At Cecil Hills High School, we demand high expectations in everything we do. You’ve not only met these expectations – you’ve exceeded them. In years to come, you may not remember which novel you studied for English and you may forget the Maths formula that you once knew off by heart, however, you will never forget the experience that is high school.

As you know, the teachers at Cecil Hills High School work tirelessly for you. They genuinely value the connections they’ve developed and are committed to seeing you turn into tomorrow’s leaders. All of your teachers have invested their heart and soul into your grade and their reward is seeing you graduate.

Since 2008, when you were in Kindergarten, so much has changed in the thirteen years you’ve been attending school. In 2008, in Australia we had a population of 21 million, we had our first female Governor-General, the apology to the Stolen Generations was given in federal parliament, the 2020 summit took place to plan for a new vision for Australia in 2020, the iPhone was released in Australia, Google street view software was released, Channel 9 launched its first high definition channel, Novak Djokovic won the Australian Open tennis tournament and the highest grossing film of 2008 was The Dark Knight.

I’m very excited and a bit jealous considering the adventures that lie ahead of you. This is the start of a new chapter of your lives where you’ll discover yourselves, define your place in the world and forge your own path.

Cecil Hills High School is firmly built on mutual respect between staff and students and the class of 2020 has continued that tradition. I’m proud of the fact that you’re all individuals with strong personalities, a good sense of humour and confident leaders. As Dr Seuss said “kid, you’ll move mountains” and more important than your academic achievement is the fact that you are all good people, something to be proud of, I know you will conquer your individual mountain, whatever that is for you.

I’m the most fortunate principal in NSW, where I’m given the honour of leading a school with dedicated, energetic, committed and diligent students, not to mention our amazingly skilled and brilliant HSC teachers who’ve set you up for a rich and rewarding life. Year 12, you’ve made a positive impact on our school and you leave with our best wishes. I’ll have fond memories of you and we’ll enjoy watching your next chapter unfold. Dr Seuss said, “Out there things can happen, and frequently do, to people as brainy and footsy as you. When things start to happen, don't worry, don't stew. Just go right along, you'll start happening too!”

On behalf of our wonderful school community, best wishes for the future and congratulations on achieving this important milestone.

Mark Sutton, Principal

The end of an era