Don College is situated in natural bushland beside the Don River, near to the coast and the land hosts an astonishing variety of flora and fauna. We are very fortunate to have our school located in such an idyllic situation. In respect and recognition of the Tasmanian Aboriginal community, I acknowledge the traditional owners of this magnificent land where we work and learn together today.

Inclusive education allows students to feel comfortable and valued and fully participate in learning. Inclusion is embedded in all aspects of school life, and is supported by culture, policy and every day practice. We are proud of our inclusive learning culture at Don College and believe that regardless of living arrangements, disability, LGBTIQ+, socioeconomic status, race and religion that all students can learn. Respect is a key value of our school. Learning individual differences and similarities helps us all to respect each other and work together to improve students achievement. If there are aspects of our school that you feel are barriers to inclusion or could be improved then I invite you, as a student, parent, carer, guardian, teacher or community  to make contact and open the conversation.

We congratulate our students from 2020 for their achievements at Don College. The snapshot included in this newsletter is a very small sample of our highest achievers. We would like to recognise and celebrate the individual achievements of all students who committed to their studies and created greater choice and opportunity for their futures. In respect to 2021, we are already impressed by the start most students have made. From week 1 we have seen students attending tutorials and using study lines to engage in their learning and complete tasks.

One factor that greatly improves student achievement is attendance. Every lesson matters and we expect all students to be present for all lessons. Their might be the odd occasion that a student is unwell or due to some unforeseen circumstances cannot attend a class. However, in basic terms, students who attend all lessons achieve better outcomes.

Don College is an exciting place to work and learn. I look forward to observing the growth in skills and knowledge of our students and celebrating their success.

John Thompson - Principal

John Thompson & Kaleb

Kaleb has talked with class groups about his experiences as a young Aboriginal person living between his family’s traditional culture and “city life.” His presentations have been fascinating and very moving. Kaleb has great pride in his traditional culture and has demonstrated great courage sharing his life story with his peers. I congratulate Kaleb for his passion and drive to break down barriers and challenge stereotypes.

Congratulations to all our students for their efforts in what was an unusual and trying year of study. 

A big congratulations to our major award winners and to all our wonderful students, we wish you the best on your future endeavours.

Year 11 Career and Life Planning provides opportunities for learners to develop self-awareness, explore future opportunities and develop and use decision making skills to match their learning to their future needs. It also exposes students to a variety of techniques to enhance their study skills. During term 1, Year 11 Career and Life Planning focusses on: students identifying their skills, values and interests, career research, making informed decisions about possible future pathways, developing good study techniques and familiarisation with the TASC website to support subject learning. The role of the Year 11 support teachers is to provide support not only around the delivery of the course but also academic and pastoral care support. Career and Life planning teachers work in conjunction with other support agencies such as social workers, Educational Psychology, the college nurse and external agencies such as the Don Health clinic, Headspace, YFCC (Youth, Family and Community Connections).

It’s been a busy and productive start to 2021 for our Drama/Theatre class. A significant date in our calendar was reached when all students shared their first solo performance with one another. Special shout out to Tara who has never performed anything before, nor has she ever studied drama before. Bravery was aplenty today. Detailed feedback on the first draft performance of monologue and story-telling projects has been received and students are working towards draft 2, to be shared in the coming week. Thanks to Emiliya for her kindness, providing reward biscuits at the conclusion of the performances.

As part of our detailed preparation and investigation into character creation, we received a special visit from ‘Monique’ who was on her way to a ‘Mary Poppins’ Audition. ‘Monique’ is a character created by Don staff member Pip Ray, who performs regularly at Circus Festivals. It was our pleasure to host Monique and to hear from Pip about how Monique has evolved over the past decade or so. Thank you Pip, so much for your time and knowledge. ?

Recently our Cert I Animal Studies class had a visit from Will, who has the best job in the world. Working with his 4 year old Police Dog, Quinn, a gorgeous golden Labrador, he showcased his role in the Tasmania Police Dog Handler Unit. Discussions centred around Quinn as an amazing animal with a heightened sense of smell for Firearms and Explosives Detection.
The students loved meeting them both. Below is Quinn at work in the classroom.

The Office of Tasmanian Assessment, Standards and Certification (TASC) is an independent statutory office responsible to the Tasmanian Minister for Education and Training.

TASC is responsible for the development of appropriate standards, the accreditation of courses, and the assessment and certification of student achievement in senior secondary schooling across all educational sectors in Tasmania.

Visit their website at https://www.tasc.tas.gov.au/ for more information.

Recently Don College took delivery of a ‘Share The Dignity’ PinkBox Vending Machine, the first school in Tasmania to do so. Share the Dignity is a national charity working to end period poverty in Australia. The charity works hard to ease the burden of period poverty and believes that access to period products is a right not a privilege. Our vending machine is located in the female toilets in the locker bay area. It is set to dispense one period pack every three minutes. The period packs are free and all we ask is that you take what you need.

This was recently featured on the ABC. View at the following link:

ABC News Report on Share the Dignity

Our Dance family has grown this year and we have enjoyed spending the first four weeks challenging our knowledge about choreography and learning how to apply abstraction skills to movement phrases. Solo, partner and group work are in full swing as we head towards our first project for the year, a solo choreographic project ready to hit the stage in week 7. Watch this space.

The Hospitality department has started the year with guest speakers from our industry links. Chef Benoit came in encouraging us to participate in the long table event with celebrity chef Karen Doyle, which will take place on March 13th at Providore Place. The Environmental Health Officer from the Latrobe Council came in to discuss her role within the local hospitality industry and local chefs Monique Bound, Lucas Edwards and Sam Higgs have been in to converse about their pathways into the industry. Students are also practicing their skills in food and beverage preparation and service, ready for the college restaurant, Exposures, to be opened in Term Two.

Fashion Design students are having fun marbling on fabric, making hacky sacks,  learning how to do fashion illustrations and making bags.  It is only week three!!! WOW!!!

Don College has some very talented emerging young designers!

Bailey marbling some fabric

Ellie with her hacky sack, doing some collage work

Collage work by Chloe

Collage work by Jasmine

Interesting work out of RMIT - a font to help you remember...  might be worth a look.

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