College Context

College Context
Guiding Principles
Murrayville Community College prides itself on fostering learning as a community. It emphasises the development and nurturing of traditions that value learners for their uniqueness as members of that community. This is achieved by teamwork, mutual respect and accountability.
Geographic Context
Murrayville is a small community, with approximately 300 town residents and 600 district residents, located in the north western corner of Victoria, some 110 km west from Ouyen, 210km from Mildura, 565km from Melbourne and 276km from Adelaide. Murrayville is located 16km inside Victoria approximately 26km from Pinnaroo. The area is essentially a wheat and sheep-farming region with a substantial and increasingly diversifying, agricultural economic base. There is an expanding interest in tourism as a possible growth area. It is the school’s unique geographic location that helps enhance self sufficiency, co-operative effort, community involvement and commitment to community well being. The College is, in these terms, a valued resource, with facilities and expertise shared within the community.
Enrolment Trends
Enrolments have reduced slightly over the past years, and are currently at 101.  A number of enrolments are received from South Australia into the secondary part of the school. Approximately one quarter of the students come from Pinnaroo.
Staffing Profile
The school currently has 18 teaching staff and 6 ancillary staff.
Nearby Schools
Murrayville receives the highest level of DE&T rurality classification. The nearest schools are Ouyen Primary and Secondary Schools (110 km), Underbool Primary School (50 km) and Pinnaroo Primary School (26 km).
School Structure/Organisation
The College has a sub-school structure of Prep –Year 6, Years 7 – 9 and Years 10 – 12.
Student Population Characteristic
The school population comprises a similar ‘Like School Group’ as does the Eastern Metropolitan Region of Melbourne – Like Schools Group One.
Travel
Approximately two thirds of the students travel to school by bus. The 3 bus routes involve travel from as far as 70km each way to attend school. Approximately one quarter of the students travel from Pinnaroo, SA.
Mallee Cluster
The College is part of the Mallee Cluster, which increases curriculum offerings and maximises networking and professional support.
Parental and Community Involvement
Parent involvement in the College is strongly encouraged through participation on the College Council, Parents Club and various committees of Council, as well as attendance at special College evenings and programs.
Newsletter
This weekly publication is provided in hard copy to families who chose this option, delivered electronically via email and posted on the website each Friday. Community items also appear in the newsletter, along with reports on activities and examples of student work and achievements. The College Newsletter provides regular communication between the school and the community, and also includes some community notices.
Parent Participation
The smooth running of the College is aided by the cooperation and support received from parents. Parents of all students, particularly primary students are quite welcome to visit their children working in class. Areas in which parents are encouraged to help include the College Council, Parents Club, Learning & Teaching Committee, Uniform Committee, working bees, catering, sporting events and excursions and the like.
College Council
The College Council is the legally constituted body which governs the College. The Council is responsible in the areas of curriculum, finance and educational policy. The College Council is made up of representatives from the following groups:

8 Parents
5 Staff (including the College Principal)
1 Co-option
1 senior student member of the S.R.C.
Canteen
Lunches can be ordered each day. Sandwiches/rolls are available Mondays to Thursdays; toasties (ham and cheese) every day; hot pastries and pizzas on Mondays and Fridays.
The College canteen follows the recommendations of the State Canteen Association and offers food and drinks which are predominately low fat, low sugar and low salt content.
Snacks are available at recess and after the lunches have been served.
Enhancement, Enrichment and Extension
Special programs are run to cater for individual differences. This may be catch up programmes, such as Reading Recovery, or enrichment programmes such as the Science Talent Search. National competitions also foster our aim of striving for excellence.
Reporting to Parents
A written report is given to all students at the end of each semester. Parent-teacher interviews for the Primary sector are conducted in first term and by request in June, while those for the Secondary sector are held mid-semester.
Homework
College Council has adopted a homework policy which is in line with the guidelines provided by the Department of Education (refer to College Study Policy). Monitoring homework: The diary is the major tool to be used in the effective monitoring of homework. Students are expected to take their diaries to all lessons.
Uniform
Students attending this College are expected to wear College uniform each day unless a specific casual day has been organized.
Teacher Housing
The College staff have access to Government Housing in Murrayville. This housing is well maintained and modern. The College has access to 6 houses and 2 flats. The houses and flats are maintained by the Government Housing Authority through requests from the College Principal.
The rent for the housing is deducted from teacher salaries and is at ‘market’ rate’ which is generally recognized as low.