From the Management Team

The Endeavour Community

The definition of a community that resonates with me defines it as a group of people who share an identity-forming narrative. It is a group of people who share stories and a history that are so important that it defines aspects of who they are and builds their sense of themselves. Community conveys a sense of togetherness, positivity and pride and fosters a shared understanding of relationships and how we should treat each other.

Our Year 12 students already have 5 years of shared stories and are concluding their Endeavour history with last, and rites of passage events throughout their final year. The recent Year 12 Formal was a wonderful celebration and a powerful expression of this understanding of community.

One of the very special aspects of our Formal is that only the most intimate members of the community share in this event. Parents, siblings, and immediate family members along with staff who feel connected with the cohort are privileged to celebrate with the Year 12 students. We are all fortunate to witness the emergence of these young adults.

Throughout the night, students celebrated each other with awe and good humour, reminisced and laughed over common experiences and pondered the visual representation of how much they had changed as their earliest and most recent Endeavour photographs were displayed alongside each other. Students connected throughout the night in a series of conga lines. As they danced around the room holding onto the person in front of them, and sometimes the train of dresses, the symbolism of the connection and inclusion of everyone was evident.

One of the strengths of our community is that while these students value their position in the community, they also embrace the freedom to focus on their lives and development as individuals. They understand and appreciate their own, and each other’s strengths, talents and gifts. They are comfortable and confident to be themselves in full view of each other but also together as a cohesive community. They danced, bounced, twirled and sang in full voice all together throughout the entire night.

I trust this incredible event has enhanced and expanded the students’ array of shared stories and I am confident that this exceptional group will continue to display a strong sense of community that can only enrich our history and our culture in the best possible way.

Sharon Ward

Director of Senior Years