Principal’s Report
Dear Fortians, Parents and Carers,
It’s hard to believe we’ve reached the end of a very busy Term 3. We have packed in a number of wonderful events and achievements, celebrating the incredible efforts of both our students and staff.
Year 11
Our Year 11 students have now officially completed their preliminary courses and exams and are about to embark on the next big step: their HSC courses, which begin next term. We wish them all the best as they move forward in their studies.
Year 8
Year 8 has been active, participating in either the Geography excursion or the medieval incursion—both of which provided engaging learning experiences outside the classroom.
Australian Story filming
Amidst the busyness of our day-to-day, we also had the privilege of hosting the filming of Murat Dizdar, the NSW Secretary of Education and a proud Fortian from the Class of 1990, along with Justice Michael Kirby, for an upcoming ABC Australian Story segment focused on public education. It was a proud moment for our school.
175th Anniversary Photo
I would like to extend my thanks to all students and staff for their patience and cooperation during the coordination of the 175th school anniversary photo on the oval. Below is a shot taken from inside the school, we will share the finalised photo once its complete.
Fort Fest
One of the biggest highlights this term, though, was undoubtedly Fort Fest. If you weren’t able to stay for the festivities, you truly missed out! Thousands of people came through, and the energy throughout the evening was nothing short of electric. From the fiercely competitive bubble soccer and air hockey in the gym to the game challenges in the hall, there was fun to be had everywhere. And let’s not forget the outstanding food! A special thank you to all of the students who performed in the IMP ensembles—you were incredible. I received countless compliments throughout the night about your talent.
SRC Camp
Looking ahead to next term, we will be inducting the newly elected SRC for 2024-2025. The SRC is currently at their two-day planning camp, where they’ll not only work on goals for the upcoming year but also elect their new President and Vice President. I’m sure we can expect great things from them in the coming months.
Junior Rugby
I would like to acknowledge the outstanding win of our Junior Rugby team. Congratulations to Kevin Pham, Luke Patterson, Adam Jebara, Conor Truong, Oliver Townsend, Aldrich Wu, Benjamin Doumit, Mohsin Fouladi, Yathavan Uthayaseelan, Regan Tiwari, Hao Chen He on winning the David Horwitz Rugby Cup.
Duke of Edinburgh Hike
Last weekend a group of 54 students completed a combined Silver and Gold hike along the South Coast Trail of the Murramarang National Park. I was lucky enough to join them on the first day of the hike myself and we enjoyed beautiful weather and spotted lots of wildlife including an echidna, dolphins and whales. Thank you to Mr Latimer, Ms Johnston, Ms Dooly and Ms Thompson for taking the students on this wonderful hike.
Year 12
Lastly, this week we all enjoyed the Year 12 Farewell FLOP assembly—it was certainly a lot of fun! The graduation ceremony later that evening, of course, struck a more serious and reflective tone as we officially farewelled our Year 12s. We wish all of our Year 12 students the best for their upcoming HSC exams.
Upcoming Events
Friday September 27 – last day of Term 3
Monday October 14 – first day of Term 4
Monday October 14 – Year 11 Consent Lab Incursion
Tuesday October 15 – HSC begins
Wednesday October 16 – Year 9 History Excursion
Thursday October 17 – HSC 2025 Student and Parent Information evening
Wednesday October 23 – Year 10 Geography Excursion
Thursday October 24 – Duke of Ed Gold Qualifying Hike
Juliette McMurray