Co-curricular Corner

Brisbane Individual Age Chess Championships 

Written by Sean McInerney 

Recently, Mount Alvernia sent three students on a chess excursion to the Brisbane Individual Age Chess Championships. But let me first tell you how the chess excursion came to be…

One: Ms Hatchman was looking for really fun and cool activities for students to engage with and thought of chess. 

Two: She was able to find a charismatic and enthusiastic leader to run this (Mr McInerney). 

Three: We found some students willing to get involved and give something new and exciting a go. We had Ruby Z from Year 9, Olive P from Year 7 and Addy C from Year 8. 

Four: We were able to gain support from a generous and fearless sponsor (Ms Little). 

Five: Mr McInerney had to learn how to drive the school van. 

Six: We drove that van to the Brisbane Individual Age Championships. 

Seven: We had a bunch of fun.

Ruby, Addy and Olive represented Mt Alvernia extremely well. There were over 500 students at the tournament, ranging from Prep to Year 12. Our girls battled fiercely, celebrated each other’s successes, were seen giving out lollies to their competitors, and were delightful in every way. If you enjoy playing chess, at school or in tournaments, or just want to give something new a go – come along to the iCentre at Monday Break 1. You might just get invited to the next chess excursion.

Model United Nations: Workshops 2 & 3

Written by Claire Hatchman 

Following from our first Model United Nations Workshop, 30 of our incredibly capable and diplomatic students came together in their first official MUN! The resolution they were solving was on the topic of Artificial Intelligence and they represented 15 different countries from around the world to discuss, amend and debate on the resolution. 

It can not be overemphasised how impressive these students were in this task. For their very first MUN, they spoke with competence and confidence, articulating their ideas based on their country’s histories, status and diplomatic ties. They passed notes, got signatures and Russia and China even made some veto decisions! 

We can’t wait to see what this group produces in the future! Thank you to Ms Sims, Ms Arenas, Ms Day and Ms Dall for their support for this group going forward.