Ballarat High School Newsletter

Principal's Report

Last week’s Year 12 Induction Assembly, a tradition which sees our Senior Students officially welcomed into their final year, is always an opportunity to recognise the importance of the last stage of every student’s time at Ballarat High School.  Now, more than ever, our students are experiencing great growth and challenge and they were reminded of the hard yards they have already put in to set them up for success this year. It was also important to remind our students that support always exists for BHS students when they need it most. Tens of thousands of students have sat where they sit, have passed through our corridors, have learned in our classrooms and have represented our school with pride. To us, their journey so far is one of achievement and they now join alumni across over 100 years who were called upon to recognise that with challenges comes the need to dig in: that setbacks require the strength and perspective to bounce back and that the final year of school should be forever remembered with affection and never regret.

 

The themes of potential and seizing opportunity were present in the words of all the speakers, as was the notion that, whilst success is defined by each individual, the community that surrounds our students has an important role to play in helping their dreams become real. Looking out on the sea of faces - of students and watching families - I was struck by the idea that how we spend our time, together, matters so much. The ceremony itself was about recognising that this is Year 12s time and that what they do is not about forever, but it is important in the here and now. 

 

The writer Annie Dillard puts forward the idea that ‘how we spend our days is of course how we spend our lives. What we do with this hour and that one is what we are doing.’ In this we want our students to find meaning in all that they pursue and that they value the moment that they are living in.

 

In life, we rarely get to identify those pivotal moments where our world did a 360 and say, ‘that was when things changed forever’. The reality is that the big things that we achieve are a result of all of the small things that we commit to. Pulling an all-nighter revising for a test is rarely a recipe for anything other than an exhausted disaster but knowing what’s ahead and committing to many small steps is the thing that makes the big difference. 

 

Our role as the BHS community is to reaffirm the good that our students do; acknowledge their hard work and commitment; encourage them to bounce back from adversity; to develop an understanding of themselves and each other and to hold high expectations for themselves across the time that they are here at our school. We are a culture that celebrates all forms of success, not just for the end result, but for all of the sacrifice and perseverance that exists leading up to that moment. By focusing on each small victory or achievement we can push ourselves closer to our goals.  And if we are all pushing to be our best, then we bring out the best in each other.

 

This is perfectly exemplified in the 2025 Ballarat High School Swimming Sports which saw a bumper year of record breaking with the following students pushing the boundaries and raising the bar for those who follow:

  • Alice Smith broke the 11-13 Girls’ Breaststroke record

  • Logan Brundell broke the 11-13 50m Boys Breaststroke, Freestyle and Butterfly records

  • Claire Mathison broke the Girls 50m & 100m Freestyle records and the 50m U17 Backstroke record

  • Riley James broke the 50m U17 Breaststroke record 

 

These are generational achievements and show the grit and determination that we know all our students possess. We are incredibly proud of what they achieved in the moment but applaud the hours of practice that they have sacrificed to be the best that they can be. What they have done with all those ‘single hours’ is to fill them with meaning and invest it in the pursuit of the thing that defines excellence for them. And whilst each of those achievements relies upon an individual’s outstanding preparation and performance, we need others to test and compete against us to reach new heights. Whilst 8 records were broken on the day, how many more personal bests were achieved by pushing each other to the limit? To be our best versions of ourselves we need others to inspire and test us. 

 

The 2025 Head of the Lake is upon us and will see crews from our school compete against our neighbouring schools from the State, Faith and Independent Sectors. Even before a competitive oar hits the water on Sunday, our students have already made us proud for the hours they have invested in representing our school. As any ‘rowing parent’ knows, the hours are early and long and the training gruelling. Yet the program is not just about the events, it is about building character, resilience, mateship and leadership. In that, our students are already winners. Speaking to a parent at a recent rowing regatta, they reminded me of something that I know to be true: ‘our students have got two arms, two legs, a head and a heart like any student from any other school… they are the equal if not better of anyone else.’

 

Sunday 9th February 2025, Chloe and Charlie attended the Ex Prisoner of War Memorial for the 21st Anniversary Service.  The event recognised the 36,400 names of the Australia Ex POWs and the attendees heard the story of Murray Bannigan, a POW survivor, told through the author Mr John Lysikatos.  Students donated a book that would be given to local Primary Schools.

 

I hope all our students find the belief in themselves and each other, that is equal to our belief in them - not just this weekend, but in all that they do. Our students can achieve extraordinary things and they will always have our support in all that they pursue.

 

Stephan Fields

Principal