Endeavour House News
Hi and welcome to Endeavour House Boarding 2024! Firstly, a huge thank you to all families for supporting a fantastic start to the year. It's fabulous to have the house full of teenagers once again! Three weeks in, we have all settled into the flow of Boarding/Albany living. We’ve welcomed five gorgeous new girls into the house this year:
- Isabel Bailey, Jerramungup
- Lani Marsh, Cheynes
- Elina Caelli, Ravensthorpe
- Esteanne Newfield, Nornalup
- Evita Rumble, Gnowangerup
We have a wonderful culture of boarders supporting boarders here. I have seen girls supporting each other within the house, but also older boarders visiting to check in with new students and siblings. We see a range of emotions and feelings throughout the year, but these can be particularly intense at the start of the school terms. I thank families for reaching out when they have questions or concerns about their children, which helps us support students to ‘ride the waves’. Connecting with families certainly helps me understand the context in which the Endeavour girls are coming from, so thank you for your time and conversation thus far.
Honesty from the Endeavour girls is something I really value, and I have appreciated all of the boarding-life conversations I have had recently. No doubt about it, the girls will always let me know if they do/don't like something! I think that's awesome, and I hope to foster good, open communication, in a respectful, sincere and sensitive manner. Endeavour is their ‘school-home', and I want them to feel comfortable, safe, heard, valued and always respected.
A friendly reminder to all students that it is very important to have consent before sharing photos and videos. So, what does that look like?
Consent is the informed and freely given agreement to engage in an activity, or permission for a specific thing to happen.
You should always seek consent before sharing a photo or video. Consent is ongoing. Even if someone has said yes to an image being posted, they can change their mind and retract their consent. If someone asks you to remove a photo or video, you should do it, no questions asked. https://www.esafety.gov.au/young-people/consent-sharing-photos-videos
Now that our new students have settled in a little, we will be discussing house Leadership for 2024. I will be asking the girls to nominate who they think will be a good leader for Endeavour. I encourage all families to discuss this with your child and think carefully about how their individual contributions to the house will have a positive influence on the lives of our boarders.
This year, we have welcomed three new Letz Live Gap Assistants to our village. The Endeavour girls are particularly getting to know Paige Boyley, who resides in our Endeavour staff ensuite accommodation Monday to Thursday evening. Paige has come from Gqeberha, South Africa, also known as Port Elizabeth or P.E. Paige is settling in well and getting to know the girls. She often assists during our morning shifts, and also performs other duties around Boarding and school. We wholeheartedly welcome Paige and thank her for her contributions so far.
In closing, I’d like to remind the girls to ‘be kind’ to themselves and to put themselves at the centre of their wellbeing. Giving and receiving help, reflection and showing empathy will allow them to grow and connect with those around them. Every day I see the girls working so hard to make their families and friends proud. I have the utmost respect for their commitment to being their best self and I feel privileged and honoured to spend time with your girls. Thank you.
Mrs Nyree Mackenzie | Head of Endeavour House