Principal's Report

“Diversity is the art of thinking independently together” – Malcom Forbes

Over the holiday break Neil MacLean and I had the good fortune to visit China.  It was my first trip to this enormous continent and over ten days we visited Hong Kong, Nanjing, Gaoyou, Beijing, Shenzhen and Guangzhou.

Personal highlights included riding on the fast train from Nanjing to Beijing; meeting some of our parents in Hong Kong and Shenzhen; visiting Tiananmen Square and the visit to our sister school in Gaoyou; where first hand I saw our Year 9 students interact so positively with the local boys and girls.  Time after time I heard wonderful stories from the group about their adventure and the day visits with local families.  What an incredible opportunity for country boys and girls!  The idea that children from a regional Australian community can immerse themselves in a foreign culture for 26 days is truly a privilege.

I look forward to welcoming home Year 9 today and I am quite confident there will be many tears of happiness and joy when families reunite.  Most especially I thank Mrs Julia Winter Cooke, Mrs Davina McClure, Ms Amy Andrews and Mr Tim Statt for their outstanding leadership and support of the touring party.  Finally, I thank Dr Alasdair Sutherland, Dr Ian Sutherland and Mr Andrew Cavill for their energetic involvement throughout the trip.