From the Heads of Secondary

No bird gets left behind

You will have noticed how a flock of birds carve a graceful V across the sky. One bird leads, others follow, and they take it in turns for who shall lead. Apparently flying this way is 70% more efficient than if a bird is to fly alone. This means that no bird gets left behind. Elite athletes understand this principle well. It is seen in cycling, marathon running and even in car racing. By running or cycling behind others, energy is conserved, and the team can perform at its peak for longer. These are all striking examples of teamwork. Of working together as a team to produce a better outcome. 

At Calrossy we seek to build the student’s capacity as they take on more responsibility. They are in the process of becoming engaged and courageous young men and women. And so, we seek to work together with our students, in partnership to continually mould and shape them, always striving to be better. We know that along the way, they won’t get it all right, and that is to be expected. Perhaps in those times they will need extra support to get back up again. But what we seek to do is work together as a team, in partnership to push ahead. 

We want our students to work hard, and to work hard for each other. The New Zealand Rugby team have a mantra for this ‘We need people who will work hard and work hard for their brother’[1]. Thankfully at Calrossy we regularly see this amongst our students, whether it is celebrating the success of our debating team in an assembly, or older boarders being a shoulder to cry on, or Year 12 students carrying the water for our Year 7 Rugby team. The Year 12 students could easily think that they have more important things to do with their time. But the fact is, they are in it together. Supporting one another through the good and the bad. This is a fine attribute of our students, and one that we have enjoyed over the course of 102 years. May this continue to be who we are for the next 102 years! May I encourage all our students to get involved in school-based activities, whether it be Chess, Debating, Rugby or Dance, as all these help our students to be part of a team and experience the support of those around them. No bird gets left behind.

Stephen Price

Head of Calrossy 7 - 9

[1] Kerr, J. 2013. Legacy: What the All Blacks can teach us about the business of life. Constable, London UK. p. 75.