Communication & Social Media

Contact Details

Phone: 07 5593 4226

Email: office@hillcrest.qld.edu.au

When phoning the College, you will come through to Main Reception and they will be able to direct your call to the department and/or person you require if they are available.

Opening Hours

Term time Monday to Friday: 8am - 4pm

School holidays Monday to Friday: 9am - 3pm

All visitors (parents, sales representatives, alumni, etc.) must first report to Main Reception, where you will be required to sign in before entering the College campus.

Hillcrest encourages parent-teacher communication and asks that parents and carers maintain a positive and open connection with the College and their child's teacher.

As a College, we appreciate being informed of your family news, which may affect your child, such as a death of a family member, loss of a pet, or any major change in family circumstances. This enables us to be more sensitive to the needs of our students.

Parents should not send emails or make phone calls if they are angry about a College issue. Parents who take the time to seek clarification, and ensure they are open to hearing from the teacher first, will receive the highest level of service and support from College staff. Please be mindful that our staff do the very best they can to provide a positive learning environment for our students, and as a community, we need to care for our teachers.

Methods of Communication with Teachers

Email

Parents may contact teachers directly by email, which is the preferred method of contact. The email address of any staff member is the teacher’s initial and surname followed by @hillcrest.qld.edu.au. 

Write a Note/Letter

Parents are encouraged to use the diary to write notes to teachers and at times teachers will also send notes home to parents in the same way.

Telephone

This can be difficult as teaching staff are not readily accessible while they are in class or supervising in play zones. In most cases, the office staff will need to take a message and the teacher will return your call when they are able.

Parent:Teacher Interviews

Throughout the year, we organise opportunities for parents to have formal discussions with teachers regarding academic issues during our Parent:Teacher interviews.

By Appointment

Appointments may be made to discuss other issues that arise from time to time. Parents should arrange the interview through the relevant administration team. Teachers have a duty of care for their students and an on-the-spot interview may not be possible due to their teaching responsibilities. In general, teachers are not available at the beginning of the day as they are required to prepare their class and students.

Executive Team Email Addresses

• Executive Head of College: Mr Jeff Davis  |  principal@hillcrest.qld.edu.au

• Deputy - Executive Head of College: Mr Dirk van Bruggen  |  dvanbruggen@hillcrest.qld.edu.au

• Head of Culture & Wellbeing: Mr Joy Geyer |  jgeyer@hillcrest.qld.edu.au

• Head of Junior Learning Community: Mrs Christy Gittins  |  cgittins@hillcrest.qld.edu.au

• Head of Middle Learning Community: Mr Darren Rackemann  | drackemann@hillcrest.qld.edu.au

• Head of Senior Learning Community: Mr Jason Day |  jday@hillcrest.qld.edu.au

Director or International

Director of Hillcrest International Learning Community: Mr Edward Enriquez  |  eeriquez@hillcrest.qld.edu.au

Email

All College correspondence is emailed to parents. If you have not yet provided us with your email address, please send it to registrar@hillcrest.qld.edu.au. Please also remember to email Main Reception or login to your Parent Lounge account, to update any of your contact details.

College Newsletter

The College sends a fortnightly newsletter to all families via email, which provides our College community with an update from the Principal, as well as the latest news, event photos and College updates. View recent editions of the College Newsletter here.

Facebook 

Please 'like' Hillcrest Christian College on Facebook to connect with Class Parents, families, the P&F and our wider College community. We post regular updates on the page will news, event photos, important reminders and more.

Each Year level at Hillcrest also has their own private Facebook Group and relevant parents are added to that group's page at the start of each new year. For example, Year 1 (graduating) Class of 2028. Many parents consider Facebook as their preferred method of sourcing information, where they can ask questions of other parents, and see photos from College events, such as our Year level camps.

Parent Lounge

Parent Lounge is where you go for all information relating to your account, your student's timetable, the College calendar and notifications from your child's teacher. 

Hillcrest App 

Please download our free, helpful Hillcrest app as it provides shortcuts to a range of useful links, such as absentee notifications, the College calendar, accounts etc. We also send out app notifications to parents for important reminders throughout the term.

Download from Apple Store

Text Messages 

The College only sends text messages to parents when urgent communication is required. This may include where buses returning to College are running very late, or if there is a College emergency.

College Calendar

Our College calendar provides information regarding all events happening around the College. You can adjust the settings on your calendar view to see only the events relating to your child's year levels. View the College Calendar on our website.

Organised Events

From time to time, class teachers, year levels or the whole College, will hold events where parents will be invited to attend. You will receive an invitation from the teacher or College regarding the event with the times to attend and any items you might need to bring. 

Classroom Activities

Parents are always welcome to participate in class activities, and should contact the child’s teacher directly to arrange suitable times and days to assist and participate.

Drop Off & Pick Up

To help students settle quickly into their day, parents must drop students to the classroom door and then leave the area. Conversations with other parents should occur away from classrooms to avoid distracting students. Parents should not enter rooms at the end of the day, but wait for their children at a reasonable distance from the class. 

We need to ensure that class time, between 8.25am and 2.55pm is undisturbed, and that all children have the best possible opportunity to learn.

For families who have a legal custody issue in place, it is imperative that the College is advised so that we may assist in compliance and in ensuring that we communicate with the correct parent/carer. Supporting documentation must be supplied to the Head of your child’s learning community.

We have many ways for College parents to connect with Hillcrest and each other, and stay up to date with things that are happening using Social Media. Facebook is a popular way for parents to find out more about what is happening, ask questions, and connect with other families. You can follow our Facebook pages or request to join your relevant closed Facebook groups listed below.