From the Acting Principal

Welcome back to Pymble for Term 3 and a special shoutout to all our new starters this term. We’re delighted to see students looking refreshed and eager to get back into the swing of school life after the mid-year break. We will be even more delighted to see them in correct uniform, minus the jewellery, false eyelashes and nail polish they are able to wear as they please in the holidays. Thank you for your support in ensuring your daughter shows up as her best self each school day.

Celebrating NAIDOC Week in the first week of term seemed particularly appropriate given the 2022 NAIDOC theme, Get up! Stand up! Show up! Our First Nations scholars did a great job leading our assembly today, during which we celebrated five former First Nations graduates from Pymble who now are giving back to their communities in a professional capacity in the fields of law, health, teaching, sport and the Police Force. We continue to learn, celebrate and stand together proudly with our First Nations scholars and are grateful for the richness they bring to our community.

As usual, Pymble was a hive of activity during the holidays, both in terms of enhancements to our campus and student and staff achievements.

The Senior School Centre has been revamped with a sophisticated colour palate and new furniture, giving our Year 12s more study spaces at their disposal as they approach their final term of school and HSC trials. On that note, it was fabulous to see so many of our Class of 2022 cohort at the HSC study camp in the first week of the break. Great job, girls, and a big thank you to the Pymble staff who create and deliver our pre-trials academic boot camp.

The Boarders’ Dining Room has also had a makeover and is looking suitably crisp, fresh and inviting for our lovely student residents, and work continues on Archie’s Café (next to Mollie Dive Fields), which is due for completion by the end August, weather permitting of course. Over at Arcadia, Vision Valley and Stringbark Lodge have been buzzing as we complete refurbishments and final preparations to the facilities and accommodation ahead of our pilot four-week residential program for Year 9 commencing on Sunday 7 August.

Congratulations to our academic superstars

It’s always exciting to return after holidays to hear what some of our students have turned their attention to. During the break, 20 girls from Years 10 and 11 travelled with Mrs Linda Kovacs and Mrs Sarah Budd to England to participate in the Oxford Royale summer school for teens. The girls represented our country and College beautifully, winning several awards at the graduation ceremony and making their teachers incredibly proud. Angie Wang and Genevieve Power (Year 11) took part in the Inter College debate, where both girls gave strong arguments and responded to impromptu questions from the adjudicator and floor with confidence. Huge congratulations to all, including Angie, who was declared the overall winner of the competition.

Back on home soil, our Year 8 team of Isabella Attard, Grace Beck, Kiki Chen, Rosa Kim, Alice Mao, Ruhani Surana, Amber Li and Katherine Pan attended the National da Vinci Decathlon at Knox Grammar School, where they completed papers in 10 disciplines – and placed first in Australia in the Year 8 division! Congratulations, team, on your outstanding work!

Congratulations to our sporting superstars

Nea Shingler (Year 12) also found her way overseas to compete at the World Orienteering Championships in Denmark, where she placed 19^th in her qualification group, and the Junior World Orienteering Championships in Portugal, where she was the first Australian home and placed 43^rd overall. Well done and welcome home, Nea!

Great to see our Pymble Sailing team making a splash in the sport they love; the girls placed third at the 2022 Australian Secondary Schools Teams Racing Championship and fourth overall. Meanwhile our Snowsports team had a very successful Regional Championships in Thredbo.

We are also incredibly proud of Ruby Nicholas (Year 12) for being selected in the Open Australian Schoolgirls National Rugby Sevens Merit team, and Eugenie Little (Year 11) and Grace Whyte (Year 11), who were selected in the under 17 Netball Australian Squad to attend a camp at the Australian Institute of Sport in the holidays. Good job, girls!

Finally, congratulations and best wishes to Olivia Inkster (Year 12) who is competing in Columbia at the World Athletics Championships in the 200m and 4 x 100m. Liv leaves tomorrow for a pre-departure camp in Miami and is then off to Colombia the following week. Good luck, Liv!

Congratulations to our staff superstars

We also have several staff members who have been recognised for their outstanding achievements in their areas of expertise.

Our fearless, tireless and extremely talented Head Coach – Diving, Mrs Chris Lang was awarded Life Membership to Independent Girls’ Schools Association (IGSA) for her dedication to IGSA Diving during the past 30+ years. Mrs Brigiat Maltese, our Head of Learning Area – Visual Arts has been announced a finalist in the Environmental Art and Design Prize 2022 for her artwork Here on earth, which will be exhibited at Manly Art Gallery and Museum in August.

Six academic staff members received their master’s degree, which is an incredible accomplishment while simultaneously bringing excellence to the College each day as teachers. A massive congratulations to:

Mrs Natasha Stanfield, Ms Kim Maksimovic, Miss Lucy Macaulay and Mr Peter Ellis: Master of Education (Learning and Leadership)
Ms Tessa Zwar: Master of Education (Librarianship)
Mr JamieWarren: Master of Educational Leadership

Congratulations to our alumni superstars

Not to be outdone, Pymble Alumni were also cause for celebration during the break, with three ex-students receiving Queen’s birthday honours. Special congratulations to:

Amanda Farrar PSM (1986) for outstanding public service to arts and culture in NSW.
Dr Michelle Mulligan OAM (1982) for service to medicine, particularly to anaesthesia.
Jennifer Toisuta OAM (Dey, 1957) for service to asylum seekers and refugees.

What an impressive start to the second half of the year! Congratulations to one and all for making us all Pymble Proud.

Helping a flooded school get back on its feet

This weather! While annoying for us, the incessant rain has been particularly devastating for others. The College has formed a connection with the Sathya Sai College in Murwillimbah, NSW, which has suffered the double blow of being flooded out twice. The school’s facilities, buildings and resources have been destroyed and many members of the school community have also lost their homes and personal belongings. The College is supporting the Sathya Sai community through a number of fundraising initiatives, including Spuds for Floods next Tuesday 26 July.

Please don’t pack lunch for school on Tuesday 27 July – click on the link below to order your daughter’s delicious baked potato (meat or vegetarian) and help us to support Sathya Sai as they refurbish and get back up on their feet again.

Order your Spuds for Floods here.

That’s all from me this week. Thank you as always for your generosity in helping others, stay dry and have a fantastic Term 3.