From the Director of Boarding Services

Term 4 is always a time of change at Illawarra.

At the end of the previous Term our Boarding Captains for 2018 are elected. Their first task – to assist with farewell celebrations for our Year 12 boarders. This year we have had 15 Year 12 boarders who have made an outstanding contribution to our boarding community.

The girls have set the tone of the house with their wonderful commitment to not only their academic studies, but also their involvement in all aspects of School life. They have been excellent role models and always found the time to help the younger boarders with everything from their Mathematics and Language homework, to taking on the role of ‘big sister’. As the Year 12 boarders have packed up and left this week, they leave behind life-long friends. One of the positive aspects of social media is the ability to now keep in touch with ex-boarders from all over the world.

The highlight of Term 4 at Illawarra is our farewell dinner for our Year 12 boarders and their parents. Our new Boarding Captains – Erin O’Brien and Siu Hang (Natalie) Chan, organised a gift and card for each boarder and produced a visual presentation where all the other boarders had the opportunity to send them a special message. The boarders ‘rap’ written, produced and organised by Year 10 boarder Chloe Manson (with four other participants) was dedicated to the departing Year 12 boarders and provided a fabulous finale to the evening. It is on nights such as this that the true values of boarding are apparent and the girls feel especially included and involved.

Over the past few weeks as the Year 12 boarders have completed their final examinations, the rest of the house have also been busy. The Year 8s have been on camp and are now involved in the Year 8 exchange program, the Year 9s have had their examinations, the Year 10s are now on camp after completing their studies and the Year 11s have already commenced their introductory sessions for next year.

We would also like to congratulate our two Year 7 boarders – Jasmine Glass and Kayla Jackson on their selection to represent Katherine in the Northern Territory at an Indigenous Netball Competition in Darwin earlier this month. Their team finished third in a combined U15/U17 competition.

As we approach the end of the School year our boarders are looking forward to returning home and spending holidays with their families. We look forward to welcoming everyone, especially our new boarding families, back to Illawarra in January 2018.

Mrs Sue Collister, Director of Boarding Services