Festival on Forbes

The Festival on Forbes is almost here! We can’t wait to see the SCEGGS community come together for a sunny day of fun, connection and entertainment!

This year’s Festival Program will be available online! All fair-goers are encouraged to use this as in the interest of sustainability, there will only be a limited amount of printed programs available on the day. The online program may be accessed via any of the QR Codes that will be displayed around the grounds, notable at the entrance and the Information Booth.

It is not too late to get involved and contribute to the community spirit that makes this event fabulous!

You can assist by:

1. Volunteering
2. Baking – If a cake box has not yet arrived home, or has somehow gone astray – there are plenty of boxes still available at Student Services or Primary Reception.
3. Preserving
4. Donating

And a Festival on Forbes isn’t complete without a Silent Auction! Click here to preview some of the amazing prizes from tranquil getaways to thrill-seeking and private dining experiences, there is something for everyone! Bidding will take place online and registration guidelines are available in the brochure.

For Festival on Forbes information from previous editions of Behind the Green Gate, click here or email sceggsfof2022@gmail.com with any questions or queries.

Don’t forget to follow us on Instagram!  And see you all on Sunday!

From Ms Allum

Student Leadership

May the gift of leadership awaken in you as a vocation, Keep you mindful of the providence that calls you to serve. – John O’Donohue

The Term 3 student leadership season is a highly anticipated one on our School calendar and often one of mixed emotions. Assemblies, Chapel Services and Year Meetings are currently dedicated to addressing some of the philosophical aspects of leadership as well as some practical elements of the roles, including the qualities required to fulfil such a service.

Later in the term, all girls and staff in the Secondary School will be invited to vote for the 2022/23 Prefects and House Leaders. First, voting for House Prefects, House Vice Captains and House Committee will take place in House Meetings on Monday 29 August. Then, voting for Head Prefect, Deputy Head Prefect, and School Prefects will take place after Assembly on Monday 5 September with all of Years 10, 11 and 12.

Students wishing to be considered as a Prefect or House Leader are required to apply by completing and submitting a written application to me and therefore only those students’ names will appear on the ballot forms. Before being elected to the position, I want every future student leader to have taken the time to reflect on the importance of the role and the extent of its influence. I want every future student leader to have considered how her personal values and School values are aligned and demonstrated. I often remind the girls how valuable it is that we are a school where young women are prepared to put themselves forward confidently. It requires courage to apply and own one’s God-given talents. In doing so we also risk failure and while there is great joy for many in the Term 3 student leadership process, it is accompanied by great disappointment for others. Not all students will receive the highly coveted badge or role. I know that many girls dream of being a student leader at SCEGGS. Lessons from women in leadership in corporate and professional life clearly teach us the importance of putting yourself forward and being confident of yourself and your abilities.

We seek not only good leaders in this process but also good followers. Good followers are discerning and judicious. When exercising their voting powers, good followers look up to and therefore elect those students who they believe lead by example. I want all girls to reflect on the qualities and skills they see exemplified. We expect that our student leaders will be: positive role models, loyal to the School, young women of integrity and honesty, enthusiastic and joyful, compassionate and caring, reliable and committed, capable and resilient.

Being elected to School Prefect and receiving the badge does not mean that you have arrived and reached an endpoint. It marks the beginning of something formal and it also marks the continuation of the display of good character that others have recognised. It reflects the quote above and reminds students that leadership is about service.

The newly elected student leaders will be announced in the Final Assembly of the term on Friday 23 September. I look forward to working with them all in Term 4 and beyond.

Jenny Allum
Head of School

From the Primary School

House Families in Term 3

While we may not have seen ten pin bowling, quoits, noughts and crosses or elastics on our television screens the last few weeks, the Primary School enjoyed a Commonwealth Games focus this week in House Families.   

Coming together during Lesson 7 on Thursday, the competition and House spirit was deafening as the Year 6 Leaders kicked off the afternoon’s proceedings with a game of Captain Ball. While this was a staple game for all teachers during their school days, this was surprisingly a new one for many girls, but learnt quickly in order for the Houses to go head-to-head! With the chants of all Houses ringing in their ears, well done to Langley who was victorious in this particular event, passing the ball backwards and forwards with accuracy and ducking down quickly, to secure the win! Special mention also goes to the Year 6 Leaders of Beck for their sportsmanship and honesty, following a close finish!

Moving off into various locations around the school, the girls split into their House Families, to enjoy an afternoon of games which included those listed above as well as giant Connect Four, dice fitness, handball and beanbag target!

With the song “England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Inside, Outside, Inside, On” stuck in my head for days after, what also kept coming to mind were flashbacks of pure joy on the girls’ faces as they played piggy in the middle, laughing and chasing each other. The Year 6 Leaders continue to impress with their ability to keep all the girls from Kindergarten to Year 5 engaged and having fun in all our House Family activities.

With requests from Stage 2 for skipping and elastics challenges, the Year 6 Leaders noted the games with beanbags were a hit with the Kindy girls. Eager to keep the competition going, it’s safe to say these outdoor games will continue to make an appearance in our “Feel-Good-Friday” lunchtimes.

We are looking forward to a range of House Family activities this term including our next event, the “Mad Hatter’s Tea Party”. Coming together on Thursday 25 August, the day of the Primary Book Week Parade, all girls are invited to join their House Family in an extended eating time. A lunch time of fun will follow including a Photo Booth, music, and games including Pin the Grin on the Cheshire Cat and a Book Character Scavenger Hunt.

Rebecca Woodcock
Acting Head of Student Wellbeing

Music Matters

Festival on Forbes Music Performances – Ensembles

It is not long to go until SCEGGS musicians will be providing musical entertainment at the Festival on Forbes (Sunday 21 August).  The ensembles that will be performing are:

• Beginners Band
• Primary Jazz Combo
• Bugles
• Secondary Jazz Combo
• Clarion Band
• Holst Wind Band
• Basie Jazz Band
• Contemporary Vocal Ensemble (CVE)
• String Power
• Stringalong
• Sinfonietta
• Chamber Strings
• Amati Strings
• Lux Strings
• Rock Bands – *Please note the revised time and venue change for Maca

Students are advised to meet their ensemble 20 minutes prior to the performances for tuning and set up.  Please refer to the schedule for the times of performances.

For a map of the School click here.

Festival on Forbes Schedule

• Primary and Secondary Strings – to use L7/L8 to tune, unpack cases etc
• Primary, Secondary Bands, CVE and Rock Band – please meet in the secondary school above the cafeteria at the Art Room overlooking the Joan Freeman courtyard

It is important that students take their instruments home before Friday 19 August – as the Diana Bowman Centre cannot be accessed on the day of the Festival.

2023 Year 7 Orientation – Woodwind Ensemble Friday 12 August

Congratulations to the members of Woodwind ensemble who performed for the incoming 2023 Year 7 students.  The girls performed pieces to entertain new students and parents in the Great Hall.  The ensemble was self-directed with students communicating the start and finish of performances. Well done girls!

Year 11 Music 1 and 2 Concert – Thursday 18 August 4pm

Students from Year 11 Music 1 and Music 2 will be presenting a series of solo performances next Thursday 18 August, 4pm in the Great Hall. It will be a wonderful afternoon of music with students from both courses presenting a variety of solo musical items.

This free concert is open to all members of the school community to attend.  We encourage students who are currently undertaking Elective Music in Years 8 to 10 to attend with their parents to see where their musical study can lead.

We look forward to seeing you there!

Change of Date – SCEGGS HSC ENCORE Concert

The date of the SCEGGS HSC ENCORE Concert has been changed to Thursday 25 August, 6pm in the Great Hall.  We look forward to sharing the Year 12 Class of 2022’s music performances with the school community in this free concert. 

All Elective Music students are also encouraged to attend this performance with their parents to experience and support the work of the senior Music students.

Primary Piano Concert – Thursday 1 September Great Hall

Invitation opened to ALL Primary pianists to sign up to perform in the upcoming Primary Piano Concert. 

The concert will take place Week 7 – 1 September 3.30pm – 4.30pm.

Parents and friends are welcome to attend.

To enrol your daughter in the concert please complete this form by Friday 26 August (Week 6)

We look forward to seeing you there!

ASBOF Competition Tickets on Sale – Band and String Ensembles

Tickets for the ASBOF Competition are now on sale.  The tickets for this event (25% discount when purchasing online) can be accessed via the ASBOF website.

The ASBOF Web App is also accessible via the website and gives parents access to the full Festival Draw.

Please see below for the information and ensembles that are involved in this year’s competition:

Sunday 28 August – Sydney Conservatorium of Music

• Sinfonietta – arrival time of 8.30am
• Stringalong – arrival time of 9.35am
• Bugles – arrival time of 11am

Sunday 11 September – Sydney Conservatorium of Music

• Amati – arrival time of 10am
• Holst Wind Band – arrival time of 1pm

Term 3 Calendar of Music Events

Pauline Chow
Head of Music

Visual Arts

Year 12 HSC Visual Arts Exhibition

The Art Department warmly invite you to the Opening of the Year 12 HSC Visual Arts Exhibition, next Wednesday 24 August from 5pm to 6.30pm. Refreshments will be served and Official Speeches will commence at 5.30pm with Ms Allum.

 The exhibition will be open for viewing on:

• Wednesday 24 August: 8.30am to 3.30pm
• Thursday 25 August: 8.30am to 3.30pm
• Friday 26 August: 8.30am to 1pm

Congratulations to the Class of 2022! We look forward to celebrating this remarkable show with students, families, Staff and friends of SCEGGS next week.

Applications for The Ashley Marie Marcos Award are now open for 2022. This award is open to all Year 11 Visual Arts students.

Ashley Marie Marcos (Class of 2004) is an Old Girl who generously supports a Year 11 Visual Arts student in applying for a short course to explore, develop, or learn skills and techniques to assist with the development of their Year 12 artwork. This is usually undertaken during the holiday period between Years 11 and 12 so students can apply what they have learned in Year 12.

The value of this award is $500.00. This can be used to fund all or part of a course. Students need to nominate which specific course they will be attending in their application and how this will help develop and extend skills in relation to making the Body of Work in Year 12. The criteria and application form has been emailed to students.

We encourage ALL Year 11 Art students to apply! 😊

Applications close: Monday 5 September

Past recipients say:

Receiving the Ashley Marie Marco Award opened up the opportunity for me to work under the wonderful guidance of Jane Gillings while starting the sculptural element of my Body of Work. At the beginning of Year 12, I met with Ms Jackson and Ashley-Marie. We discussed my ideas, inspirations, and how art became an important part of my life. After that conversation, I felt that I had so much more clarity in my work, and it has been fantastic to have her support throughout the year.
Scarlett Gibson-Williams Year 12

Last summer holidays, with the Ashley Marie Marcos Award, I spent a wonderful week at NAS doing a course of my choice, ‘For the love of trees’. Focusing on nature, I had the opportunity to experiment with various media (like charcoal, soft pastels, ink, watercolour, and acrylic paint) and developed my ink mark making style that I used in my BOW. Before this course, I was unsure in the direction that I wanted to go in for my BOW and stylistic qualities that I wanted to employ, but with this intensive week for artmaking and being exposed to many other great artworks, it helped me formulate my ideas for my BOW. A big thank you to Ashley for giving me this experience as I learnt and gained confidence in my artmaking.
Dominique Liew (Class of 2021)

Woollahra Youth Photographic Prize 2022

We have a group of 12 students who have entered the Award as a school group submission this year! We congratulate all entrants on these beautiful works, some from Darkroom students and others from Art students who have submitted personal investigations of the world around them shooting in digital format. We love the breadth of practice evident here and wish all students the best of luck.

The exhibition will take place at Woollahra Gallery at Redleaf from 14 September to 2 October 2022.

Heidi Jackson
Head of Visual Arts

Secondary Sport News

City to Surf

Congratulations to all the SCEGGS students who participated in the City 2 Surf on Sunday. A SCEGGS team was organised by the Prefects and featured students and staff from across both the Primary and Secondary School. We are proud of the money raised towards charities such as Beyond Blue and look forward to growing the SCEGGS team in future years. See also the Primary Sports news article.

Equestrian

Congratulations to Georgina Sharp who competed at the Arndell Interschools Competition on the weekend. Georgina won riding class and the handler class for Year 2. She was also Champion Sporting Rider for K-2.  We look forward to Georgina representing SCEGGS for many years to come and watching her development.

Rhythmic Gymnastics

Congratulations to Madison Liew, Ilana Patkar, Hannah James and Sienna Morris for their performances at the Australian Rhythmic Gymnastics and Yotala 4-8 Friendly Competition held on Sunday 7 August at Rooty Hill.

The coaching team is very pleased with all of the gymnasts’ achievements – Good luck for the next competition this season!

Athletics

Good luck to the SCEGGS Athletics Team who will be competing at the IGSA Athletics Championships at Homebush on Thursday and Friday this week. On Thursday afternoon the 800m and Hurdles Heats will be conducted with the main carnival taking place on Friday.

Snowsports

Good luck to the 17 members of the Snowsports Team who have qualified and will be competing at the NSW Interschools Championships at Perisher next week. The Cross-Country Skiing Championships will also be held on the Cross Country Trails on Wednesday. We wish every well as they travel to the ski fields and prepare for their events.

IGSA Fixtures, Results and Wet Weather

There is a new IGSA website and platform for accessing wet weather, fixtures and team results. You do not need to register or sign up to be a member to access this site.

SCEGGS Training sessions before and after school plus Saturday Sport

Please check the @SCEGGSSport Twitter feed for the latest updates relating to cancellations.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact myself on 9052 2721 or 0418 491 521. Alternatively, if you have any news or photos that we can highlight in the newsletters please email alisongowan@sceggs.nsw.edu.au

Alison Gowan
Director of Sport

Primary Sport News

City to Surf

The City2Surf returned in style on Sunday 14 August, with 60,000 participants running, walking, and dancing their way through the City to Bondi Beach.

Those taking part enjoyed the party atmosphere and celebrated every step as they were finally able to reunite with thousands of others for the 50th running of the City2Surf after two years of virtual races.

With racers of all ages getting together to run the 14-kilometre course, it was a pleasure to gather a group of enthusiastic girls from Years 5-12 who ran for SCEGGS on the day. Congratulations to Annabelle Jessup, Anna Slack, Heidi Lyndon and Charlotte Thomson in Year 5 and 6 who proudly ran in their SCEGGS sports uniforms on the day. With several other students from the Primary School also getting involved and running with their parents, it was fantastic to see such a great turnout of amazing young girls willing to put their hands up for new challenges! Well done to our amazing PE staff in Ms Tucker, Ms Styles, Ms Smith and Mrs Thompson who also ran on the day.

A further congratulations goes to Annabelle Jessup and Anna Slack who completed the run in just over 68 minutes, finishing 3rd and 4th respectively in their age groups. As I can personally attest to, after following close behind the two for the entirety of the race, the girls certainly can keep a cracking pace.

We look forward to having more familiar faces and SCEGGS uniforms out there at next year’s City2Surf!

IPSHA Athletics

In concluding the Primary Athletics Carnival back in week 3 we have been busy finalising our IPSHA Athletics Team for 2022.

Teams will be posted outside of the MPR on Friday Morning with emails also sent to families of those girls selected for the day.

Please note, that the dates listed in the diary for the IPSHA carnival have been labelled incorrectly. The correct date for the carnival is Monday 29 August 8am to 2:30pm at SOPAC.

Saturday Sport

It has been wonderful to have spectators allowed back on the sidelines of school sport once again. I have really enjoyed meeting and chatting with many parents at sporting fixtures throughout the year.

Since the return to sport after Covid lockdowns, there has been a significant decrease in the amount of coaches, referees/umpires, and officials available. All schools are struggling to supply officials and many matches, do not have any referees.

Some schools are using teenage school students to cover officiating duties. If you have any issues or concerns at sporting fixtures, could I request that parents contact me via email or phone, rather than approaching coaches, referees or opposing school staff.

I have included a couple of short articles from the Play By The Rules website that offer some tips for parents and shed light on some of the complex issues faced on the sidelines at sports. I encourage everyone to have a read:

• Tips for parents
• Sideline behaviour

SCEGGS Training sessions after school plus Saturday Sport

Please check the @SCEGGSSport Twitter feed for the latest updates relating to cancellations.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact myself on 0435 138 037. Alternatively, if you have any news or photos that we can highlight in the newsletters please email TomMitton@sceggs.nsw.edu.au

Tom Mitton
PDHPE and Sport Coordinator: Primary

From The Dorothy Wilkinson Library

Celebrate Book Week in the Secondary Library in Week 6

Help the Secondary Library celebrate Book Week! This year’s theme is Dreaming with Eyes Open.

A whole week of fun activities will run at lunchtime in the Secondary Library. Activities include our popular ‘Gone Fishing’ activity, a guessing competition and several games organised by The Library Fan Club.

As always prizes will be awarded for participation and the student who enters the most competitions will receive a $20 voucher from Detour, Messina or iTunes.

When: Week 6, every day at lunchtime
Where: The Secondary Library

The Secondary Library

SPAN Event – Ethics in the Media

Book your tickets today for our next SPAN Event – Ethics in the Media. If you are currently working or aspiring to work in fields such as journalism, publishing, media, marketing, communications, advertising, corporate affairs or public relations, this event is for you!

Join our outstanding panel including Network 10’s Hugh Riminton, Old Girls and journalists Celina Edmonds (1988), Anne Davies (1977) and Sally Bowrey (1999), will discuss relevant media topics such as ethics, the role of traditional versus new and emerging media, how journalism is impacted by digital media and much more!

We look forward to seeing you there!

Public Speaking

The local round of the Legacy Junior Speaking Award was held on Zoom Thursday 11 August with 2 girls representing SCEGGS, Celia Watson (Year 9) and Astrid Hooper (Year 10). Both girls delivered engaging speeches Celia on What is my Legacy referencing the musical Hamilton with Astrid reflecting on Disney’s Heroes as Villains.

The girls were challenged by the impromptu topic The ripple affect with Celia gaining a place in the Regional Final next Tuesday. Good luck Celia.

Sandra Carter
Co-ordinator of Public Speaking

Debating

Congratulations to the 7B, 8B, Junior, and Year 9 teams for making it straight through to the Archdale Quarter Finals! The Quarter Final draw will be released shortly, and debaters will be emailed the location of their debate when it comes through. All the Quarter Final debates will take place on 23 August.

Congratulations also to Helena Piazza and Janet Zheng who have been selected as members of the IGSA Debating Representative Teams. The three IGSA teams will debate against the GPS, CAS, and CHS representative teams over the coming weeks in what is always a high-quality and rewarding competition.

Imogen Harper
Debating Coordinator

Go Greener

Champion of the Environment

It was sad to see the passing of Olivia Newton-John last week. Not only was she a wonderful performer and an advocate for breast cancer research and treatment, but she was also a dedicated crusader for the environment.

Olivia Newton-John with her friend, Jon Dee from Planet Ark, co-founded National Tree Day in 1996. This is now celebrated each year on the first Sunday in August. Schools Tree Day is honoured on the last Friday of July.

According to the Planet Ark website 10 million tress have been planted so far and this has exceeded their original expectations.

The program concentrates on the planting of trees native to their local area.

Newton-John and Dee were also instrumental is setting up and rolling out the One Tree per Child organisation in 2017 to Australia and the world. A Hawthorne tree was the first tree planted in London’s Hyde Park. The idea behind this program was for children to get their hands dirty and to empower children into realising they can make a difference to the environment. Waverley Council are backing this program by providing support and trees for children to plant.

As an environmental campaigner, Newton-John visited Tasmania twice during the forest wars in the Styx Valley. She fought to preserve old growth forests from wood chipping.  She advocated for companies to do things differently and was always concerned that workers would not lose their jobs. Newton-John also successfully spearheaded a campaign in Tasmania to ban the use of 1080 poison which was killing native animals in tree seedling plantations.

If you would like to hear more about her environmental work, there is a short clip of Jon Dee talking to Lucy Breadon, the Drive time radio announcer in Hobart.

Sue Zipfinger
Sustainability Coordinator

Inaugural Environmental Careers Afternoon

Don’t forget to book your complimentary tickets for our first ever environmental careers afternoon! A fantastic panel of members from the SCEGGS community will offer guests an opportunity to talk about how their jobs are making a positive impact on the environment. 

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me. I look forward to seeing you on Monday 22 August at 4pm.

Sue Zipfinger
Sustainability Coordinator

Careers News

Another jam-packed issue of the Careers Corner newsletter is now available! There are also a number of other opportunities available including:

UTS Young Women for Engineering and IT – (WiEIT) Scholarship application workshops – 2023 intake

1 September 2022. 4:00 pm – 5:00 pm

Women in Engineering and IT scholarships applications are now open for the 2023 intake. 

The purpose of this workshop is a scholarship briefing session for incoming students, to ask any questions they may have, or if they would like some advice for writing your scholarship application. Click here to find out more.

Work Experience at the Sydney Opera House

The Open program Work Experience takes place twice a year and is open to secondary school students who are ideally studying in Year 10.

The program lasts a week and gives participants a hands-on experience of how the Opera House operates during the program hours of 9.30am – 3.30pm, Monday to Friday. Participants will meet and work alongside a diverse range of Opera House employees from Ticketing Sales Representatives to Stage Managers to Building Operations Supervisors. We are one of the world’s busiest performing arts venues and the experiences we offer will vary between programs depending on our programming commitments.

To be eligible for our work experience program applicants must be:

• An Australian citizen or permanent resident
• Currently studying in secondary school (ideally in Year 10)
• Covered with appropriate insurance by the applicant’s school for the duration of the work experience (successful applicants will be asked to provide paperwork to verify this).

Sydney Opera House welcome applications from students who are Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander, from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds, and students with disabilities.

The program will run from 14 November to 18 November 2022.

Applications close 14 October.