From the Principal

Learning from others

At last week’s secondary assembly, the Class of 2019 Dux, Rory Hewson, addressed the College. It is always fascinating to learn from others and how they have achieved success at school. Rory’s message of consistent hard work certainly resonated with our students.

Recently I listened to an interview with the Australian entertainer, Tom Burlinson. He was asked about his current show which involves performing the songs of the great Frank Sinatra. In the interview, Burlinson mentioned that he first studied Sinatra whilst at NIDA in the 1970s. Nearly four decades later, he is still perfecting the voice and the breathing patterns.

Many adult Australians will also recall his role as the lead actor in the 1982 film, the Man from Snowy River. That movie included the famous Hollywood star, Kirk Douglas, who passed away earlier this month at the age of 103. Burlinson recalled Douglas as having high expectations of others and even higher expectations of himself.

Successful people often look to others for inspiration. Whether it is Tom Burlinson being inspired by Sinatra and Douglas or even rising cricket star Marnus Labuschagne copying the mannerisms of Steve Smith, we can all learn by watching quality performers in action.

This week we recognised our high achievers' with a breakfast before school. It is a lovely tradition and is also an opportunity for a former student to relate some of their own experiences both at school and beyond. We were encouraged by the example of Emily Hackett (Class 2013). Emily told of her academic studies in Physics and Medicine and her equally impressive contributions to the wider community. Earlier in the week, Mrs Negus and I also had the pleasure of attending Government House as Eloise Budlimich was presented with the Drama Exhibition for the top student in the State in 2019. Eloise’s story of combining her love and passion for Music and Drama with her academic program was also very impressive.

For stories of inspiration we can look to the wider community. Equally, there is much we can learn from our own community.

Robert Henderson

Principal