T H E F O R T N I G H T LY N E W S L E T T E R F R O M G A L S T O N H I G H S C H O O L 2 0 1 9 T E R M 3 W E E K 1 0

Congratulations and Farewell Year 12 2019

Year 12 Graduation Highlights...

Year 12 Farewell Assembly...

Year 12 Formal Highlights...

Principal’s Graduation Speech

Good Evening Ladies and Gentlemen,

I acknowledge the people who are the Traditional Custodians of this land on which we hold this ceremony tonight and pay my respect to elders both past and present and extend that respect to other Aboriginals here today.

I’d like to start this evening by extending a warm welcome to the parents, carers and families of the 2019 graduating class. This is as much a celebration for you as it is for Year 12. You have been there for them as they have grappled with assessment tasks and submitted work, not to mention providing advice, support and guidance, as well as thousands upon thousands of healthy meals and warm hugs over the years.

Year 12, you should know that your families are very proud of you today. They have high hopes for you and they believe in you. Today they are full of pride of you. Today is a great day to hug them and thank them for supporting you, because as much as this is your achievement, this is also the achievement of the people who care about you.

Year 12, please stand and turn and show your heartfelt appreciation to your parents, carers and families who have been there for you, and will always be there for you, no matter what happens.

Now, most importantly, I would like to welcome our graduating class of 2019. A very special group of young men and women who have stood out in many ways this year. A group who look for the positive in every experience and typically care about each other no matter how different they may be from each other.Over the past week, staff and students have had the opportunity to wish Year 12 the very best in their upcoming HSC examinations and congratulate them on their commitment and dedication to their studies which has enabled them to reach this point. Tonight is one of those great

occasions when we have the opportunity to celebrate our young people, their achievements, their perseverance and their successes, as they move onto the next stage of their lives.

Year 12, looking back, we reflect fondly on the individual and group efforts that you have made. You are a remarkably talented group of young men and women and over the years we have seen you in a diverse range of activities including school musicals, EdFest, performing at assemblies and participating in sporting events with great success. We have also seen great leadership and nurturing of younger students with Peer Support, mentoring, house leaders, SRC, student Librarians, prefects and sport coaching. You have left a great legacy here at Galston High.

As the Class of 2019 you only have a few short hours of ‘school’ left. Your passage through Galston High is about to end but your smiling faces, sense of humour and bright personalities will endure. It seems impossible to think that just six short years ago you entered Galston High School for the very first time. Right from the outset your teachers set you the task of being your best self at all times and making every moment, both in and out of the classroom, count. Some of you have found that academic learning comes easy, some of you have faced challenges to achieve to your potential and a few others have been supported, or perhaps even pushed and pulled over the line. But you have made it to this point, and we are proud of you and the risks you have taken to improve your skills, challenge your learning and step outside your comfort zone.

Year 12, you have been well supported and nurtured by your teachers and I would like to acknowledge their dedication and passion for you and your education and how they strive to give you the very best learning experiences, always.

To your Year Adviser, Mr Wells, your Assistant Year Adviser, Ms Price and your Deputy Principal, Ms Petrulis, I thank each of them for their untiring work over the last six years as they have encouraged you and fostered your development whilst helping you to build the resilience required to sail through the rest of your lives. They have taught you that challenges are what make life interesting, and overcoming them is what makes life meaningful.

Year 12, you entered Galston High School to Learn. Our very best wishes go with you as you make your final preparations for the HSC and then as you take on life beyond the walls of Galston High. With considerable guidance from both home and school, you have reached this milestone with credit and integrity, well equipped for the world you now enter. If nothing else I hope you have learnt to live your lives always demonstrating our school’s core values of Respect, Responsibility and Personal Best and now that Galston is no longer providing that touchstone, that you do not lose sight of these important values.

Finally, I’ll finish with some words of wisdom from Mark Twain:

“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do.

So, throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbour.

Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream.

Discover.”

Congratulations and Farewell Year 12. Take pride in how far you have come. Have confidence in how far you can go. But don’t forget to enjoy the journey.

Upcoming Events

Term 4 - Week 1

Monday 14 OctoberStudents and Staff Return to School

Tuesday 15 OctoberP&C Meeting 7.30pm Waddell Learning Centre2020 House Leader Induction Ceremony

Wednesday 16 OctoberYear 12 Assessment and HSC Parent Information Night

Thursday 17 OctoberHUB Class 3 Community Access12.00 - 3.00pm - SmallHUB Class 1&2 Community Access - Gilmour/LindleyMYLF Camp - selected students from 5.00pm

Friday 18 OctoberMYLF Camp - selected students

Saturday 19 OctoberSilver Duke of EdSRC Fund Raising - IGA GalstonMYLF Camp - selected StudentsYear 9&10 Farm Club Excursion - Young Judges Workshop

Sunday 20 October Silver Duke of Ed

Week 2

Monday 21 October15yr Boys Sydney North Water PoloYears 7-8 Sydney North Gala DayHUB Class 3 Community Access - MarshSilver Duke of Ed

Tuesday 22 October15yr Girls Sydney North Water PoloSilver Duke of Ed

Thursday 24 OctoberHUB Class 3 Community Access - Small

Friday 25 OctoberYear 7 Yearly Exams

Saturday 26 OctoberMMB Rehearsal - Andrus

Sunday 27 OctoberMMB Rehearsal - Andrus

Still to come

Monday 28 OctoberYear 7 Yearly Exams

Tuesday 29 OctoberYear 8 Yearly Exams

Wednesday 30 OctoberYear 8 Yearly Exams pds 1-2Year 9 Yearly Exams pds 3-4

Thursday 31 OctoberHUB Class 3 Community Access 12.00-3.00pm - SmallYear 8 Yearly Exams pd 1Year 9 Yearly Exams pds 2-3HUB Class 1&2 Community Access - Gilmour/Lindley

Friday 1 NovemberYear 9 Yearly Exams pds 1-4Years 7 & 8 boys and girls National Schools Touch Football

The new Navy elastic waist School Shorts have arrived and are now available from the

Uniform Shop for $35.00

The Uniform Shop is open:

Tuesdays 8.00 - 2.00pmThursdays 8.00 - 11.00am

Ph: 9651 1118

Olympic Change-maker Forum - Be The Change

“It’s never too late to try”

Chloe Anjoul and myself were selected to attend the 2019 Australian Olympic Change-Maker Program on Tuesday 10th September. This event was hosted by the Australian Olympic Committee and held at Sydney University. Upon arrival, we registered and collected our lanyards (which we later had signed by the Olympians) and quickly made new friends by getting to know the other award recipients and discovering what sports and roles they played in their community. Many had travelled hours to attend the forum, from Ulladulla in the South, Dubbo in the west and Tweed Heads in the North. It is amazing how our love for sport, something we all have in common, can bring so many diverse people together. The day was kicked off with a morning tea followed by ‘bingo’. This bingo required you to find different people who fitted the question. E.g. ‘loves Hawaiian pizza’, “Born in the same month”. It was essentially like speed dating, running around the room trying to fill out the card as quickly as possible.

After we had our ‘morning exercise’, we sat down and listened to the inspirational and funny stories told by the past and current Olympic athletes that were there.

Brooke Hanson: Australian 100m breaststroke- 2004 Athens Olympics

Katherine Bates: Australian track and road cyclist- 2004 Athens Olympics, 2008 Beijing Olympics.

Hayden Smith: Australian bobsledder- 2018 PyeongChang winter Olympics

Anneliese Rubie: Australian 400m sprinter- 2016 Rio Olympics

Josh Katz: Australian Judo- 2016 Rio Olympics

From their stories we learned many life lessons and helpful tips that we can apply to our everyday lives, both within school and the community. We then listened to another guest speaker

from the AIS (Australian Institute of Sport) who works with elite athletes behind the scenes. His wisdom and view towards sport and the community that supports the athletes was quite engaging and left most of the students asking questions about how to get into his profession.

After lunch we then tried our skills at a fun game of tennis, but were rudely interrupted by the wind blowing over the nets. Coming back inside we listened to Steve Hooker’s stories about his incredible pole vaulting career. At one stage in his career, he won a competition with practically one leg because his muscle on the other leg was torn. This really gave everyone an insight into just how powerful persistence and passion can be.

The athletes were amazing to talk to, we had an incredible day and took many important memories away from this experience, one at the forefront being

“it’s never too late to start”

Victoria Cullen

11th - 13th OCT 2019

60,000+

NOW

over big

days!

CASTLE HILL’SGIANT BOOK FAIR

3

Fri, Sat & Sun9am - 5pm

OAKHILL COLLEGEOLD NORTHERN RDCASTLE HILL

WADDELL CAFE

GALSTON HIGH SCHOOL

INTRODUCING

THE

ULTIMATE PLACE TO RELAX

EXCLUSIVELY FOR STAFF, SENIOR STUDENTS & PARENTS Operated by y ear 10 students & staff

NOW OPEN EVERY TUESDAY & WEDNESDAY

DURING SCHOOL TERM

9:00 AM - 1:30 PM

LOCATED IN THE ADMINISTRATION BLOCK

VISIT & HAVE A COFFEE WITH US

Proudly supported by