From the Principal

Dear Parents and Carers, 

As we approach the end of another successful academic term, I would like to take this opportunity to reflect on the achievements and events which have shaped the past 9 weeks. 

Most recently, I am grateful for the success of yesterday’s annual Giving Day and the extraordinary result of $314,017 raised from 227 donors. My congratulations and heartfelt thanks go to the Giving Day team including Foundation Manager, Meg Graham, the Foundation Chair (Sandra McCullagh) and Directors (Adrian Slaughter, Laraine Kelly, Alison Chalmer, Troy Green), staff, students, parents and volunteers for achieving this spectacular result. To see the belief in our wonderful College expressed so emphatically through philanthropy is truly inspiring. Thank you for your gifts and support.

As a community we have so much to celebrate and so much to be grateful for. We commenced the term with the Clayfield College Foundation officially opening our refurbished Black Box Studio, we celebrated Mother’s Day with breakfast and student performances, we were entertained with Opus Concerts, we launched our inaugural Arts Day, the P & F Primary Disco was a hit, our House Supper and Chapel Services gave us an opportunity to come and worship together and our Year 11 Soiree was a lovely evening of celebrating the learning journey of our Year 11 students and looking ahead to their final 18 months of schooling. Scattered amongst this, we have had many sporting events including our Interhouse Cross Country, Andrews Cup and Britton Shield events and QGSSSA Cross Country Championships as well as academic events including the Da Vinci Decathlon and Titration Competition… the list goes on! My sincere thanks to The Foundation, P & F and Old Collegians for supporting the College with the many events we hold during the year. It truly is a combined effort which brings our community together, shining brightly.

This term our 2023 Boarder Marketing Tour hit the road in earnest. Mrs Kathryn Searle, Head of Boarding, and myself have met with current families, prospective families and Old Collegians at Goondiwindi, St George, Charters Towers, Julia Creek and Townsville. Thank you to our regional families and Old Collegians for your warm hospitality and meeting with us. Kathryn and I enjoyed visiting with you all. In addition to our regional tours, Kathryn and I also embarked on a trip to Japan where we shared our Boarding House program and received a number of international enrolment enquiries. Now that international travel has resumed in full, we are seeing renewed interest from overseas families and currently have 39 short-stay students visiting the College next term. We look forward to the opportunity of hosting these students and the international cultural exchange and experiences which our students and staff enjoy.

Our 2023 Europe Music Tour departed last night. The students will be touring Austria and Italy, with performances in amazing venues such as the Salzburg Mirabel Gardens, St. Stephens Cathedral in Vienna and the Musica San Paolo in Rome. I was privileged to attend their impromptu concert on Sunday, in preparation for the tour, and I believe their European audiences will be in for a treat. We wish them all the very best for the tour.

Last Friday we welcomed back Meghan Guthrie-Quinn, Matilda McGaw, Bridgette O’Brien and Millie Sutherland who participated in the Trafalgar Castle School, Canada, exchange program. The girls spent about 10 weeks experiencing school and boarding house life in Canada, with some great friendships and memories made as well. We look forward to reciprocating the exchange with one of the Canadian students coming to stay with us in Term 3. 

This term we farewell Ms Clair Monnickendam (English and Humanities teacher). We wish Clair all the best in her future endeavours and thank her for her contribution to the Clayfield community. Ms Perrie Bourke will be returning from long service leave in Term 3 and we thank Ms Rebecca Ayache for relieving in Perrie’s absence. 

During the holidays the campus will be busy again with capital works, maintenance and refurbishment projects planned. I look forward to sharing with you some of the updates when we return to school in July. 

I trust you all enjoy moments of rest and rejuvenation over the upcoming holiday break and I thank you again for your ongoing support.

Kind regards

Dr Andrew Cousins

Principal