Dear Parents, Carers, and School Community

What a fantastic few weeks we’ve had here at Huonville High School! As we move through Term 3, it’s been wonderful to see so many events, excursions, and celebrations bringing energy and connection to our school. I’d like to take this opportunity to share some highlights and extend my appreciation to everyone contributing to such a vibrant school community.

On Friday, 1 August, we were honoured to welcome the Governor of Tasmania, Her Excellency the Honourable Barbara Baker, Governor of Tasmania, and her husband, Professor Don Chalmers, to our school.

Their visit was a proud moment for HHS, allowing us to showcase the incredible work of our students and staff. A sincere thank you to Belinda Stewart, the Year 11/12 Hospitality Team, and the TTC crew, who did an outstanding job hosting and catering for this very special event.

As part of the Certificate II in Agriculture, a group of our students recently travelled to Burnie for a four-day training experience at the TasTAFE Freer Farm Training Facility.

This hands-on excursion allowed students to complete the practical requirements of several livestock-related units and provided valuable real-world exposure in an industry-standard setting. The students represented HHS with enthusiasm and maturity, and the feedback from facilitators was overwhelmingly positive. A big thank you to the staff who supported the trip and helped make it such a successful experience.

We’re counting down to our school production, Snatched & Served! Our drama students have been working tirelessly and are excited to showcase their talents to the wider school community.

Please don’t forget to book your tickets – more details can be found later in this newsletter. We look forward to seeing you there for what promises to be an entertaining and engaging performance.

Book Week brought out the best in our school spirit, with students and staff dressing up as their favourite characters and celebrating reading through fun and engaging activities. I started the week off by reading a picture book I BELIEVE IN YOU to students in Assembly. Written and illustrated by Dani Colvin a local author, the book sung to my heart and was a perfect way of expressing to our wonderful students that we believe in them. In the days following the assembly it was a total surprise to receive an email from Dani the author who had seen the post on our socials and reached out to express her gratitude at me selecting her book to share. We are excited to continue that newfound connection and I look forward to welcoming Dani to our school soon for a visit, creative writing and or art workshops.  

A big thank you to everyone who made the week so special – especially those who ran the BBQ on dress up day and helped make it a memorable event.

Congratulations to all our Reclink netball teams, and a special shoutout to the Friday Crew, who went undefeated! Your sportsmanship, energy, and teamwork were fantastic to see. The highlight for me was the team calling me on Facetime to share their exciting news.

We’ve begun welcoming our 2026 Year 7 students for their taster sessions – it’s always a pleasure to meet our future learners and begin building strong connections early. We look forward to seeing them again soon as they begin their journey at HHS.

Over the past few months, I have been delighted to receive numerous requests from other school leadership teams for us to visit or host a visit, so that they can ask questions about the wonderful environment we have created in relation to Learning Culture and Reading. I am beyond proud of the work of my team and thrilled that their passion, skill, planning and implementation of high impact teaching strategies is being noticed. More evidence to support that we are being noticed for the great work we are doing at Huonville High! Specifically, I would like to thank my three outstanding and kind Assistant Principals – Christie Gumley, Paul Newton and Clint Rottier. Working with you is a daily joy.

Our Year 7 students are heading to the Marine Discovery Centre, where they’ll have the chance to engage in exciting, hands-on marine science activities. We’re confident they’ll return inspired and full of stories!

We’re pleased to announce that our new electronic school sign is now up and running! This will be a great tool for keeping our community informed of upcoming events and important announcements – keep an eye out for updates as you pass by.

I would like to extend my sincere thanks to our dedicated staff, especially those who have gone above and beyond to support with additional supervision duties and event coordination. Your ongoing commitment does not go unnoticed and is greatly appreciated.

Thank you once again for your continued support of our students and school. We look forward to seeing many of you at the drama production and other events in the coming weeks.

Kindly

Janelle Reeves
PRINCIPAL