From the Principal
This final week of Term 3 is an exceptionally busy time each year. We celebrate the final week of Year 12 schooling and there is now just their final examinations next term. At their final Chapel Service at St Peter’s, the Year 12 students were joined by a number of parents. Our Senior Campus Chaplain gave a very relevant sermon and students led prayers, gave reflections and performed musical items and the church rang with the singing of hymns by students, parents and staff. A morning tea followed in the upper quadrangle.
On Tuesday the Year 12s enjoyed their Harbour Cruise with staff members who have worked closely with them over the years as Year Advisors and Tutors, before relaxing on a sunny afternoon playing games at Balmoral.
Wednesday morning was the Final Assembly for Year 12s held before the whole Secondary School and staff in Dunnet Hall. The final addresses from the School Captains, Arts Captains and Sports Captains were excellent. The Junior Campus students formed a guard of honour as the Year 12s moved up through the Junior Campus and a second guard of honour greeted them as they re-entered the Senior Campus.
The Prize Giving and Valedictory Dinner with parents and students and many members of staff was held at Luna Park. The final speeches from our two outstanding School Captains, Josiah and Chloe were first-class. The guest speaker was Grace Crawford-Smith, who had been School Captain in 2014, the year in which the current graduands began their secondary schooling. Grace’s reflections and words of wisdom were nicely balanced with some humour. Various musical interludes graced the evening, showcasing some of the musical range and talent among the students. At the end of the Prize Giving, students joined their parents at the tables. The closure of the evening had a new highlight with the entire Class of 2019 on stage presenting the premiere of a song entitled I Won’t Forget Your Name composed by Alisha Karunagaran and Poppi Kent.
Ms Vanessa Wang’s address was very much from the heart. Her own childhood experience of her grandmother in China moved us all and the messages she drew from that were beautifully tailored as a message of hope and encouragement for the Year 12 students. She and Mrs Shorter have been held in high esteem as the Year Advisors of this Class of 2019 and many parents and students were in conversations of appreciation during the dinner and at the close of the evening. The speech of thanks on behalf of the parents was given by a very experienced attendee of Valedictory Dinners, Mrs Lisa MacDonald, for whom this was her third and last Redlands Valedictory Dinner. Lisa has been a very active supporter of Redlands in many different roles and she kindly gave permission for her address to be published and can be found here.
Our 2019 Seniors now will move into their final preparations during the coming two weeks, before the HSC begins at the start of Term 4, with the IB commencing two weeks later. Parents and staff feel confident that the Class of 2019 will be ready to put their best foot forward in their final examinations and we are all very proud of the leadership and example which they have given during their Senior year, contributing so significantly to the very positive and caring culture of Redlands.
As I said at the end of my address: “Your race, Year 12, is not quite finished. But I am quietly confident that you are not going ease up or slip before the finish-line. Your determination, your courage, your humour and your ability to encourage and support one another will see you achieve the results which you have been working towards. Travel purposefully over the coming weeks, enjoy your break at the end, and we shall look forward to celebrating your results, which will provide you with keys to unlock doors to your futures.
Thank you again for the exemplary contribution which you have made in your Senior year. The School has been a better place for your being members of it, and for taking on the responsibilities of acting as student leaders and models, at Redlands.
I, and everyone here this evening, wish you well for your immediate future and as you continue to “let your light shine” in the years ahead.”
This morning the Secondary School students were back in Dunnet Hall for the induction of our Secondary Student Leaders for 2020. A list of Office Bearers 2020 may be found here and Captains of Activities/Houses can be found here. I congratulate and wish well all those who have been selected for these leadership roles which they will perform over the coming four terms.
Student Achievements
The past week has seen great success in Music, Debating and Athletics. Firstly I congratulate Rebecca Burchett (Yr 12) who has been nominated for ENCORE, the HSC Music Showcase, for her Voice performance. Secondly I congratulate our Senior, Primary A and Primary B Debating teams which won their Grand Finals last Friday night against Roseville College, Riverview and Monte respectively, and the Yr 7 team which finished the season as runners up. The Senior Debating team was comprised of Yr 12 students Ela Kos (Captain of Debating), Mackenzie Lofts, Lindsay McNeil and Kai Lin Tan and Yr 11 students Aleisha Lawrence and Sirena Scotting, with Ela, Mackenzie and Lindsay debating on the night. Finally, congratulations to all our athletes who represented ISA at the CIS Carnival on Tuesday, winning three Gold medals. Our CIS Champions are the Senior Boys 4 x 100m Relay team (Wilf McKie, Ellis Teudt, Cameron Pascoe and Antonio Bonandi Penna Coelho) who went to Sydney Olympic Park to compete straight after the Year 12 Breakfast Cruise, Alex York (Yr 11) who won the U16 Girls Long Jump and Jonah Koppers (Yr 10) who won the U16 Boys 800m.
School-Wide Parent Survey
All parents and carers were sent a letter yesterday, confirming that Redlands will be using the Perspectives: Your school in focus suite of surveys developed by AISNSW to support our school improvement endeavours. The information gathered will assist in furthering the growth and development of our school community, and the survey results will be used to help inform and direct future school planning and improvement strategies. These surveys have been specifically designed to assist schools in gaining an understanding of stakeholders’ perceptions of five important areas: School Environment, Teaching and Learning, Student Wellbeing, Leadership and Community. All staff, students, parents/carers and leaders will be invited to participate.
The parent survey will be available for the first two weeks of next term, from Monday 14 October through to Friday 25 October and is conducted online, taking approximately 15-20 minutes to complete.
Dr Peter Lennox
Photo caption: The Class of 2019 are farewelled by our Prep School students following their Final School Assembly.