2021 in Review
Bianca Lapins, Community Relations Officer
We had high hopes of bringing our Kilvonian community together again for School reunions and alumni events in 2021, but unfortunately due to ongoing COVID-19 restrictions, we were only able to host two gatherings early in the year.
The rescheduled 50-year Reunion for the Class of 1970 was able to go ahead in the Sport Centre with attendees taking the opportunity to connect and catch up.
The Walsh Club Lunch was also held in the Sport Centre and saw a wonderful turn out of attendees contributing to the School’s rich culture of connection, relationships and care. Sincere thanks to Rosemary Wright (Class of 1950) for sharing her lovely memories and reflections of School life.
Many of you were greatly anticipating the annual all-peer Kilvonian Konnections event with guest speaker and Kilvonian alumni, Julia Banks, which was unfortunately postponed. This event will now take place on Friday 18 March 2022 and invitations with full event details will be sent early in the new year. In the meantime, please save the date.
We are hopeful that reunions for 2022 will be able to take place and look forward to seeing as many of you as possible at our alumni networking events.
Farewell Principal Charlton
As announced in our mid-year issue of KNEWs, Principal Jon Charlton will be leaving us at the end of the year after 14 years at the helm. We thank Jon for his wonderful leadership, his passion and commitment to giving students every opportunity to shine, his love of community and his care.
He leaves us with an incredible legacy - a culture and community of respect, belonging, connection and compassion, and will be very much missed.
We wish Jon and his beautiful wife Gill, and family, all the very best as he embarks on the next exciting chapter. Thank You Jon!
Mr Rob French will commence as Kilvington’s new Principal from January 2022. Rob joins us from Camberwell Grammar School, and we look forward to welcoming Rob, and his family, to the Kilvington community.
Farewell Deb Duce
In August this year, we said farewell to our wonderful and long-serving Community Relations Officer Deb Duce. For the past eight years, Deb has been instrumental in strengthening relationships and connections amongst past students, their family members and the School.
We thank Deb for her work building such a wonderful community and wish her all the very best as she focuses on family life.
Bianca Lapins has stepped into the Community Relations Officer role and can be contacted at lapinsb@kilvington.vic.edu.au.
Alumni committee
We extend our sincere thanks to the Kilvonian Alumni Committee: Sarah McSwiney (President), Class of 1999; Ann Cleghorn, Class of 1977; Julie Scott, Class of 1982; Rebecca Zolotareva, Class of 1992; Sarah Lim, Class of 2003; Charan Naidoo, Class of 2017; Peter Yu, Class of 2017; Rachel Cetrola, Class of 2018; Mitchell Cole, Class of 2019 and Elisabeth Yeo, Class of 2019 for their time and support throughout the year.
The Committee was able to gather online throughout the year to progress several initiatives including the Alumni Performing Arts Group and Alumni Walking Group that will commence in early 2022. Stay tuned for more details.
Kilvington centenary celebrations
Plans for the School Centenary in 2023 are well underway and we are delighted to welcome Alumni Committee Member Julie Scott, Class of 1982 to the sub-committee.
The School will be compiling a timeline of the 100-year history and we encourage past students to share stories from their time at Kilvington Grammar. Please contact Bianca Lapins at lapinsb@kilvington.vic.edu.au with your tales and memories.
Welcome to the Class of 2021
The Class of 2021 has certainly faced many challenges during the last two years at School and we commend you all for the ways in which you have supported each other in the true spirit of Kilvington. We wish you every success as you start new and exciting adventures beyond the school gates and welcome you to the Kilvington Alumni.
Alumni committee member Ann Cleghorn, Class of 1977, shares some words of encouragement.
To the Class of 2021
To say your cohort has had a tumultuous two years would indeed be an understatement. But here you are having survived multiple lockdowns, remote learning and a huge change to social interaction. You have learnt first-hand the meaning of resilience, determination and perseverance to name a few. Hard lessons indeed, but lifetime learning for your futures. Well done on reaching the finish line of your secondary school education.
When you reflect on your time at Kilvington you will find many of your memories will centre on the relationships you formed. Some of these will be lifelong friendships, some people will drift in and out of your life, but you will always have these ties. You are all now part of the Kilvonian community and I encourage you to stay connected.
Wishing you all every success and happiness in the future and remember, you will always be welcome to come back and visit your old School that has been, and will continue to be, a significant part of your life journey.
Virtual tour of Kilvington
Did you know you can take a virtual tour of Kilvington? Click here to visit the School online and explore the wonderful educational facilities.
Steam Centre update
Supporting Kilvington’s commitment to providing students with the opportunity to develop STEAM skills, we have commenced the development of our three-level, state-of-the-art STEAM Centre.
Here, learning, innovation and entrepreneurship will be supported by contemporary spaces for science, robotics, systems engineering and media. There will be casual and formal learning spaces and project collaboration areas. The School Library will also be rebuilt on the ground level.
In March 2022, we will commence our Fundraising and Community Engagement Program. We hope you feel inspired to support the School during this exciting phase of growth.
In the meantime, if you would like to discuss a contribution, whether it be Naming Rights or a donation, please contact Bianca Lapins at lapinsb@kilvington.vic.edu.au.