[On-screen text: Introducing your new principal]
[Upbeat music plays throughout]
A smiling man comes gradually into focus as he walks towards us.
Simon Haber (in voice over): Hi, my name is Simon Haber, and I'm really looking forward to welcoming you to our new school in 2024.
We see Simon walking up a stairway.
[On-screen text: Simon Haber]
[On-screen text: Riverdale Secondary School (interim name)]
Simon enters a room and we see him speaking to someone off screen.
[On-screen text: What was your journey into education?]
Simon: So my journey to education began over 20 years ago. Going into leadership was around driving student change and student improvement. That opportunity to work with students, staff and the school community.
[On-screen text: What type of leader are you?]
Simon: My focus as a leader, as a principal, is looking at current trends. What can we do to really enhance the way our students learn and grow and maximise their opportunities both with their learning, but also wellbeing.
So in secondary school, learning and wellbeing go hand in hand; students need the optimum learning environment, and that also includes a safe space for them to express themselves. So we will have a dedicated wellbeing team that will include a range of different people with experiences that can support our young people as they transition through from Year 7 through to Year 12.
[On-screen text: What can teachers and staff expect?]
Simon: As a school, we want to ensure that we're creating a really inclusive workspace, one that recognises all the individual talents of our staff, that our staff are constant learners. We're in education for a reason, that we believe in lifelong learning – and teachers and education support staff are just part of that journey as well.
[Off-screen text: What can parents and students expect?]
Simon: Really excited for 2024 and what 2024 will bring for our local community. But as an inclusion school, for those students that do have a disability, we will have that enhanced capacity to make sure that we are really tailoring their individual education plans. But also at the same time whilst we’re an inclusion school we are a mainstream school, so we will be ensuring that we're running a range of different programs that not only look at the inclusion-based students, but also looking at enrichment and enhancement programs.
[On-screen text: What environment will this school promote?]
Simon: Our school is a really inclusive school. It’s going to have some fantastic facilities. It's been really well designed by the architects and the builders. It's going to provide our students with unbelievable learning opportunities. What we want to hope to create is a really inviting school environment. We want all students to feel like they can come to school, be successful regardless of their backgrounds.
We want students to walk through that gate every morning looking forward to their learning and have a great day every day.
[On-screen text: Where will we find you day to day?]
Simon: Greeting students as they come in. But then, like I do on a lot of days, just spending time in classrooms with the students, getting to know them as individuals and looking forward to developing that connection with our community, looking at where they want to grow, what they want to get out of their learning and ensuring that we're meeting those individual needs.
A white background appears with the VSBA and Victoria State Government logos.
[On-screen text: www.schoolbuildings.vic.gov.au]
A black background appears and white text appears.
[On-screen text: Authorised by The Victorian School Building Authority, 33 St Andrews Place, East Melbourne]
[Transcript ends]
Updated