result my confidence in my abilities grew. I could race. I could play basketball. I could see myself moving around places I’ve been to in my mind. It soon became increasingly relevant how negligible the use of a wheelchair was as a measuring stick of the way somebody experiences life and how pointless seeing it any other way was. On the other hand my shoulders were in a lot of pain the next day so maybe I need to work on my technique a bit more. At the end of the day I’d easily do it again if given the chance. Gliding around on a pair of wheels while trying to catch a ball and dodge other people’s wheelchairs was a blast and I would highly recommend it to any future classes. 10/10

eSports Tournament

Languages and Humanities

Graduate 11 Old Melbourne Gaol Legal Studies Excursion

Would you like to participate in a trial? Would you enjoy being the prosecution or the defence counsel? Do you just want to watch the trial as entertainment from the gallery? You might find it interesting, you might not. Maybe your inner Machiavelli craves the power of the judge’s gavel! You’ll only know if you try for yourself.

As it happens, on Friday 16 May 2025, Ms Ciavarella’s Legal Studies Unit 1 and 2 class got to do just that as part of our experience at the Old Melbourne Gaol. The students were given a guided tour of the Gaol (which is one of the oldest buildings in Melbourne), the ability to participate in a mock trial and even experience being held in a 1970s-era watchhouse. The highlight of the day was certainly the mock trial, which was based on an ACTUAL culpable driving case and took place in the ACTUAL former Melbourne Magistrates’ Court. Needless to say, the class participated in the proceedings with great enthusiasm. All students had a role to play in the trial, even Ms Ciavarella and LSO Will Mott participated, and their execution was excellent. Even our tour guide commented on their performance, saying that the group from MAC was one of the best she had ever had.

However, this wasn’t just a fun day out. It was also a very real and beneficial experience. During our mock trial we discussed principles of justice, the purposes of sentences, and the role of the courts in the community. This involved key knowledge and skills learned in our second and third areas of study – Proving Guilt and Purposes of Sanctions, respectively. The discussions were passionate, engaging, and I would be remiss not to mention the determination of the defence counsel in arguing his client’s case. Every student participated in the conversation, with many perspectives and arguments being shared.

Other highlights during our experience of the Gaol were being “locked up” in the watchhouse, some very interesting stories about the use of hanged convicts for souvenirs, and the death masks of famous convicts in the main building. Some of us lost our heads at that sight!

Overall, our class had a great day at the Old Melbourne Gaol. We highly recommend that students and parents of MAC alike visit the Goal during the holidays or at some other point in the future.

P.S sorry for the cheesy dad joke.

Mathew Wiseman, Graduate of 2026

Our Story: Aboriginal Chinese People in Australia – University of Melborne Excursion

We had the privilege of attending a book launch at Asialink on the University of Melbourne’s campus. The book was titled “Our Story”, which shared the experiences and lives of Indigenous Chinese people in Australia, something that we, and probably many others, had never heard of before. Some of the people whose stories were shared in the book attended as guest speakers to deliver speeches and answer further questions. It was very educational learning about the histories, heritage, and generations of First Nations Chinese. They also provided yummy snacks and refreshments, which we enjoyed. As it was our first time visiting the University of Melbourne campus, exploring the grounds and faculty buildings was a new experience. Overall, we are glad to have had the opportunity to go, thoroughly enjoying it.

Estella Bingham Irvin and Mikeala Bingham Irvin, Above Entry 10

Chinese Class – Student Work

Japanese Class – Student Work

Art & Technology

Masterchef

Masterchef students have broadened their food knowledge this term by investigating the topic of food choices. They have investigated different diets and food choices (vegan, vegetarian, pescatarian) as well as different food allergies. Students looked at some of the ethical and moral reasoning behind our food choices and investigated the current food challenge surrounding access to eggs in the community.

In class they made an old fashioned butter cake and used a range of egg substitutes. They were surprised by some of the results, especially the flaxseeds that gave the cake a nutty taste. Masterchef students will finish the unit by researching how technology can be used in society  and presenting their findings about an Internet Of Things device in an oral presentation to the class. 

Pre VCE students have been super busy looking at the impact of social media on our food choice. They have been producing some amazing dishes including chicken tikka tacos, baked feta pasta, and a butter chicken pie made in a pie maker (remember that gadget you purchased in lockdown!). They are researching a viral food of their choice and preparing a small oral presentation in the next weeks to deliver to  the whole  class. They will have their final cook in a few weeks and we wish them well for exams and work experience.      

The VCE Food Studies Unit 1 students began the term exploring first nations ingredients in contemporary ways such as using finger limes and lemon myrtle before moving onto how migration has shaped Australian Cuisine. Using the analogy of waves, students explore ingredients, cooking methods and the adoption to Australian homes. Why not visit this local indigenous cafe Mabu Mabu or explore the offerings of the Malaysian born Australian cook Adam Liaw.

Grad 25 Food Studies are almost finished with Unit 3 which has explored the social and emotional roles of food.  Food choice is layered and linked to expression of our values and beliefs.  Together with factors such as likes and dislikes, availability, social context, cost and available time –  the foods we eat tell us much about ourselves and our lives. Check out this website for healthy recipes for those with little time and on a budget.

 Keep Cooking!

Follow along our adventures in the kitchen on Instagram @MACMasterChef

Ms Chester & Ms Webb-Johnson, Food Studies Teachers

Art Attack – Artist Profile MAT 

Students observed the artworks of two contemporary artists and investigated how these artists select and apply different visual art techniques, materials and visual conventions to communicate their concept, theme ideas. Students considered how they could use these in their own art making, developing their own ideas, and students used the visual diary to annotate and document their process effectively. We had some phenomenal project outcomes exploring themes of sociocultural issues and re-examining dominant historical narratives.  

Nicole Beran, Visual Arts and Fashion Teacher

Your Formula for Success: After-School Mathematics and Science Help

Great news for our senior students! Building on the fantastic success of our Friday lunchtime Math Help sessions, we’re thrilled to announce an expanded opportunity for support in Mathematics and Science.

Over the past few weeks, we’ve seen a growing number of you seeking extra help, and it’s been wonderful to witness your dedication. To meet this demand and provide even more in-depth assistance, we’re launching a dedicated After-School Homework Club specifically for senior students.

You’ll have the incredible support of a talented team including our Math and Science Staff and Tutor Solomon Faulkner (Tutor at MAC and 2023 Graduate). 

These supportive sessions run every Tuesday until 4:20PM. All senior students are warmly welcome to attend – it’s your chance to deepen your understanding, get questions answered, and build confidence in these key subjects.

Andreas Stephanou, Mathematics Teaching and Learning Leader

Graduate 11 HPE – Wheelchair Basketball

As a class, we have partaken in Wheelchair Basketball. We did this because we are currently looking at contemporary issues in sport and one of the issues being access to sport for people with disabilities. We learnt the skills required to play the game and then played multiple games during the incursion. 

Kalifala Konneh, Graduate of 2026

Interschool Sport

Intermediate Netball

On Tuesday 20 May, the Intermediate Girls headed out for netball and had an absolute blast! 

The A team gave it their all in the first game against our rivals, Strathmore. Although we came away with a loss, we kept our heads high and stayed positive. We then went on to face Rosehill and Buckley, smashing them! Unfortunately, we didn’t make it to the final, but every girl should be incredibly proud of their effort – we certainly are! 

The B team pushed through and played many great games, even though we lost all our games we came close many times! Everyone played their best and should be so proud of themselves. 

A big thank you to Ms Belinda Crowe, Abby Knight, and Sailor Warne for being incredible coaches and supporters throughout the day.

Sofie Hanafiah, Francesca Portelli, and Abby Knight, Above Entry 9 

Above Entry 8 Netball

Student Wellbeing

SchoolTV

SchoolTV is an online resource designed to empower parents with credible and sound information with realistic, practical ongoing support strategies. You can access SchoolTV by either clicking the SchoolTV icon on the home page or this link.

In this edition of SchoolTV – Gender Diversity

In today’s world, many young people are exploring who they are – not just in terms of career aspirations or friendships, but also how they understand themselves, including their gender identity. For some, this journey is straightforward. For others, it can involve questioning, rethinking, or expressing gender in ways that may not align with traditional expectations.

As a parent or caregiver, it’s completely natural to feel uncertain or even overwhelmed at times. You might have questions, concerns, or simply want to better understand how to respond in a way that’s helpful and affirming. The important thing to know is that gender diversity is not new – but our awareness and understanding of it is growing. It means recognising that not everyone experiences gender in the same way. While many young people feel comfortable with the gender they were assigned at birth, others may experience or express their gender in ways that feel different to what’s traditionally expected.

Supporting a gender-diverse child doesn’t require you to be an expert – it requires you to be present, open-minded, and willing to listen. Research shows that young people who feel accepted and supported by their families have significantly better mental health outcomes, regardless of where they are in their gender journey.

Click HERE for the Gender Diversity edition of SchoolTV.

Resource Centre

Staff and students can use the Library Catalogue (login using the Single Sign On with your school email address and password) from school and from home. It’s a great way to see what books are on offer in the library and to reserve a book that you’ve been looking forward to reading.

A friendly reminder to anyone who has overdue books to please return them to the Resource Centre. Bringing books back by their due date ensures that everyone is able to enjoy our collection.

Do you know we have ebooks and audiobooks?

The Eplatform has over 2500 ebooks and audiobooks that you can read or listen to with new books being added every day. You can access it by downloading the app on your device and signing in with your school details in the Single Sign On (SSO). Find out more here: mountalexandercollege.wheelers.co

2025 Victorian Premiers’ Reading Challenge

The Victorian Premiers’ Reading Challenge is in full swing at Mount Alexander College. The PRC application offers a range of exciting features including:

• access to a library catalogue (including book images and blurbs)
• a modern user-friendly interface
• rewarding students with badges as challenge milestones are achieved
• the option for students to mark books as a favourite, give them a star rating or complete a book review.

The Challenge is open to all Victorian children from birth to Year 10 in recognition of the importance of reading for literacy development. It is not a competition; but a personal challenge for children to read a set number of books by 5 September 2025.

Students from Year 7 to Year 10 are challenged to read 15 books.

All children who meet the Challenge will receive a certificate of achievement signed by the Victorian Premier and former Premiers.

To read the Premier’s letter to parents, view the booklist and for more information about the Victorian Premiers’ Reading Challenge, visit: https://www.vic.gov.au/premiers-reading-challenge

Remember

Students were given a physical copy of their login details during Mentoring. If a student needs to get these details again, they can contact Carla Iannarella in the Resource Centre.

To log in, visit the PRC website. Click the sign in button below ‘School Coordinator or Student’ and select ‘VPRC login’. Insert your login details.

We have already seen an enthusiastic response from students, but please note that 10 out of the 15 books read must be from the Challenge list. You can access this list on the VPRC website here.

Students can also find books on the Challenge list in our school Library Catalogue in the Quick Lists. There is a list for Years 7 and 8 and Years 9 and 10.

Insight Creative Writing Competition

Carla Iannarella, Resource Centre, Communications and Marketing Manager

Community News and Advertising

We advertise and support local organisations that reside in our catchment area. These suburbs include Flemington, Kensington, Ascot Vale, Moonee Ponds, Maribyrnong, West Brunswick, North Melbourne, and Parkville.

A message from Moonee Valley City Council Queens Park

Did you know fishing at Queens Park is not allowed? Our lake is home to some special wildlife like turtles and ducks and fishing at the lake puts them at risk. Did you also know that carp (the species of fish found in the lake) are noxious which means it’s illegal to throw them back into the water once caught. But don’t worry – you can go fishing in neighbouring locations such as Maribrynong River and Maribrynong Park. Thank you for helping to protect our wildlife and fishing in the right places. For any enquires please contact council@mvcc.vic.gov.au