2022 St Catherine’s School Dux, Angela Yu along with Proxime Accessit to the Dux, Paula Chen, and Penelope (Poppy) Glenning have all added to their impressive list of academic achievements, each receiving the Premier’s VCE Award for excellence in English this week. 

The top honour recognises outstanding VCE results and places Angela, Paula, and Poppy amongst the top VCE students in the state for 2022.  

Angela Yu 

Angela Yu, (’22)

2022 St Catherine’s School Dux, Angela Yu, achieved a remarkable perfect ATAR of 99.95. Along with outstanding results across her VCE subjects, including a perfect Study Score in English, Angela was School Co-Captain and Co-Editor of the student-led newspaper, as well as participating in a wide range of co-curricular activities across her Senior School years including Debating and Public Speaking, Music, Writers’ Club, Outdoor Education, Human Rights Club, Cultural Diversity Club, GSA and GSV Sport. 

“I would like to congratulate Angela on her well-deserved achievement. Angela was always conscientious about handing in work on time and enjoyed participating in discussions designed to extend her knowledge. A discerning young woman, Angela always listened to others’ opinions and offered her own thoughtful insights during class discussions. A great skill Angela has is the ability to approach tasks from a highly creative and clever angle, always asking strategic questions and providing concise and precise written responses,” shares Mrs Kim Waters, Angela’s 2022 VCE English Teacher. 

Paula Chen 

Paula Chen (’22)

St Catherine’s School’s 2022 Proxime Accessit to the Dux, Paula Chen, achieved a remarkable ATAR of 99.9. Paula achieved a perfect Study Score in English, along with outstanding results in Chemistry, Physics, Specialist Mathematics and Mathematical Methods, which she undertook in 2021. Paula also contributed to life at St Catherine’s through her involvement in Debating and Public Speaking, Music, House events, Chess Club and Cultural Diversity Club. Paula was also the 2022 recipient of the Australian Defence Force Future Innovators Award and received Full Colours in Debating. 

“Paula worked with dedicated focus for the entire year and her Premier’s Award is earned from hard work and is well deserved. Her conscientious approach to English led to valuable contributions in class, in-depth discussions with her teacher about the ideas raised and a keen eye when crafting her writing. Paula gave time to critical readings and shaped her ideas with thought, perception and originality. Over the year, she cultivated an incisive style of writing that allowed her to develop her ideas with precision,” shares Acting Head of English, Mrs Lisa Gionfriddo. 

Penelope (Poppy) Glenning 

Penelope (Poppy) Glenning (’22)

Poppy’s tireless pursuit for excellence saw her achieve a perfect Study Score of 50 in VCE English, as well as studying Biology, Chemistry, and French in Year 12. Her determination and focused nature were evident in all that she pursued across her time at St Catherine’s School as well as in her outstanding Ballet career. 

“Poppy’s impressive work ethic and genuine love of English as a subject saw her engage in every aspect of the course with great enthusiasm and commitment. Throughout the year her quietly diligent approach saw her collaborate respectfully with her peers, her teacher and go above and beyond set work. Her insights and the calibre of her writing were exemplary, adding great richness to the classroom experience. Driven by a scholarly desire to explore texts at a deeper level, her work reflected impressive breadth as well as a positive approach to learning. I congratulate Poppy on her wonderful achievement in VCE English and commend her as a most deserving recipient of the Premier’s Award in this subject,” shares Ms Vasiliki Spanos, Poppy’s Year 12 English Teacher. 

Congratulations to Angela, Paula, and Poppy for their outstanding efforts!