During 2018 the Club planted a record 1500 trees in the Lynwood Wetlands and worked at a homeless shelter. Some members even helped to update facilities at a school in remote a part of Vietnam. At school they sold hot cross buns, ice cream sundaes and hot chocolate, (all totally nutritional!) and raised $6838.60.
To say it is a dynamic and motivated group to be involved with would be an understatement! They even made it into a a double page spread in the Willetton Year Book (although not the centrefold!)
Following a change to the formula used to be able to graduate, there is no longer the ability to average a B and D grade to get 2 Cs. One pathway for less academic students to still graduate is to participate in programs developed by the School Curriculum and Standards Authority, by a school or a private provider. These endorsed programs are equivalent to a semester subject and can be used as a ‘C’ average if a student doesn’t pass a wide enough range of subjects to graduate. Rotary International Australia has written an endorsed program to recognise the work that some exceptional Interact students complete each year.
In 2018 Sue offered the executive team the opportunity to have their hours of community service in the Interact Club recognised on their Certificate of Secondary Graduation. To achieve recognition a students had to do fifty five (55) hours of community service. They were asked to record their hours and also to complete some worksheets where they were asked to reflect on various activities and offer suggestions for improving activities and for Interact in the future. The Club members completed hundreds of hours of service between them. Better still, five (5) of the executive team completed more than 55 hours and six (6) completed more than 110 hours and so achieved recognition for two endorsed programs, the equivalent of two (2) semester’s study. (Duli and Mihan were stand outs doing 134 hours and 161 hours respectively).
These results will be recorded on the student's Certificate of Secondary Graduation. It will be a formal recognition of their community service, which is a requirement for entry into some universities and an important benefit for entry into the workforce. Next year Sue is hoping to go ‘online’ so ALL members can track their hours with the potential for more to achieve recognition.
Sue thanked the Club for its support and for inviting Mihan, Duli and her to speak to the club.