29 August 2025

Assistant Principal
Paul Stevenson
Andrea Saville

Grade Leaders

Grade 7:   Skye Champion / Lenny Towns
Grade 8:   Allison Stone / Elle Fox
Grade 9:   Eve Hall / Sharon Parish
Grade 10: Catherine Yole / Stefan Lendvay
Grade 11/12: Greg Finnigan

Support Services

School Psychologist: Louise Marlin
Social Worker: Jodi Crerar
School Chaplain: Bec Cameron: Tuesday and Thursday, 8.30am-2.15pm
School Health Nurse: Julie Edrich: Monday

YEAR 10 POLISH PROGRAM

This week, a group of our Year 10 students participated in the work readiness program, Polish, delivered by the Beacon Foundation. The students also gained an insight into what the world of work really looks like by engaging with some volunteers in the second half of the day!

PRINCIPAL’S REPORT

I continue to be impressed with the high levels of teaching and learning that are evident across our school every day. Uniform continues to be worn with pride, and this is something that contributes to the calm and settled learning environments we maintain here at Exeter High School.  

The investment in our school's infrastructure underscores our commitment to providing an engaging and effective educational experience. With advanced technology and flexible learning spaces, our students not only have access to modern tools but also thrive in an environment tailored to their needs. We believe that these improvements will inspire our students to reach their full potential and prepare them for success in their future endeavours.

At Exeter High School, we pride ourselves on fostering a strong sense of community. We encourage parents, guardians, and local residents to get involved in the upcoming school activities, events, and committees. Your support and participation make our school a welcoming and vibrant place for our students.

Work Placements are an invaluable activity that many of our Year 9 and Year 10 students undertake throughout the course of the year. These provide students with the opportunity to participate in authentic workplace situations where they can see exactly what it would be like if they were to pursue a particular occupation as their career pathway. Take the time to talk to your child about where they see themselves heading in a vocational sense, and get them to contact Mr Stevenson about possible work placements in a field of interest to them.

Attendance continues to be something that we are focusing on, and it is important that we all work together to ensure each and every student is here every day. This allows students to learn lesson to lesson, without breaks in continuity. The research shows how daily attendance is one of the most important factors in students' success both academically and socially. It also sets students up to succeed in the workplace, where attendance is an expectation and compulsory. Please make sure if your child is away from school for any reason, you contact the administration team with the reason so that our attendance records can be changed to reflect this.

Benjamin Frerk
Principal

2025 WELLBEING AND ENGAGEMENT SURVEY

This week, students participated in a wellbeing lesson before starting the Wellbeing and Engagement Survey. This lesson helped unpack the language and ideas in the questions, so students feel confident and prepared. We have also shared details this week about how families can access the survey for your valuable feedback!

The feedback we receive from students, families, and staff is vital. This data not only shows us how our school is travelling but also highlights areas where we can grow. Importantly, it directly informs our School Improvement Plan and helps us track progress over time. The more families that engage with the survey, the stronger and more useful this information becomes. Together, we can make Exeter High School the best place for students to feel connected, belong, and achieve their best.

This fortnight's focus is: Are Healthy & Are Learning

Good health and a positive mindset help students do their best at school. In the survey, students are asked questions like:

• Would you describe yourself as healthy?
• What things do you look forward to in the future?
• When you’re worried, what helps you feel better?

The survey also looks at how students feel about their learning. They are asked things like:

• Are you motivated at school?
• Do you get to do interesting things?
• Does your mood sometimes stop you from learning?

Our final Topic Spotlight looks at two key areas:

• Are Participating – taking part in activities, having a say, and showing resilience
• Have a Positive Sense of Culture and Identity – feeling accepted, valued, and a sense of belonging at school.

EXETER EXCELLENCE

These certificates are awarded to two students in each grade in recognition of their efforts in upholding the school values and helping to make our school an excellent learning environment.

Congratulations to this fortnight’s students:

Olivia from 7C: Olivia is a quiet, conscientious and respectful student who demonstrates a consistent approach in all learning areas. She is punctual and prepared for all lessons and is a mature classmate to all her peers. Olivia displayed enthusiasm, resilience and a fantastic work effort during the ‘Write a book in a day’ event this past week. Well done, Olivia! Values demonstrated: Respect, Learning, Maturity and Acceptance.

Eve from 7A: Eve is a responsible, respectful and friendly student who is a valued member of 7A. As a learner, she consistently applies herself to all tasks. Eve willingly accepts feedback and always strives to produce work that is reflective of her best effort. Congratulations Eve! Values demonstrated: Respect, Learning, Maturity and Acceptance.

Odin from 8C: Odin is an excellent role model who always displays maturity, tolerance and respect. He can be relied upon to work co-operatively in groups and is equally confident and capable as an independent learner. Odin willingly acts upon feedback and always strives to do his best. Values demonstrated: Respect, Learning, Maturity and Acceptance.

Alexander from 8C: Alexander has displayed maturity towards his learning, ignoring distractions to ensure he completes all set tasks to the best of his ability. Alexander is a polite member of the class who is respectful with all interactions. Values demonstrated: Respect, Learning, Maturity and Acceptance.

Jack from 9A: Jack is a polite student who contributes to a positive classroom environment with his friendly presence. He consistently completes tasks with care and accuracy demonstrating a commitment to his learning. Values demonstrated: Respect, Learning, Maturity and Acceptance.

Xavier from 9C: Xavier is being recognised for his thoughtful and considerate questioning during a recent presentation. He displayed genuine engagement, showing both interest and respect for the speaker, which led to a positive and collaborative learning environment. Values demonstrated: Learning, Respect, Maturity and Acceptance.

Rylee from 10A: Rylee continues to consistently meet our core values. She applies herself to her learning and approaches tasks with a positive attitude. Rylee is approachable and supportive of her peers. Values demonstrated: Learning, Respect, Maturity and Acceptance.

Eva from 10B: Eva has stepped into the Interact Club this year and taken on a leadership role. Her courage to pursue different opportunities is commendable. She has embraced her role within Interact, is pro-active, enthusiastic and her interactions with all members of the club she runs are encouraging and inclusive. Eva demonstrates all the school values with pride and consistency. Values demonstrated: Learning, Respect, Maturity and Acceptance.

NEWSTEAD COLLEGE FAMILY INFORMATION EVENING – Tuesday 2 September 2025, 7.00pm

Newstead College invites future students and their families to attend this Family Information Evening and learn more about everything that our college has to offer in Years 11 and 12.

2026 Course & Enrolment Information

• Date: Tuesday 2 September 2025, 7.00 pm
• Location: Newstead College Auditorium
• RSVP now to newstead.college.transitions@decyp.tas.gov.au

We look forward to connecting with you!

TRIVIA NIGHT – FRIDAY 5TH SEPTEMBER, BOOK YOUR TABLE NOW!

ISABELLA COMPETES IN INTERNATIONAL MOUNTED GAMES EXCHANGE

In July and August, Year 10 student Isabella went to the United Kingdom after being selected as an ambassador for the International Mounted Games Exchange team, representing Australia. 

Isabella was one of five young adults from around the country selected after a rigorous selection day of riding and interviews.

From Isabella:

The WEST TAMAR PONY and RIDING CLUB (my club) and Riverside Lions Club were generous with donations. I also managed to work at a horse stud during school holidays to help assist with payments. I did a lot of fundraising and managed a few monetary sponsors.

My trip started with four days in Melbourne, where I got to meet my team Ava, Kasey, Emily and Maddie, our coach Dan and our team manager Niree. Our few days in Melbourne were nothing short of amazing with team trainings where we got to ride Dan's and Niree's horses. We rode through and practised all the games that we would be doing while we were in the UK. During our first training we also had a photographer come out and get some action shots of us. One photo was then put in The Weekly Times newspaper.

Before we knew it, we were on the plane and on our way to the UK. On arrival, we met the teams from the other countries, which consisted of Canada, New Zealand, USA and Great Britain and had an opportunity to get to know each other. During our time in the UK, we spent two weeks travelling around. We spent a week in Yorkshire, and then a few days in Cheshire and Warwickshire doing lots of sightseeing, including seeing the beauty and history of castles, churches, abbeys and the old stone walls that surrounded the castles. We also visited a local pony club and did some fun activities with them. In the afternoon we went to the races, where we got to go up to the commentators’ box and watch from where the officials work. We were then privileged enough to present the winners of the race with their trophies and go in and see the jockeys' room and behind the scenes. We also visited an equestrian centre with two very large outdoor arenas, a large indoor arena, a gallop track and a cross country jumps paddock. It also had a café upstairs, which looks out over the indoor arena and out to the outdoor arena and their own very large tack store where we all could have spent all day!

We arrived at Offchurch Bury on the Friday; this is where the championship was being held. Our event went for two weeks and our initial day had us looking around the shopping stalls, watching the other UK kids ride, and getting a feel for the equipment that we would be riding with on Saturday. There was a total of 22 girls all up including the four other countries. We had to sleep in a big tent together on stretcher beds and in sleeping bags. We all froze that night!

When Games Day arrived, we were all excited. We had a team meeting in the morning, so we all knew what we were doing and what times we had to be ready. Dan, our coach, wanted us to relax and not to worry about the competition until about half hour before we rode!

Each country started with a set of five horses and had 10 minutes before the games started to warm them up. You would do three races with that set of horses and then swap to another set of horses for the next three races and so on. So, in total I rode 6-7 different horses over the 15 races.

Our team rode extremely well, and it was a very tight competition. Australia and Great Britain jostled for the lead, with each of us leading at certain points of the competition.  In the end, Great Britain just got us in the last couple of races to win by three points. Team Australia finished 2^nd.  It was an amazing feeling standing on the podium accepting my medal with my fellow teammates and celebrating with Dan, Niree and my family who had flown over to watch.

We finished the competition with a Gala Dinner that night. This was a great chance to celebrate with our teammates, as well as all the girls from around the world we were lucky enough to meet. I had a great time!

Written by Isabella

We would like to extend our congratulations to Isabella. What you have achieved is outstanding and what you have been lucky enough to experience is something that you will carry with you. We are very proud of what you continue to achieve in the equestrian field and look forward to hearing about more of your adventures. Congratulations from your Year 10 Team.

BOOK WEEK ROUNDUP

Our first Book Character Dress-Up Day in a long time… and our students and staff absolutely nailed it! The creativity, imagination and effort made it such a fun way to celebrate Book Week. Safe to say - this event is definitely making a comeback at EHS next year!

WRITE A BOOK IN A DAY

What a huge effort from our Year 7–10 students last Tuesday! As part of Book Week, 30 students took on the huge challenge of Write a Book in a Day - working together to plan, write, and illustrate a complete children’s book in just one day. Our students showed outstanding teamwork, creativity, and resilience throughout the day. Not only did they create something amazing, but their work will also bring joy to children in hospitals across Australia - while supporting vital research through The Kids’ Cancer Project. We are so proud of the effort, teamwork, and spirit our students demonstrated - what a fantastic achievement!

YEAR 9/10 ART EXCURSION

Recently, our Year 9/10 Art students visited the University of Tasmania’s Centre for the Arts at Inveresk.

Students learned about future pathways in the Arts, took a tour of the campus facilities and new buildings, and participated in a symbolism drawing workshop.

ROCK CHALLENGE WARM UP

What an awesome afternoon at EHS last week.  We got a sneak peek of the talented bands who'll represent us at the Rock Challenge tonight at Door of Hope. Five bands took to the stage, each performing both an original and a cover - and they absolutely smashed it!

WORK PLACEMENT

Our Work Placement program continues to provide fantastic opportunities for students to learn valuable, hands-on skills. This time we’re highlighting Cruze (Year 9), who is undertaking his placement with West Bros Steel Pty Ltd at Clarence Point. The team at West Bros have been incredible supporters of our program, offering multiple students the chance to experience the industry first-hand. We love seeing these pathways grow - former student Bryce also started here on work placement and is now an apprentice with the company! A big thank you to West Bros Steel for continuing to support our students’ career pathways!

WHITE CARD WORKSHOP

Last week, 20 of our students participated in training to gain their White Card, which will help open opportunities in the Construction Industry.

A big thank you to James from Impact Safety Group at Gravelly Beach, and Ben Shadgett, a former EHS student, who is the Managing Director.

HANDS ON LEARNING (HoL)

In Hands on Learning this week, students have been working on a gumboot rack for the school farm. They have been welding and busting up a few pallets for future projects too. They had pizzas for lunch with a fantastic dough created by some of the team.

KINDNESS DAY – CASUAL CLOTHES DAY WITH GOLD COIN DONATION

CANTEEN PAYMENTS

CALENDAR

Term 3 – Monday 21 July – Friday 26 September

Please note: Calendar is updated every fortnight.

Term 4 – Monday 13 October – Thursday 18 December

Please note: Calendar is updated every fortnight.

COMMUNITY CORNER

AUSTRALIAN POETRY SLAM – LAUNCESTON & DELORAINE WORKSHOPS AND HEATS

LAUNCESTON LITTLE ATHLETICS – SEASON STARTS OCTOBER - COME AND TRY DAY, SUNDAY 28^TH SEPTEMBER

WEST TAMAR COUNCIL COMMUNITY ROADSHOW

The West Tamar Community Roadshow 2025 coming to a town near you!

Following on from the success of last year’s inaugural Community Roadshow, West Tamar Mayor Christina Holmdahl, CEO Kristen Desmond, Councillors and managers of the West Tamar Council will be hitting the road starting from August 26, stopping off at a number of towns for a series of community forums.

Residents will be able to come along, listen to a presentation from our CEO on what Council has in store for the municipality over the coming year, meet with the Mayor, Councillors and Council Executive to discuss your concerns, ask questions and engage with the elected members of your community.

Light refreshments will be available at each roadshow event.

Those intending on attending will need to RSVP for each event in advance for catering purposes.

Make sure you don’t miss one of our community meetings planned for the region, with stopovers planned for:

Rowella - Rowella Hall
Saturday, August 30 from 12pm to 2pm
RSVP: https://events.humanitix.com/2025-west-tamar-council-community-roadshow-rowella

Frankford - Frankford Soldiers Memorial Hall
Saturday, September 6 from 12pm to 2pm
RSVP: https://events.humanitix.com/2025-west-tamar-council-community-roadshow-frankford

Exeter - Exeter Community Hub
Tuesday, September 9 from 5.30pm to 7.30pm
RSVP: https://events.humanitix.com/2025-west-tamar-council-community-roadshow-exeter

Beauty Point - Beauty Point Bowls Club
Thursday, September 25 from 5.30pm to 7.30pm
RSVP: https://events.humanitix.com/2025-west-tamar-council-community-roadshow-beauty-point

Legana - Legana War Memorial Hall
Wednesday, October 1 from 5.30pm to 7.30pm
RSVP: https://events.humanitix.com/2025-west-tamar-council-community-roadshow-legana

Greens Beach - Greens Beach Golf Club
Saturday, October 25 from 12pm to 2pm
RSVP: https://events.humanitix.com/2025-west-tamar-council-community-roadshow-greens-beach

Riverside - Windsor Community Precinct
Tuesday, October 28 from 5.30pm to 7.30pm
RSVP: https://events.humanitix.com/2025-west-tamar-council-community-roadshow-windsor-precinct

WEST TAMAR YOUTH MAYOR APPLICATIONS – NOW OPEN FOR 2026

2025 SCHOOL SOLAR CHALLENGE – NOVEMBER 9, 2025

Entry is free but we require you to register your car or boat before the event to include it in our race schedule. This doesn’t need to be done before you start building but please download, fill out and return the form by no later than Thursday Nov 6 for the cars and Friday Nov 21 for the boats. 

KINGS MEADOWS RECREATION AND COMMUNITY HUB

SHARE YOUR WORLD - TASSIE KIDS NEED FOSTER CARERS

JOIN RIVERSIDE SCOUTS