Our House System at PVGC was designed with student voice at the centre. Students wanted to be able to connect both supportively and through competitions with other students. Our system permeates throughout all facets of our college including sporting activities, academics, special days, wellbeing and fundraising.
There are four houses at PVGC which all students and staff belong to:
- Alberti House (yellow)
- Cowan House (green)
- Melba House (blue)
- Wake House (red)
At the beginning of Year 7, all students participate in a House Sorting Ceremony. In this ceremony, students are invited to spin a wheel which will choose what house they are sorted into. Prior to spinning the wheel, students are also able to indicate their preference for joining the house of their older sibling to continue their familial tradition.
Throughout the school year, students are able to earn house points for upholding the school values of Respect, Achievement and Diversity, as well as demonstrating the school’s Learning Behaviours: Resilient Thinking, Relational Thinking and Responsible Thinking.
Teachers and student leaders are able to reward these positive behaviours using House Tokens which students can redeem each Wednesday lunchtime at the Student Leadership Room for prizes such as badges, pens, notebooks, stickers and re-useable cutlery sets. Teachers can also award points using Compass. These points accumulate with one house being declared the victor at the end of the year. Tallies of the overall house rankings can be found throughout the school in the Senior Sub-School, Middle Sub-School, Library and C-corridor.
 | Alberti House is named after Susan Alberti (1947-) who is a businesswoman and philanthropist in Melbourne. After the death of her daughter to Type I diabetes, she has contributed significantly to juvenile diabetes research and founded ‘Walk for a Cure’ which has raised more than thirty million dollars. Known as ‘The Footy Lady’. She was Vice-President of the Western Bulldogs football club and was instrumental in introducing the AFL Women’s Competition in 2017. |
| Motto: | Face of a winner! |
| Quote: | “Nothing is impossible. The word itself says ‘I’m Possible’” – Susan Alberti |
| Slogan: | We will win, not immediately but definitely |
| Mascot: | Honey the Bumblebee |
| Celebration Day: | 18th May |
| House Cheer: | Stand up, stay proud, yellow team is on the ground. |
 | Edith Dircksey Cowan OBE (1861-1932) is most well-known for being the first Australian woman elected to serve as a member of Parliament, in West Perth between 1921 and 1924. She was an outspoken advocate for women’s and children’s rights; campaigning for women’s suffrage and lobbying for the creation of the Children’s Court in Australia. She was a magistrate, a Justice of the Peace and helped to establish the state branch of the National Council of Women. She accomplished all of this while raising five children. She has been honoured for her accomplishments by being immortalised on the fifty-dollar note. |
| Motto: | Brave and bold |
| Quote: | “Women can and do stand by women.” – Edith Cowan |
| Slogan: | Be the change that you want to see |
| Mascot: | Turbo the Turtle |
| Celebration Day: | 2nd August |
| House Cheer: | Cowan, Cowan, brave and bold Today we’re here to win the gold Watch the others shiver and shake As Cowan swoops down for the take! |
 | Dame Nellie Melba (1861-1931) is the namesake for Melba House, although she was born with the name Helen Porter Mitchell. As an international opera star, she adopted the stage name ‘Melba’ to honour her hometown of Melbourne. After modest success in Australia, she studied in Paris. She then became a well-known opera singled in Europe, America and Australia for flawlessly mastering a small number of operatic roles. She frequently returned home to Australia where she established a music school, which became part of the Melbourne Conservatorium. You may recognize her from the Australian one hundred dollar note. |
| Motto: | Striving for success |
| Quote: | “The first rule of opera is the first rule of life. Take that first step” – Dame Nellie Melba |
| Slogan: | Sing your own song, have your own voice |
| Mascot: | Azura the Wolf |
| Celebration Day: | 19th May |
| House Cheer: | Melba, Melba is our name! Striving, winning is our game! Other teams just can’t compete! They all know we can’t be beat! |
 | Wake House has been named to honour the efforts of Nancy Grace Augusta Wake who was a secret agent during WWII. Born in New Zealand, but raised in Sydney from the age of two years, she began her working life as a nurse, then sought training as a journalist in New York. After marrying in France, Wake joined the French Resistance helping people to escape from the Germans and quickly became an enemy of the Gestapo. The Germans offered a five-million-franc reward for her capture. Wake often parachuted behind enemy lines, and saved many lives through her leadership, courage and organization. |
| Motto: | Determination shall lead to victory |
| Quote: | “I hate wars and violence but if they come then I don’t see why we women should just wave our men a proud goodbye and then knit them balaclavas.” – Nancy Wake |
| Slogan: | Stay woke! |
| Mascot: | Blaze the Panda |
| Celebration Day: | 30th August |
| House Cheer: | North, south, east, west, Wake House is the very best! |