From the Principal

We have a very busy and productive term that has featured many highlights and marvellous examples of personal and collective success. As we prepare to farewell our Year 12’s as they quickly approach the conclusion of their Kinross Wolaroi journey our students have their diaries packed with HSC Trial Exams, House Dinners, sporting celebrations, Music and Drama performances and Industrial Technology exhibitions.

The mature and constructive manner in which our Year 12 students approached their HSC Trial examinations was most impressive. We have had some wonderful House and sports celebrations that have been enthusiastically supported by many families. It has been tremendous that we can come together to celebrate the very special community that we enjoy at Kinross Wolaroi School. The past two years of challenge forced upon us due to the pandemic saw us miss so much social interaction and important milestone events. It has been a joy to see that reconnection of friends, families, and the creation of new relationships. 

Values

We are all familiar with our five guiding values of Kinross Wolaroi School:

Courage, Respect, Inclusiveness, Resilience and Commitment.

We see these demonstrated and lived every day in our School community.

Our values provide us with signposts to guide us through our daily lives.

At our recent House Dinners I have witnessed the respect students have for one another in how they relate to each other and in how our Year 11’s have spoken so warmly and kindly about their Year 12’s.

I have seen the respect that they have shown their staff who work tirelessly to support and guide our students.

Students regularly demonstrate inclusiveness in how they involve others and don’t leave people behind. We see this in their support or each other and in their personal interactions around the grounds. 

They demonstrate Resilience and Commitment in their academic work, their sport, and in co-curricular activities.

The great performances in Drama, Music, and in practical works can only be achieved through hard work and a determined desire achieve their personal best.

Resilience and Commitment are abundantly evident in the Year 12 Major Projects – the Textiles and Visual Arts and Industrial Technology works. Just as they are in their Music and Drama performances, and in our excellent sporting achievements. 

We also see acts of courage both moral courage, and physical courage.

Maya Angelou, the immensely respected American poet, author and Civil Rights activist viewed courage as the first of all human qualities – because it is the value that guarantees all others.

She said of Courage:

“One isn’t necessarily born with Courage, but one is born with potential, because without courage you cannot practice any other virtue consistently. You can be kind for a while. You can be generous for a while, or merciful for a while, even loving for a while. But it is only with Courage that you can be persistently and insistently be kind and generous and fair.”

Nelson Mandela, the former President of South Africa, worked tirelessly to abolish the racist apartheid policies of his nation and did so at great personal cost which saw him serve 27 years in prison for his political activities. Once released from prison he gained political office and became the driving force that ended his country’s racist policies. 

He said of Courage:

“I learned that Courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. 

The brave man is not who does not feel afraid, but who conquers that fear.”

Mandela stood up for what he believed in – a fair and just society, even if it meant standing alone and at great personal cost.

Recently, some of us had the opportunity to witness a very special act of moral courage from one of our Senior students. I had the pleasure of attending an outstanding Kinross Wolaroi Rugby Dinner along with our 380 other guests and I experienced the privilege of witnessing a great act of courage.

At the conclusion of the Dinner one of our leading First XV players delivered a wonderful address. He is not known for his oratory or constant talk. He is a young man of action not rhetoric. Jake Chudleigh of Year 12 stood before the packed room and spoke passionately and  purposefully delivering a powerful message to all present.

He confronted his fears and doubts and triumphed. Jakes action’s took a great deal of personal courage. He wanted to speak and did not wish to leave the evening with the regret that he had not. It was a very special occasion to see a young man muster the courage to do this particularly from one who is more reserved by nature. Jake’s actions provide a great lesson for us all. 

It is important in life to take calculated risks.

To step out of our comfort zone. Courage is an essential ingredient for success.

We can only achieve our goals if we have the courage to pursue them. 

The courage to risk failing and the courage and commitment to have another go.

I have seen many examples of our values in action over the past weeks and am immensely proud of what has been achieved. 

I encourage all our students to draw upon their personal moral courage to stand up for what is right and true – when most probably it will be unpopular to do so - to call out unkind or disrespectful behaviour and to have the courage to make our School community a better place. 

Congratulations

My warmest congratulations to our Year 12 Music and Drama students. Their Showcase evenings of their HSC performances and compositions were absolutely superb. I’m so very proud of them all.