Issue 45, 12 June 2020

Head of College Update

Dear Colleagues,  

As we ease towards the end of Semester, my mind is turned towards planning for the remainder of this year. It seems that some very important matters slipped off my radar in the past months and they will become focal points for the second half of the year. I am looking to shape our 75^th Anniversary celebrations scheduled for 2021, reinvigorate the Concordia Lutheran College Annual Giving Appeal and work with the College Council on further developing the strategic direction into the future.

We are having an unprecedented level of enquiry for 2021 entry into the College and for the second semester of 2020. Our Prep numbers are nearing full and Year 7/2021 numbers are looking stronger than at this time last year. Boarding enquiries and enrolments are strengthening, and we will be making very deliberate visits to some parts of regional Australia next Term. Anecdotally, it seems that our success of moving seamlessly into virtual education (and then out again) along with our current marketing plan is having an impact. We have a long way to go and I am looking forward to small, guided and well managed tours beginning in the first week of the mid-year break. Thank you to all involved – it has been a sensational team effort.

In the coming days, we will see the completion and circulation of a COVID_19 Outbreak Management Plan. We have developed various management and support plans across the College, and I am hoping that this document will be the final major plan in the COVID_19 space for some time. In the past, we have had outside contractors using the College for various activities. All users of our facilities must have submitted a COVID_19 Safety Plan prior to resuming activities and we are investigating an electronic sign-in program for contractors and casual visitors.

Thank you again for your support and energy through until the end of this Semester.

 Kindest regards,  

Adrian

Thank you

Many thanks for completing and returning the JobKeeper Nomination forms last week. This government subsidy enables the College to offset loss of revenue due to Covid-19. Losses include:

• Fee remissions for families in significant financial hardship 
• Loss of boarding fee income due to the Government directed closure of boarding facilities
• Cancellation and refunds for external function bookings
• Loss of hire fees from external parties for College facilities including the ovals and aquatic centre
• Cancellation of the Arts Tour and anticipated credits and refunds for other camps and excursions that may not proceed

We continue to consistently follow the Government direction regarding the re-opening of services and facilities and look forward to the resumption of activities in Term 3.

Lindsay Bovill, Business Manager

Support Sought 

Sonya Holden, SSC Teacher is about to commence her final research project for her Masters of Education (Guidance and Counselling) and is seeking the support of teachers.

I would genuinely appreciate the support of colleagues from any year level to share their experiences of supporting students who have test anxiety. We would need to meet, either in person or on Teams and your sharing of experiences and feedback will support my research into this specific area. You will remain anonymous in the final project; the time commitment would be up to 1 hour only and can occur at any time over the next 10 weeks.

Please contact Sonya directly via email. 

Need to know!

Staff members are reminded that the appropriate use of Social Media is covered in the Staff Code of Conduct. Staff members are encouraged to be mindful of the content they post online, particularly if it relates to the College in any way. If you have any questions regarding whether something you have posted or seen posted is appropriate, please contact a member of the Leadership Team.

Staff Updates

Heading into Semester 2, SSC will have the continuing support of Wendy Bowen as acting Head of Department, English and Marg Battle as English Teacher. 

Jess Balnaves left early to commence maternity leave and applications close today for a Teacher of Geography and HPE.

With enrolments numbers firming up for 2021, planning for the academic year has commenced and early in Term 3, your feedback and preferences for the 2021 school year will be sought through the online survey.   

Important Dates

Escape for a moment...

We regularly espouse the strength of the Concordia Lutheran College Community, however this is community strength at a whole other level! Thanks to Geoff Becker for sharing this find.

Development Opportunities

Click HERE to read more about the speakers and register for this FREE exceptional professional development opportunity.

Technology

Student Café is now mobile responsive!

Middle and Senior students can now access Student Café on-the-go, browsing their timetable, eDiary, notices, homework and assessments all from the convenience of their mobile device.

Committee Updates

Sonia Siebenhausen, Student Counsellor, chaired a recent meeting of the BeYou Committee. A reminder that BeYou is a national initiative and replaced KidsMatters and MindMatters. It  empowers educators by supporting them to develop their mental health skills and knowledge, while also providing guidance on how to implement a whole-learning community approach. 

You can read more about BeYou and the meeting minutes here. 

Who was I?

Who grew up on a large wheat farm approximately 50km west of Toowoomba; attended a small one teacher country school; enjoyed netball, representing Darling Downs; studied teaching at the Darling Downs Institute of Advanced Education; husband is the face of Lost Trades, Australia; has one daughter; has travelled widely throughout Australia, including riding around Uluru with 2,500 Harleys in a National Harley Rally, but loves the beach and spends many a holiday at their beach house on the Sunshine Coast; and collects shoes...

Barbara Riehl, WSC Teacher

Who am I? 

Am related to…my second cousin is Author Terry Hayes (Screenwriter for Mad Max 2/ Thunderdome)

Have served meals to…Pauline Hanson and Shane Jacobsen (Kenny)

Famous people I have met are…Ben Harper (musician), Alastair McLeod (Chef)

Bands I have seen live…Violent Soho, Ben Harper and Blind Boys of Alabama, Flight Facilities, Peking Duck and Matt Corby

I went to school with…another member of staff

When I was a teenager…I wanted to become a Forensic Pathologist or Coroner

Sharing Learning - Change...we all do it differently

Covid-19 has resulted in rapid change for schools across the world. With changes to:

• how we teach
• how we plan 
• how we connect with students
• how we monitor attendance and
• how we measure learning.

When working with teachers in schools, I use different water vessels to describe common ways we respond to change. Have a read through the descriptions below. What strengths and learnings could take away by reflecting on how you manage change?

Speed Boat - Direct approach

These are the people that as soon as a change event happens, they are off and running with a clear goal in mind. In COVID-19 instance, they have already created their own systems and processes with their classes. They have set clear boundaries for communicating with students and they have folders for each class to keep records on learning. They are excited about the challenge with their mind full of ideas of what they could do next. They may benefit from learning to slow down, as this may be a marathon not a sprint.  

Sailing Boat - Flexible approach

These people do it in their own way preferring to do a little bit at a time. They are trialling some new systems but have not fully embraced it yet. They seek help from others and are keen to see what others are doing, but in the end, they will do it their way. They like to share their ideas but prefer to ‘tack’ through change in an agile approach instead of speeding on ahead. They are creative in their approach and may benefit from sticking to one process instead of trialling many things at the same time. Sometimes collaboration is better than trying to do it all on your own.

Cruise Ship - Collegial approach

These people prefer to wait for everyone to get on board before they take action. They want to know what the plan is, they want training in the plan, and they want reassurance that everything will work out. As change happens, they want to feel ‘held’ by the community, to know there are options, resources and support. These people are also concerned about the welfare of others, making sure everyone else feels the support they seek. They would benefit from supporting their own welfare and being brave in trying new things.  

Submarine - Cautious approach

These people sometimes feel a little threatened by change, so retreat under the surface. They may feel uncertain as to what to do, so they tend to linger or do nothing, waiting for others to do it for them. This is not a criticism but a fight or flight response in times of stress. Sometimes these people seek more information and facts about ‘why’ something is necessary and can get bogged down in procrastination. This could be supported with upskilling, mentoring and most of all compassion. They would benefit from embodying a growth mindset and less perfectionism.   

Which one do you resonate with most?

Article from Daniela Falecki - teacher, educator and coach

Employee Benefits

Lutheran Super is committed to ensuring that services continue uninterrupted for members during the current social distancing restrictions. The Lutheran Super team is available to assist members with any questions about the recent government changes to super, the end of financial year processes and any other questions members may have about their Lutheran Super account. 

Although we may not be able to see all of our members in person, it’s important to us that members can stay connected with their super. We can do this by offering telephone or skype meetings with a dedicated Business Development Officer.

Please contact Lutheran Super’s Katie Lightfoot on 0439 020 770 to arrange a meeting to discuss your super questions. You can also contact the Helpline on 1800 635 796 with any questions about your Lutheran Super account.

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RemServ novated leasing offers for the education sector!

Not only could you get a really good deal on a great range of cars, you could also enjoy the potential tax savings of a novated lease, including the budgeting convenience of having most of the car’s running costs covered in one regular repayment! To find out more, just book a one-on-one consultation with a RemServ novated lease expert at a time that suits you. 

Concordia in the News

The video produced by The Film Guys for the College continues to hit new milestones – it is now sitting at over 46,000 views on Facebook and over 10,000 views on YouTube. It has also been shared extensively on LinkedIn, even making its way into Education Forums in the US!

The Marketing & Enrolments team have been inundated with new enquiries to enrol at the College over the past few weeks and incoming enrolments for 2021 are looking promising, particularly given the time of year and the events that have transpired recently.

Online Learning Survey Results

The College asked parents to complete a survey about their online learning experience during the recent COVID-19 lockdown. We received a wonderful response from parents with over 80 responses to the survey. The average rating was 4.52 stars out of five. An outstanding achievement!

Some of the comments received:

• HSC morning greetings were amazing! Top effort teachers!
• Seesaw worked amazingly. The morning messages were a highlight. Communication was great.
• Provided detailed lessons and videos. Great flexibility. As parents we felt supported.
• The teachers did an amazing job with providing lessons and keeping it fun with some learning outside and lots of fun videos.
• The set work was very clear, sent out timely and teachers very responsive to questions from parents and students.
• Programs were loaded the night before usually and provided a full day of activities for both my children in 2 different classes. Hats off to the wonderful teachers for dedicating so much time to composing a very thorough and fulfilling program.
• Teachers are dedicated and always there for the students and parents.
• We have been blown away by how much work the staff have done to deliver an interesting, engaging and fun online learning program. It has been fantastic.
• Good communication, teaching materials are outstanding and wonderful teachers.
• Activities and videos were all really fun and engaging for my child.  It meant that getting my child to sit and do the learning was never a problem.
• Great delivery of daily classes. It was almost school as usual, but students didn't waste time getting to school, transitioning between classes. Very proud of our teaching staff!
• Keeping in contact regularly with the children was excellent to keep them moving forward independently.
• The platform was very reliable. Staff were prepared and engaged students effectively. Lesson revision and what students were learning that lesson was transparent. I thought teachers managed students behaviour well online too.
• I think it was great that the teachers were able to still teach via online class and become available during lesson for any questions.
• I thought it was awesome that you ran the usual timetable & the students had access to the teachers during those times. I think all the staff did an outstanding job & should be congratulated!

Bianca Coleborn, Director of Marketing and Enrolments

Health and wellness

Managing through crisis, rapid change and a great deal of uncertainty is exhausting. Uncertainty can breed worry, anxiety or fear for us even when we are at our best. We know from our own personal lived experience through COVID-19 that we have felt taxed and at times, physically or emotionally exhausted. The exhaustion may be experienced by each of us differently. 

Over this holiday period, do consider some of the following strategies to recharge: 

• Be kind to yourself - acknowledge it is ok to feel exhausted and recognise the reasons. Do not judge yourself or think you should be doing better now that restrictions have eased.  
• Sleep is key - if you are feeling exhausted and not getting enough sleep, it makes it harder to recover. Find tips on helping you with sleep and ensure you avoid all screens at least 30 mins before going to bed.  
• Take time out - find time for yourself, and when you do it and are in your own time, try not to think about work. Rest and recharge – you deserve it, and it will help you be your best in life and work. 

Change and flux will continue to be a daily part of our lives, as they have been in the past few months and AccessEAP is here to help you.

‘Whatever’ Days

This month is when the Guitars on the Beach Festival would ordinarily be held on the beach in Lyme Regis in Dorset.

Guitars on the Beach began as a spontaneous event and made headlines as a world record was broken when 2,276 people all simultaneously played on their guitars and sang Buddy Holly’s song Rave On. From there, the decision was made to continue this tradition and each year, people from all over the world go to this small beach, play in the sand, play their guitars, and listen to local bands play their favourite songs. The chord sheets of the songs for each year’s event is on their website so you can practise in advance.  

Fun fact: Guitars have been around since 1500 BC when the ancient Persians created the Tanbur, a four string guitar that can be played using a person’s fingers.

Despite Guitars on the Beach 2020 not being on the Beach this year, you can join their scaled down #virtualguitarsonthebeach on June 27. 

The Bunya Pine

Recommendations:

These winter holidays, QUT is teaming up with Street Science to present a special QUT Virtual Holiday Program. From the comfort of your home, Science Steve and QUT researchers will bring science to life and guide you through their high energy and engaging experiments, sure to captivate budding scientists. 

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Last week saw the launch of Free on a Tree Toowoomba, an initiative which allows residents to leave jackets on the trees in Gallery Park (beside the Toowoomba Regional Art Gallery), which are then given to those in need. This is a practical way for residents to support those without a home in our community who need some extra warmth during these cooler months. 

There is also a drop off point for donations at the 2nd Shot Cafe. For more information about the initiative, visit the Free on a Tree Facebook page here.

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Walks and Trails Booklet Walking is great for physical health and also provides the opportunity to explore the natural environment. A booklet has been created which showcases all the amazing walks and trails in the Toowoomba region.  Click this link to access the booklet and start exploring the region!

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Boredom Busters, Volume 2: Toowoomba Regional Council 

This is the final issue of Heads Up for the term. Thank you for your contributions over the past 9 weeks. A reminder that all content is welcome by emailing newsletter@concordia.qld.edu.au