Alpine School For Student Leadership

School for Student Leadership Reflections 

"Hi, I am Orlando Salib and my time at the Alpine School of Student Leadership (SSL) has had its up and downs…. But I am really enjoying it here now it has been an experience of a lifetime, at first, I can admit I was nervous at the start walking into the building with nine weeks to go, not seeing parents, having to make new friends and being independent. But I can know say after six weeks of the program that I am having the time of my life and I have made some new lifelong friends, new skills that I can use in life forever and just asserting my independence. I have loved some parts of the program like expo when we had to pack a 20kg bag and set off on an expedition down Mt Hotham towards The Alpine School and while doing this expedition we camped out at Brandy Creek and spent the night there cooking and sleeping in a tent, that would definitely be a big highlight for me as I had never actually camped in a tent before. I have loved all the team activities and learning new things while doing it, there is so many things that I have learnt while being here, so many lifelong lessons that I can use in my life. On top of all the learning and a highlight of my time being up here is reflecting on my day has been so good it might seem boring, but it lets you reflect on the day that you have had and learn from those days. I am really going to miss this place when it is time to go, I have met some great friends that I think that I could be friends forever." Orlando Salib (Year 9)

"I have been here at the SSL for around six weeks now and had some super cool experiences and met some really great people. Some of the things we have done here have been expo, where we did an overnight hike from Mount Hotham back to the Alpine school campus, that was pretty challenging but also really fun and a great experience. We have been doing classes like mountain biking and identity and empathy, we have a class called spirit spot where we go outside and sit in nature for half an hour, which I really enjoy. Some other classes we do are first aid where we have done CPR and mental health first aid. Some other experiences I have had whilst being here is going to the Omeo radio station and being a DJ for three hours, I also played some guitar on the radio which is pretty cool to think about, not that many people would have been listening anyway. We also did something called 'Food for Thought' where everyone was split into groups which were different countries, then the countries would all have to do different duties which could be quite difficult, but there were four people who were the elite group, so they got to watch a movie while everyone was doing duties like washing cars and sweeping floors and stuff. Also the groups were all randomly chosen. And then after everyone had done their chores we had lunch, which was the main part. The elite got a nicely set table with a table cloth and candles etc. and a three course meal. The waiters got a normal table and sandwiches, and then everyone else in the lower class group had to sit on the floor and eat plain rice with their hands. So it was definitely interesting. I have had great expreriences here so far, it has been really great, weird at times, but I am really happy that I took this opportunity." Imogen Randles (Year 9)

"Hi I am Adelle Worboys and I have been attending the Alpine School for Student Leadership for almost five weeks now. I was really nervous to come here, I was worried about being away from home, friends, out of school activities and missing out on work for a whole term of school. When I arrived, there was a lot to take in, and for the first week I felt really home sick, but now I am already worried about going back home. I am having so much fun learning new skills, becoming more confident and making heaps of new friendships with people I would have never met otherwise.  

One of the activities that has stuck with me a lot so far has been bridge building. We had to use logs and rope to make a bridge from scratch and get across the water. We were taught how to tie knots, how to assemble a tripod, and then left to our own devices. We worked as a team to make two tripods, then walkways and tried to put them in the water. Both the tripods ended up falling over, and the rest of the bridge building plan became to throw logs into the water until it formed some sort of walkway. It worked better than I expected, and we all got across except for one person. We were the only team (out of the four) who made it.  

On top of all the teamwork activities, we have also been learning how to reflect on what we did, notice our strengths and weaknesses, and apply our new skills and old ones to other things, as well as setting goals to work on improving what we think we could do better at. My recent goals were mostly to be confident and raise my ideas to the group without hesitation. I’ve gotten a lot better, but still have a way to go.  

I have made so many really close friends here, and I am already worried about not seeing them again when we all go home. We have shared lots of great experiences and formed really strong bonds, some I do not think I will ever lose."  Adelle Worboys (Year 9)

"Hi, my names Cate Zimmer and I am currently attending the Alpine School of Leadership on the Dinner Plain Campus. I am accompanied by 41 other students and three others from Frankston High School. My highlight so far has been meeting new people from across Victoria.  Bridge building was a highlight as we had to make a bridge using logs and rope without getting our feet wet or going to the other side of the river. It was really fun and definitely challenged my memory skills since we were shown how to tie the knots once. Another highlight was when we grouped into different countries and represented world poverty. There were many groups, but the more privileged groups were the Elites, who just watched a movie and had a three-course meal, and the Australians, the one I was in, who had to organize the board games, serve the elites and we got a better meal then the rest of the groups. The rest of the groups had to sit on the floor and eat rice out of their hands. Another highlight has been our first expo where we walked more than 7ks for two days and we also camped overnight. We had to haul a 20kg backpack the whole time, which was full of our food, cooking supplies, tents, sleeping bags, sleep mat, and clothes. My favorite part of expo was definitely roasting apples with my friend, and sleeping in a tent with two of my friends. This is a really great experience so far and I cannot wait to continue it until the end of term." Cate Zimmer (Year 9)