From the Principal - Catherine Lockhart
This week we celebrated our 29th Founders’ Day, a day when we recognise the incredible legacy of Mr and Mrs Katsumata as the founders of Kardinia International College.
Every time I think about their story, it never ceases to amaze me that upon Mr Katsumata’s retirement they chose to open a school across the other side of the world. Like many of our families at Kardinia, I have lived and worked overseas. I know how complex it can be just to get a driver’s licence or rent a property. Rebuilding a school from the ground up in another country is simply beyond my comprehension and, yet the Katsumata’s did just that. They did it so well that now, from humble beginnings, we have a thriving, high quality educational institution that is continuously working towards living out the school mission of being a symbol of hope for the world.
In their actions, they demonstrated so many of the qualities that we espouse to develop in our students: persistence, resilience, open mindedness, knowledge and, especially, kindness and compassion.
I wish that I had the opportunity to get to know them personally, but the next best thing is having the privilege of meeting their extended family within whom their passion for education and international understanding lives on and seeing each and every day their legacy played out within the Kardinia International College environment.
From the Head of Senior School - Kath O'Neill
On Thursday morning last week, we had our annual ANZAC Day Assembly in the Amphitheatre. This is one of the most solemn and meaningful days in Australia and provides us with an opportunity to reflect on the sacrifices of others over so many years, since the first ANZACs landed at Gallipoli in 1915. Thank you in particular to KIC Brass and Mrs Mel Humphrey, the College Captains, Edith and Harvey, who shared the story of Allan, a young man from Geelong, and the impact of his experience not only on himself but on his loved ones. I’d also like to thank Max, Sachindu and Oscar, who, as ADF cadets, participated in the formalities of our assembly and provided a link between the history and the present of the ANZAC legend.
On Monday we celebrated Founders' Day and the legacy that Mr and Mrs Katsumata have provided us here at Kardinia International College. From what probably seemed like a moment of madness, in purchasing an old school site on the other side of the world, we now have our school, that has influenced thousands of children since its inception. We are very grateful.
Congratulations to students, Keppler (Year 9) and Alric (Year 10), who competed at the Australian Age Swimming Championships in Brisbane over the holidays. Reaching national level in a competition is a huge achievement and we are very proud of both Keppler and Alric, not just for qualifying for this competition, but for the countless hours of training they have put in to reach this point in their sport.
Congratulations also to Mehar (Year 11) and Grace (Year 9), who have both been selected in the Geelong Cats Next Generation Academy. This is a talent program for young footballers of First Nations or culturally diverse backgrounds and supports them in working their way to elite talent pathways.
We love to share the accomplishments of our students but don’t always know what they have been involved in. Please don’t hesitate to let us know of your child’s achievements.
From the Acting Head of Junior School - Nikki Petyanszki
Last week, we held our ANZAC Day Assembly. Our students truly demonstrated our College Motto, Wisdom leads to respect and friendship, throughout the assembly and in their learning about ANZAC Day.
On Tuesday 29 April, Glenn Evans and Izabella Haby had the privilege of taking the Junior School Leaders to a GRIP Leadership Conference at the Geelong West Town Hall. Students had the opportunity to meet other leaders from around Geelong, working together and sharing their ideas on leadership. Some of the areas covered included what makes a good leader, leadership through friendship and new ideas to help others at your school. Well done to our leaders who represented our College so proudly.
What a fantastic day we had at our Upper Primary Athletics Day today! It was wonderful to see our students giving their best effort, cheering each other on, and showing such enthusiasm and sportsmanship throughout the day. Whether it was sprinting down the track, giving it their all in the field events, or encouraging their friends from the sidelines, every student should be proud of their achievements and the way they represented themselves and their houses.
Last year marked the first time that KIC girls participated in the GALS in STEM program. This initiative offered our students a unique and challenging opportunity. We will share more information about this program later in the year. In the meantime, we’re excited to let you know about another opportunity available for our Year 3–6 girls. Please see the flyer below for more details.
Sustainability Victoria Awards
We’ve been named a finalist in Sustainability Victoria‘s ResourceSmart Schools Awards in both the Student Action Team of the Year (Secondary) and CDS Vic Excellence Award (Secondary) categories!
The College has been working towards some big sustainability goals with our student-led Earthcore committee, including the Purple Bin Project, biodiversity actions at the Grove campus and through the senior school, as well as the annual Waste Audit.
The awards recognise these efforts and their impact, and those of schools across the state, at Victoria’s biggest celebration of sustainability in schools.
The ResourceSmart Schools Awards are an annual celebration that shine a spotlight on all the inspiring, impactful, and important steps Victorian schools are taking toward creating a sustainable future for all of us and we are so excited to have been recognised as finalists!
A big thank you to Paul Dowie, Nicole Holton, Chester Conron and the student-led Earthcore committee, for their significant work in the sustainability space at the College.
Outdoor Education News
2025 Year 10 Experience Week
This week, we launched the 2025 Year 10 Experience Week.
This year, we have 11 different experiences on offer for students – from bushwalking in the High Plains around Falls Creek to learning to make pottery. We hope that we can capture more students in this experience week format and provide further opportunities for growth.
The experiences available are all listed in the Year 10 Experience Week Brochure: Year 10 Experience Week Magazine
Selections are available now to students through Clipboard. Please make selections carefully as “changes of mind” greatly affect the viability of the experiences.
Fundraising Update - and a big Thank You!
Last term, we published a letter from Year 7 student George who was seeking support for his fundraising efforts in the Run for the Kids, raising money for The Good Friday Appeal.
"George completed the 15km run in 1hour and 40 minutes and would like to say a massive thank you to everyone who donated! Thanks so much for the school's support - we managed to raise just short of $3000 for the Royal Children’s Hospital!"
Congratulations George!
Music News
Last Thursday, Square 1 took the stage at Flying Brick Cider House, playing to a packed crowd on a still, balmy evening. The audience overflowed onto the lush lawns, soaking up the incredible atmosphere.
Bands from schools across Geelong lit up the venue with fabulous performances, and Square 1 closed the night with a bang, delivering a powerful set of original tunes.
It was also fantastic to see young musicians mingling, connecting, and appreciating each other’s music — such a great celebration of talent and community.
Big thanks to everyone who came out — the energy was electric!
Co-Curricular News
Come along and join the Junior School Chess Club! See the flyer below for sign up information. Learn all the best game strategies, make some new friends - plenty of fun to be had!
Child Safe Standards
Last week, we commenced reviewing the Child Safe Standards in our weekly newsletters. These Standards are set out by the Victorian Government under Ministerial Order No. 1359 and form part of the legal and ethical framework that schools must follow to ensure the safety and wellbeing of children and young people.
This week, we turn our attention to Child Safe Standard 2 - Embedding Child Safety in Leadership, Governance and Culture
Child safety and wellbeing are at the heart of everything we do at Kardinia International College. Standard 2 ensures that child safety is not just a policy – it is part of our everyday culture, leadership, and decision-making.
This means our leaders, teachers, and staff are committed to:
- Making our commitment to child safety public and visible
- Ensuring a safe culture is modelled by everyone in our community
- Implementing our Student Wellbeing and Child Safe Policies across the school
- Upholding a clear Child Safe Code of Conduct for staff and volunteers
- Making sure everyone understands how to respond to concerns, share information appropriately, and keep accurate records
- Proactively managing risks to children’s safety and wellbeing
Every adult in our community plays a part in creating a safe environment for children. We want Kardinia to be a place where students feel protected, empowered, and heard—and where families are confident in our approach.
If you ever have questions about how we manage child safety, or suggestions to help strengthen our culture, please contact one of the College’s Child Safety Protection Officers – the Acting Head of Junior School or Head of Senior School.
Together, we can ensure that child safety remains a shared and ongoing priority.
Mothers' Day Classic!
Every day in Australia 63 people are diagnosed with breast or ovarian cancer. Every day 12 people die from those two diseases. The Mothers’ Day Classic provides hope that the day will come when no more lives will be taken.
Mother's Day Classic aims for another record breaker to boost women's health and save lives uniting for breast and ovarian cancer research. Our Kardinia International College Community has been actively running, volunteering and supporting the MDC for the last 9 years. It is not a college event but we encourage all our families and friends to be part of it, to volunteer or to run / walk on the day. We encourage all parents to accompany their children this Mother’s Day and join our team and the battle together
The event is held at Eastern Gardens, Oval 3 on Mother's Day: Sunday May 11, 2025
For event details https://www.mothersdayclassic.com.au/event/mothers-day-classic-geelong
Here is the link to join the team: https://www.mothersdayclassic.com.au/join/kardiniainternationalcollege
And here is the link to view our Team’s page: https://www.mothersdayclassic.com.au/fundraisers/kardiniainternationalcollege
Wellbeing Hub News
Happy Families
Everyone is talking about Adolescence on Netflix. And they should. This is incredible television. And it creates a valuable conversation.
The show opens with a jolt: police officers shatter the dawn and the front door of a suburban home to arrest 13-year-old Jamie Miller for the murder of Katie Leonard, a schoolmate barely older than himself.
There’s no whodunnit.
We know the perpetrator from the beginning – although his innocent pleas make us want to believe it’s just a terrible mistake. Instead of being a murder-mystery, Adolescence forces us to confront the far more unsettling question: why?
Nothing can (or should) diminish the shattering reality that Katie’s life was violently taken. It’s devastating. Who has words for the landscape of grief her family now has to navigate? They are the primary casualties of this catastrophe.
But while Adolescence pointedly demands we recognise this, it directs our attention to another victim: Jamie. The perpetrator. And more broadly, childhood itself.
What emerges as detectives unearth elements of Jamie’s life is a portrait of modern boyhood in profound crisis. Read more.
Save the date for our next Happy Families webinar:
Term 2 – Wednesday 18 June, 7pm (AEST) “Carrots and Sticks: Better ways to build boundaries with your kids”
URL & PASSWORD:
https://schools.happyfamilies.com.au/login/kic
Password: happykic *We recommend bookmarking this link. You should only need to put the password in once and the site will remember you.
Adolescence is a significant developmental stage marking the transition from childhood to adulthood. It is characterised by an emerging sense of self-identity, exploration of personal interests, beliefs, values and goals, increased independence and autonomy beyond the family, growing responsibility, increased engagement in risk behaviours, emerging sexuality, amplified significance of peers, intensification of gender stereotypes, and shifting relationships with parents and caregivers. Adolescents seek increased independence and autonomy, which requires ongoing negotiation and compromise within the parent-child relationship.
Click here to watch this episode: https://kardinia.vic.schooltv.me/newsletter/understanding-adolescence
Community Engagement and Foundation News
Parent Trivia Night - Two Weeks to Go!
Join us for the annual Parent Trivia Night on Thursday 15 May at Murphy's Geelong (upstairs), from 6:30pm to 9:30pm. The Trivia Competition kicks off promptly at 7:00pm!
This event is a fantastic opportunity to socialize with other parents, reconnect with familiar faces, meet new members of our school community and compete for the Trivia Trophy!
Tickets are $20 per person (food and drinks at your own expense). Sign up to a team on arrival or you can pre-organise your own team of 6-8 (Max).
Tickets available at: https://events.humanitix.com/2025-ccc-trivia-night We look forward to seeing you there!
Hosted by the College Community Council (CCC).
Mother's Day Morning Tea
Highview and Junior School Parents are warmly invited to the Mother’s Day Morning Tea on Friday 9 May.
Venue: Centrepoint
Time: 8:00am-9:30am (Children to move to Learning Groups before 9am)
Cancer Council This May
Kardinia International College is supporting the Cancer Council this May.
“Your donation will make a real difference. It’ll help fund world-class cancer research, which has already increased cancer survival rates from 49% in the 1980s to 71% today. It’ll fund prevention initiatives like the HPV vaccine and the new cervical screening program, which have put Australia on track to become the first country to eliminate cervical cancer as a public health problem. How incredible is that?! Plus, your donation will also importantly help fund support services for the 150,000 Australians who are diagnosed with cancer every year. With support services in higher demand than ever, your help now is particularly vital.” (Cancer Council)
If you would like to support this organisation, donations to the Cancer Council Biggest Morning Tea can be made using the link below. Tax receipts are issued via online donations.
https://www.biggestmorningtea.com.au/fundraisers/fionarussell
Upcoming Event: Save the Date - Jazz Night
Tickets on sale next week!
Fiona Russell - Community Engagement & Foundation Coordinator
From the Archives
A Tradition of ANZAC Ceremonies
ANZAC Day Ceremonies have always featured on the annual College Calendar. The following archival images depict the 2005 Ceremony held in the Amphitheatre two decades ago.
Fiona Russell - College Archivist
