Student Leadership

Our 2023 School Captains; Allisandra Harris, Jackson Tier, Ruby Elliott, and Sally Ngo, and Vice Captains; Andy Nguyen, Tash Petrevski and Scarlett Branigan have dived into their leadership roles this year, and brought positive energy and enthusiasm to the Student Leadership Team. 

Allisandra, Ruby and Sally accompanied Mr Keenan to a morning tea held by Ged Kearney, Federal Member for Cooper, for an information and Q&A session on the ‘Voice to Parliament’. The event was attended by student leaders from a range of schools in our area. Allisandra, Ruby and Sally represented THS with distinction. The event concluded with a reading of the ‘Uluru Statement from the Heart’, which Allisandra read to all those assembled as one of two First Nations students present. It was a very moving moment.  

Along with collaborating with all year levels to expand our Student Leadership Team, the School Captains and Vice Captains have demonstrated their dedication to developing their leadership skills, attending the Youth Leadership Conference at the Melbourne Convention Centre along with over 60 other schools from around Victoria. Below are some of their personal experiences.

Ruby Elliot

The Youth Leadership Conference was an amazing experience filled with energy, focus and plenty of engaging topics. There are so many positives I could say about it, but I think a highlight for me was getting the opportunity to bond and collaborate with the other Captains and Vice Captains. Through the 3 sessions, we got to hear from many speakers about the challenges of leadership, how to approach leadership and were asked ‘What does leadership mean to you?’. After each speaker, students were given an opportunity to ask any questions they may have had in an overwhelmingly supportive environment. I know that I personally got a lot out of the experience and I can’t wait to bring my newfound skills into the Arts Committee. 

Jackson Tier

One of the key messages I took away was that you must say no to some things in order to say yes to others. Trying to balance being a year 12 and a school captain, whilst also trying to enjoy myself outside of school, means prioritising is really important. The highlight of the day was definitely seeing Alli get up and ask her amazing question. I felt like it not only gave insight to her, but allowed all of us to form some sort of strategy to inspire a certain audience. I know I can go back to THS and ‘share my story’, as one of the speakers (Mo) said. Being able to use experiences to inspire and help someone else through their journey is really powerful. This is something that sat in the back of my mind throughout the Swimming Carnival when trying to encourage the younger year levels to participate.

Sally Ngo

The Youth Leadership Conference was the best opportunity for me and the captains to learn more about how to be a good leader. “The leader is the leaner” was the key message that I brought back to school. As a leader we need to learn from what we did and take it as an opportunity. Wil Massara shared his journey to becoming the CEO of the Youth Leadership Academy Australia. He was at his lowest point and he stood up and fought for his dream. Additionally, we had a chance to listen to guest speakers, such as Fi ( from Flourish Girl) who spoke about “little voice” and “leader voice”. Everyone in the room has a little voice inside them saying “I am not good enough”, “I can’t do it”. I realised that it is not just me who has this insecurity in myself, but everyone else, at some point, feels this way. Fi spoke about the “leader voice”, which is the “I can do it” and “I am improving” voice, and that this is the mindset that everyone should adapt to. As the leader voice is rising, the little voice is hidden or even removed. I had a valuable experience that I can bring back to the school to help all students in all year levels.

Tash Petrevski

The highlight of the day was having the opportunity to hear from the inspiring guest speakers and meet many other student leaders from over 60 schools. One of the key take away messages that resonated with me was “It's about getting hit and coming out stronger”. I think this stood out to me as being a leader is all about learning from your mistakes to improve next time. I think this is a key message that everyone can take onboard, as it is important not to give up after the first try or just keep floating, but to really use any feedback to help you rise up and become better. I am hoping to use my past experiences to improve Thornbury High School for all students. 

International Women’s Day Celebrations

Thornbury High School had a fantastic week celebrating International Women’s Day with a number of activities. At the beginning of each day, our leadership team announced  inspirational women’s quotes over the loudspeaker, promoting the women’s rights movement and bringing attention to this year's theme ‘Embrace Equity’. 

“I am a feminist and we should all be because feminism is just another word for equality”  

Malala Yousafzai

The Academic Committee and English Department organised a writing competition with the prompt “What does equity mean to you?” We had some outstanding submissions from; Nazime Zenelovski, James Williams, Zoe Davey, Ramona Ware, Victor Wang, Najiba Lamonti and Wren Tafra. The winner of the competition was Isabel Levickas with her piece “Switch to Equity”, and two runner-ups, Danae Jiogas and Alivia Care. 

The Arts Committee and SRC collaborated to run a badge-making competition, with students designing their own badges. The winner of the competition was Wren Tafra, whose design was selected to represent this year's theme. 

On Thursday the Sports Committee hosted a girls’ netball match between year levels to promote women's involvement in the sports academy. The event was highly successful, with students from all year levels participating. 

Lastly, our Student Leadership Team ran an out-of-uniform day fundraiser, encouraging students to dress up in magenta and yellow to support IWD. The event was a huge success, raising almost $900 for JUNO, an organisation that works with women and non-binary people in Melbourne’s Northern suburbs who are experiencing homelessness and family violence. 

At lunchtime, we handed out the winning badge to students and teachers and students were encouaged to write gratitude letters to the women in their life. Our fabulous school choir performed ‘Flowers’ by Miley Cyrus, celebrating female empowerment and independence to a round of applause. 

Sally Ngo 

Academic School Captain 

Our wonderful 2023 Peer Support Leaders have been busy working with the new Year 7 students. They were integral in helping the newest THS students find their way on their first day and joined them on camp. Peer Support Leaders also attended a training session, designed to develop goals to support the Year 7s to feel part of the school community. 

I look forward to seeing what our wonderful new student leadership team achieves next term. 

Bec Perkin

Student Leadership Coordinator