From
the Principal
May our Year 12s find the “playground of their dreams”!
Today we had our first group of students return to the School this term to undertake the General Achievement Test (GAT) and although there were only a small number of students and permitted staff on site it was lovely to see these signs of life emerging after this Covid-19 winter.
Next week sees the return of our Year 7s, together with the Years 11 and 12 students, with the Years 8, 9 and 10 to follow two weeks later, on Monday 26 October.
I’m sure everyone will agree that this has been a very tough time and that we all need to support our students and teachers to regather, pick up the threads and build a cohesive optimism to finish the year. Our focus will be on the way to move forward, identifying what the different needs are of each student and working with them to redress any gaps that have emerged; what steps need to be undertaken to have everyone confident and ready for the year ahead.
Dan has included the specific details about the operational requirements and safety measures we need to observe, as well as the efforts he is making to work with our teachers to ensure that feedback, assessments and regular constructive advice is a given, and visible to students and their parents.
This term is usually the time when the whole School turns its attention to the Year 12 students, as they complete their classes, prepare for and undertake their final exams, celebrate and take their leave of school. This year each stage of this rite of passage has been muted, cancelled and stripped back to stark reality, without fanfare, fun or the usual fuss the School wants to lavish on our graduates.
We salute the support they have offered each other in isolation, the tenacity they have shown and the good humour they demonstrated in fronting up to the GAT this morning.
I hope every one of these terrific young adults comes upon the playground of their dreams; that their future unfolds with all the challenge, excitement and delight of a toddler seeing swings and slides for the first time.
This week the Preshil School Council announced my retirement, to take effect from the end of the year. Until then there is still a very busy time ahead in welcoming the students back and planning for the year to come.
I have included below a copy of the letter I sent to students and their parents earlier this week:
Dear Preshil Students and Parents
I want to let you know that a letter from School Council will be sent out to the Preshil community later today announcing my retirement as Principal at the end of this year. I have been at Preshil for over ten years and now it is time for a new chapter - both for me and the School.
Having made this decision at the start of the year, before we were all buried under the weight of the Covid-19 pandemic, I expected to be able to make this announcement after it was all over. Sadly it is still not over.
As it turns out, we cannot wait any longer as plans for next year are already in place - which brings me to the excellent news that Natalie Jensen, our Assistant Principal, who has been on leave this year, will return and take up the role as interim Principal for 2021. Nat will be back at Preshil towards the end of the year to work with me and your teachers in finalising plans for next year. She is delighted to be returning and I know you will welcome and support her as she takes on this responsibility.
It is disappointing for me not to have been able to get to the other side of this wretched pandemic and have everyone safely back at school before I made this announcement - but it is a pretty minor disappointment considering all that has been lost, missed out on and all that has had to be endured by you, the students. I can only imagine how tough isolation has been for some of you and what courage, patience and optimism has been required of you as we look forward to better time ahead.
I am a grandmother - Granny Smith, in fact – and I am looking forward to being able to make up for all the time I have not been able to spend with my little granddaughter this year. I hope every one of you has many things you are looking forward to next year and that, when the time comes, you will leave Preshil with as much pride and gratitude as I feel for having had the privilege of being a part of our wonderful, unique School.
Hopefully we will have some opportunities for fun and celebration before the end of the year and that you will be back on campus with your friends and teachers very soon.
I so look forward to catching up and being together between now and the end of the year.
Warm regards
Marilyn
Marilyn Smith
Principal