Principal's Report

“What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us.”  Ralph Waldo Emerson

Last week, Dr Alasdair Sutherland MBChB, MD(Hons), FRCSEd (Tr&Orth), FRACS (Orth), FAOrthA was unanimously elected Chairman of The Hamilton and Alexandra College Board at its Annual General Meeting.  He becomes the seventh Chairman of the Board since the schools amalgamated in 1963.  Alasdair joined the Board in 2015. He graduated in Medicine from University of Aberdeen in 1990 and qualified as an orthopaedic surgeon in 2003, after training in Scotland and Melbourne. He has worked in Warrnambool and Hamilton since 2010, and holds posts with South West Healthcare and Deakin University. Alasdair and Alison have two boys at College – James (Year 11) and Euan (Year 9).

Mrs Bianca Scaife B.Arch (Hons) has been elected Deputy Chair.  Bianca joined the Board in 2016. She is a Director of Cooper Scaife Architects, which was established in Hamilton in 2003, together with her husband Daniel Cooper. Bianca worked in a number of reputable architectural practices both in Australia and overseas prior to moving back to Hamilton in 2009. She is a member of Hamilton Regional Business Association and is a keen member of the Hamilton Symphony Orchestra and Hamilton Strings as a violinist. Bianca is an Old Collegian (1991) and her son Milo (Year 9) also attends the College.

Finally, I wish to acknowledge and sincerely thank retiring Board members, past Chair Mr John Diprose OAM and Mr Roger Brown for their enormous commitment and support over the past twenty years.  Both men have richly contributed to the growth of the school and served this College with distinction.  I particularly thank John who has so capably led as Chair since 2012 and personally been a tower of strength and wisdom for me in my first years as College Principal. We wish John and Helen, Roger and Jackie every happiness into the future.

Dr Andrew Hirst