Canberra Girls Grammar School - Issue 102

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CE ISSUE 102 2016

THE MAGAZINE OF THE CANBERRA GIRLS GRAMMAR SCHOOL COMMUNITY CELEBRATING OUR FIRST 90 YEARS 4 / FROM THE PRINCIPAL 7 / INTRODUCING CGGS INNOVATION AWARDS 9 / INNOVATION SPACES EXTEND OPPORTUNITY 10 / NEW DIRECTOR OF DEVELOPMENT 16 / GRAMMARIANS 24–33

CONTENTS CONTENTS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 FROM THE CHAIR OF THE BOARD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 CELEBRATING OUR FIRST 90 YEARS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 EMBRACING INNOVATION AND CHANGE

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BE INSPIRED – RECOGNISING EXCEPTIONAL STAFF. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 FROM THE PRINCIPAL. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 HEAD OF SENIOR SCHOOL MORNING TEA. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 INTRODUCING CGGS INNOVATION AWARDS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 INNOVATION SPACES EXTEND OPPORTUNITY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 GIRLS EXPLORE INNOVATION — AND WIN!. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 Above: Adelaide Armstrong (Year 10) in the Senior School innovation space – see page 10.

ISSUE 102, 2016 Published by Canberra Girls Grammar School Melbourne Avenue Deakin ACT 2600 Australia P: 02 6202 6400 F: 02 6273 2554

JUNIOR SCHOOL CONQUERS STEM COMPETITION. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 TECHNOLOGY TAKES MUSIC BEYOND THE CLASSROOM. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 CGGS WELCOMES NEW DIRECTOR OF DEVELOPMENT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 MAKING A DIFFERENCE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 A COLOURFUL APPROACH TO BUILDING ESTEEM. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 CGGS STUDENT DELVES INTO CANCER RESEARCH. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 NEW AWARD COMMEMORATES LIFETIME BEST FRIENDS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 90TH ANNIVERSARY CHURCH SERVICE. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 P&F TWILIGHT FAMILY PICNIC. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

E: communityrelations@cggs.act.edu.au www.cggs.act.edu.au

GRAMMARIANS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

EDITORIAL

ARCHIVES. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

Sally Wagnon

LAYOUT AND DESIGN FAD Studios

This Grammar Report celebrates innovation at Canberra Girls Grammar School.

Cover: Year 6 students Amelia Farrell, Electra Beltrami and Miah Lane experimenting with green screen technology in the Junior School innovation space.

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CELEBRATING Innovation

FROM THE CHAIR OF THE BOARD INNOVATION IS SIMPLY DEFINED AS ‘THE APPLICATION OF A NEW IDEA, OR AN OLD IDEA IN A NEW WAY, THAT GENERATES SOLUTIONS AND CREATES VALUE FOR PEOPLE AND COMMUNITIES.’ INNOVATION CAN CAUSE DISRUPTION TO OUR USUAL WAYS OF WORKING. WHEN WE LOOK AT SOME RECENT INNOVATIVE ORGANISATIONS LIKE AIRBNB AND UBER, WE SEE HOW FUNDAMENTALLY INNOVATION CAN CHANGE OUR PERCEPTION OF THE WAY THINGS ARE DONE. In this edition of the Grammar Report you will read about some of the activities that are happening in the School today that are a part of our vision for the future.

As Chair of the School Board, I am delighted by the enthusiasm and commitment that our students and staff have for all they do at CGGS. The School Board is committed to support innovation across all areas of the school.

In 2014, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) released a report entitled Measuring Innovation in Education. The purpose of this report was to measure how innovation is driving the establishment of improvement strategies in education. Their findings show that, although Australia is not in the forefront of innovative strategies for improvement compared to other countries in the study, gains had been made. These were in the areas of peer evaluation of teachers; more active, self-directed learning in Science and Mathematics; parental involvement in schools; and external evaluation of the effectiveness of schools.

At Canberra Girls Grammar, we are continually looking for ways to improve our facilities and the opportunities we offer our students. We have strategies in place which impact on our students’ learning and equip them for their future.

You will have heard it said that one of the challenges educators face today is that we are preparing our students for jobs that do not yet exist, utilising technologies that have not yet been imagined.

Our role is to provide an enhanced environment where innovative learning outcomes occur and our students are flexible, creative and curious about the world.

Above: Belinda Moss with Maya Wall-Kessler & David Wall (parents of Cecilia Wall, Year 4) and new Head of Junior School, Angela Whitaker at the Junior School afternoon tea on 8 February 2016.

Belinda Moss CHAIR OF THE BOARD

GRAMMAR REPORT No. 102 | 3

CANBERRA GIRLS GRAMMAR SCHOOL

CELEBRATING OUR FIRST 90 YEARS

CANBERRA GIRLS GRAMMAR SCHOOL IS TURNING 90 THIS YEAR! TO CELEBRATE THIS EXCITING MILESTONE, A SERIES OF EVENTS HAVE BEEN PLANNED FOR THE ENTIRE CGGS COMMUNITY. The celebrations kicked off with a twilight picnic in February for our CGGS families hosted by the Parents and Friends (P&F) Association. The following week, a wider community celebration was held with a special church service to commemorate the 90th anniversary. The Right Reverend Stuart Robinson joined our School Chaplain, The Reverend Paul Harris, to assist with the service. Guests included Principals from other ACT schools, Members of Parliament, CGGS and Gabriel Foundation Boards and Committee members, teachers, current students and their families.

As part of the 90th celebrations, the School’s first-ever interactive Heritage Walk will be launched at the Founders’ Day weekend in May. The walk will include buildings and areas on campus that have played, and continue to play, an important part in the history of the School. It will be a wonderful opportunity for past staff and students to take a walk down memory lane as well as being an interesting experience for current students and their families.

A dedicated website will complement the journey, giving participants information about the locations via their own smart devices. The site will also allow those unable to physically join in to take a virtual tour of the School and learn about its history.

Throughout the remainder of the year our community will have the opportunity to join in with the 90th celebrations at a number of events:

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DATES FOR THE DIARY

90thANNIVERSARY A YEAR OF CELEBRATION 2016

▶▶ FOUNDERS’ DAY WEEKEND, 20 – 23 MAY Friday night will be dedicated to the P&F Night Market held in the Senior School Quad showcasing gourmet food, along with handmade and homemade local produce from our CGGS community.

On Saturday, all 2016 reunions will be held at the school and include the launch of the Heritage Walk. The evening will provide an opportunity for the entire CGGS Alumni community to come together for a cocktail function in Gandel Hall at the Australian National Gallery.

The Founders’ Day Chapel service will be held on the Sunday in the Chapel of the Annunciation, followed by a morning tea.

Finally, the Founders’ Day celebrations will conclude on Monday with assemblies at the Junior and Senior Schools with guest speaker Bethany Lee (2007) presenting at both.

Students will enjoy a cake to celebrate the School’s 90th birthday while Grammarians’ are invited to a Founders’ Day lunch to celebrate our 50, 60 and 70 year badge recipients. ▶▶ GRIFFITH CGGS COMMUNITY EVENT, 15 JUNE A cocktail function open to all members of the CGGS Community based in Griffith, NSW and surrounding regions. ▶▶ WAGGA WAGGA CGGS COMMUNITY EVENT, 17 JUNE A cocktail function open to all members of the CGGS Community based in Wagga Wagga and surrounding regions. ▶▶ LONDON CGGS COMMUNITY EVENT, JULY A cocktail function open to all members of the CGGS Community based in the United Kingdom. ▶▶ SAFE SCHOOLS COMMITTEE FATHER/DAUGHTER/SON BREAKFAST, 4 AUGUST All CGGS fathers are invited to attend this annual breakfast hosted by the Senior and Junior Safe School Committees. ▶▶ P&F ASSOCIATION WINTER BALL, 13 AUGUST The annual P&F Winter Ball hosted by the CGGS P&F Association is sure to be a night filled with glitz and glamour. ▶▶ CGGS CHORAL CONCERT, 30 – 31 AUGUST One of the highlights of the school’s calendar, the Choral Concert features Chapel Choirs, Gabriel singers, Glee and Chorale. A delightful event not to be missed.

CELEBRATING Innovation

EMBRACING INNOVATION AND CHANGE – a creative life at all my peers who were already so When I graduated from CGGS, I looked around which they desired to travel and the accomplished, who knew exactly the direction in the intervening years, I’ve witnessed so impact they yearned to have upon the world. In ul women of the Class of 1991. much good that has been done by these wonderf music department. Practically ever y For myself, I “found my people” at CGGS in the tooting trumpets, sawing at violins, spare minute at school was filled with people ic teaching staff recognised my raising their voices in song. The wonderful mus choir rehearsals, encouraged me to passion for it. They threw piano par ts at me in the bands, constantly throwing me in take up the bassoon and join the orchestras and the deep end with ever ything. And I loved it.

“The teachers at CGGS saw onto a career as a professional I went on to study music at university and then a, goli as far as Mexico and Mon my potential, nurtured it musician. It’s a great life. Music has taken me es hero my with ed orm d. I’ve perf and helped me to find my New York and Helsinki, and even further afiel ets (I am proud to carp red A ARI ked wal and h) Reic e Stev and passion and purpose.”

(Philip Glass iece now). Given that I found have two of those pointy statues on my mantelp s, you might assume this life my people in the music room at CGGS in the 1980 ly hasn’t. trajector y of mine has been a straight line. It real that meant at the on and change which one must embrace. For me ng and now But the creative life is a life of constant innovati bit of a go. It felt good to be a beginner at somethi a ic mus ng posi com give d I’ ght thou I 34, of ripe old age the creating never stops.

I have an album of originals to show for it. And helping another person Ever y day I am telling a new stor y in music, or . to tell theirs. I can’ t imagine a life without it now ory of those teachers at Something that inspires me to do it is the mem helped me to find my CGGS who saw my potential, nur tured it and those teachers to see what passion and purpose. Trusting the abilities of the wisest decision I couldn’t necessarily see in myself was perhaps that “teen me” ever made. I’m so grateful for it. doing something that So what to do when a teacher throws you into do it. It might be the you are quite certain you’re not ready to do? Just thing that helps you find your true nor th. ht rig r fa , back row Sally Whitwell (1991) t Band Captain Sally – Concer

SALLY WHITWELL (1991) is a Sydney based pianist, composer and conductor. A regular recording artist for ABC Classics, Sally has won two ARIA Awards for Best Classical Album. Recent concert appearances include Philip Glass Complete Piano Etudes for Perth International Arts Festival, for University of California LA and for Brooklyn Academy of Music NY. She has recently returned from presenting at the International Federation for Choral Music’s World Choral Expo. Sally works regularly with Gondwana Choirs including their last concert tour to China, Hong Kong and Inner Mongolia. In 2016, she’s looking forward to the world premiere of her string quartet by Acacia Quartet and also a new work for massed choir and orchestra commissioned by the Arts Unit of the NSW Department of Education.

GRAMMAR REPORT No. 102 | 5

BE INSPIRED – RECOGNISING EXCEPTIONAL STAFF ON 11 NOVEMBER 2015, MRS ALEX GALLAND RECEIVED THE AUSTRALIAN COUNCIL FOR EDUCATIONAL LEADERS (ACEL) ACT BRANCH AWARD FOR EDUCATIONAL LEADERSHIP. Alex is an inspirational leader and highly regarded by the Junior School Alex Galland

THE 2015 CGGS PARENTS AND FRIENDS (P&F) ASSOCIATION STAFF AWARDS 2015 WERE PRESENTED ON 4 DECEMBER 2015.

Mr Brett Easton (Senior School), and Mrs Julie Jobson (Junior School) each received the Award for Teaching Excellence in Memory of Karen Harris.

This award is given for professional excellence in teaching, leading to benefits in student learning and/or opportunities. The selection criteria takes into consideration how the teacher achieves engagement and motivation of students, builds trust and rapport within the classroom, and equips students to be self-motivated and

Above: Kylie Dolman pictured in the School Shop prior to the award presentation.

Right: Mareeta Grundy Reid presenting Brett Easton with his award.

Below right: Mareeta Grundy Reid, The Reverend Paul Harris and Julie Jobson

in on unscheduled weekends and late at night to attend to desperate families.

self-directed with their learning. Brett and

The selection criteria for this award

Julie consistently display extraordinary

considers such things as how the individual

dedication, innovation and devotion in

contributes to the school community

their roles within the School.

as a whole, enhances the capacity and

The second P&F Staff Award, for Outstanding Contribution to the CGGS School Community, was won by Mrs Kylie Dolman.

Kylie is the Director of the CGGS Uniform Shop and for many years has shown extraordinary dedication to students and

capabilities of students, and how the individual influences colleagues, parents and students alike.

The P&F would like to congratulate all worthy winners and all those exceptional staff members nominated.

families in catering to school uniform

Mareeta Grundy Reid

requirements. It is nothing for Kylie to come

CGGS P&F PRESIDENT

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students, her colleagues and the wider education community. She was recognised for her exceptional educational leadership displayed through her role as ICT coordinator, her support for staff, commitment to extra curricular activities and by her expertise demonstrated through her innovative presentations at national and international events.

On behalf of the entire CGGS community congratulations on this achievement Alex!

CELEBRATING Innovation

FROM THE PRINCIPAL INNOVATION CAN BE AN OVER-STATED WORD AT THE MOMENT. I WAS TALKING TO A POLITICIAN’S AIDE THE OTHER DAY WHO SAID, RATHER BITTERLY, ‘DON’T SAY INNOVATION, I HEAR ABOUT IT EVERY DAY AT WORK’. YET, INNOVATION, IN ITS BEST SENSE, IS VITAL FOR OUR FUTURE AND HAS A SIGNIFICANTLY IMPORTANT PART TO PLAY IN DESIGNING AND IMPLEMENTING AN APPROACH TO EDUCATION FOR OUR STUDENTS. Education today is becoming more and more student-centred, rightly so. No longer do we write a curriculum and deliver it, expecting children to learn by rote.

Instead, we understand that information is freely available and it is what students do with that information which will make all the difference. We also know that student engagement and motivation is an important factor in their academic progress and in building their confidence to tackle unfamiliar problems or scenarios.

It follows that innovation in schools is not just about equipping classrooms with

from IT, Fabrication Technology and Science to build some simple machines. Another is action research projects by teaching staff, one looking at spatial awareness and the language we use in Geography and Mathematics to investigate topics that have elements of spatial awareness. We are also investigating reading in the senior school, knowing how important it is for senior students to read analytically and for pleasure.

Our theme for 2016 is Innovation. The creation of innovation spaces on both campuses provides an environment for our students to be creative and explore

“We know that student engagement and motivation is an important factor in their academic progress and in building their confidence to tackle unfamiliar problems or scenarios.”

new ideas. I hope you enjoy reading this edition of the Grammar Report and learning more about how our School is embracing innovation, in every sense of the word.

Anne Coutts PRINCIPAL

Below: Catherine Starling (past staff), Caitlin Hurley (2002), Amelia Hurley (2008), Mary Johnson (2008), Anne Coutts, Penelope Shalders (1996) and Helena Joseph-Hauser (2008) at the cocktail function in September 2015 for the CGGS community in Sydney.

the latest digital technology, 3D printers, robotics, and time lapse photography but how that technology is used to impact the students learning. The impact to free students to use their initiative and take ownership of projects that they are engaged and interested in. Teachers become facilitators and guides rather than the source of all knowledge. Students learn to collaborate, analyse and investigate to produce a sophisticated body of work. We want technology to match the ambition and imagination of young people.

One example at CGGS is an engineering project for Year 7, using skills and materials

GRAMMAR REPORT No. 102 | 7

HEAD OF SENIOR SCHOOL MORNING TEA FORMING A NEW TRADITION A REALLY ENJOYABLE ASPECT OF MY ROLE AS HEAD OF SENIOR SCHOOL IS TO HOST A MORNING TEA FOR STUDENTS WHO HAVE BEEN NOMINATED,

BY THEIR TEACHER OR A MEMBER OF STAFF, FOR THOSE ‘QUIET ACHIEVER MOMENTS’ – A CELEBRATION OF THEIR QUIET CONTRIBUTION EITHER IN CLASS OR AROUND THE SCHOOL. THE SELECTED STUDENTS DESCRIBED THEIR GENUINE RESPONSE AS “SURPRISE” ON LEARNING OF THEIR NOMINATION. CLICHÉD AS IT IS, THIS RESPONSE FITS WITH WHY THEY ARE AT THE MORNING TEA IN THE FIRST PLACE. The morning tea is a low key gathering on the balcony outside my office (or indoors if the weather is dreary) and it is so rewarding to have students from across all year groups gathered together. Many of the students have been nominated

because of their thoughtfulness towards others or that they have recognised a need and taken it upon themselves to respond.

We celebrate that they may have been open and generous in their inclusion of others in the school community or the very special effort they have put in to a subject or task that may be challenging for them.

In the second half of the year I was delighted to welcome an entire Year 7 tutor group – PD2 – who were recognised for the extended nurture of one of their classmates. Not a bad way to spend morning tea!

It wasn’t so much a promotion or a praise session; it was an expression of appreciation and encouragement.

We had a chat about future plans and interests and it was an opportunity to get to know others there. I am confident that Mr Milligan’s morning tea system has been and will continue to be a successful method of appropriately giving gratitude to the many girls in the Girls Grammar community who show initiative.

(Claire Paton, Year 12 2015)

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Peter Milligan HEAD OF SENIOR SCHOOL

Left: First HOSS Morning Tea – Peter Milligan and guests at the Head of Senior School morning tea. Left to right: Irene Zhong, Cherie Teng, Claire Paton, Roisin Lyons, Peter Milligan, Chloe Swan, Helen Truong, Alice Wang.

Below: Deakin PD2 Tutor Group 2015 with Peter Milligan – Clockwise from front centre: Annabelle Connery, Jacoba McKellar, Polly Palmer, Liz Dickson, Kate Gordon, Priya Clarke, Jaya Ayyaluraju, Maddie Baldwin, Nishanka Kapuruge, Asvini Allada and Sophie Smart.

CELEBRATING Innovation

INTRODUCING CGGS INNOVATION AWARDS

CANBERRA GIRLS GRAMMAR SCHOOL

BE INNOVATIVE.

AT CGGS we believe being innovative is about pushing boundaries and doing something new. It’s improving processes, systems, products or services and empowering others. Our newly designed spaces in the Junior and Senior Schools are our hubs for innovation, enabling our students with the resources they need to lead, change, create and disrupt the norm. We would like to acknowledge the

CGGS P&F Association for their generous contribution to these hubs.

There are three awards, each to the value of $500.

In 2016 CGGS is encouraging and supporting innovation in the School through the awarding of prizes to students and staff who embody this theme. The objective of this process is to cultivate a culture of innovation within the life of the school, our staff and our students.

ff Junior School student/s award ff Senior School student/s award ff Staff award

EMBRACING THE SCHOOL’S THEME OF ‘CELEBRATING INNOVATION’, TWO STUDENTS SPENT PART OF THEIR SUMMER HOLIDAYS BEING INSPIRED AND CHALLENGED IN THE FIELD OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY AND SOFTWARE DEVELOPMENT.

“It was a once of a lifetime experience and I feel like my computer science skills have grown substantially,” said Zoe.

In January, Zoe Bott (Year 11) attended the National Computer Science School (NCSS), a ten day summer school for students going into years 11 and 12. At the end of the camp, Zoe was voted by her peers as the student most worthy of receiving $1000 cash for CGGS to be spent on the Grok Learning NCSS Challenge, a program designed for students and teachers to learn and develop their software programing skills.

More information about the 2016 CGGS Innovation Awards are on our website: www.cggs.act.edu.au/about-us/

CGGS would like to thank Wise Tech Global for the prize which will complement the innovation projects within our school.

Carla Sanfrancesco (Year 9) was invited to attend Questacon’s National Invention Convention after submitting an innovative app concept late last year.

As one of 24 young inventors from around Australia, Carla was provided with mentors from different fields of expertise to help her prototype her idea.

The Convention culminated in a showcase where participants presented their ideas to

Carla Sanfrancesco (right) at Questacon’s National Invention Convention in January 2016 (photo courtesy of Questacon).

an audience of experts, entrepreneurs and the Assistant Minister for Innovation, The Hon Wyatt Roy MP. “The Convention taught me how to have confidence and act on my ideas and also made me realise how important innovation is in today’s society,” said Carla.

“I met so many talented people who have inspired me to continue to work on my prototypes and follow my dream of becoming an IT engineer.”

Participants at the National Computer Science School (photo courtesy of Wise Tech Global).

The National Invention Convention was supported by Questacon, the Ian Potter Foundation and IP Australia.

GRAMMAR REPORT No. 102 | 9

INNOVATION SPACES EXTEND OPPORTUNITY THANKS TO THE SUPPORT OF THE CGGS PARENTS AND FRIENDS ASSOCIATION, WE HAVE BEEN ABLE TO CREATE INNOVATION SPACES AT BOTH THE JUNIOR AND SENIOR SCHOOL CAMPUSES. These specialised spaces provide exciting opportunities for students to make use of their technology skills and creativity in delivering both curriculum based and personal projects.

Some of the technology students will be exposed to includes: programming drones, exploring the use of wearable technology, viewing (and creating) 3D environments using Google’s new cardboard goggle technology and design through the use of 3D printers.

The limitations of the innovation space will be restricted only by the girls’ imagination. programmed robots to move, flash their lights and make noises. The Year 4 teachers made a stop-motion animation film about a friendly snake, while the Year 6 teachers experimented with some circuitry sets. There was plenty of peer tutoring, problem solving and ‘aha!’ moments.

“Under the forward-thinking leadership of our Junior School Curriculum Coordinator, Mrs Alex Galland, we have created a significant space where our teachers and students can collaborate, dream, plan and create. The space is the perfect space for our community to ‘disrupt the norm’ and take action as leaders and innovators.”

Mr Luke Ritchie DIRECTOR OF JUNIOR SCHOOL (YEARS 3–6)

Students also have the chance to experiment with stop motion animation, robotics and programming sensor boards.

The limitations of the innovation space will be restricted only by the girls’ imagination.

In the Junior School, the innovation space is home to the Innovation Committee and the newly established Robotics and Coding Club.

Senior School students studying Information Technology have embraced the innovation space and its facilities to work on projects which bring together emerging technologies and existing problems to create a product designed to solve the problem presented. In 2015, Year 10 Area of Interest projects ranged from 3D printed prosthetic arms to informative IOS apps.

Staff at the Junior School have also taken the opportunity to engage in some play-based learning in the innovation space. Earlier this year, some of the teaching staff used the green screen and lights to film themselves in places such as Paris and Hawaii while others

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Junior School Teachers Mrs Meghan Scougall and Mrs Jan Elliott experiment with green screen technology in the Junior School innovation space.

CELEBRATING Innovation

3

1 Skye Churchill, Tamar Barhen,

Sienna Volker Smith and Rachel Cantrill working as a team on their Year 10 Area of Interest IT Project in 2015.

2 Members of the Junior School’s

Robotics and Coding Club look on as Mrs Jeanette Johnson explains a project to Year 6 students Penelope Robson, Bella Mun and Georgina Scott.

1

3 Junior School students keeping

up with technology in their innovation space.

4 Year 6 students Kathryn Allen, Alix

McRae, Catherine Hardman and Amelia Farrell demonstrating ‘green screen’ technology.

2

4

On Wednesday, 25 November, some of our Junior School students were invited to take part in the Coding & Innovation Boot Camp for Federal Politicians, hosted by Intel Australia, held at Parliament House.

Students listened to inspiring speeches from the Assistant Minister for Innovation, Wyatt Roy and the Leader of the Opposition, Bill Shorten, both of whom highlighted the importance of STEM in education, particularly for girls.

The students showed their ICT projects to a variety of politicians including local Member of Parliament, Gai Brodtmann.

However, the biggest thrill was sharing their work with the Prime Minister, Malcolm Turnbull.

Alex Galland JUNIOR SCHOOL ICT COORDINATOR

“I liked that we were able to show our project to the people who run our country, especially since we were the youngest students there.”

Maia Hehir (Year 6)

Participants of Intel Australia’s Coding & Innovation Boot Camp pictured with Prime Minister, Malcolm Turnbull.

Photo courtesy of Intel Australia

“Visiting Parliament House for the Coding Bootcamp has given me the opportunity to explore, use and create new technology, and I am now considering working in the field of ICT in the future.”

Tess Chung (Year 6)

GRAMMAR REPORT No. 102 | 11

GIRLS EXPLORE INNOVATION — AND WIN! IN SEPTEMBER 2015, THE JUNIOR SCHOOL WAS WELL REPRESENTED AT THE ACT YOUNG ICT EXPLORERS CHALLENGE, HELD AT THE AUSTRALIAN NATIONAL UNIVERSITY WINNING ALL PRIMARY DIVISIONS! This competition allows students to create an ICT project of their choice—one that solves a real problem! The projects were judged by ICT professionals and academics.

Each project was assessed on its creativity, uniqueness, level of difficulty, quality and project documentation.

CGGS Junior School had ten entries from Years 3–6 and we certainly helped boost the ratio of girls participating! Each team or individual presented innovative projects under the guidance and mentoring of ICT Coordinator, Alex Galland.

With our push towards STEM subjects (Science, Technology, Engineering Mathematics), we have seeking out new opportunities for our students to pursue these areas. The ICT Explorers Challenge is ideal for this purpose.

application starts by introducing this incredible species (the orangutans), then explains the major issues and finally teaches the user about how they can make a difference based on a quiz.

NO TEXTING WHILE DRIVING (1ST PLACE) Developed by Caitlin Richards (Year 6)

I hope to achieve an app in which will prevent an adult driver from texting whilst driving a vehicle. When the app is running and the driver receives a message the app will speak the number in which the message is from then, it will speak the message. The app will also send a custom message back to whomever texts you.

Following the competition, the teams held a mini-exhibition for the School so their work could be celebrated by students and staff in the Junior School.

YEAR 3/4 SECTION

Student descriptions of some of the winning projects:

Developed by Lucy Galland (Year 4)

YEAR 5/6 SECTION SPEAK UP FOR THE ANIMALS WHO CAN’T (1ST PLACE) Developed by Lauren Faulder, Evie Lane and Emily Nguyen (Year 5)

Speak Up is a free, web-based application that aims to teach children and teenagers about how they can make a difference towards saving the orangutans from extinction. The

1

2

BIN IT RIGHT! (1ST PLACE) I am creating a game that will help students learn to put correct items into the different bins in each classroom (landfill, recycling, food scraps, paper).

3 1 Students investigate the Speak Up for the Animals

Who Can’t app.

2 Caitlin Richards talking to Sophia Champion de

Crespigny (Year 5) and Jan Elliott about her app.

3 Teachers Jan Elliott and Tara Bourne and students

look on as Lucy Galland demonstrates her Bin it Right! app.

4 Marketing material developed by Caitlin Richards

for her No Texting While Driving app.

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CELEBRATING Innovation

JUNIOR SCHOOL CONQUERS STEM COMPETITION FOR THE FIRST TIME, CGGS JUNIOR SCHOOL ENTERED A YEAR 5 TEAM AND A YEAR 6 TEAM IN THE DA VINCI DECATHLON, A DEMANDING ACADEMIC CHALLENGE ACROSS TEN DISCIPLINES. REGULAR PRACTICES WERE HELD TO BUILD TEAMWORK AND IDENTIFY STUDENTS’ STRENGTHS IN THE DISCIPLINES. OVER 30 TEAMS REPRESENTED SCHOOLS IN THE REGION, AND BOTH CGGS TEAMS WON SEVERAL SECTIONS, WITH THE YEAR 5 TEAM BECOMING CHAMPIONS ON THE DAY! Lyn Pepper-Budge and Jane Crawford DA VINCI DECATHLON CO-ORDINATORS

The da Vinci Decathlon is an academic competition designed to challenge and stimulate the minds of school students. Students compete in teams of eight across 10 disciplines: engineering, mathematics and chess, code breaking, art and poetry, science, english, philosophy, creative producers, cartography and general knowledge. (www.davincidecathlon.com) Right: At the venue – The da Vinci Decathlon was hosted

by Canberra Grammar School Below: Victorious Year 6 team: Eve Anderson, Annie Lloyd, Maddie Klar, Tess Chung, Layla Brady, Amy Andersen, Maia Hehir, Ashwini Sivakumar

What the students had to say about The da Vinci Decathlon “The teamwork and excitement of the tests overrides the stress involved.” Ashwini Sivakumar 6G “It was a great opportunity, and we all had fun challenging ourselves!” Maddi Klar 6N “da Vinci was an experience I’ll never forget. I built new friendships and had a lot of fun whilst doing it.”

Maia Hehir 6G “It was a great way to work in a team and have fun at the same time.” Indiana Saunders 5S “Our hearts were pumping with adrenaline during the challenge!” Bella Mun 5E “Our teams were full of wonderful people, and I have gained so much knowledge from both the practices and the challenges on the day. I could not have asked for a better time!” Tess Chung 6G

GRAMMAR REPORT No. 102 | 13

TECHNOLOGY TAKES MUSIC BEYOND THE CLASSROOM 2015 WAS A YEAR OF GREAT EXCITEMENT FOR THE MUSIC FACULTY WITH THE INTRODUCTION OF NEW TECHNOLOGY INTO OUR CLASSROOMS. IN AUGUST, WE WERE THRILLED TO HAVE A BRAND NEW APPLE MAC LABORATORY INSTALLED IN OUR COMPUTER ROOM. WITH THE INTRODUCTION OF MAC COMPUTERS, THE MUSIC STUDENTS ARE ABLE TO ENGAGE WITH A VARIETY OF NEW SOFTWARE SPECIFICALLY TAILORED FOR THE MUSIC INDUSTRY. THE GIRLS ENJOY LEARNING TO USE GARAGEBAND, IN PARTICULAR, TO ENHANCE THEIR COMPOSITIONS, CREATE LOOPS AND DO LIVE RECORDINGS. As a result of the new computers, the piano keyboard lab was moved into the nextdoor music classroom and this has opened up new opportunities for girls to use the keyboards as part of their classroom music learning. They have been able to play chords and melodies that they have written and work in pairs on their compositions with their headphones.

In the upstairs classrooms, we have had new large TV screens installed with Apple TV, allowing teachers and students to instantly project their devices on to the screen. This has been particularly useful for the Seniors’ study of Film Music and has also brought us the ability to watch and critique student performance practice in real time. The screen in the Recital Room has had the additional bonus of allowing us to record choir rehearsals and watch them for evaluation and feedback. This has been a great success.

Of all the new and innovative technology we now have access to, it is the program GarageBand, available only on Mac, that is the most revolutionary for our music curriculum. GarageBand is a whole music creation studio inside the computer with an extensive sound library that includes software instruments, multiple preset sounds for guitar and voice, and virtual drummers. The display and interface are designed to be self-explanatory and this makes it easy for students to

14 | GRAMMAR REPORT No. 102

“I love the recent upgrade to the Music Computer Lab. The new equipment has made notating and recording musical ideas much easier with Garageband now accessible and keyboards which allow you to “play into” the software Sibelius.

The equipment is also more reliable: saving precious class time, and reducing stress for students. On a more aesthetic level, the new layout is spacious, accessible, and visually appealing! It’s great to know the School is focused on improving student facilities.”

Miranda Summersby-Mitchell, Year 12

teach themselves how to play, record, compose and share their compositions.

Once finished, a student can export her composition straight to the cloud and then upload it to Canvas, or the Internet.

The new setup allows students to produce recordings of their performances or their

compositions and engineer them to sound like they have come from a professional studio. For example, Year 8 students, who are studying song writing, create a backing track by recording a keyboard part and a bass guitar part and then programming the drums. They then listen to the backing track in their headphones while they record themselves singing their composition straight into the program over the top. Next, they play their piece back and manipulate it in GarageBand using reverb, volume control, plug-ins and more. The work that they finally submit for assessment sounds amazingly professional.

Senior students are using the new technology to produce innovative multimedia projects for their musicology assignments. Whereas once, they would

CELEBRATING Innovation

have written an essay and then, using scissors and glue, stuck musical examples into the text, now, by using software such as iMovie, Preview and Garageband, they can produce a polished project much faster which includes audio examples, annotated score excerpts, video and voice overs. No longer do they need to spend a paragraph describing the sound of an excerpt – they simply insert a sound clip in iMovie, and instead spend a paragraph analysing the compositional features. Rachel Hopkins (2015), produced an exceptional piece of work in this style which was nominated for inclusion in the Board of Senior Secondary Studies work samples website.

Together with the recording equipment managed by the School’s own Melbourne Avenue Media, we have the ability to record

and engineer student performances and concerts at a high quality. IB Music students benefit from this in particular, as they have to submit a 20-minute recording of their solo performance work for external marking. With this equipment, we can send their best work, captured at a high quality, free of background noise and electrical hiss which often occurred in the past using older technologies.

Left: Year 12 students Jaymie Wong See and Bayley Dickson using the new technology in the Apple Mac laboratory (MC1).

Top: Miranda Summersby-Mitchell, Laura Carter, Bayley Dickson and Jaymie Wong See. Above: Music teacher Vivian Martin and Year 12 student Laura Carter using Sibelius music notation software.

The new equipment has truly revolutionised the way our students interact with music technology and is helping to prepare for the world beyond the classroom.

Melinda Sawers HEAD OF MUSIC

GRAMMAR REPORT No. 102 | 15

CGGS WELCOMES NEW DIRECTOR OF DEVELOPMENT MRS JO MULLIGAN JOINED OUR SCHOOL COMMUNITY IN MARCH AS THE DIRECTOR OF DEVELOPMENT. ORIGINALLY FROM NEW ZEALAND, JO AND HER HUSBAND HAVE LIVED IN PERTH FOR THE PAST 19 YEARS. DOMINIC AND JO ARE LOOKING FORWARD TO ENJOYING A COLOURFUL AUTUMN IN CANBERRA AND DISCOVERING ALL THE CITY AND SURROUNDING AREAS HAVE TO OFFER. JO HAS WORKED ACROSS A NUMBER OF SECTORS – FINANCE, MANUFACTURING, HEALTHCARE AND MOST RECENTLY IN EDUCATION. Over the past eight years, she has worked

plays in the development of young people

in a number of independent schools

and enjoys building capacity within the

having responsibility for fundraising,

community and engaging stakeholders to

marketing, community engagement,

achieve the desired outcomes.

alumni, admissions, archives, publications and communications, Uniform Shop and in 2010 the Centenary celebrations for Christ Church Grammar School in Western Australia.

One of the most striking impressions Jo has noticed since arriving at CGGS is the strong

Jo Mulligan, Director of Development

sense of community and incredible support for the school. She says, “Giving to others is a fundamental element of our common

philosophy underpinned by core Christian

She is an enthusiastic communicator who

humanity, which establishes in each person

believes effective relationships are key to

a sense of self-efficacy. If we feel we have

values of care and compassion. It is a

the success of communities such as CGGS.

something we can share to the benefit

privilege to join the CGGS community as we

Jo is passionate about the role education

of another, we find ourselves enriched, a

celebrate the school’s 90th birthday.”

GABRIEL FOUNDATION NEWS THERE ARE MOMENTS DURING YOUR TIME AS A VOLUNTEER WHERE YOU GET TRULY EXCITED

BY WHAT IS POSSIBLE.

students benefit today from the foresight of

If you wish to be involved or to learn

those in 1983 to build a philanthropic base

more about the philanthropic program

for the future. The Gabriel Foundation has

please feel free to contact myself or Jo

carefully stewarded the funds contributed

Mulligan (Director of Development) on

This is my fifth year as Chair of the

by our families, made prudent investment

+61 2 6202 6423.

Gabriel Foundation and it coincides with

decisions and built a sustainable

the 90th year of the School. In my time

foundation with a long term outlook.

at CGGS, I have also been a parent, a past committee member (Buildings and Grounds), and Chair of the CGGS Board. It is an honour to be an active participant in such a vibrant community and at such a time in our School’s history.

In 2016 it is exciting to announce the next evolution of the Gabriel Foundation. This year you will have the opportunity to

many 90th events this year.

David Holmesby CHAIR OF THE GABRIEL FOUNDATION

support the Foundation individually or as a family through Gabriel Giving, you will see the launch of the 1926 Bequest Society

The Gabriel Foundation exists to raise

and you will hear more about the difference

funds from the community in order to

philanthropy can make to the students and

support and enhance the School. The

staff at CGGS.

16 | GRAMMAR REPORT No. 102

I look forward to seeing you at one of the

The students benefit today from the foresight of those in 1983 to build a philanthropic base for the future.

CELEBRATING Innovation

MAKING A DIFFERENCE GABRIEL GIVING, 1926 BEQUEST SOCIETY AND THE NEW GABRIEL SCHOLARSHIP THE GABRIEL FOUNDATION WAS ESTABLISHED IN 1983 WITH THE INTENT OF SUPPORTING THE SCHOOL TO PROVIDE THE ADVANCED INFRASTRUCTURE REQUIRED TO DELIVER CONTEMPORARY EDUCATIONAL OUTCOMES. As with many other independent schools

development of staff and support for

throughout Australia, school fees and

educational programs.

government funding only cover the operational expenses of the School and do not allow for continuous improvement of our facilities and programs. Assistance from the School community is vital if we are to optimise each girl’s experience.

It is fitting as we celebrate the 90th anniversary of the School, that the Gabriel Foundation looks to the future. CGGS has a long and proud tradition of offering scholarships to girls on the basis of academic achievement and financial need.

Over the past three decades, the

As our philanthropic program matures,

Foundation, through the generous support

we wish to do more, particularly in the

of our community, has contributed more

provision of scholarship opportunities to

than $10 million for major building works,

develop students of talent by removing

provision of equipment, professional

barriers to participation.

It is fitting as we celebrate the 90th anniversary of the School, that the Gabriel Foundation looks to the future. CGGS has a long and proud tradition of offering scholarships to girls on the basis of academic achievement and financial need.

The new Gabriel Academic Scholarship expands the current scholarship program, later in the year will see the launch of the 1926 Bequest Society and in the coming months all members of the community will be asked to join in Gabriel Giving.

This is an important component of the Gabriel Foundation’s philanthropic program and allows every member of our community — parents, Grammarians, staff, grandparents and Friends of the School a way to be involved, helping us in our commitment to delivering exceptional academic and co-curricular opportunities for our students.

David Holmesby at the 2015 Graduation Dinner held in the Great Hall, Parliament House.

GRAMMAR REPORT No. 102 | 17

A COLOURFUL APPROACH TO BUILDING ESTEEM

THE BODY ESTEEM INITIATIVE IS AN INTEGRAL PART OF CANBERRA GIRLS GRAMMAR SCHOOL’S PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM AND AIMS TO PROVIDE SKILLS AND STRATEGIES TO HELP SUPPORT HEALTHY, POSITIVE BODY ESTEEM AND MEDIA LITERACY SKILLS FOR YEAR 9 STUDENTS. IT ALSO ENCOURAGES OUR GIRLS TO USE THESE SKILLS TO BECOME BODY ESTEEM ROLE MODELS.

Left: Year 9 Burgmann participating in the ribbon activity.

A peer group is a significant influence on a young person’s body esteem. One of the modules of the program aims to explore the pressures and language used within peer groups. It challenges young people to explore the impact of appearance-based comments and teasing; and encourages young people to be positive body esteem role models and activists in their peer and friendship groups. It also aims to challenge the language used amongst peers in relation to appearance.

ff All students receive a ribbon and from the colour cards decide on a word that reminds them of the person they are working with. Taking a piece of ribbon in the appropriate colour they tie a bow around the girl’s wrist with a compliment such as: “I am giving you this pink ribbon because I think you are really kind.”

“It was a fun activity and gave us some ideas on how to receive a compliment.”

“I liked that we focused on the positives today.”

“I hadn’t thought about myself like that.”

18 | GRAMMAR REPORT No. 102

In this module, an innovative approach to building these skills is through an activity focused on the giving of compliments; the ribbon activity. Giving compliments is likened to giving a person a gift, an experience that can be learned and be enjoyable. Too often compliments involve comments about the way people look.

The ribbon activity aims to help young people to realise that when we compliment people about who they are or the special inner qualities we like in them, the receiver is often very touched by the gesture.

Giving compliments to others (that don’t involve their looks) helps everyone to feel good – the giver and the receiver and can be very powerful.

Ribbons in a variety of colours are provided that relate to personality descriptors such as gentle, honest, adventurous, etc.

Middle: Ribbons displayed by category.

Right: Yvette Webb and Leonie Speck.

ff The person who has received the ribbon thanks them and in turn the person takes a ribbon and ties it around their partner’s wrist, again saying aloud why they gave the particular ribbon. ff Students also choose a coloured ribbon that they feel best describes them. ff Students are encouraged to keep their ribbons somewhere as a reminder of all the great things their peers have said about them.

Necia Agnew YEAR 9 PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT CO‑ORDINATOR Jeanette Widmer DIRECTOR OF PASTORAL CARE

CELEBRATING Innovation

CGGS STUDENT DELVES INTO CANCER RESEARCH DURING THE JANUARY 2016 HOLIDAYS, CGGS STUDENT ABBEY FRIESEN (YEAR 11, 2015) WAS PRIVILEGED TO JOIN THE CANCER RESEARCH TEAM AT THE RENOWNED LOWY CANCER RESEARCH CENTRE LOCATED AT THE UNIVERSITY OF NSW IN SYDNEY. Under the inspirational leadership of Dr Phoebe Phillips Senior Research Fellow, Head of the Pancreatic Cancer Transitional Research Group, the research team provided Abbey with a unique insight into the world of scientific research. Working long hours with the team, Abbey experienced the commitment and dedication required to take on this rewarding but challenging career, seeing first-hand that female participation at the highest level was achievable and encouraged.

“This experience was truly inspiring, there is no other way to put it. I gained so much insight into medical research, uni life, employment, cancer and into some underlying issues of funding and support needed for this field of research” said Abbey.

Pancreatic cancer is a devastating disease with a dismal prognosis. The five year survival rate is less than five per cent and most patients die within a few months of being diagnosed.

The research team focuses on why pancreatic cancer is so severe and responds so poorly to treatment. Dr Phillips’ studies have identified proteins which, when blocked, actually kill off pancreatic cancer helper cells. The research reveals pancreatic cancer responds so poorly to treatment due to a scar tissue reaction that surrounds the tumor, requiring innovative therapeutic approaches.

Dr Phillips said, “I live in hope that in my lifetime I will improve survival of patients with pancreatic cancer. A highlight every day in my job is mentoring and transferring knowledge to young intelligent and enthusiastic women like Abbey. In turn I constantly learn so much from the students and my proudest moments are watching them achieve their highest goals. I have no doubt that Abbey has the potential to be a future leader in Australia – and hopefully I have planted the science/innovation bug in her blood.”

“This experience was truly inspiring, there is no other way to put it. I gained so much insight into medical research, uni life, employment, cancer and into some underlying issues of funding and support needed for this field of research.”

Abbey was privileged to work in the modern, purpose-built scientific research building designed by Lahznimmo Architects. This distinctive, award-winning building was created as a flexible and evolving research facility with a low level ecological footprint.

Reflecting on this experience, Abbey says “My eyes have truly been opened in more ways than one and it has motivated me to strive for greater goals in life.”

GRAMMAR REPORT No. 102 | 19

NEW AWARD COMMEMORATES 2015 SAW THE INAUGURAL PRESENTATION OF THE ST GABRIEL’S LIFETIME FRIENDS AWARD – ESTABLISHED IN MEMORY OF ALISON SANCHEZ (BINNS, 1938) AND THE LIFETIME FRIENDSHIP SHE FORGED WITH JOY BOWERMAN (WATERMAN, 1938) DURING THEIR TIME AT SCHOOL.

A FRIENDSHIP THAT SPANNED A LIFETIME ALISON SANCHEZ (NEE BINNS), KNOWN AS ‘LAL’, WAS BORN IN 1921 IN MELBOURNE BEFORE HER FATHER’S POSITION AS THE COMMONWEALTH PARLIAMENTARY LIBRARIAN SAW THE FAMILY MOVE TO CANBERRA, THE VERY NEW NATIONAL CAPITAL, IN 1927.

On her first day at St Gabriel’s, Alison met Joy Waterman*, forever after called ‘Warte’.

On meeting, they were incredulous to find out they were born only one day apart. In Alison’s words, “we clicked.”

“I have been a Grammar Girl since the age of six and can say without a doubt that the school has become a second family. The supportive, loving friends and teachers I have met along the way have truly helped shape the person I am today and I will be eternally grateful. It was such an honour to receive this award, but I am most thankful to the school for providing such a strong sense of community and the opportunity to make friends who I will keep for many years to come.”

Rebecca Richards

20 | GRAMMAR REPORT No. 102

According to Alison, as told to her daughter Linnett shortly before she died, “There was never anything enjoyable if Warte and Lal weren’t in it together.”

Above: Head of Senior School, Peter Milligan, presenting Rebeccah Richards with the inaugural St Gabriel’s Lifetime Friends Award.

The award recognises a Year 12 student who has contributed significantly to the cohesion and fabric of the school community, having joined CGGS early in her school career.

We are proud to announce the first recipient of this award was Rebeccah Richards (2015), selected as a result of her overall kindness, strong sense of social responsibility and a desire to make a difference.

Rebeccah demonstrated these qualities as a facilitator of the Peer Support Program, fostering a nurturing and inclusive environment for Year 7 students as they adjusted to life in the Senior School.

Joy, now Mrs Bowerman, writing from England describes their first meeting.

“It was our first day, it must have been,” she remembers. “We were all five years old, sitting on those small kindergarten chairs. I remember Lal coming to sit next to me. She was wearing a tiny head-hugging hat.”

Joy suggests that perhaps it was the hat that first attracted her, but they became best friends immediately and remained so for nearly ninety years.

Both were mischievous, undoubtedly bored at their fledgling school; and both remember “playing up.” There is a story in the family of Alison, when very young, in a religious instruction class in school at which the Bishop of Goulburn and Canberra was talking. At some point he (unsurprisingly) mentioned “angels”....at which Alison,

CELEBRATING Innovation

LIFETIME BEST FRIENDS "Whenever I think of my school days, Lal is always there. We were at St Gabriel's from the age of five until we left, as prefects, aged eighteen. We laughed, giggled and cried together."

Joy Bowerman

Top left: Joy Bowerman (Waterman, 1938) Top right: Alison Sanchez (Binns, 1938) Left: Alison (teal circle) and Joy (violet circle) pictured in St Gabriel’s whole school photograph in 1932.

probably around age seven, said “Surely, Bishop, in these enlightened days, you don’t believe in angels?”

“Whenever I think of my school days, Lal is always there,” writes Joy. “We were at St Gabriel’s from the age of five until we left, as prefects, aged eighteen. We laughed, giggled and cried together.”

Lal and Joy supported each other as their respective fiancé and husband’s lives were claimed by war. Despite eventually living on different continents, over the years they saw each other many times, most recently in 2005 when Linnett and her husband David took Lal to England to see Joy. The two old friends would pour a whisky or a sherry and ‘click’ all over again.

Joy has the last word: “We would never admit it,” she says with a twinkle in her eye, “but those were the happiest years of our lives.” * Footnote: Joy’s father was Mr H R Waterman, an early member of the School Board. The Waterman Centre is named in his memory.

GRAMMAR REPORT No. 102 | 21

90TH ANNIVERSARY CHURCH SERVICE ON 3 MARCH 2016 THE 90TH ANNIVERSARY CHURCH SERVICE WAS HELD AT ST PAUL’S ANGLICAN CHURCH IN MANUKA – A SERVICE SPECIFICALLY FOR THE CGGS COMMUNITY TO CELEBRATE THE 90TH ANNIVERSARY OF CANBERRA GIRLS GRAMMAR SCHOOL. The Bishop, The Right Reverend Stuart Robinson, delivered the address and celebrated communion for service which was attended by members of the CGGS Board; the Gabriel Foundation; the Grammarians’ Association Committee; and the Parents and Friends Association Committee as well as staff, parents and students of the School community. We were also pleased to welcome many prominent Canberrans who came to show their support and give their congratulations.

Belinda Moss; Principal, Anne Coutts; CGGS School Chaplain, The Reverend Paul Harris; the Rector, The Venerable Dr Brian Douglas; The Reverend, Dr Ian Coutts and The Bishop, The Right Reverend Stuart Robinson.

The Junior and Senior Chapel choirs, Gabriel Singers and the CGGS Brass Band performed throughout the service.

The Reverend Paul Harris SCHOOL CHAPLAIN

For the procession, flags and symbols representing each part of the School were carried by members of the Senior Council, Year 6 leaders, representatives of the Gabriel Foundation, P&F Association and the Grammarian’s Association as well as members of staff. Also included in the procession were the Chair of the Board,

Left: School Captain Annabel Laing and Vice Captain Miranda Summersby-Mitchell in the procession.

Top: The Right Reverend Stuart Robinson and School Chaplain, The Reverend Paul Harris at the altar of St Paul’s Anglican Church.

P&F WINTER BALL

The P&F Ball Committee would like to thank

The inaugural P&F Winter Ball was held on Saturday, 15 August 2015 at Hotel Realm in Barton amidst great excitement and glamour. Never in our wildest dreams did we imagine the night would be such a fabulous success.

businesses for their fabulous support. You

Parents, staff and other community members gathered for a night of pure fun and enjoyment. Guests relished the opportunity to relax and engage with each other at an event which was all about celebrating our community.

22 | GRAMMAR REPORT No. 102

the school community and associated really helped turn on the magic – it couldn’t have happened without you.

This year’s Winter Ball will be held on Saturday, 13 August 2016 and will be exclusively hosted by CGGS P&F with tickets going on sale at the end of Term 2. Stay tuned to the Weekly Update and CGGS website for details as the date draws closer.

Right: Andrew and Jane Dimoff (parents of Sophie Dimoff, Year 8)

CELEBRATING Innovation

P&F TWILIGHT FAMILY PICNIC ON FRIDAY, 26 FEBRUARY 2016, OVER 630 PARENTS AND STUDENTS GATHERED FOR THE FIRST P&F TWILIGHT FAMILY PICNIC. There could have been no better way to kick off Canberra Girls Grammar School’s 90th Anniversary celebrations. It was such a wonderfully warm and happy atmosphere with families sharing cheese boards and picnic rugs amongst the fairy lights while children played ‘tip and run’ or danced along to rock and pop classics performed

by Hitparade.

Our catering team prepared over 100 hampers for the event, each presented in a

customised box featuring the distinguished ‘CGGS 90th Anniversary’ logo.

1

We had boarders’ families, veteran and brand new families all celebrating together under the one banner of the Canberra Girls Grammar School community.

The feedback has been fantastic with calls to “do it all again next year!”

2

Thank you to the hundreds who attended and made the evening such a memorable occasion. We really do have something special here at Canberra Girls Grammar School, don’t we?

“Fabulous evening – great company, weather, music and food! Do it all again next year?”

Mareeta Grundy Reid PRESIDENT – CGGS P&F ASSOCIATION 2015

Wendy Craig, parent

1 Junior School students Khloee Owen, Alice

Hincksman, Olivia Ryall, Claudia Ryall and Lucia Capezio.

2 Summer picnic fare.

3 Liz de Somer, Annette Nobbs and Ganna Duggan.

4 Kitty Wilson, Nicole Dimoff, Christine Dobson and

Nigel Wilson.

5 CGGS P&F President Mareeta Grundy Reid and

Katie Stewart.

3

4

6 Children and parents dancing to Hitparade.

“The Twilight Picnic was a good way for me, as a new student, to see CGGS’s wider community come together in a casual setting. Meeting new kids and playing soccer on the oval was the highlight of my night.”

Zara Dobson-Harper, Year 9 5

6

GRAMMAR REPORT No. 102 | 23

GRAMMARIANS SKYE CLEARY (NETTLETON, 1992) “I MADE SOME WONDERFUL FRIENDS AND WE STILL KEEP IN TOUCH. I DID OK AT SCHOOL. I NEVER CAME TOP OF ANY CLASSES, BUT NEVER FAILED ANYTHING EITHER,” SAYS SKYE CLEARY (NETTLETON, 1992).

Skye’s advice to today’s current CGGS students is:

Skye joined CGGS in Year 9 when her family moved from Sydney for work. During her time at the school she enjoyed the Duke of Edinburgh program, played netball and earned her black belt in taekwondo.

1. If you know what you want to do, great!

If you don’t know yet, just do what you think seems most interesting and see where you can take that.

After graduating from CGGS, Skye studied for a Bachelor of Arts at Sydney University, majoring in Economics and German Language, while becoming an officer in the Army Reserves through the University Regiment. She then travelled to Europe where she was bitten by the travel bug.

“After working as an intern in Germany for a year, I didn’t want to go home so went to New York City instead.”

This decision eventually led Skye to a dynamic career in trading, working for Bank of America before taking a job at a small hedge fund as an arbitrage trader, trading equities between the US and Europe. After six years in New York, Skye returned to Sydney, flirted with journalism and completed her MBA at Macquarie Graduate School of Management, winning the university medal. She was a management consultant for a few years but loved studying so much she returned to undertake her PhD. Now back in New York with husband Nick and five year old son, Dylan, Skye teaches at Columbia University and Barnard College. She is an associate editor for the American Philosophical Association’s blog, an advisory board member of Strategy of Mind, and co-founder of The Love Salon. In 2015, Skye published a book, Existentialism and Romantic Love, based on her PhD.

24 | GRAMMAR REPORT No. 102

feels like a beginning. My inner narrative is essentially: “OMG! I have a voice! I’m using it! It’s not terrible! What next? What else?”

“My book explores what’s wrong with our everyday ideas about romantic loving, why reality often falls short of the ideal, sources of frustrations and disappointments and possibilities for creating authentically meaningful relationships. It draws on five existential philosophers in particular: Max Stirner, Soren Kierkegaard, Friedrich Nietzsche, Jean-Paul Sartre, and Simone de Beauvoir.”

“I wrote it because I was confused about love. I had so many questions…no one else’s answers made sense and it frustrated me.

I read a book called Tete-a-Tete by Hazel Rowley which explored the relationship between Simone de Beauvoir and JeanPaul Sartre. They seemed to be dealing with questions like these. And so began my PhD research, which I then turned into an academic book.”

When asked how it feels to be a published writer Skye says, “It’s both wonderful and terrifying. “I’m flattered and astounded that some people want to read my work. It also

“Passion, curiosity, and persistence matter more than natural intelligence or ability. ” Skye Cleary (Nettleton, 1992)

2. Passion, curiosity, and persistence matter more than natural intelligence or ability. One of my favourite Simone de Beauvoir quotes: “I take on a shape and an existence only if I first throw myself into the world by loving, by doing.”

3. Don’t read philosophy unless you’re willing to have your world crumble beneath your feet and spend a lot of time thinking about out how to put it back together. But it’s wonderful. I recommend it to everyone!

CELEBRATING Innovation

NEWS FROM GRAMMARIANS SUCCESS FOR GRAMMARIANS IN CANADA ISABELLA BAIN (2013), MICHELLE FIRTH (2013), LAUREN SANDEMAN (2014) AND LARISSA WOOSUP (2015) competed together in the Australia Aurora U24 Dragon Boat team at the U24 premier divisions at the 2015 IDBF World Dragon Boat Racing Championships. They came away with three gold, one silver and three bronze medals.

Isabella, the 2013 Robertson House Captain, who started paddling at CGGS in Year 10 is now about to enter her sixth year. She says she chose to trial again for this year’s team of Dragon Boating so she could hopefully achieve a back to back title after competing in the World Championships in Szeged, Hungary while she completed Year 12.

‘Being able to represent your country in anything is the greatest honour a person can achieve and to say you have made it to the 3% of people within Australia who have done so is the most amazing feeling of achievement. The medals are just the cherry on top to help you justify all your training’ ‘It is something I would never forget and will search to try and find again’.

Left: Larissa, Isabella, Michelle and Lauren at the 2015 IDBF World Dragon Boat Racing Championships.

BREEZE CALLAHAN (1998) joined CGGS in Year 11. Since leaving CGGS, Breeze has studied a Communications/ Marketing Degree at the University of Canberra, worked as the Events Manager at The Australian Institute of Sport and eventually entered the film industry when she secured a job on a children’s television show, ‘Trapped’ in the Production Office in Broome. Not long after that Breeze had the opportunity to work as an Assistant Director on Bran Nue Dae filmed in Broome.

Breeze, along with her friend Christian Tucker, has also set up an industrial design company called ‘hank’. “We both decided we wanted to set up a company of our own to design and make homewares and other products to sell in the domestic and commercial market. It’s totally different from the work I do in the film industry but it’s empowering to have a business of my own and I’m really proud of everything we have achieved so far.”

“I’ve had the pleasure of working on a number of Australian and American feature films such as The Chronicles of Narnia, The Voyage of The Dawn Treader,

Mad Bastards, The Eye of The Storm, Joe Cinque’s Consolation and The Dressmaker as well as a wide spread of Australian Television comedy and drama series.”

“It’s such a creative, high pressured and rewarding industry to work in.”

Breeze’s advice to CGGS students today is that “you should aspire to do what you love. If you don’t know what that is just yet, then don’t worry. It’s so normal. Maybe take some time after you’ve graduated to live a little. Don’t rush into anything, you still have so much life left to live.”

Above: Breeze in the Wardrobe truck for American Sci Fi, ‘Hunters’. Due for release on the SyFy channel on Foxtel in April 2016.

LIANA DOWNEY (1991) has written a book called Mission Control: How Non-profits and Governments Can Focus, Achieve More, and Change the World published by Bibliomotion and will be out in May this year.

Liana started at CGGS in Year 9. She was involved in debating, rowing and cross country, remembering the cry of “Go Grammar” echoing over the hills at every event.

After graduating Liana went to ANU and completed a double degree in Science and Asian Studies. Along the way, she also worked for a non-profit in New Zealand for year.

Liana worked for consulting firm, McKinsey & Company for more than a decade during which time she completed her MBA at Stanford University in the USA. In 2010 Liana left to found her own consulting practice which now has offices in Sydney and New York working with government and nonprofit clients such as the Nature Conservancy, and the NSW and New York Education Departments. “Some of my favourite work has been helping aboriginal communities reinstating traditional early-season burning practices, which reduce bushfires, greenhouse gas emissions, and allow the land to flourish,” says Liana. Liana also recently started to teach graduate students at New York University’s Wagner Graduate School of Public Service.

Liana’s book Mission Control is for all the amazing leaders who are trying to make the world a better place.

“This book helps leaders find their focus, the sweet spot between what the world needs, what they’re good at, and what works. It’s a how-to guide packed with practical examples to help leaders increase their impact.”

Liana says the encouragement from her wonderful English teacher, and some fantastic fellow students at CGGS built her confidence in writing.

GRAMMAR REPORT No. 102 | 25

CHARLOTTE HARPER (1989), won a $5000 Walkley Grant for Innovation in Journalism for Editia, a digital first nonfiction publishing house with a focus on long form journalism and general nonfiction books.

Charlotte says that Editia will put its grant towards publishing the collected work of the finalists in the Walkley Awards for Feature Writing in book form later this year and to pay small advances to produce two longform journalism books during the next year.

After graduating from CGGS, Charlotte KELLY BEER (HODGE, 1999)’s team, NIHR Cambridge BioResource has won the 2015 Clinical Research Nursing award at the Nursing Times Awards in the UK. The team was presented with their award in November at the Grosvenor House Hotel.

These awards honour the amazing work that nurses carry out every day and more than 800 entries were received from 346 organisations.

took on various journalism roles with Ad News, Fairfax, The South China Morning Post and Management Today magazine.

Charlotte says her time at CGGS had an influence on her career choice in so many ways.

“I remember sitting in the careers advisor’s office browsing through brochures about book publishing and journalism and dreaming of what might be. The staff encouraged us to pursue our passions and to build careers that made use of our strengths.

We were taught that if we did that, we could achieve anything we put our minds to and KERRY KNOWLER (1985) was crowned the female masters track cyclist of the year after winning five gold medals and a silver at the Masters Track National Championships in Sydney in March 2015.

Kerry represented Australia in the women’s quadruple sculls at the Olympic Games in Sydney in 2000 and has her sights set on qualifying for the 2016 Rio Paralympics in tandem biking with vision-impaired team member Lindy Hou.

this positive message has helped me reach my goals time and time again.”

Charlotte Harper (centre) receiving the $5000 Walkley Grant for Innovation in Journalism.

VERA LLOYD (BIORAC, 1981) has had her academic text, Community Service Intervention published.

“The text was proposed initially to fill a void in terms of resource availability for teachers to use when teaching community services – it was also intended as a direct practice guide for those practitioners predominantly in the private sector who have no qualifications but work with people in various contexts,” says Vera.

The text was written for students undertaking Certificate and Bachelor courses in community services.

Since graduating from CGGS in 1981 Vera has worked in various roles with the Federal Police, HM Prison Pentridge VIC, Belconnen Remand Centre ACT, Youth Justice – Quamby as well as Youth Work with refugees, teaching at the Canberra Institute of Technology, crisis counselling and social work.

Above left: Kelly Beer (Hodge, 1999) 5th from the right with her winning team NIHR Cambridge BioResource Left: Kerry Knowler (1985) pictured with team member Lindy Hou. Above: Vera Loyd’s published academic text

26 | GRAMMAR REPORT No. 102

Throughout her time at CGGS Vera explains that “…careers counselling was focussed on high achievement, in positions of academia and professional outcomes. It encouraged women to be self-determined and in control of their career paths. For me, to be seeking a career (at that time) which didn’t require qualifications or a university degree was not ideally supported, nor was it deemed an appropriate career path for women. But I was persistent!”

CELEBRATING Innovation LISA ROBEY (1997) has completed a Bachelor of Communication specialising in Advertising and Marketing at The University of Canberra since graduating from CGGS. She has worked in various marketing and communications roles in a number of industry sectors including ICT, renewable energy and health.

Above: Amanda (left) pictured with Rose and Elizabeth.

AMANDA NOTT (1983) teamed up with two other women, Dr Rose McGready and Canberra runner Elizabeth Bennett, as the “Nifty Fifties” and took out the T3 All-Female All Over 50 record at the Sri Chinmoy Triple –Triathlon Race in November 2015 with an outstanding time of 13:06:54.

Amanda says that she has always enjoyed fitness and the outdoors and loves adventures. “Probably the biggest adventure was a four month horse trek from Queensland to Victoria in 1987 with two uni student buddies and five horse companions!”

Lisa, an active Canberra ambassador for the Ovarian Cancer Research Foundation (OCRF) since 2013, and has raised over $15,000 for the OCRF. She hopes to ‘help raise awareness of the disease as well as funds for research to identify an early detection test that is noninvasive and cost effective, so it becomes just a part of every woman’s regular health checks like a pap smear or mammogram.

The symptoms of ovarian cancer are very general and easy to dismiss. Our message is you don’t have to be a scientist to make a difference, we can all support the work of the OCRF by raising funds and awareness’.

the Junior School since leaving in Year 6.

Although strange to be back at CGGS in a teaching capacity and working alongside her past teachers, Kate said that this will be a great learning experience for her.

NIPUNI WIJEWICKREMA (2010), was named the 2016 ACT Young Australian of the Year.

Nipuni is a social entrepreneur who runs a floristry business, GG’s Flowers, in a bid to create employment opportunities for people with special needs. Nip is also a volunteer counsellor with Lifeline and assists many young people through her work with the ACT Youth Advisory Council.

Nipuni was the Burgmann House Captain in 2010. Head of Burgmann House, Renée Macdonald says ‘Nipuni is a vivacious, bright, highly organised young lady who went out of her way to make others feel included. She was an outstanding House Captain and we are all very proud of her’.

“Adventures nowadays are a bit tame but the challenge provided by the Sri Chinmoy Triple triathlon as a team of three women over 50 years old seemed inviting. A friend from Uni days and I got together and started scheming.”

Rose did all three swims, totalling over 6km, Amanda did all three mountain bike rides, pushing out over 100kms, and Elizabeth ran more than a marathon, split over three runs. “Between us we summited ten of Canberra’s highest peaks, and travelled about 150kms! Our effort took us over thirteen hours, which managed to carve off over an hour from the previous record, which has stood since 2004.”

“We were very proud to take out the T3 Over 50 record, and had a lot of fun along the way.”

KATHRYN REFSHAUGE (1970) Dean, Faculty of Health Sciences and Professor of Physiotherapy at the University of Sydney was awarded an Order of Australia Medal in the 2016 Australia Day honours for service to physiotherapy, and to medical education.

Top: Lisa Robey.

Top: Nipuni Wijewickrema.

Above: Kate Smyth pictured with junior school students.

Above: Peter and Hannah.

KATE SMYTH (2011) started as a relief teacher at the Junior School in 2015. Kate graduated from CGGS in 2011 and is in her third year of a Bachelor of Education, majoring in Primary Teaching at the University of Canberra.

Kate says that this is her first time back at

ENGAGEMENTS HANNAH MARJASON (2005) and Peter Sanderson on Saturday 16 January at Airlie Beach, QLD.

GRAMMAR REPORT No. 102 | 27

MARRIAGES PAMELA (STOREY, 2006) married Alex Westcombe at Sacred Heart Church, Pearce on 29 November 2014. Her bridal party included Alice Storey (2010), Susan Healsmith (2006) and Elle Harrison (2006).

NATASHA JUDE (2006) married Dominic Weppner on 28 February 2015 at Ginninderry Homestead in NSW. Her bridal party included Michaela Salter-Harding (Harding, 2006).

Below: Natasha with her husband Dominic Weppner.

DATES FOR THE DIARY ▶▶ CGGS P&F NIGHT MARKETS – Friday 20 May, CGGS Senior School Quad, 5.30pm ▶▶ ALL 2016 REUNIONS – Saturday 21 May, CGGS Senior School ▶▶ ALUMNI COCKTAIL FUNCTION – Saturday 21 May, National Gallery of Australia, 6.30pm ▶▶ “FOUNDERS’ DAY” FAMILY AND FRIENDS’ CHAPEL SERVICE & MORNING TEA – Sunday 22 May, Chapel of the Annunciation, 9.30am ▶▶ FOUNDERS’ DAY SENIOR SCHOOL ASSEMBLY – Monday 23 May, CGGS Senior School Hall, 12pm ▶▶ GRAMMARIANS ASSOCIATION FOUNDERS’ DAY LUNCH – Monday 23 May, Boarding House Dining Room, 1pm ▶▶ ”SERVICE OF LIGHT” FAMILY AND FRIENDS’ CHAPEL SERVICE – Sunday, 5 June, Chapel of the Annunciation, 5.30pm ▶▶ GRIFFITH CGGS COMMUNITY EVENT – Wednesday 15 June, Limone, Griffith, 6.00pm

Top: Pamela (Storey, 2006) pictured with her husband Alex.

Above: Pamela and Alex pictured with their bridal party including past CGGS students Alice Storey (2010), Susan Healsmith (2006) and Elle Harrison (2006).

ELISE (COLE, 2004) married David Andrews at the Church of St John the Baptist, Reid on 12 December 2015. Her bridal party included Anneli Cole (2007).

Above: Natasha with her bridesmaid Michaela SalterHarding (Harding, 2006).

VALE GILLIAN MCKAY (MORRISON, 1962) 21 December 1945 – 23 July 2015 Adored Mother of Jodie Pang (Morrison 1985), Hermione Risstrom (Morrison 1989), Phillipa Morrison (1992) and Eleanor Morrison (1995).

KATHRYN EMILY ANNE YOUNG (1992) Died suddenly at the age of 40 on the weekend of 29–30 August 2015. Dearly loved daughter of Ruth and Peter and sister of Claire and Timothy.

Above: Elise and David pictured with their bridal party.

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▶▶ WAGGA WAGGA CGGS COMMUNITY EVENT – Friday 17 June, The Cellar, Townhouse Hotel, Wagga Wagga, 6.00pm ▶▶ LONDON CGGS COMMUNITY EVENT – July ▶▶ ”WINTER FEAST” FAMILY AND FRIENDS’ CHAPEL SERVICE – Sunday, 7 August, Chapel of the Annunciation, 5.30pm ▶▶ CGGS P&F ASSOCIATION WINTER BALL – Saturday, 13 August, Hotel Realm 7.30pm ▶▶ CGGS CHORAL CONCERT –Sunday, 14 August ▶▶ YEAR 3 GRANDPARENTS, GODPARENTS AND GRANDFRIENDS DAY – Friday 16 September ▶▶ YEAR 6 FATHER DAUGHTER DINNER – Thursday 13 October ▶▶ GRAMMARIANS’ ASSOCIATION YEAR 12 LEAVERS’ LUNCH – Thursday 20 October

CELEBRATING Innovation

2015 REUNIONS CLASS OF 1965 – 50 YEAR REUNION Laughter rippled from the Science Annex space as members of the Class of 1965 arrived for their 50-year reunion luncheon.

Along with members from many parts of Australia, Keiko Ohta travelled from Tokyo and Jenny Buchanan (Upton) from Scotland to attend this event. Thank you to Anne Coutts who took time out from her busy fete schedule to address the gathering and also present 50 Year badges to attendees.

There was wide consensus that Anne’s sneakers were very appropriate footwear allowing her to race from place to place during fete day. Head of Science, Richard Kent, escorted the group on a tour of the school, identifying where older buildings

Class of 1965 – 50 year reunion

had stood or been assimilated into the new complexes.

A dinner for past students and partners was held later that night at University House. Karen Rule (Warwick-Smith) shared some of the responses she had received from the 1965 past students that gave snapshots of careers they had followed post school. The organising committee had also asked attendees to share details of inspirational teachers during their time

The final event was a brunch at the

time; so class of 1965, mark 2020 in your

National Gallery on Sunday. This was

diary now.

followed by tours lead by past students who are members of the Gallery guide program: Rita Maclachlan (Gordon), Ann Parkinson (Etherington), Jan Whyte (Geikie) and Jenny Wilson (Richardson). The tour ended with an amazing group impromptu rendition of Jerusalem in the James Turrell Skyspace (we were grateful for the excellent acoustics!).

The members of the planning committee of Barb Selleck (Hamill), Sanchia Glaskin (Starke), Ann Howarth (Harvey), Jan Hyde (Hyde), Rita Maclachlan (Gordon), Jan Whyte (Geikie) and Virginia Wilton wish to acknowledge the considerable support provided by Laura Hannan, Alumni and Events Manager, and Amalta

at the school and this resulted in some

Past reunions for this group have been held

fascinating insights on the positive impact

in 1985, 1995, 2005 and 2010. With such a

that teachers can have on the choices

successful weekend, there was a popular

students make.

vote to hold another reunion in five years

Barbara Selleck (Hamill, 1965)

We met at CGGS on Sunday to see the

explaining the purpose of each of the (unfamiliar) buildings.

Sahay, CGGS Archivist in the planning and implementation of this event.

CLASS OF 1985 – 30 YEAR REUNION Travelling from near and afar we caught up on the last 10 years.

On Saturday 31 November we met at the Old Canberra Inn and enjoyed a night of talking, jenga, dancing and listening to live music (the singer being our own Tania Ladyzhynsky). We heard about how our

changes in the school, (for some of us

achievements we (and those missing)

to meet staff from our time there and

Thank you to Laura for her assistance in organising our reunion.

have made. It was wonderful to hear how

reflect on our individual experiences

See you in 20 more years (or sooner).

our families are growing up.

at CGGS. Peter (Mr Joyce) gave the tour

Jodie Pang (Morrison, 1985)

lives continue to grow and change, the

finding the front door was a challenge),

GRAMMAR REPORT No. 102 | 29

CLASS OF 1995 – 20 YEAR REUNION On Saturday, 7 November, the class of 1995 had their 20 year reunion. The huge turnout was a lovely reminder that after 20 years we continue to treasure our time at Canberra Girls Grammar, the friendships we forged and the experiences we had altogether.

A huge number of us attended the school tour – apparently one of the largest ever – with friends and old classmates travelling across town, from interstate and around the world to be there. Like all ‘old’ girls, we were amazed at just how far the school has come in 20 years and what amazing facilities it offers.

A special thanks must go to Mr Kent for his formidable tour of the school! It has to be said we were as noisy on Saturday as we were in science class 20 years ago, so thank you for your enduring patience and as always, good humour!

We also wish to thank Ms Coutts for sharing her time with us on Saturday. It was inspiring to hear what the school has achieved and what it continues to strive towards. But perhaps most significant of all was realising that the supportive and empowering culture we experienced as students 20 years ago, continues to grow and embolden those lucky enough to be attending Canberra Girls Grammar today.

So thank you, on behalf of the class of 1995, for inviting us back to remember what a great time we had and what a fortunate experience it was to attend Canberra Girls Grammar School.

A special thanks to Sasha Hardcastle (nee Nimmo) who shared her story in-absentia about her ongoing battle with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis, raising awareness of this severe illness and a dire lack of funding for research. (See http://emerge.org.au for more info.)

Lastly, a nod to our treasured friends and classmates Patricia White and Sophie MacKinnell – gone too soon, but forever in our hearts.

Class of 1995 – 20 year reunion

30 | GRAMMAR REPORT No. 102

Above: Skye Higgs, Kirsten Norton (nee Marsh), Leigh Anderson and Carla Webb (nee Adami)

KEEP IN TOUCH Please contact Alumni and Events Manager, Laura Hannan grammarians@cggs.act.edu.au or 02 6202 6403.

The School is also on Twitter and Facebook:

The Grammarians’ Association is now on LinkedIn. Join our private group to keep up-to-date with school news, events and information.

9

@_CGGS www.facebook.com/CanberraGirls GrammarSchool

CELEBRATING Innovation CLASS OF 2005 – 10 YEAR REUNION The afternoon started with nervous steps onto the now unfamiliar grounds of CGGS and ended with interlinked arms on the dance floor and nostalgia free-pouring.

On 7 November 2015, with plenty of mixed emotions, the class of 2005 landed on the

lawns of a school that has seen an incredible transformation in the past decade.

But as they say, the more things change the more they stay the same, and after a glass of bubbles to get the conversation flowing, it wasn’t long before the alumni

were huddled in the new science building attempting to recall the words to the beloved hymn Jerusalem.

The group welcomed with joy teachers past and present – Mr Kent, Mr Weigall, Mr Blue, Mr Cooney, Mrs Macdonald and Mrs Tatchell joined in on the tour and indulged the group with behind-the-scenes stories and memories from their time teaching the class of 2005. Special thanks also to Ms Coutts who took the time to welcome us to the school.

Not surprisingly, this group of women have made their own mark on the world.

From international lawyers and curators of customer experience, to mothers of one and two and budding entrepreneurs, the life directions were varied but the sentiment was the same – Grammarians can and do, do anything.

That night, at the nearby Ottoman restaurant, alumni jumped from seat to seat, catching up with familiar faces. The night peaked with CGGS-themed rounds of trivia and a review of the ‘most likely to’ – some of which were frighteningly accurate.

Shared experience is certainly the strongest of glues – the turn out to this event evidenced the significance of the growth undertaken during the cohort’s formative teen years.

While school reunions can elicit a sense of panic and self-consciousness, the gathering ended with talks of planning the 20 year reunion (and maybe even a 15th!), a sign of the value the girls found in reuniting.

The reunion was a wonderful opportunity to rekindle the sense of support we felt in our school years and to celebrate the diversity and success of our class mates.

Hannah Purdy (2005)

Top: Class of 2005 – 10 year reunion.

Left: Hannah Purdy, Shiara Samarasinghe, Ella Ward, Natalia Thomas and Christina Waldron

GRAMMAR REPORT No. 102 | 31

CGGS IN LONDON

The CGGS alumni event in London played host to a wide range of past students in the historic Houses of Parliament overlooking the Thames. It was a wonderful evening bringing together a diverse group of graduates on the other side of the world to celebrate our schooling in Canberra.

Members of the CGGS community in the United Kingdom flocked to the House of Commons in London on Monday, 13 July 2015 for a special event hosted by Principal Anne Coutts.

Grammarians and past parents took the opportunity catch up and share memories and stories about life at CGGS. We were delighted to also welcome parents of future students to the event and look forward to extending our hospitality to them as they enter the School community.

Alix Biggs (2012) 1

Anne Coutts updated the 55 guests on current activities at CGGS and the future plans while Alix Biggs (2012) and Philippa Crowther (2012), School Captain and Vice Captain respectively, also spoke about the School and what they have been up to since graduating.

The next UK event will be hosted in London in July 2016 – we look forward to seeing new and familiar faces. Contact Laura Hannan, Alumni and Events Manager to register your interest.

1 Charlotte Marshall (2008) and Alix Biggs (2012)

in London.

2 Rebecca Norman-Taylor (Randall, 1987) with Mary

Notaras (1988).

3 Amy Metcalfe, Andrew Harrison and Anne Coutts.

4 Philip, Philippa (2012) and Annette Crowther.

2

3

32 | GRAMMAR REPORT No. 102

4

CELEBRATING Innovation

CGGS IN SYDNEY The Sydney CGGS alumni evening was a lovely opportunity to catch up with friends and share stories with other CGGS ‘old girls’. The networking events are a great initiative, both my sister (in London) and I were able to attend an event in 2015.

We were delighted to greet 50 guests to the Royal Sydney Yacht Squadron in Kirribilli on Tuesday, 29 September 2015 for a cocktail function held for the CGGS community in Sydney.

Grammarians from 1947 through to 2011 mingled with current staff and future parents – the group of 50 enjoyed catching up with the splendid Sydney Harbour as a backdrop.

Principal Anne Coutts updated guests on the plans for our 90th celebrations as well as current happenings at the School.

Mary Johnson (2008) 1

This event was a great success which gave many guests the chance to reconnect with their peers after many years as well as sharing their favourite memories from their time at CGGS. Plenty of excitement was generated amongst the group with many already looking forward to the next time we visit Sydney.

1 Dimity O’Leary (McWilliam, 1997) and Verity

McWilliam (1994).

2 Jolan Draaisma (Yik-Paal, 1997) and Verity

McWilliam (Chapman, 1994).

3 Past students and parents, current and future

parents as well as current and past staff at the Sydney event.

2

3

GRAMMAR REPORT No. 102 | 33

ARCHIVES TO HELP WITH THE SCHOOL’S 90TH ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATIONS WE WOULD LIKE TO ASK FOR ANY SCHOOL RELATED ITEMS YOU CAN DONATE OR LEND TO THE ARCHIVES FOR USE IN DISPLAYS. IN PARTICULAR, WE ARE LOOKING FOR FULL SCHOOL UNIFORMS FROM THE 1950S AND 1990S AND ITEMS WITH THE SCHOOL CREST ON THEM, FOR EXAMPLE: SCHOOL BAGS, HATS, PENCIL CASES AND DIARIES. Also, if you have any photos from your time here at CGGS, we would be very grateful if you could donate them or let us scan them into our Archives.

Please provide as much information as possible with every item or photo.

THANK YOU Thank you to the following people for identifying girls in the 1978 Daughters of Old Grammarians photo from Grammar Report Issue 101: Emily Lawton (Craven, 1989), Liz Mulcahy (McPherson, 1981), Pam Christian (Windsor, 1964), Annabelle Butler (1985), Rachel Nixon (Taber, 1986), Claire Buchtmann (Chapman, 1985) and Eleanor Dean (1988).

Through your efforts, we were able to identify most of the girls.

Thank you to the following for their generous donations to our Archives: ff Science Department for Science exams from the 1980s ff Kylie Dolman from the Uniform Shop for past uniform items ff Library staff for the books that were given to them as gifts from Grammarians

34 | GRAMMAR REPORT No. 102

1978 Daughters of Old Grammarians – updated. Back Row L – R: Kylie MCKAY (HOULAHAN, 1985), Megan LEWIS (1985), Dimity DOUGLAS-BYRNE (DOUGLAS, 1988), Joanna PANG (MORRISON, 1985), ____, ____. Front Row L – R: Sarah CHRISTIAN (1991), ____, Hermione RISSTROM (MORRISON, 1989), Felicity WOODS (MILLER, 1990), Marie MCCOY (1989)

ff Mrs Amanda Johnson for the Futsal medals ff Norma Stenner (Davis, 1947) for her school blazers and photo album ff Gladys Rigney (Winnett, 1945) for two photos from 1980 of girls in house groups and a set of CCEGGS embossed drinking glasses ff Dawn Waterhouse (Calthorpe, 1940) & Del Coleman (Calthorpe, 1935) for their collection of photos, programmes and invitations for various school events, exam papers and school memorabilia from their time in the school and their

involvement with the Grammarians Association after graduating from the school ff Adele Rosalky for her donation of a CCEGGS school blazer ff Leith Schmidt (Johnson, 1981) for her donation of a CCEGGS school blazer ff Margaret Cornwall (Archer) for her numerous news clippings and the aprons worn by the Grammarians Association during the School Fete in the 1990s.

CELEBRATING Innovation

CONSERVATION TIPS In our Archives we are fortunate enough to have a wide variety of original items that help identify our vast history. One of our biggest collections is our photographic collection. We have original photos from as early as 1931 and to make sure that we still have them for decades to come, we have to store them in a way that best preserves them.

Since not everyone is lucky enough to have their own Archives, which is designed and maintained by museum standards, to house such valuable items, here are some tips to help you look after your precious memories: ff Photographic materials benefit from a cool, dry, well-ventilated storage environment so avoid storing them in the attic or basement or areas where the environmental conditions change drastically constantly. ff The optimal storage conditions for most photographs are a temperature of 22°C and relative humidity in the range of 40–50%. Film-based negatives and contemporary colour photographs benefit from storage in cooler environments of 15–20°C and 30–40% relative humidity.

Whole School 1931

ff Keep photographic materials in enclosures that protect them from dust and light and provide physical support during use. Photo albums protect your photos but remember to never use sticky tape or ‘Blu-Tack’ to secure a photo as it will cause irreversible damage.

In the next issue of Grammar Report I will share some tips on how to store and handle

textiles. In the meantime, if you have any further questions or would like some more advice, please do not hesitate to contact me on the details below.

Amalta Sahay ARCHIVIST P: 02 6202 6457 (Monday to Thursday) E: archives@cggs.act.edu.au

CAN YOU HELP? Can you name any of the students in this photo? In 1981, a group of 30 students accompanied by Mrs Hartshorne, Mrs Geering and Mrs James travelled to China for 21 days. This photo was taken a few days before they left and was published in the Canberra Times.

Unidentified – 1981 Students who were going on the School Trip to China

GRAMMAR REPORT No. 102 | 35

Canberra Girls Grammar School Melbourne Ave, Deakin ACT 2600 T: 02 6202 6400 | F: 02 6273 2554 CRICOS provider No. 01294F ABN 67 008 559 331

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