Almost 400 students mark new campus beginning

FRESH faced students, new teachers and even the Minister for Education marked the official opening of the San Remo Campus last Tuesday, February 1.

The new junior campus, which joins the McKenzie and Dudley campuses forming part of Bass Coast College, welcomed almost 380 students for their first day last week.

Minister for Education James Merlino and Member for Bass Jordan Crugnale were given a grand tour of the new facilities on the day, as well as all those involved in the project from government figures, to builders and school staff.

The campus will cater for up to 500 students between Years 7 and 9, and has long been advocated for by the community.

The new campus features a specialist science, technology and design learning space, a performing arts and physical education building, dedicated administration and library spaces, an oval and several sports grounds.

Emma Harris will be taking the reins as campus principal and has got a busy year ahead.

“I was at Wonthaggi Secondary College, then Bass Valley Primary School and now I’ve moved back again,” Ms Harris said.

“We’ve completely reinvigorated the curriculum and we’ve got a new STEAM program and lots of extra support across literacy and numeracy, especially after COVID with kids coming back to school.

“I’m really looking forward to working with the community, we’ve had a rough couple of years, and this is something the community have wanted for a long time and it’s nice to deliver it.”

Ms Harris added there are hopes the school could be expanded into the future.

College principal Darren Parker also thanked everyone who been involved in the project and couldn’t wait to see students make the most of it.

As the tour progressed, Mr Merlino addressed the students in the campus gymnasium, offering his words of encouragement to follow their dreams and make the most of their education.

Ms Crugnale also said the San Remo campus will be a “source of huge pride for the Bass Coast school and wider community”, and that she was thrilled to see it finally open.

Additional features of new campus include:

• a ‘Welcome and Wellbeing Centre’, which consists of administration and library spaces and reflects the importance of holistic student development with strong wellbeing support

• a learning base and innovation neighbourhood consisting of classroom spaces that are innovative and adaptable

• a specialist building where science, technology and design learning takes place in a collaborative setting

• a community and health building, which consists of a performing arts and physical education area (which includes an indoor play court), and a food technology space and canteen, which can be accessible for local community events

• an oval

• Four outdoor play courts.

In the 2019–20 State Budget, Bass Coast College shared in $624.8 million allocated for new schools.

In 2020, the school received a further $5 million in funding, while in the 2020–21 State Budget, the school received at least $25.76 million.