The Potential of a New Year

The first week of each school year is always a time when I feel humbled by the dimensions of the history of St Catherine’s School. This Saturday, 4 February, is St Catherine’s School’s Foundation Day, celebrating 127 years of educating young women.  

Our current students are now part of the long and proud history of this remarkable school and it was a pleasure to welcome them to the 2023 school year. It was wonderful to hear the excited chatter return to our campus as our girls returned to their classrooms, the Boarding House and our sporting fields this week. 

I would particularly like to welcome our new families commencing at St Catherine’s School. I trust that all girls and children in our ELC will have a fulfilling and rewarding time at St Catherine’s. I have no doubt that they will feel happy and comfortable. I encourage them to seize every opportunity in both the classrooms and in the many co-curricular programs offered at our School. 

Over the holidays we also welcomed new exchange students to our Year 9 Cohort who have joined us from St Catherine’s School, Bramley, UK; Shawnigan Lake, Vancouver Island and the Buffalo Seminary School in New York State. I wish the girls well as they settle into life at St Catherine’s this term. The welcome return of our post-COVID Global Programs also saw our St Catherine’s students travel to France on a Language Exchange. We look forward to hearing from the girls upon their return. 

In January our School Captains, Flora Du and Ava Colosimo represented St Catherine’s School at the Alliance of Girls Schools Student Leadership Conference. Their planning for the year ahead as Captains was inspired and shared with 180 girls, namely School Captains of girls’ schools from across Australia. The girls were immensely proud to attend this Leadership Conference and look forward to sharing this journey with their Year 12 peers and all Senior School students. 

In my Assembly Address this week, I spoke of actor Denzel Washington’s words to the graduates at Pennsylvania University:  

“To get something you never had, you have to do something you never did.” 

His message was not just appropriate for university graduates but for every student commencing a new school year. Whether in your studies, relationships, careers, sporting, or performance pursuits ‘To get something you never had, you have to do something you never did’ requires one to do things a little differently. Some simple examples for academic achievement could include paying more attention in class, revising regularly, seeking support from your teachers, asking questions, and researching answers for yourself to complete work.  

I also shared with the Senior School students our staff focus for this year – an unwavering focus to change workplace productivity with an improved efficient use of time. This raises the question about what are our daily habits that infiltrate our ability to focus? Research highlighted by author Johann Hari in their book: Stolen Focus – Why You Can’t Pay Attention, found: 

  • Software placed in the computers of college students to track their movements revealed they switch tasks every 65 seconds. 
  • Nineteen seconds was the median time a U.S college student would focus on one thing. 
  • An adult working in an office would stay on task for three minutes, (Gloria Mark 2022). 
  • Once interruptions occur, on average, it will take 23 minutes for you to get back to the same state of focus. 
  • A U.S Study of office workers revealed most never get an hour of uninterrupted work in a typical day. 
  • The average American spends three hours and fifteen minutes on a phone each day (trackable using your iPhone settings).  
  • Checking text messages/emails while trying to work and losing ‘bursts of time’ results in a loss of time to refocus afterwards. This wastes time switching and wasting brain processing time. 

For our staff and students, being mindful to allocate time to work and study without interruptions and without switching between tasks are simple steps we can adopt to increase our ability to reach a state of deep thinking, where we achieve the mental clarity necessary for improved concentration and engagement with tasks. 

I wish all students and their families the very best for the year ahead. 

Governor of Victoria – Royal Victorian Order 

We were extremely proud to learn that The Honourable Linda Dessau AC CVO, Governor of Victoria was appointed as a Commander of the Royal Victorian Order (CVO) on New Year’s Eve (London time) by King Charles III in recognition of her tireless work in representing Victorians over many years.  

As an Old Girl (1969), the Governor adorns our walls in Sherren House as one of our Nil Magnum Nisi Bonum recipients. 

Australia Day Honours List 2023 

I congratulate the following members of our St Catherine’s School Community who have been given recognition and honoured in the Australia Day Honours List.  

Officer of the Order of Australia (AO) 

Mr Paul Noel Dainty AM 

For distinguished service to the community through the organisation of charitable events following the bushfires 2019-20. 

Mrs Amanda Mary Elliott 

For distinguished service to the horse racing industry through a range of executive roles and to the community. 

Ms Merran Horne Kelsall (‘71) 

For distinguished service to the financial accounting sector, to professional organisations, and to the community. 

Member of the Order of Australia (AM) 

Mrs Annette Mary Court (Lowry ‘58) 

For significant service to golf administration, and to the community. 

Dr David Hope Denton RFD KC 

For significant service to the law. 

Dr Elizabeth Anne Lording (McDonald) 

For significant service to medicine, particularly to Multiple Sclerosis rehabilitation and research. 

Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) 

Mrs Jill Elisabeth Fenwick 

For service to community history preservation. 

Ms Susanne Elizabeth Reid (Koren ‘70) 

For service to community health and gender advocacy. 

Michelle Carroll

Principal

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