From the Principal

It has been an absolute pleasure to witness Girton come back to life this year as our students have returned for 2023. In my visits to the Junior School over the last fortnight, I have found the energy that students bring to school each day to be uplifting and contagious. In the Senior School, a number of teachers have noted the improved standards of uniform and personal presentation. These are healthy signs of school pride and spirit, and early indicators of a wonderful year ahead.

We hope that our parents and carers enjoyed the opportunity to come together and meet their children’s teachers and School leaders at our Junior and Senior School Welcome evenings hosted by the Friends of Junior School (FOJS), led by Clarissa Smith, and Girton Parents and Friends (GPF), led by Julia Henery. In the words of our Board Chair, Mr Dave Jemmett, these parents play an important role in supporting the school, and we are incredibly grateful for the voluntary time they contribute. We value the variety of skills and experience that come from a broad cross-section of parent members and we encourage our parents and carers to consider joining the FOJS or GPF this year.

At Girton, we value meaningful relationships between parents and teachers with the shared goal of achieving the best learning and wellbeing outcomes for our students. To this end, it is important our parents have a clear understanding of the best way to communicate with the school should you have any academic or wellbeing concerns. 

In the Junior School, your child’s class teacher is your first point of contact. If you need further support, our Deputy Head of Junior School, Mrs Viv Bath is your next point of call. If necessary, matters can then be referred to the Head of Junior School, Mr Don Thompson.

In the Senior School, the first point of contact for parents is the House Tutor, and we encourage you to reach out to the Head of House in the next instance. For issues related to particular subjects, the classroom teacher is the best person to talk to, and if you feel the matter requires more support, please reach out to the Head of Department. Any unresolved issues both academic and wellbeing will be escalated to the Head of Senior School, Ms Dawn Davis and Mr Dave Martin, our Head of Student Engagement. Our new Deputy Principal, Mr Jay Weston, and myself, are then available for advice if needed. 

All of the information you need about your child’s education in Senior School this year – including timetables, classes, due work, calendars, and news – are available on our online learning management system, Astra. For extra support with Astra, our IT team will be more than willing to assist so please contact the IT helpdesk.

While it has been a welcome relief to start the year without the emphasis on COVID-19 that has dominated previous years, teacher shortages have reached critical levels in Australia. This crisis, reported in The Age this week, ‘Teacher shortages: It’s week one and principals are already back in the classroom’, has challenged us to come up with a number of creative teaching solutions. Members of the Executive Leadership Team have taken on extra classes to fill teaching gaps, and as we have been unable to secure a VCE Legal Studies teacher for 2023, our Year 11 and 12 Legal Studies students have been enrolled in Distance Education, with the constant support of our previous Deputy Head,  Mrs Robyn MacCulloch, who will be with the students in each class. We are extremely grateful to Mrs MacCulloch for her help, and while this situation is not ideal, it is comforting to know that we have a viable option while we continue to search for a Legal Studies teacher. Thank you also to our parents and students for your cooperation while we have worked quickly to establish a framework to support those studying VCE Legal Studies this year.

At our first whole-school Assembly for 2023, I made a promise to our students on behalf of all Girton teachers and staff - we will work hard for our students this year. We will push our students to learn and we will give them our best. But in return, we will ask for their best. Their best is giving themselves and their classmates the chance to be the best version of themselves that they can be, treating others the way we would all like to be treated – with kindness and respect - and contributing to a classroom environment where every student feels connected, safe, and inspired to learn.

This is the kind of culture of excellence and school spirit that we promote at Girton. Striving for excellence is not just about academic success, it is about being motivated to commit their best at everything our students undertake, and be an excellent friend, classmate, and ambassador for this school that we are all so fortunate to attend. 

Dr Emma O'Rielly

Principal