From the Acting Head of Senior School

From the Acting Head of Senior School

Welcome back to Term 4. I would also like to extend a warm welcome to our new staff and families. It has been wonderful to see the learning environment and grounds filled with energy this week, looking forward with excitement for the term ahead.

As you may be aware, I will be acting as Head of Senior School for the duration of Joanna Graffen’s leave, we send our thoughts and best wishes to Jo and her family.

Term 3 finished with much celebration and recognition for our Year 12 cohort and The Battle of the Bands was a great way to see out the term. Thank you to all involved.

This week saw the commencement of the HSC examinations for some of our Year 12 cohort. IB examinations will also commence in Week 2 (starting Monday 21 October 2024).

This is a pivotal period for our students, marking the culmination of many years of their diligent efforts and unwavering dedication. We extend our best wishes to them during this time and, as always, encourage them to take advantage of the academic and wellbeing supports available. Our heartfelt thanks go to our teachers and parents for their continuous support, which is invaluable to our students during this crucial phase.

This week, we also welcomed our new Student Leadership team into their roles. Our Captains led the School assembly, and we eagerly anticipate the Leadership Team developing their plans and witnessing their fruition in shaping the culture and future direction of our School.

As always, there is much activity in our broader school life in Term 4. We look forward to hosting the Festival of Speech at the end of Week 2 (Friday 25 October 2024 – Saturday 26 October 2024).

Our Year 10 students will be embarking on their immersions to New Zealand or the Urban Challenge, while Year 11 will participate in their retreat, leadership induction, and training days to prepare for the year ahead.

Staff Updates 

For Term 4 2024 we are pleased to welcome back the following staff members who are returning from leave: 

  • Polly Meadows – Human Society and Its Environment (HSIE).
    With Polly’s return, Rau Fu leaves us, moving on to new challenges. We thank Rau for her commitment to our students and School.
  • Jane Timor – Personal Development, Health and Physical Education (PDHPE)
  • Helen Kondos – Human Society and Its Environment (HSIE)

Please join me in welcoming new staff members: 

  • Anita Modok – Visual Arts/ Photography Digital Media
  • Samantha Kelsongray – Music, will also be joining us temporarily while Conor O’Rielly is on leave. 
  • Xujie Wang – Mathematics, replacing Monica Lee whilst on leave.

– Andrew Taylor
Acting Head of Senior School