Crackdown on pranks as Melbourne students mark muck-up day
Hammering rain and floods did not deter Melbourne students from holding wild muck-up celebrations — but some took it too far.
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Melbourne students have braved floods and rains and held exuberant muck-up celebrations, with some sparking disciplinary action.
While most school celebrations went smoothly, some school leaders were forced to crack down on pranks and costumes, sending a number of students home and banning others from end-of-year celebrations.
Students at Parade College in Bundoora lit flares in the carpark and gymnasium, mirroring similar actions in 2020 from Marcellin College students.
Parade College Principal Andrew Kuppe said he was “proud of the exceptional conduct of our 250 Year 12 students on their Celebration Day this week after a tough couple years of COVID schooling”.
One student however acted completely unacceptably and let off two flares outside on school property. Fortunately no students were injured.
A review of CCTV failed to identify the student who set off the flares and no further action was taken.
Students from St Bede’s College in Mentone have also been filmed pelting a younger student with eggs as he rode by on his bicycle, causing him to fall off.
A statement from the school said it became aware of “mobile phone footage which appears to show a number of our students involved in an incident with a younger St Bede’s College peer”.
“St Bede’s College takes all matters related to child safety very seriously, and has taken immediate steps to investigate and issue appropriate disciplinary action.”
Events at Caulfield Grammar turned sour, with students taking to social media to protest the school’s crackdown on muck-up costumes, pranks and stunts.
Several students were sent home and some have been told they cannot attend valedictory events.
One student described her feelings: “On your muck-up day your school locks you in 1 place
away from the rest of the school with 1 bathroom to use and confiscated all your muck up day materials and made you play song trivia and listen to boring speakers”.
The student said she “would have rather stayed home and studied #muckupday #worstdayever”.
At Melbourne High School, grounds were strewn with toilet paper and students dressed as Andrew Tate posted on social media.
At Balwyn High, muck-up day costumes included sexy maid’s uniforms, convicts, Harley Quinn and Hector Salamanca from Breaking Bad.
One clip from a Balwyn High student wearing her school dress signed by friends has had 991,000 views in the past two days.
At Loreto College Toorak, female students dressed up as blood-stained animals — complete with rubber heads and fake blood — in homage to the Animal Farm book on many year 12 book lists.
A Victoria Police spokeswoman said behaviour of students at muck up days “has not drawn much in the way of negative attention from our perspective, so it would appear that we have had less reports of anti-social behaviour, which is not surprising during Covid restricted periods of the past couple of years”.
Many schools reported their festivities were altered and toned-down by torrential rain and flooding. Schools affected by flooding included Marcellin College in Bulleen, St Kevin’s College, which had a day of home schooling due to flood risks, and those in Maribyrnong and Werribee.
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