From the Principal

We warmly welcome back our students from their holiday break. While some might find it challenging to get back into particularly those morning routines over the next week, I hope our students have especially enjoyed reconnecting with their peers and teachers.

On Monday, the College hosted the CSA Tasmania Conference. Our staff team joined with delegates from the Australian Christian College and Geneva Christian School in Latrobe to explore the theme, Who We Are Becoming. The central premise of the day is that we are all being formed by a range of influences around us. Our children, especially, are in a process of forming their worldview. This includes understanding themselves, their place in the world, their attitudes to others and what they value and what it means to be successful.

Our first speaker was Eric Ageyman, a young African Australian man. Eric recounted his experience of growing up in Melbourne where he experienced intense racism. He talked about the impact that the cruel words had on him and how they shaped his sense of his self-worth. He became an angry young person who struggled to find a place to belong and so ended up becoming associated with a local gang.

Eric talked about his path to healing that started when his father sent him back to Ghana for seven years. Eric contrasted the words that hurt him so deeply with the words of life and hope that he found in the bible while at a bible camp. He has since founded an organisation that is committed to reaching, inspiring and transforming the lives of 1 million youth by 2031.

Eric unpacked some of the influences that are shaping young people today. He talked about the voices that often reach children and young people through social media, music and online games. These are influences that foster sexism, racism, anger and violence and help shape the way young people communicate and interact with each other. It skews their understanding of what is normal or acceptable. Eric unpacked some of the consequences that such influences are having on the wellbeing of young people, with study after study showing a dramatic increase in mental ill-health. This is the case not just for teens but also for more and more children as well.

Eric challenged the staff of all schools to reaffirm their commitment to praying for the hearts and minds of children and young people. He encouraged us to use every opportunity to sow the words of hope found in the gospel into our students, to act as role models and to support the development of our students as mentors for those younger than them. Eric also reinforced the importance of families implementing firm boundaries when it comes to the use of technology.

Some parents have heard Eric speak at church events in Hobart. If you haven’t had the opportunity, it is worth looking up some of his addresses online.

Psalm 12:18 There is one whose rash words are like sword thrusts, but the tongue of the wise brings healing.

Jodie Bennett

Principal