A Note from Nelson

Dear Friends,

I recently wrote to our entire Friends’ community to provide an update about how The Friends’ School is navigating the COVID-19 pandemic challenges and offer support.  Please know that The Friends’ School Board of Governors, staff, committee members and volunteers are working hard to keep our entire community safe and thriving as we confront the challenges of this pandemic. 

We understand that many families may be struggling in a variety of ways during this crisis and we continue to hold all those affected in the light.  To ease the burden on those school families who are experiencing financial hardship as a result of the pandemic, the Board of Governors established a special purpose COVID-19 Emergency Fees Assistance Fund. Our School will provide further details on how we are supporting our community in the coming weeks.

The Friends' School understands that it plays a crucial role as part of the fabric of Hobart and Tasmania. For more than 130 years, the School has served students and families from across our island state, nation and world, assisting those students to develop into people who think clearly, act with integrity, make considered decisions, understand the needs of others and the environment, are great in service and hold a global perspective. Our students have gone on to become positive, contributing members of their communities wherever they live, whether in Hobart, Tasmania, throughout Australia or indeed anywhere in the world. We are aware of many Friends’ community members who are making significant contributions in caring for and helping those in need during the COVID-19 pandemic.  We hope to share their stories in the coming weeks. In the meantime, I would like to thank Friends’ community members for their hard work and staying true to whom they have become.

The current pandemic of the COVID 19 virus continues to test us and our community. As school leaders, we question ourselves with what is the right thing to do, day to day and nearly hour to hour.  I can assure our community that we carefully consider all factors in navigating this crisis, are sticking to our thoughtful processes and have the School’s values underpinning and at the heart of how we go about our daily lives.

The COVID-19 pandemic has upended our world and is an endurance test with no clear end point. Indeed trying to establish and understand an end point can contribute to the anxiety and uncertainty we at times feel.  We can only make considered decisions that we believe are the best for our community with the knowledge we have before us at that time.  As I read in a recent article, the best we can do is be present. To use a race metaphor, ‘run the mile you are in’. I feel the School is leading through living our values as best we can with compassion and care for our community and the wider community in which The Friends' School exists. Like William Penn's vision, we continue to seek to be "of the World and not separate from it".

Through these extraordinary times, I have admired the creativity and flexibility of our learning program at Friends’. This edition of the Rose & Waratah has a snippet of what has occurred during Term 1 and I hope you enjoy reading these stories and updates.

Best wishes,

Nelson