It’s with great excitement and enthusiasm that we write this first edition of Wellbeing news. In more recent times we have made a deliberate shift in our focus on Student Wellbeing and are proactively planning to enhance and promote Wellbeing all throughout the College Community. Defining Wellbeing can be tricky business. The University of Melbourne provides this helpful overview; '...Well-being is commonly defined not only as the absence of illnesses and negative conditions, it also includes a prevalence of positive attributes. In this vast research area, well-being has been defined in many ways, such as: Having a preponderance of positive emotions (e.g., happiness) and a relatively lesser degree of negative emotions (e.g., saddness, fear); Living a life that is meaningful and in accordance with one's values; Being able to sustain independent living and contribute productively to society; Having the skills to deal with challenges and setbacks; Having satisfaction with various important areas of life, including physical health, job status, relationships and finance; Having basic needs for food, shelter and safety fulfilled; Having psychological needs for autonomy, meaningful relationships, and a sense of competency met; Having strong relational ties with people and actively contribute to civic activities.' In summary, wellbeing is a complex human condition that encompasses more than one of the above descriptions. Multidimensional models of wellbeing have been developed to capture a more comprehensive understanding of wellbeing. This simply means that the concept of wellbeing can be understood by a combination of different factors instead of one sole definition. With all this in mind the College is currently considering a number of targeted improvement areas that specifically seek to promote and sustain positive wellbeing for all our students. Staff are increasingly receiving professional development that seeks to inform and educate them on this key area. We are excited to communicate more with the College community about various ideas and initiatives in the near future. Additionally, Wellbeing Teams are meeting regularly in an attempt to be proactive in our planning for now and into the future. There’s more to come very soon in this exciting and critical area of your child’s education and personal growth and we look forward to partnering with you.
Stuart McCormack
Deputy Head of Senior Years - Student Wellbeing