From the Principal
What is culture anyway?
This week we have been working with students on culture and our collective commitment as a community to living our values each and every day.
From our Secondary School Assembly, Year Six Leaders Day and preparing for the Years Ten to Twelve Interhouse Swimming Carnival, culture has been at the heart of messages for the week.
As a starting point, we articulated culture as ‘the way we do things around here’. In the language of our staff, it is ‘the GSG way’.
At Grammar, culture is the celebration of diversity among us, our choice to be inclusive and our deep commitment to shaping a sense of belonging for every person.
Culture at GSG is grounded in the Christian faith, the pursuit of knowledge and wisdom, the values of respect, integrity, compassion, and commitment, and agreed behaviours.
Culture in schools is also born out of purpose. We are an educational institution and social enterprise; preparing young people to be active participants in civic life.
In our work with students this week, we emphasised that when we get culture right – we want to be here, we want to connect with others, we are proud of who we are, and we feel an energy that is hard to put into words.
To provide students with tangible ways to articulate culture, we spoke about the following:
- Culture is what is acceptable.
- Culture is engaging in all aspects of school life.
- Culture is seeking to do your best in all things.
- Culture is saying help and greeting others with a smile.
- Culture is noticing something and responding.
- Culture is saying thank you.
- Culture is putting your hand up to help.
- Culture is comforting those in distress.
- Culture is a focus on learning.
- Culture is asking your teachers for feedback.
- Culture is the way we wear our uniforms and dress in and out of school.
- Culture is eating last.
- Culture is who we are when people are not looking.
Just as culture is made it can also be destroyed. A single word or action can infect a positive culture. This is not ok; this does not represent who we are and what we aspire to be. Culture can be eroded by anyone and we need to individually be promoters of a healthy culture, rather than detractors.
My hope and prayer today is all members of our community; students, families and staff will all positively contribute to our culture. May we see every personal interaction as an opportunity to express our culture in action.
Culture at GSG is the way we do things around here. Let’s work together and be very proud of who we are.
‘If we are to preserve our culture, we must continue to create it.’
Johan Huizinga
Mr Mathew Irving | Principal
2024 Student Residential Address and Other Information Collection
The Australian Government Department of Education would like to notify you that they have requested all schools to provide residential address and other information. This data informs Australian Government school education policy and helps ensure funding for non-government schools is based on need.
Under the Australian Education Regulations 2023, the school is required to provide the department with the following information about each student at the school:
- names and residential addresses of the student’s parent(s) and/or guardian(s)
- student residential address (excluding student names)
- whether the student is a primary or secondary student (education level)
- whether the student is boarding or a day student (boarding status).
The full Collection Notice for parents/guardians is provided below.