Light Her Path

Scholarships Expand All Horizons

We are all cognisant of the value of an education, both in instilling knowledge and values, but also in providing the freedom to choose one’s path. Education, as WB Yeats commented, lights a fire and that fire can change lives, societies and civilisations. This recognition underscores the value of scholarships. A scholarship can be a key to a different life for recipients and happily SCEGGS currently has the ability to award 53 scholarships to girls, recognising a range of different talents and individuals whose contribution enriches the school.

The very first SCEGGS scholarship was funded by Old Girls in 1914 not long after the founding of the school in 1895. The first recipient of this scholarship was Violet Norwood who attended SCEGGS from 1921 to 1926. Since that time the generosity of the SCEGGS community has expanded the scholarship program offering full and partial tuition for candidates in the following areas:

Academic scholarships
Science/mathematics scholarships
Music scholarships
Old Girls Union scholarships
Indigenous scholarships
Boarding scholarships
All-rounders scholarships
Equity scholarships

Many of these scholarships honour members of the SCEGGS community and keep alive the memory of their character and achievements. The Joan Freeman science and mathematics scholarships honour the renowned nuclear physicist who completed her PhD at the University of Cambridge in research into short-range alpha particles. Joan Freeman was the first woman to receive the British Institute of Physics’ prestigious Rutherford Medal despite neither physics nor chemistry being offered in the Leaving Certificate for girls at SCEGGS in the 1930s. Joan attended night school at Sydney Technical College to achieve the pre-requisites required to gain entry into science at the University of Sydney where there were so few women it was stipulated that a seat had to be left vacant between men and women in science lectures.

Joan Freeman at the Harwell Science and Innovation Campus, Oxfordshire, UK

In her latter years at SCEGGS, Joan received financial assistance to remain at SCEGGS and these science scholarships remind us of the determination and tenacity that underpinned Joan Freeman’s ground-breaking career and of the value of being able to offer scholarships.

Further expansion of the scholarship fund has enabled SCEGGS to offer scholarships to members of Australia’s Indigenous community. Indigenous students bring perspectives and stories into the SCEGGS community that are critical to expanding our understanding of Australia’s history and our society. SCEGGS has a longstanding commitment to social justice and reconciliation and the scholarships are an essential element of that commitment.

The Light Her Path Capital Campaign is seeking to raise $20 million:

$12 million this year to ensure we can bring the new designs for Wilkinson House, melding heritage and function, to life
a further $8 million to expand SCEGGS’ scholarship program with further means-tested scholarships

We invite every person in our community to give as generously as they can.

See the proposed plans for Wilkinson House on our website. You may also pledge to the Light Her Path Capital Campaign or call the SCEGGS Development Office on (02) 9332 1133.

The Light Her Path Committee