Boarding House
A message from our Boarding House Captains
The term has started strong for everyone in the Boarding House, beginning with our annual afternoon tea on the Myrniong lawns to welcome almost 20 new boarders to the College community. Here, we also had the opportunity to meet our new Principal, Mr Horne, who we look forward to welcoming permanently in Term Two. To kick things back into full swing, boarders have immersed themselves into boarding life by getting involved with a range of sports from cricket, basketball and tennis to rowing and equestrian, with an Equestrian Centre full of horses.
There have also been many activities to connect and strengthen boarding friendships, including ten pin bowling, surfing at Port Fairy, a visit to Halls Gap Zoo and not to forget tricky trivia before dinner each Tuesday. We also have a pizza night every Saturday. These activities and events are planned on the weekends, helping encourage boarders to stay in. For those of us more inclined to schoolwork, there was a masterclass for Year 12 English, led by Mrs Nicholls and Mrs Prosser, which helped us prepare for our SAC.
In everyday boarding life, we are pleased to say the food has been excellent, provided by chef Josh. House meetings have also been entertaining, helping us grow and thrive as a house with different activities and games. To ensure the rest of the year is just as eventful, we have a new group of Year 7-11 boarders join a Boarding Committee and they have already started developing new improvements to the Boardo. Having members of the committee from different year levels has provided a voice for all ages and ideas to improve everyday life in the boarding house for everyone.
All-in-all, it has been a great start to an excellent year so far and we look forward to a well-earned Easter break and equally good Term Two.
Sarah Andersen and Henry Dennis
Term 1 Formal Dinner
Our first Formal Dinner of 2023 was held this week with two wonderful guests presenting to our boarders. Jessica Dowdy and Mardi Johns are both solicitors who work at Melville, Orton & Lewis. Jessica is a Director, and is an experienced litigation and dispute resolution solicitor, practicing primarily in the areas of family law, intervention orders, criminal law, child protection and civil law. Jessica told her life story beginning in the small town of Binnum in South Australia. She worked hard to receive a scholarship to attend boarding school at Walford Anglican School for Girls in Adelaide, and then again, was fortunate to receive another scholarship to Bond University to study a Bachelor of Laws.
Mardi considers herself very fortunate to have had the best of both worlds growing up. She was raised on a busy and exciting family farm near Crystal Brook in South Australia, and had the opportunity to complete the whole of her secondary schooling at Immanuel College in Adelaide as a boarding student. After completing year 12 in 1999, Mardi was accepted into her degree of choice, and graduated from Flinders University in Adelaide in 2006 with a Bachelor of Laws and Legal Practice (with Honours) and a Bachelor of Behavioural Science. Mardi was admitted to the Supreme Court of South Australia as a Barrister and Solicitor in the same year. Whilst at university, Mardi was appointed to the position of undergraduate Legal Officer in the Royal Australian Navy, and in 2006 completed the six-month Royal Australian Navy Officer Training Course at naval base HMAS Creswell in Jervis Bay.
Both Mardi and Jessica presented insightful story’s of their life and journey into the legal profession. The presentation highlighted the importance of hard work, perseverance and being organised in life.
Andrew Monk
Director of Boarding