- Minister for Education
The Andrews Labor Government is supporting students from regional and rural schools to have greater choice in VCE subjects thanks to a $1.2 million dollar investment.
Minister for Education James Merlino announced today the VCE Collaboration Fund round 2 partnerships to 28 rural and regional schools.
The $1.2 million VCE Collaboration Fund is part of a $22.6 million investment to give regional and rural students access to the full range of VCE subjects.
The fund supports regional and rural schools to partner with each other to broaden the subject choice and quality of VCE offerings.
Schools included in this round are spread across regional Victoria including Outer Gippsland, Central Highlands, Southern Ocean Road, Ovens Murray, Bendigo and Rochester.
School partnerships can apply for up to $40,000 in funding, with funding for master classes for VCE subjects, after-school study groups, video conferencing facilities and professional learning for teachers.
The fund will support around 100 schools over four years to give regional VCE students greater choice in what they can study. Funding is available to support partnerships between schools from all sectors where at least one school is a government school in a regional or rural area.
The fund is being delivered alongside a major expansion of VCE subjects offered through the virtual learning programs of Virtual School Victoria and the Victorian School of Languages, and through a new 'blended learning' pilot through Victorian Virtual Learning Network.
In September the Labor Government announced an initial package of $82.8 million in funding to support recommendations from the Expert Advisory Panel into Rural and Regional Students.
This funding will address teacher supply issues outside Melbourne by attracting teachers and school leaders to state schools in rural and regional Victoria and supporting them to stay.
It will also enable rural and regional students to attend VCE revision lectures and will expand professional development for teachers and leaders in rural and regional areas.
As stated by Minister for Education James Merlino
"Country students should have the same opportunities as those in the city, so we're giving them greater choice of VCE subjects that appeal to their interests, strengths and career aspirations."
"Where you live should not determine the quality of your education, we are supporting regional and rural VCE students by providing the same quality and choice of VCE subjects that someone in the inner city would get."
Round 2 partnerships:
Outer Gippsland Cluster: Orbost Secondary College, Cann River P-12 College, Mallacoota P-12 College, and Swifts Creek P-12 School
Central Highlands Cluster: Ballarat High School, Beaufort Secondary College, Daylesford College, Mount Clear College, Mount Rowan Secondary College, Phoenix Community College and Woodman's Hill Secondary College.
Cobden/Timboon Partnership: Cobden Technical School and Timboon P-12 School
Southern Ocean Road Alliance: Lorne P-12 College, Apollo Bay P-12 College and Laver's Hill K-12 College.
Ovens Murray Cluster: Myrtleford P-12 School, Mount Beauty Secondary College, Beechworth Secondary College and Tallangatta Secondary College
Robinvale/Manangatang partnership: Robinvale College and Manangatang P-12 College
Greater Bendigo Cluster: Bendigo South East College, Bendigo Senior Secondary College, Crusoe College, Weeroona College and Eaglehawk Secondary College
Rochester/Keilor Downs partnership: Rochester Secondary College, Keilor Downs Secondary College
