Issue no. 21
In this edition
From Our Principal
Term 4 always proves to be a fast-paced term full of festivities, excitement and change.
This week we celebrated our Year 12s as they finished their time at Saints Girls. It has been filled with nostalgia as the girls have submitted final school assignments and farewelled beloved friends and teachers. The week is ending on a high with Celebration Day and the Valedictory Dinner. As a community, we congratulate the Year 12s on the significant milestone of completing thirteen years of schooling. I wish to thank our Year 12s of 2023 for everything they have given to our School during their time with us. One of the many highlights of this year has been witnessing the positive influence this cohort of Year 12 students has had on our School. They embraced the opportunity to foreground everything that makes Saints Girls the special place it is and have ensured that students at every year level have been included at assemblies, sporting events, chapel services and charity fundraisers. The Year 12 students have made everyone feel valued and have strengthened the connection our students feel to our School. They have been excellent role models of our School values – courage, compassion and creativity.
As our Year 12s come to the end of their time with us as current scholars and join our community of Old Scholars, it reminds us that change is an integral part of life. It is a necessary process that allows for personal growth and development. As we bid farewell to our Year 12s, we know they face significant change as they move into a new chapter in their lives, with different responsibilities and many choices to be made. I encourage the Year 12s to embrace this change, have the courage to take risks and engage in new experiences; and to be compassionate and consider the impact they have on others in whatever they choose to do. Change can be uncomfortable, but as we know, some of life’s greatest lessons come out of embracing discomfort. As Brené Brown famously quotes, ‘You can choose courage or you can choose comfort. You cannot have both.’
On Wednesday, we welcomed our new Student Leadership Team with the induction of our Prefects for 2024. We look forward to the contributions this leadership team will make to our School under the guidance of Head Prefect Daisy Kennett and Deputy Head Prefect Sophie Ricciuto.
I have heard about the wonderful Saints Girls’ Christmas spirit at Carols in the Cathedral and look forward to experiencing this on Tuesday 5 December at 7pm at the St Peter’s Cathedral, North Adelaide. This is a compulsory event for all girls in Years 5 to 12.
Finally, Presentation Night will be held on Thursday 7 December at 7pm at the Adelaide Convention Centre. Presentation Night is compulsory for all girls in Years 7 to 12. This will no doubt be a fantastic celebration of our students’ achievements, so please come along to farewell our Class of 2023. The School year officially concludes at the end of Presentation Night.
This year also brings to an end the valuable contributions of two long-standing leaders at St Peter’s Girls – Richard Lisle, Deputy Principal/Head of Middle School and Suzanne Haddy, Head of Junior School. Richard’s last day will be Friday 17 November and Emma Smerdon will be acting in the role of Head of Middle School for the remainder of the term before officially commencing this role in the new year. Suzanne will finish at the end of the year. I know that you will thank Richard and Suzanne in your own way during the course of this term.
May we embrace the many changes that Term 4 brings and have a wonderful term ahead.
Cherylyn Skewes
Principal
Staffing Announcement
It is with great excitement that I announce the appointment of our Director of Marketing, Communications and Advancement commencing Week 6 this term, Mrs Belinda Mears.
Belinda brings with her a wealth of experience and knowledge in values-driven organisations, including advancement and development in schools. Her most recent role as Advancement Manager at Saint Ignatius’ College saw her lead their college’s philanthropy review and operational implementation, executing a successful capital works fundraising campaign. Here, she also played an important role in community and stakeholder engagement, leading the development of the college’s brand strategy. With expertise in strategic marketing and stakeholder engagement, she has a proven track record in empowering teams to perform at a high level to achieve organisational goals.
We look forward to welcoming Belinda to the Senior Leadership Team at St Peter’s Girls. Her passion for and experience within the education sector will play a vital role in the ongoing growth and success of our School.
I trust that you will extend a warm welcome to Belinda when you see her around our School grounds.
Cherylyn Skewes
Principal
From Our Head and Deputy Head Prefects
Finishing our schooling journey this week has brought about a range of different emotions. Whilst we are both excited for the future to come and look back with fondness over our time spent at Saints Girls, we also want to take some time to reflect upon everything we have learnt from our Saints Girls education.
Throughout our time at Saints, we have gained a depth of knowledge not only intellectually, but also emotionally. Within the classroom, being encouraged to learn from our mistakes rather than to chastise ourselves for them, has led to us feeling ready to take on the next challenges our lives will present. We can also largely credit this to our teachers, who have continuously emphasised the schools core values, courage, creativity, and compassion. Amongst all of this is of course, is the Saints community, the staff, teachers, coaches, parents and students, who have been supportive, inspiring and nurturing.
This year, we have also had the pleasure of leading the Saints Girls community as Head and Deputy Prefects. Together with our Prefect team, we have explored the values which we hope to celebrate within our community, through the introduction of our Prefect initiative ‘Saints Stands for.’ This has been an incredible experience as we have strengthened support networks within our community, celebrated the achievements of our students and built relationships with students across all the sub-schools. A highlight for both of us has been forming deeper connections with the whole Saints community, and we thank everyone for the ongoing support you have shown us this year.
We want to wish the 2024 Prefects and year 11 cohort the best of luck for next year. We urge you all to make the most of all the opportunities you are given; embrace challenges, reach out to teachers and fellow students for support, and enjoy every moment of your schooling life, as it is an experience that will shape who you are for the better.
Ellie Humphrey & Ruby Richards
Head Prefect & Deputy Head Prefect
Farewell to Class of 2023
Farewell to our fabulous Class of 2023 – what an epic last day of School with the Celebration Day Eucharist and Assembly!
We hope you enjoy more celebrations at tonight’s Valedictory Dinner, and we wish you all the best for your final exams and assessments. Always remember, you are and will forever be Saints Girls.
We’ve had a full week of fun and celebrations. Culminating in the send-off tradition of the Year 12 run through the School watched on by staff and younger students. Take a look at the Class of 2023 in action:
Lauren Sutton
Deputy Principal and Head of Senior School
Congratulations to the 2024 Student Leaders
There were stirring scenes on Wednesday as our 2024 Student Leaders were inducted in a Chapel Service where they received their badges of office from staff and our outgoing Prefects.
Families and fellow students watched on with pride as our new Prefects and other leaders pledged to serve St Peter’s Girls with distinction.
It was a moving occasion, and we can’t wait to see how the girls lead the School in 2024.
Lauren Sutton
Deputy Principal and Head of Senior School
Our Young Philosophers Compete Nationally
During the holidays a team of five consisting of Madison Liddy, Alix Douglas, Alison Francis, Olive Dawson and myself, competed in the annual Australasian Philosothon Competition, where we placed the highest out of all the South Australian teams! The competition requires individuals to discuss philosophical ideas in a Community of Inquiry and is marked based upon each student’s demonstration of critical thinking, collaboration and creativity. This year, we considered the nature of consciousness, whether uniforms should be gendered, whether anyone can be a philosopher, and what can be done about racism in Australia.
The two days of competition were eventful, participating in numerous discussions with some of the best teams in the country. In addition to these discussions, over the course of the two days, we were also granted the privilege of listening to two philosophers discuss their involvement with philosophy one of whom was from Guam.
While we did not have the opportunity to travel interstate like previous years, the competition was still a remarkable experience, and we are incredibly grateful for the support of our amazing coach Ms Burton-Howard
Angelina Tran
Year 9 Student
Saints Dancers Win Best Choreography
Over the school holidays our Stage 1 and Stage 2 dancers competed at the South Australian Stage Dancing Competitions, held at Westminster School. The girls performed beautifully and won the best choreography trophy for their performance of ‘The Poppies’ from the recent SACE dance performance Welcome to Oz. Huge congratulations to Mrs Burnett and the girls!
Friends of Rowing Season Opening Picnic
The Friends of Rowing invite you to attend the Season Opening Picnic on Sunday 29 October from 5 to 7pm on Chiverton Lawns. This event will be an opportunity to welcome our new and returning Rowing families for the 2023/24 season, as well as christen our newest boats!
All rowers are expected to attend, and Rowing families are encouraged. The event is open to the School community; Old Scholars and friends of the Rowing program are very welcome.
Tickets can be purchased here
$30 per adult, $25 per student/child
Tickets include nibbles, yiros and soft drinks. Refreshments will also be available for purchase.
Brynley Millward
Director of Rowing
Cyber Security Awareness Month
October is Cyber Security Awareness Month (CSAM), a time for all Australians to improve their cyber security knowledge and take action to protect their information and devices.
The theme for 2023, ‘Be cyber wise – don’t compromise’, encourages you to take 4 simple steps to be more cyber wise:
- Update your devices regularly
- Turn-on multi-factor authentication
- Backup your important files
- Use passphrases and password managers.
You can get involved by accessing the resources and guidance for Cyber Security Awareness Month 2023. Complete a quiz to test your cyber security knowledge, watch a video about Cyber Security Awareness Month and access guides to improve your cyber security.
Tracey Guyers
IT Manager
School Shop Notice
School Shop Opening Hours
Monday to Friday: 8am – 4pm (closed for lunch 12 – 12.30pm)
Parents can also order items via our Online School Shop. This is now accessible via the Flexischools platform which also administers our Online Tuck Shop. To sign in or sign up to Flexischools, click here
Bushfire Action Plan
It is important to remind families about the School’s Bushfire Action Plan.
The policy was developed in consultation with the CFS, MFS, Department for Education and other stakeholders to ensure staff and students are prepared in the event of an emergency.
For more information, you can access our Bushfire Action Plan on the myLink parent portal by clicking the ‘School Documents’ menu item, followed by the ‘Whole School’ tab.
School Health Centre Notices
It is imperative that all medical information, including immunisations, is up to date on the School’s myLink parent portal.
Please follow this pathway to check and/or update details: myLink > Community Portal > My Details > select child name
If you have any questions, please email healthcentre@stpetersgirls.sa.edu.au
COVID-19 Information
Please find the latest guidance from SA Health:
- It is strongly recommended that students stay home if they have cold or flu-like
symptoms, and test for COVID-19. - Whether they receive a positive or negative result, they should stay home until symptoms subside (usually five to seven days).
- While face masks are no longer mandated, they are an important physical barrier to help stop the spread of COVID, particularly when indoors.
If your child tests positive to COVID-19, please inform the School. Please also notify the School each day of absence, or provide the expected period of absence.
You can notify us via one of the following methods. Please include the name of the ELC Room, Class or Home Group. If emailing, feel free to ‘CC’ the teacher of the Room/Class/Home Group as well.
Email: attendance@stpetersgirls.sa.edu.au
Text: 0428 601 957 (save to phone contacts as SPGS)
Phone: 8334 2200
For more SA Health information, click here
Please note that if your child is unwell, they should remain home until they have recovered, irrespective of the illness.
Absences from School
If your child will be absent from school/ELC or is arriving late or leaving early, please notify the School via one of the following methods:
Text: 0428 601 957
Email: attendance@stpetersgirls.sa.edu.au
Phone: 8334 2200
Please ensure to include your child’s name, the name of the ELC Room, Class or Home Group and the reason for the absence ie illness/appointment/family/sport etc.
If notifying via email, feel free to ‘cc’ the teacher of the Room/Class/Home Group as well.
It would be appreciated if notification is received prior to 9am.
Sports News
Saints Girls Make the Australian Lacrosse Squad
Lacrosse Australia is pleased to announce the U20 Australian Women’s Lacrosse Squad, which Dani Cox and Ashlyn May are part of.
The Squad will head to a December Camp followed by the Southern Cross Tournament in January, against teams from New Zealand and Japan, prior to the final team being announced to compete in the 2024 World Lacrosse U20 Women’s Championship in Hong Kong.
This is an exciting time for the sport, World Lacrosse has announced that Lacrosse will be introduced in the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles.
Congratulations to Dani and Ashlyn. Good luck with the final stage of your Green & Gold Aussie Journey!
Annie’s Surfing Success
Last term, Annie Goldsmith competed at the US Open Adaptive Surfing Championships in Oceanside California where she placed 5th overall!
In preparation for the 2023 ISA World Para Surfing Championships, which will take place in Huntington Beach, California in November, she has been training two or three times a week and spent time during the holidays surfing at Urban Surf in Melbourne.
Annie Competes in the Prone Assist division, which means she has someone to help her onto the wave and someone to assist her back out through the surf. She gets judged on her individual performance once on the wave, on the length of the wave and on her turns on the wave.
Well done Annie, and best of luck at the upcoming World Championships!