From the Principal

Educating for tomorrow

Is the role of a school to teach or educate?  Perhaps it depends upon your understanding of what the term ‘education’ truly means.  To me, education is about improving society. We want our young people to shape the world around us and this is a goal we can achieve through education.  Regularly, I find it is what a student does outside the school gates, or when they have finished school that reflects on the effectiveness of their education.  During recent times, when we face difficulty, we can find ourselves becoming despondent about the future.  We must help our students, through education, to understand how we can not just operate but rather thrive and help others succeed in such a world.  A true education reflects the difference each person can make in society.

Mothers’ Day Morning Tea

This morning we celebrated Mothers' Day with our Early Childhood families.  It was a pleasure to see students celebrate Mothers' Day with mothers, grandparents, guardians and students.  Happy Mothers' Day to all mothers who nurture their children to create a better future for their children and for us all.

World's Greatest Shave

We are always proud of our students who go out of their way to support others.  Next week, five students will cut or shave their hair to support the Leukaemia Foundation in the World's Greatest Shave.  One of the students explains what it is all about:

On Friday 14 May, Katie Hartzell, Ella Anderson, Holly Smith, Emma Fisher and I (Ciara Franklin) will be taking part in World’s Greatest Shave to cut or shave our hair because today 47 Australians will hear the devastating words, "you have blood cancer..."  

There are few experiences in life more terrifying than the moments that follow a new diagnosis. However, for rural and regional families — the fear and worry are worsened by the need to relocate hundreds of kilometres away for life-saving treatment — with nowhere to stay.  Tonight — someone from a country town will need to urgently relocate closer to a major hospital for life-saving treatment. It is expected that in the next 12 months — nearly 1,000 families will face the same situation.  $80 ensures that they can stay at a Leukaemia Foundation patient village with their family tonight — at absolutely no cost.

Getting involved in good causes is something that means a lot to all of us. Shaving your head might seem like a massive, life-changing event, but in the grand scheme of things, it's a relatively small sacrifice - one that some people suffering from cancer don't get a say in.  I hope you will consider sponsoring us to give families facing blood cancer the emotional and practical support they need. You'll also fund vital research to help more people survive blood cancers, while improving their quality of life. - Ciara Franklin

Students will have an opportunity to support this very worthy cause on Friday with a gold coin donation, wearing an accessory (eg: socks, t-shirt, ribbon) in blue or orange, buying a sausage in a bun and watching the girls cut or shave their hair.  Please support this worthy cause. 

A more sustainable school 

One of the School’s themes in our Strategic Plan (2019-2024) is sustainability. Under the goal of Student Learning and Engagement, one of the actions is to promote environmental sustainability through educational programmes. So it was timely that Business Manager, Mr Andrew Orr and Environment Prefect, Kelvin Hands, addressed the Middle and Senior School assembly this week to inform the School of initiatives around the campus.  These included the effects of solar power, reduction of food waste, classroom paper recycling, new bins in the School, reusable water bottles and power saving tips. 

Mr Mark Sawle | Principal