Dear Parents and Caregivers,

Recently I have had the opportunity to work with some of our current and former school leaders and high achievers. School Captains, Abi Houston and Toby Mayes and I attended a community and civic reception with the Governor of Queensland, His Excellency Paul de Jersey on the Gold Coast. The Governor outlined the civic and commercial opportunities of the Gold Coast before spending time discussing PBC with Abi and Toby. The Governor also discussed what the future holds for our School Captains.

Mitch Kennedy, Deputy Principal – Senior School and I were invited to present a speech to recognise the Tugun Community Bank (Bendigo Bank) Scholarship Awards of $5000 that were presented to Emily Ireland and Taj Van der Werff. The list of Emily’s achievements at PBC and the community is truly impressive and Taj’s academic results are of the highest order. We congratulate Taj and Emily on their scholarships and wish them well in their future endeavours. I would also like to thank Tugun Community Bank (Bendigo Bank) for their continued sponsorship of our school, our students and the local community.

The new Library +Plus Precinct continues to be constructed on time. This $11 million project is really starting to take shape. In order to make the building multi-purpose and open for community use, the P&C have borrowed $1 million. In order to service this loan they are holding a Gala Night on Saturday 25 May 2019 at the school. Please check out our Facebook page, website and this newsletter for further details on how to attend. We are also encouraging sponsorship of the building through the tax deductable P&C Building Fund and we are open to discussions around naming rights for the building itself.

It was great to witness one of our Year 11 classes partnering with Broad Construction to utilise the current construction work being undertaken at the school as an opportunity to further explore the construction industry. Work Place Health and Safety Officer and Construction Manager, Shaun spent time with the students discussing all things construction. The students were extremely engaged, asking many questions relating to the fields of work that they are looking at for the future.

You may be aware that Surfside Buses and Translink have recently been in media outlining the revenue that they are losing through school student fair evasion. We have been informed that ticket inspectors will be having an increased presence on the buses to prevent fair evasion. Please talk to your child about the need to have either a valid bus pass or ticket for the bus. We have discussed this issue with the students at school through their Care Classes and at the year level assemblies. Please note that Surfside Bus Passes are now awaiting collection from Student Services. It your student has applied for one please ask them to see Student Services.

The last PBC Alliance Breakfast, held on International Women’s Day, was an informative and successful event with over 70 local businesses in attendance. PBC is fortunate to be represented at all three levels of government by successful female politicians who were present on the day to speak to the audience and our STEM students. Hon Karen Andrews attended the new E Block Biology Lab with STEM students to discuss all things Science and Engineering. The Hospitality and Catering students excelled in catering for the event and they are presenting with a deal of professionalism and skill that would rival private businesses. The Alliance Breakfast occurred in an environment where both tuckshops had just been vandalised and “trashed” so I would like to thank my staff who responded efficiently and effectively to ensure that the school population had access to canteen facilities on the day and that our breakfast event was successful.

I am on long service leave for the last week of this term and first week of next term. Anita Sgalippa will be the executive principal in my absence. Have a great Easter break.

Regards,
Chris Capra
Executive Principal