Principal: Mark Zimmermann
President: Karen Shurdington Vice President: Sarah White
Parent Reps: Nathan Albrecht, Lynnelle Jefferies,
Student Reps: James Ruse, Bailee White
DET Reps: Kim Magrath, Lauren McCartney, Loretta Simmonds
The School Wide Positive Behaviour Support program is designed to bring together school communities to develop positive, safe and supportive learning cultures by helping to foster an environment that assists schools to improve social, emotional, behavioural and academic outcomes for children. As part of the SWPBS program, a rewards system has been developed to encourage students to always:
School preparations for the bushfire season
Each year, we undertake a range of activities to ensure the safety of our school and to prepare for bushfires and grassfires.
An important part of this process is communicating to parents what will happen when certain fire danger ratings are issued to help ensure the safety of students and staff.
Our school has been identified as being at risk of bushfire or grassfire and is a Category 4 school.
Our school will close on a day forecasted as Catastrophic fire danger rating in the Wimmera fire district.
Closure of the school due to a Catastrophic fire danger rating will be enacted when the Bureau of Meteorology forecast and related public safety messaging are confirmed. Due to uncertainties in the forecast, the timing of this confirmation may vary. Information regarding potential or confirmed Catastrophic fire danger days will be communicated to you by Compass.
It is also important to be aware that:
As part of preparing our school for the fire season, we have updated and completed our Emergency Management Plan and cleared our facility’s grounds and gutters.
What can families and the school community do to help us prepare?
Families are encouraged to action their Bushfire Survival Plan on Catastrophic fire danger rating days in their district. The safest option is to leave the night before or early on the morning of the Catastrophic day. On such days, children should never be left at home alone or in the care of older children.
You can find more information on emergencies, warnings and preparedness actions here:
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the department’s policy?
The Department of Education annually assesses the fire risk of all schools and early childhood services with the support of the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO). They are allocated a category of risk (categories 0 to 6). Schools and services that are Categories 0-3 are published on the Bushfire At-Risk Register (BARR). Schools at some risk of bushfire and grassfire are published on the Category 4 List.
The department’s Bushfire and Grassfire Preparedness Policy requires all schools and early childhood services on the BARR and the Category 4 List to close when a Catastrophic fire danger rating day is forecast in their fire weather district. All school bus routes which travel in or through a district with Catastrophic fire danger must also be cancelled.
The policy also requires that schools at the highest risk of bushfire (those in Categories 0, 1 and 2 of the Bushfire At-Risk Register) enact pre-emptive action plans based on the fire danger forecast for their Local Government Area (LGA).
Who issues fire danger forecasts?
The Bureau of Meteorology (BoM) provides public fire danger rating forecasts each day of the fire danger period using fire weather district areas. In Victoria, there are 9 fire weather districts, which are based on Local Government Area boundaries.
The department uses these forecasts when supporting schools to enact their pre-emptive bushfire actions plans.
From the start of 2025 we will be introducing students to an updated version of the Nhill College Learning Habits. Staff will discuss with students what each of the Learning Habits are, why they are important, and what they should be striving for to reach their full potential. One of the key changes has been the addition of Attendance as one of the Learning Habits. Along with Attitude & Effort, Class Behaviour, Organisation, Respect and Independence, Attendance will now be reported on at the end of each term and the performance of each student against each of the Learning Habits will be reflected in the Graph that is featured in our Reporting system. In addition, students in Years 4-12 will this year be required to set Individual Learning Goals at the beginning of each term based on each of our Learning Habits. A Rubric has been prepared to assist students to set goals for themselves, and assist staff to achieve greater consistency in the allocation of grades against the Learning Habits. For secondary students, the Learning Habits will again be used to help determine eligibility for our internal Honour and Endeavour Awards which are presented at the end of each semester.
The School Student Broadband Initiative is an Australian Government program that offers free home internet until the end of 2025 for up to 30,000 families and carers who look after school age children and do not have an active nbn connection.
To qualify for the School Student Broadband Initiative, families and carers must:
There are two potential ways to join the School Student Broadband Initiative:
At our 2024 Presentation Night, we proudly introduced our new student leaders for 2025. Congratulations to our College Captains, Bailee and Ler Law La Shee, and our Vice-Captains, Klow Kwae Saw Htoo, Jessica and Chloe.
These students have already demonstrated their leadership skills by undertaking their first official duties at the Australia Day Celebration and warmly welcoming our new Year 7 students to the college.
We are confident they will be outstanding leaders and exceptional role models for our student body throughout the year.
West Wimmera Health Service’s after school care program will commence Term 1 2025.
After school care will operate on Mondays and Wednesdays, after school until 5:15pm at the new Outside School Hours Care building at 35 Queen Street, Nhill.
The school bus service transports children from Nhill schools to after school care.
Fruit and light snacks are provided.
To enrol your children in after school care, please complete the online enrolment form found at https://www.wwhs.net.au/oshc and select the after school care days you would like to book.
The daily fee for after school care is $36. Child Care Subsidy is available for eligible families.
If you have any queries, please email: oshc@wwhs.net.au
Research shows that the academic and social development of students is affected each day they are absent, and that going to school every day is the single most important part of your child's education. Following the potential disruptions to the social and academic progress of students caused due to COVID-19, it is more important than ever for children to be at school.
If your child is unwell or absolutely cannot attend school for some reason, it is important to let the school know of their absence and the reason why prior to the day if planned or at the start of the day if the absence is not planned. The easiest way to do this is via Compass. Alternatively, you can contact the office at school on 5391 2111.
If your child is absent and we have not been notified, you will receive a text message asking you to contact the school with an explanation. If we do not receive a reply to our text message, we will be following up with a phone call.
Students are reminded of the requirement for them to wear a broad brimmed hat in the yard during recess and lunch times on days when the UV rating reaches 3 or above. Nhill College parents are now able to use the school's website to find out when it is predicted that UV index levels will reach 3 or more, which generally occurs between mid-August and April. The Sunsmart App - which can also be downloaded onto your mobile devices - tells parents the maximum UV index levels predicted for the day as well as the hours when sunscreen measures are recommended. This link has been attached to the front page of our website (https://www.nhillcollege.vic.edu.au/), so please visit often and keep your children safe.
Now that we are entering into that time of year when UV levels are likely to reach 3 or above, it is an appropriate time to remind everyone to ensure that students have remembered to bring their broad brimmed hats to school. Very affordable options are available in the Uniform Store if required.
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Ad-Hoc Permission to travelDownload |
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Canteen Menu Term 1 2025 |
Nhill College now has a Facebook page to help us promote school events and activities with the wider community. We will continue to use Compass, our web page and the weekly newsletter to keep families associated with the school up to date with all of the events and activities that occur in and around the school each week. However, our Facebook page has allowed us to broaden exposure to the school and reach a number of people who may not have otherwise had access to our formal communication channels. Our Facebook page will continue to be purely for promotion, publicity and to inform everyone of the upcoming events and happenings within the College. All notes, questions, concerns or communication to staff regarding students still need to be directed to the College via Compass or on (03) 5391 2111. To find our Facebook page, simply follow this link: https://www.facebook.com/nhillcollege/ or type Nhill College in the search function on Facebook. (Please be aware there is also an unofficial Nhill College facebook page that does not show the Nhill College logo).
Please like/follow the page and then you will be kept up-to-date with all of our posts.
If you are reading this, you obviously have access to the school newsletter. However, some families have asked how grandparents or community members can stay in touch with the school when they don't have access to Compass. The answer is that anyone can access the school's newsletter through the College website: www.nhillcollege.vic.edu.au. Please advise any family, friends or interested members of the wider community, that the newsletter is the main source of information from the school and that it is available to anyone who would like to read it. Spread the word!
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