At Illawarra, each boarder’s wellbeing is central to everything that takes place in the Boarding House. 

Wellbeing can be defined as the state of being comfortable, healthy, or happy. A happy, settled boarder who feels supported will participate more fully in our academic and co-curricular programs and more easily reach their academic goals. 

Over the past 15 years, the ongoing improvements to our Year 12 boarders’ academic success are directly related to the support, interest, and encouragement they receive at Illawarra. Many an hour is spent in Illawarra supporting and listening to our boarders and encouraging them when situations appear challenging. 

Over many years at Illawarra, I have seen this academic success come to fruition. Many new boarders will enter our Boarding House in Years 9 and 10, having been the top students at their local school. The first term at Illawarra can often be one where they realise there is so much more for them to learn. This is where the importance of the prep (homework) system in our Boarding Program is vital. 

During the school week our entire Boarding House goes into homework mode for 90 minutes (although many students work much longer). Many boarders at first find this challenging and state “I don’t have any homework” but using this time to read, prepare for future tests or complete Art or Music assignments is vital to developing optimal study techniques and routines. 

By their VCE years the boarders are more independent learners, however, they always know there is support available from our experienced and subject qualified boarding staff. Our boarding staff are all tertiary educated and bring a rich diversity of qualifications and interests to our boarding community. 

Another important factor in supporting our boarders is our relationships with their families. It has been wonderful to welcome back our parents onsite, with our recent Boarding Families’ Afternoon Tea and Year 12 Boarding Families’ Breakfast. Our boarding families are also welcome to visit Illawarra and stay for a shared meal with their daughters and our boarding family. 

Together, our boarding staff, academic and co-curricular educators and our boarding families provide a wonderful support network to allow our boarding students to grow, develop, extend, and mature into independent and confident young women. 

This article features in St Catherine’s News Autumn Edition. To read the full Edition click here.