Light Blue - April 2025 Issue

Geelong Grammar School was established 170 years ago, in October 1855, in anticipation of a grant from the Church of England for the construction of a dedicated school building. What began with 13 students in temporary premises in Villamanta Street, grew into the grand Gothic bluestone school building on Moorabool Street in 1858 (as featured on page 36 of this issue of Light Blue).

Editor

Brendan McAloon

Design

Claire Robson

Sofie Van Gunsteren

Photographers

Stef Driscoll

Mike Dugdale

Nick Fletcher

Drew Ryan

Nick Sculley

Contributors

Jacqueline Adams

Sophie Church

Nick Sculley

Website www.ggs.vic.edu.au

Email lightblue@ggs.vic.edu.au

An Old Boys’ Day was held 125 years ago, in December 1900, “in celebration of the birth of the Australian Commonwealth”, which led to the foundation of The Old Geelong Grammarians Association.

Co-education spread to Timbertop 50 years ago, with the first 13 girls arriving in Term 3, 1975, followed by 14 more at the beginning of 1976 as part of an accelerated programme as the campus shifted from Year 10 to Year 9.

Leonie KosasiPapdan (Yr12 A)

(Yr12

PRINCIPAL’S PERSPECTIVE Prioritising Progression

progression (noun)

The process of developing or moving gradually towards a more advanced state.

Oxford English Dictionary (2025)

It has been five years since we launched the Strategic Framework to map our School for further success, advancement and sustainability. Set collaboratively in 2019, the Framework has acted as a focus and a filter for decision-making, directing us to honour our foundations, optimise the present, and strengthen our future. As we navigated the upheaval of the COVID-19 pandemic and charted a course of change by choice, the Framework anchored us to holistically and consistently live our promise of Exceptional Education

It is timely then to reflect on the strategic and educational initiatives our School has undertaken since we launched the Framework. At the beginning of Term 4, 2024 I shared a series of Progression Reports that substantiate the School’s improvement agenda within key portfolios, from learning and teaching, to infrastructure and sustainability. These Progression Reports were followed by a school-wide Parent Satisfaction Survey seeking feedback, understanding and clarity of what it is that our community continues to value most – what is it that we are doing well, and what is it that we can do better?

As an aspirational community, we always want to be better and do better. Continuous improvement is part of our light blue DNA. For 170 years, GGS has been pioneering transformative experiences and progressive choices in education. Our ultimate aspiration is to make a positive difference for ourselves and our world. With Exceptional Education as our overarching vision and Enabling Wisdom as our underpinning ethos, the three Strategic Educational Pillars (Adventure Education, Positive Education and Creative Education) and five Strategic Imperatives (Ethicality, Collaboration, Inclusivity, Progression and Substantiation) guide us to leverage change for the betterment of our entire School community; locally, nationally and internationally.

Learning, Teaching, and Academic Innovation

We continue to strengthen our learning culture, resulting in improved academic achievement from our youngest students through to Year 12. We have introduced a series of initiatives to nurture academic engagement, prioritise progression and growth, and create a life-long love of learning. The implementation of our Learning Management System (LMS), the Hive, has improved accessibility of learning resources and enhanced student assessment. The Hive enabled the introduction of Continuous Reporting, which has further strengthened student-teacher-parent partnerships, providing feedback on each student’s learning in real time. In addition, we have expanded standardised testing in non-NAPLAN years to better track and support student growth. Our Academic Accountability and Learning Behaviour Frameworks set clear expectations and responsibilities for our secondary students (Years 7-12) at Corio and Timbertop, whilst our GGS Primary Strategic Plan has developed a cross-campus approach to assessment, augmented by the successful introduction of the International Baccalaureate (IB) Primary Years Programme (PYP) Curriculum Framework at Bostock House and Corio. Our Creative Education Collaborators have also supported the alignment of practice across our primary campuses to create a shared vision for GGS Primary, as evident in the creation of one Assessment Policy, one approach to continuous reporting, and opportunities for specialist teachers to collaborate on PYP Units of Inquiry.

We are delighted with the ongoing evolution of academic culture across the whole School, and the resultant student outcomes; for example, our Academic Colours assembly at Corio in Term 3, 2024 marked a 260% increase in the number of students achieving Academic Colours since 2021. Our graduating Class of 2024 achieved outstanding Victorian Certificate of Education (VCE) and International Baccalaureate (IB) results, contributing to a combined median ATAR (Australian Tertiary Admission Rank) score of 84.7, which builds on last year’s median (82.90) and is above our 10-year average (81.91). We have been buoyed by the strengthening of our VCE results, with the VCE median rising almost 10 points in the past five years. In summary and pleasingly, now half of our graduating GGS students are ranked in the top 15% of all students in Australia, and 70% are in the top 25% of students nationwide.

Student Safeguarding

Student Safeguarding is a critical priority for our School. Creating and maintaining an environment where students are safe is a fundamental responsibility that underpins our commitment to fostering quality relationships, and the transformational influence of co-education and boarding. In the decade since the public hearing of the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse, we have made significant progress to ensure that our ongoing approach to safeguarding is proactive and dynamic, and embedded in our systems and culture. We continue to move forward by recognising the devastating impacts and effects of childhood sexual abuse and by never losing sight of the learnings from them.

We have used the learnings of the Royal Commission, in addition to our own experience, to implement a Student Safeguarding Framework with strategies and policies that align with Victorian Child Safe Standards and are supported by role-specific Codes of Conduct. We created a new cross-campus role, Student Safeguarding and Risk Officer, and have expanded professional learning and development opportunities for all staff. We have also implemented Unit and Boarding House audits (twice annually), as well as facilitating an external boarding audit by the Victorian Registration and Qualifications Authority (VRQA). We continue to empower student voice, expanding Student Safety Concern Boxes, anonymous online reporting and student wellbeing surveys. Our focus on Student Safeguarding practices and conversations acknowledges the shared accountability and commitment to Student Safeguarding from all members of our community.

Rebecca Cody, pictured with top performing students from the Class of 2024 for the High Achievers' Assembly

Rebecca breaking ground on the new Junior School with Lyons Construction managing director Steve Lyons (Fr’87) and Bostock House students.

Student Experience and Engagement with our Strategic Pillars

We continue to place wellbeing at the heart of all learning, developing students who are ready to engage in a flourishing life beyond GGS. Our School is not only proud to be a pioneer in the field of Positive Education, but we pride ourselves on our ongoing evolution of proactive strategies to strengthen wellbeing in our community. Our wholehearted commitment remains steadfast, as has the overriding emphasis on community wellbeing. Harnessing our experience and expertise in Positive Education, we introduced the GGS Student Wellbeing Model in 2021. The model encompasses our whole-school approach to student wellbeing, incorporating the tenets of Positive Education with the interconnected network of people, programmes and policies that support emotional and physical wellbeing. We continue to review and refine the model, utilising the latest research and evidence about the science of wellbeing in educational contexts.

A decade since it was established, our Institute of Positive Education continues to support and inspire school communities through the provision of teaching and learning tools, resources and curriculum. The Institute developed a Positive Education Enhanced Curriculum (PEEC), which is now utilised by more than 200 schools worldwide. It provides training, particularly through the popular online Discovering Positive Education course, and leads a Community of Practice, collaborating and engaging with wellbeing research, and sharing examples of effective practice across schools in Australia and overseas.

We have also progressed how we engage students with co-curricular opportunities that reveal and nurture talents, confidence, and fulfilment. We have developed an integrated Student Experience and Engagement Co-curricular (SEECC) Framework for all activities offered outside the classroom. The Framework includes classification of the six SEECC domains of Sport (competitive and recreational), Creative (visual and performing arts, including music), Community Service, Cognitive Activities (such as debating), Hobbies and Lifetime Pursuits, and Adventure Education. Through the introduction of Year 10 Adventures (another highlight of 2024), we have contemporaneously advanced our cross-campus approach to Adventure Education with 15 expeditions, across 12 unique locations, in three different states, involving 180 students. We have grown our Community Service offering too, strengthening partnerships with Fiji Book Drive and local social enterprise Norlane Community Initiatives. We also celebrated success in Cognitive Activities, with our 1st Debating team topping the Geelong region of the Debating Association of Victoria (DAV) Schools’ Competition to qualify for the Victorian final, and our Year 10 Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) team winning the Science and Engineering Challenge State Final to represent Victoria at the National Final in Townsville.

Every year our students progress through age-appropriate learning programmes at each campus.

The first Year 10 Adventure for 2025 saw our students Sea Kayaking in the majestic Freycinet National Park in Tasmania.

Creative Education has assisted with such progression through improved transition experiences of students via our Middle School Connect (Year 6 into 7, and Year 7 into 8), building connection, psychological safety, collaborative problem solving, and expectations of students in their role within the GGS community. The Ticket to Timbertop initiative (preparation for skills, community culture and independent mindsets needed to succeed at Timbertop) is another example of strengthened programming and scaffolding for what comes next in our GGS student experience timeline and is a collaboration with Adventure Education through the Great Victorian Bike Ride (GVBR) expansion (GGS first participated in the GVBR in 1994 and it has been a compulsory activity for all Year 8s since 2023). Similarly, the Corio Connect schedule was initiated in 2021 to enable the transition from Timbertop to Year 10 to be better supported. Creative Education strategies have been instrumental in connecting Timbertop students with many Corio characters that help shape the stories of a successful start to Year 10.

Likewise, student leadership pathways are meaningful transition points that have been developed through the expertise of our Creative Education team. As one example, the Year 11 mentoring of Year 7 students has evolved since its inception in 2023. The enabling of experiences to learn, and practice, skills and attitudes that build our capacity to serve through leadership has been welcomed by students and colleagues alike. Indeed, authentic student leadership opportunities, such as peer mentoring, the oversubscribed Environmental Action Team, and Global Citizens Committee, build confidence and culture, especially in relation to belonging, collaboration and service.

At Geelong Grammar School, we know that enduring learning extends beyond the classroom and the curriculum. Alongside a high-quality academic education, we strive to progress each student’s emotional, intellectual, ethical, social, physical, and spiritual development. With the Strategic Framework to guide, support, encourage and direct our actions and initiatives, we choose to blaze our own trail. This overarching and underpinning Framework reflects the moral responsibility to prioritise progression, and to provide exceptional learning opportunities that enable our young people to be well prepared to navigate the complexities of our world.

Published in our 170th year, this 115th edition of Light Blue is ultimately a celebration of our progressive learning community: mostly, it is a tribute to the people who never lose hope or focus in supporting and prioritising positive progression that enriches the education of the young people in our care, and the future sustainability of our School – enjoy!

Rebecca Cody Principal

Timbertop students participated in a Creative Ed Day in 2024, putting their problem-solving skills and creativity to the test through a series of activities immersed in the natural surrounds of nearby bushland.

Our Toorak Campus community held several “fun mornings” during Term 1, featuring an array of activities to build connections and start the day on a positive note.

Chair of Council

Artist’s impression of the Junior School site

Progression is defined as “a movement forward, in particular one that advances towards some desired or required achievement”.

Progression is, of course, not always (and sometimes perhaps never) achieved in a straight line. Schools such as Geelong Grammar sometimes succumb to the reality that progression can take many paths and much time – it has not always been smooth sailing for GGS. The old school in central Geelong (featured in this issue of Light Blue) is a case in point. The grand, bluestone school building was constructed at great expense and was opened in 1857 by the Governor of Victoria, Sir Henry Barkly KCB. However, it left the School’s trustees with a substantial debt just as Geelong was sinking into economic decline, driven by dwindling yields from the State’s goldfields, increased competition from South Australia and an ongoing recession in Britain.

The School subsequently closed temporarily in 1860 when the trustees could not service this debt. The then vice-principal, John Bracebridge Wilson, kept 60 students together at a private school, where he also provided evening classes for adults. A new constitution for GGS was adopted in 1862 (including the “radical change” that the headmaster was no longer required to be a Church of England clergyman), and Wilson was rewarded for his efforts in 1863 when he was appointed headmaster, reviving and re-shaping the School’s fortunes. Wilson was headmaster for 33 years, until his death in 1895, and has been dubbed an “epic figure” in the School’s history. Clearly American writer Mark Twain was too glib when he wrote that “lack of money is the root of all evil”. While this is a well-dated account, it nonetheless shows that tough times can be overcome, and progress can thereby prevail.

The expansion of the Corio Campus with a new, purpose-built Junior School was announced in 2022. This significant strategic project was described as a transformational “Timbertop moment”, and an exciting new phase for our Bostock House community. The new Junior School will have an emphasis on nature and inquiry-based learning that leverages the Timbertop experience and enlivens Adventure Education for all students at Corio.

Old school building in Maud St

Mangroves at Hovells Creek

Located to the northern aspect of our 230-hectare campus, the Junior School connects to the natural ecosystem of fields, creek, ponds, grasslands and lagoon (which is a Ramsar wetlands site and Parks Victoria wildlife reserve) as well as the exceptional playing fields and facilities that Corio offers.

The Junior School project has faced several obstacles, delayed by complex planning matters (bushfire, native vegetation, water and flood management, and cultural heritage) amidst a highly inflationary environment. Nonetheless, progression has persisted. The building contract was awarded to Geelongbased commercial building company, Lyons Construction, led by managing director Steve Lyons (Fr’87), in August last year. The project gained approval from the Department of Transport and Planning (DTP), and construction began at the end of Term 3, with the concrete slab/building pad poured in November. The structural steel frame has since been erected and work continues to progress positively – it is anticipated that we will welcome the Bostock House community to Corio in early 2026.

The ongoing focus on and work for the new Junior School at Corio has been boosted by a $10 million gift from the Geelong Grammar Foundation’s Endowment Fund to support the Corio Campus Masterplan.

Such an endowment adds tremendous surety to this important project, which will also be co-funded through the sale of our Noble Street site (which has been home to Bostock House since 1997). The Foundation’s leading gift will play a vital role in the progression of the Corio Campus Masterplan, which has been created collaboratively to provide plans and guiding principles for the future development of the Corio Campus. The new Junior School feeds into the progress of the overall Masterplan, enabling projects such as the link road, which will improve traffic flow, parking and drop-off, service Facilities, and support the pedestrian needs for the core of Biddlecombe Avenue.

The Junior School will be impressive in size and scale. It will also be a catalyst project for further progression. A Masterplan has been developed for Timbertop (which celebrated its 70-year anniversary in 2023) and a Masterplan is being finalised for the Toorak Campus. The latter will be re-orientated and existing facilities will be refreshed to accommodate the introduction of Year 7 students in 2027, followed by Year 8 in 2028. These masterplans will equip the School with a roadmap for the future development of each of our campuses.

Wetlands at Junior School

Given completion of the final masterplans, the various projects will naturally be shared with our School community. This will showcase the vision and tangible plan that underpin the continued delivery of exceptional education at GGS. And if the School community support and philanthropic contributions continue as they have – which the Council believes they will – this will guide the all-important progression of further developments.

If only we were all kangaroos and emus, we would have the natural ability to never take a backward step! My call is “don’t look back GGS”. Progression resides deeply in your hands.

Paddy Handbury (M’72) Chair of Council

JUNIOR SCHOOL AT CORIO CAMPUS

FAQs

Frequently Asked Questions

Uniquely situated among native grasslands, trees and wetlands, our new Junior School will provide primary-aged learners with opportunities for meaningful connection—to each other, to nature, and to inquiry-based learning that sparks curiosity, creativity and imagination. Located on the northern aspect of our 230-hectare Corio Campus, the Junior School will provide students and families with access to world-class facilities, strengthening learning opportunities and supporting a seamless transition into Middle School and Senior School.

Q: How will the nature-based environment support student learning?

A: The Junior School’s nature-based environment will combine with the IB Primary Years Programme (PYP) framework to provide a strong foundation for rigorous, inquiry-based learning. The PYP curriculum encourages students to develop curiosity, critical thinking and problem solving, making meaningful connections across subjects, whilst the nature-based environment enables students to apply their learning in relevant, real-life situations. NAPLAN results have consistently placed Bostock House among the top-performing primary schools in the Geelong region and we will continue to prioritise strong foundational skills in literacy and numeracy.

Q: When will the Junior School at Corio Campus open?

A: Construction is progressing towards completion by the end of 2025, with the Junior School to open in 2026.

Q: How has the Junior School been funded?

A: Construction of the new Junior School will be primarily funded by the sale of the Bostock House site at Noble Street and a $10 million gift from the Geelong Grammar Foundation’s Endowment Fund to support the Corio Campus Masterplan.

Q: What are the year levels at Junior School when it opens?

A: The Junior School building is designed to accommodate one class per year level from Prep to Year 4. Students in Year 5 will transition into Middle School, while an Early Learning Centre (ELC) will be located on the western side of the Corio Campus, close to the School Road entrance.

Q: How many students will the Junior School cater for?

A: The Junior School will initially accommodate 116 students. There will be a maximum of 22 students per class in Prep and Year 1, while class sizes in Years 2 to 4 will have a maximum of 24 students. The Junior School is designed to strengthen the enrolment pipeline of day students into Middle School and Senior School, and to support the predominant boarding offering at Corio – more than half (55%) of Years 7 and 8 students are boarders, whilst 80% of Senior School students (Years 10 to 12) are boarders. We are proudly Australia’s largest boarding community and remain firmly committed to the transformational influence of residential learning and living.

Q: Why did Bostock House have to be relocated?

A: As has happened before, the School’s ambitions outgrew the site. This represents the fourth move for what began as the Geelong Preparatory Grammar School in the parish hall at Christ Church Geelong in 1924, moved to Pakington Street in 1926, was renamed Bostock House in 1933, moved to Highton in 1962, and then to Noble Street in 1988. The move to Corio in 2026 will realise the School’s vision of a learning experience that embodies the Strategic Pillars of Adventure Education, Positive Education and Creative Education, with a particular emphasis on experiential learning through and with nature that leverages the Timbertop experience and enlivens adventure for all students at Corio. It also enables the leadership and mentoring possibilities of having ELC to Year 12 students on the one campus for the first time in the School’s history.

Q. Will the Bostock name be retained at Corio?

A. Yes. While the Noble Street site will be sold, the Bostock name will endure, with plans to preserve it in a meaningful way at Corio and to continue the nurturing community culture that is at the heart of Bostock House.

Q. How does the Junior School relate to the Corio Campus Masterplan?

A. The Junior School is a catalyst project for further progression of the Corio Campus Masterplan, enabling initiatives such as the link road, which will improve traffic flow, parking and drop-off, service Facilities, and support the pedestrian needs for the core of Biddlecombe Avenue. Work has also continued to advance designs to reconfigure and revitalise the Garnett and Perry boarding houses.

Q. What are the key sustainability features?

A. The all-electric, net zero building design incorporates optimal passive performance, creating a highly sustainable baseline. A significant 196kW solar array can be scaled up to 380kW as the precinct expands. Rainwater harvesting will be utilised for toilet flushing, irrigation and wash down, minimising reliance on mains water for potable supply. Landscaping will contribute to ecological restoration of the site.

Q. Is there a waiting list?

A. Yes. Waiting lists are already in place for some year levels in 2026. If a year level reaches capacity, applicants will be placed on a waiting list and places will be offered as they become available.

Q. Who can I contact if I have further questions?

A. For all enquiries regarding enrolments, transition or general information, please contact our Admissions team at admissions@ggs.vic.edu.au or call +61 3 5273 9307

YEAR 6 STONEHAVEN Adventure

Year 6 students from Corio and Toorak Campus embraced courage, curiosity and compassion during their Stonehaven Adventure in Term 1. They camped on the edge of the Corio Campus, kayaked on Limeburners Lagoon, tackled abseiling and orienteering in the You Yangs, enjoyed night walks, met farm animals and explored local ecosystems, planting trees and learning about native flora and fauna. A special visit to the School’s Stonehaven bush property featured a Welcome to Country from Wadawurrung Cultural Education (Ngarrwa) Officer Ash Skinner and fun team-building activities. Students reflected on their experiences through the lens of the three campus values:

COURAGE

“ I showed courage by going in the wilderness and being dirty for three days straight.”

– Jay

CURIOSITY

“ Putting up a tent was new for me. So, when we needed to do this, I had to show curiosity and ask questions to learn how to do it. I also listened carefully to Ms Ridley’s instructions so I could put the tent up successfully.”

– Freddie

COMPASSION

“ Being away from home was challenging for me, but my friends showed me compassion by being nice to me and supporting me through all of it.”

– Julia

A sunset earned TIMBERTOP

Last week I was hiking with some students along Buttercup Road and the chatter centred around the feelings of homesickness they experienced in the early days, yet in such a short time, they have already formed strong friendships and created lasting memories. Their growth was evident when one commented about their first night as a new student-

“waking up in a dorm full of strangers… but now they are my friends”.

Whilst the students are excited and ready for Term break, they realise and appreciate how far they have come and that they have become a part of something truly meaningful.

Every week students are presented with new challenges, and every week they become more capable, more resilient, and better prepared than the week before. Inevitably, the overcoming of what initially seem insurmountable obstacles, is followed closely by a deep sense of satisfaction that comes from paring back the layers of what students believe to be possible for themselves. Such is the pattern of life in Term 1 at Timbertop. Matty Tyndall, our Head of Outdoors, spoke to the students in the Dining Hall about the difference between a sunset given and a sunset earned. Students now know the difference and are discovering the sense of achievement, joy and contentment that can exist on the other side of challenge.

Hikes provide the biggest outdoor challenge across Term 1 –Up Timbertop, Mt Stirling, West Ridge and Bluff, building up to 3 Peaks and the Three-Day Hike. I have been impressed by the fortitude and determination students have displayed in the mountains in very warm conditions. As I hiked up the steep and spectacular West Ridge in the baking sun, I did not hear complaints nor did I have to address negativity. Naturally, some groups disagreed when making decisions and the physicality of the challenge tested their emotional regulation at times, but this is a valuable part of the learning experience. I couldn’t help but feel grateful to be sharing this time with our students in the mountains, away from social media and devices, with their friends and immersed in nature. What impressed me most, however, was that the students had the presence of mind to appreciate the stunning surroundings. A few joined me for an optional post-dinner jaunt up Little Buller to watch a stunning sunset, others paused as they were walking to take photos of the endless and vast mountain ranges that lay before them. Groups sat and ate their lunch in grassy patches shaded by snow gums feeling satisfied they had earned their rest. To see students taking it all in, chatting happily with their friends whilst cooking their dinner and feeling proud at their achievements was a joy.

Ross Hopkins Head of Timbertop

WEST RIDGE

A few weeks ago, we packed our packs, left our comfortable beds behind, and hiked the West Ridge. It was a challenging few days, and while at some points it felt nearly impossible, when I think back now, all I remember is how fun it was. The views as we clambered to the finish on day two were nothing short of brilliant. Beautiful mountains stretched far into the distance, eliciting both pride and terror at just how high up we were. Between climbing across rocks on our hands and knees, we all spared at least a few moments to be absolutely awe-struck at how well we had done, before we all returned to clinging onto the mountain-face for dear life. But even with such pretty views, to finally have finished the second day of the hike was a relief like no other, especially when it came with the promise of food, rest, and a beautiful sunset.

I couldn’t possibly make myself walk more to watch the aforementioned sunset from a better vantage point, but through the trees I could see as the last of the day’s sunlight painted the whole sky in glorious shades of gold and orange, until it finally slipped away to allow us to rest.

I will never forget the pretty views and wonderful times on this hike, or how accomplished (and tired) I felt when it was done.

Anjelica Owen (K Unit)

EVOLVING POSITIVE EDUCATION

Our new Head of Positive Education, Cat Lamb, has been engaged with the School’s ongoing development of Positive Education from the very beginning, when Professor Martin Seligman and his team from The University of Pennsylvania introduced the science of Positive Psychology to our School in 2008. From her time as a teacher and Head of Unit at Timbertop to supporting other schools through the Institute of Positive Education, Cat has been on the frontline of the evolution of Positive Education and the science of student wellbeing.

Positive Psychology And Character Development

As a sessional Outdoor Education staff member at Timbertop (2007-10), I saw a lot of Positive Education in action. When I started a full-time role at Timbertop in 2011, I was formally introduced to Positive Education through the Discovering Positive Education course. My experience of Outdoor Education had always been about character development occurring in the natural world through small community living, through facing challenge, and through facilitated conversations that helped transfer that learning back into other situations and settings. That is absolutely what Timbertop is and always has been, and there was just so much synchronicity between Outdoor Education and Positive Education and the development of character. Kurt Hahn’s ethos that “there is more in us than we know” is so strong through all our programmes, not just at Timbertop. Our development of Positive Education is another way we support young people to find “more” in and about themselves. We are also teaching them to live in a community. Sam Parsons (P’14) said in last year’s Annual Giving video that Geelong Grammar School was “the best place to build a community for young people”. Community and character development are our core products and I think that’s why Positive Psychology resonated and grew so well here because this School has always been about those things.

Research and the real world

We are research-based. Positive Education introduces young people to strategies that we know have a better likelihood of working than not. It is the science of Positive Psychology, but it’s also intuition, and we can be intentional about intuition. There are experts like Dr Karen Reivich from the University of Pennsylvania who talk about Positive Psychology as stuff your grandma could have taught you. For example, I’m getting my Year 10 class to write gratitude letters today.

My grandma taught me to write thank you letters. It is research-based but it’s also common sense. Intuition suggests this is worthwhile, and the science of gratitude describes how and why it supports wellbeing and assists young people to learn and grow.

This combination of research and the real world helps us provide a comprehensive tool kit for students to use proactively in the future. If we teach them about growth mindset, the challenge is to also teach them how to transfer that to the English classroom or their Physics exam. It doesn’t happen by chance, it’s by design. Timbertop didn’t just accidentally become the place that it is. There were a lot of very thoughtful initiatives and interventions that went into making it the place and the programme that it is today. It’s not by chance, it’s by design, and it’s intuition with intentionality. Having a curriculum framework allows us to be more intentional, to be more consistent, and to teach explicit skills before they’re needed, but for students to also reflect on the experiences they’ve had in order to transfer the learning to other contexts.

Building a community of practice

I was a Head of Unit at Timbertop and I realised that the pastoral care was what I loved most; connecting with young people, helping them to see something in themselves that maybe they didn’t before, and helping them navigate the trials and tribulations of life. I studied a Masters of Positive Psychology and became a trainer and content developer for the Institute of Positive Education. The role was largely supporting other schools. I was facilitating teacher training, developing resources, running the Discovering and Introduction to Positive Education courses here at GGS and at other schools, and

Left: Head of Positive Education, Cat Lamb, and Positive Education Collaborator, Jacqui Moses, led a Parent Workshop at Toorak Campus in Term 1 as part of the Wellbeing for Breakfast series

delivering training on topics like character strengths. It was a very unique experience, to visit other schools and to get a taste of their culture and how that aligned with Positive Education. At the time, it was still a really new thing and it was unique in that it was a philosophy not a programme or a curriculum – we weren’t giving out lesson plans (the Institute of Positive Education has since developed a research-based, developmentally sequenced Positive Education Enhanced Curriculum that is used by more than 200 schools worldwide). But we were leading the way and sharing Positive Education with other schools. There are a lot of wellbeing programmes in education now and many are more about social-emotional learning (SEL). What we are referring to is the science of Positive Psychology. I think that the most important thing is that it fits the context because every school has its own unique context. What we do works here. But we also have a lot more people around us now who are doing this as well, so we can collaborate and continue to be generous and generative.

Evolving our approach

The first wave of Positive Psychology, which was spearheaded by Martin Seligman and Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, focused primarily on what makes life worth living. It aimed to shift psychology’s traditional focus on mental illness and dysfunction towards strengths, virtues and wellbeing. There was an early misunderstanding that it was all about self – my positive emotions, my character strengths, my flow, my life satisfaction. We’ve really seen an evolution, where Positive Psychology is much more about community and connection. How do I live in a community? How do I engage with others? How do I know myself to know others? That’s been a big shift in the field, towards considering not just an individual’s wellbeing but their environment and their relationships. Scholars like Michael Steger at Colorado State University are saying the next wave of Positive Psychology that is emerging recognises some of the challenges we face today, like climate change, inequality and mental health. You know, we’re not in 2008 anymore, so we are drawing from the most recent research, and we’ve got a lot of new things that we can be synthesizing into the proactive strategies that our students have got in their tool kit. There was a beautiful activity that our Creative Education Collaborator, Matt Limb, was involved in at our Toorak Campus last Term where students created paper tool kits. They would say “when I’m angry, I pull out this screwdriver” and the strategy with the screwdriver was to take a big breath. So, we’re being productive, we’re being intentional, we’re being consistent, and we’re also evolving.

HEALING AND HOPE

This year marks 10 years since Geelong Grammar School was the subject of a formal public hearing of the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse.

The Royal Commission was established in 2013 to inquire into, and report on, ‘institutional responses to allegations and incidents of child sexual abuse and related matters’. In delivering its final report at the conclusion of its five-year inquiry, the Royal Commission made a total of 409 recommendations on how to improve laws, policies and practices to prevent and better respond to child sexual abuse in institutions, leading to a National Redress Scheme and the National Office for Child Safety. The Royal Commission held 57 formal public hearings across Australia, investigating various institutions and hearing from more than 1,200 witnesses. These case studies focused on how institutions responded to allegations and proven instances of child sexual abuse. Geelong Grammar School was the Royal Commission’s 32nd Case Study and one of eight schools to be the subject of a public hearing. The Royal Commission heard evidence from 13 past GGS students about abuse at the School from 1956 to 1989. The Royal Commission’s findings from the GGS case study highlighted that the School had no formal systems, policies and procedures in place dealing specifically with allegations of child sexual abuse or designed to prevent child abuse until 1994. In delivering its final report at the conclusion of its five-year inquiry, the Royal Commission made a total of 409 recommendations on how to improve laws, policies and practices to prevent and better respond to child sexual abuse in institutions, leading to a National Redress Scheme and the National Office for Child Safety.

In the 10 years since the Royal Commission, the School has been working to provide an authentic response to survivors of sexual abuse and set an example of exceptional student

safeguarding. Our Principal, Rebecca Cody, has said that the School’s response has been inspired by the courage of survivors to come forward and speak up about their experiences at Geelong Grammar School. “I have met with survivors and I am deeply sorry for their pain and suffering: to be sorry though, is not enough; complying with new legislation is not enough – we need to set an example and lead,” Rebecca said. “We need to move forward by recognising the devastating impacts and effects of childhood sexual abuse and by never losing sight of the learnings from them. Whilst we cannot undo the failures of the past, together we can acknowledge the harm, recognise the pain caused and together, we can support and enable a culture which fortifies against such devastating harms and places child safety at its core. Together, we can make a positive difference towards shaping a better world”.

Recognition and Survivor Engagement

The Recognition Committee was established in 2016 as a consultative committee of survivors, Old Geelong Grammarians, past and current parents, and past and current staff, initially chaired by David Moore, president of the Australian Association for Restorative Justice. The major recommendation of the Recognition Committee was the appointment of a Survivor Liaison Coordinator to provide outreach and support for survivors of child sexual abuse at the School. The School Council’s Survivor Engagement Committee was established in 2018 to work with the Recognition Committee to establish a governance framework to shape a fair and humane response to all survivors, which included joining the National Redress Scheme and developing our own GGS Redress Framework.

• Acknowledging survivor voice and survivor choice

• Engagement in settlement of claims for historical harm in a survivor-focussed and trauma-informed manner

• Developing, ratifying and endorsing School Policy to pursue perpetrators of harm for financial contribution

• Informing safeguarding policies, procedures, conduct, environment and culture through experience of engagement with survivors of historical harm at GGS

Geelong Grammar School now has in place a Student Safeguarding Strategy, Student Safeguarding Policy and Code of Conduct together with a suite of policies for broader obligations including Mandatory Reporting in line with the Victorian Child Safety Standards.

Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse – Case Study 32

Ministerial Order 870 enacted – managing the risk of child abuse in schools

Child Safe Standards (Victoria) – 7 Standards

Independent Counsellor appointed Recognition Committee established

Independent Survivor Liaison Coordinator appointed

National Principles for Child Safe Organisations (Australia) – 10 Standards Royal Commission Findings Report published

Restorative Conferences with Survivor Liaison Coordinator commence

Principal, Rebecca Cody, appointed Executive Director, Safeguarding and Legal Services appointed White Balloon Day first acknowledged at GGS Survivor Engagement Committee (School Council) established GGS registers as participant in National Redress Scheme 2015

National Redress Scheme commenced

Prime Minister’s National Apology

Above: Since 2018, our School has recognised White Balloon Day – Australia’s largest campaign dedicated to preventing child sexual abuse and a way for communities like Geelong

School to annually renew a commitment to child safety.

Support and assistance

For survivors, for victims of trauma, for those struggling in challenging times – there are options for reaching out and finding support. You are not alone – you are a valued member of the Geelong Grammar School community – we are thinking of you, and we care.

Survivor Liaison Coordinator, Renee Handsaker, provides outreach and support for survivors of child sexual abuse at the School. Renee can be contacted by phone on 0414 299 142 or by email: renee@sustainingconversations.com

The School continues to provide the services of an independent counsellor, Pauline Ryan. This service is available to those in our community wishing to access counselling or support regarding abuse. Pauline can be contacted directly during business hours by calling 1800 799 139.

2019

2022

Ministerial Order 1359 enacted – implementing the Child Safe Standards Child Safe Standards (Victoria) updated to 11 Standards Legislation enacted to allow prior Settlement Deeds to be re-opened

GGS Redress Scheme published Student Safeguarding Strategy, Policy and Code of Conduct revised and endorsed annually by School Council

Healing and Hope established

2023

Healing and Hope

Healing and Hope is a unique initiative which was established in 2022 to endeavour to relieve the suffering and to provide practical comfort, assistance and support to survivors of child sexual abuse and victims of trauma within our School community, both past and present. “Healing and Hope reaches out to our community and puts into practice our mission that no one walks alone,” Healing and Hope director, Sarah Benson (Je’91), explained. “A compassionate ear, a meal shared, a home visit, a thoughtful gift, practical solutions, and therapeutic events. These caring and authentic engagements save lives. They transform lives.”

To find out more about the support and assistance provided by Healing and Hope please visit www.healingandhope.org.au, call or text 0438 561 747 or email: contact@healingandhope.org.au

2024

2025

Student Safeguarding & Risk Officer appointed

VRQA Audit of Licence to Operate School Boarding Premises

VRQA Audit of Licence to Operate as Registered School

Grammar

INTRODUCING

School Captains

Light Blue sat down with our 2025 School Captains, Leonie Kosasi-Papdan (Yr12 A) and Spencer Siebel (Yr12 M), to discuss their approach to leadership and their experiences as School Captains so far.

LB: How have you settled into your new role as school captain? And was there a moment that it sunk in for you?

LKP: Towards the beginning, almost everything felt slightly unreal. When we first sat down in front of the whole campus, it was like a sea of faces. Although it felt overwhelming initially, I found that every person I made eye contact with greeted me with a smile, reminding me of the support I have within my cohort. I couldn’t stop smiling! As I sat there, it sank in that these were the people I would have the privilege to lead and serve, and I couldn’t be more excited.

SS: I feel like I have settled into this new role quite nicely and have had a great start to the year. If there was any moment where it felt like this role had “sunk in” for me, I would have to say the first Corio Campus Assembly of the year. It was the first time Leonie and I had properly been introduced in front of the 2025 GGS cohort and I felt very privileged to speak in front of such a great group of staff and students.

LB: What is your favourite place or space at Corio Campus, and why is it special to you?

LKP: Corio Campus has so many beautiful spots, but the Allen courtyard is the one I appreciate the most. During hotter days, you can find everyone outside and enjoying the sun, and even during prep people sit out on the tables to motivate each other to work. I love its versatility and warmth which lends itself to becoming a space for other houses to come by and feel welcomed. That type of community and connection is what I cherish.

SS: If I had to choose one place on our amazing Corio campus, I would have to choose the Fisher Library. I have already found myself in the Fisher a lot this year; it is such a great place to come and clear your mind from all the other commitments and opportunities we have here at GGS.

LB: How valuable did you find the leadership sessions during Step Out at the end of last year, and more broadly, what are your goals for 2025 in terms of leadership?

LKP: The leadership sessions were an amazing opportunity for us as a leadership team to connect and understand each other’s values and goals for 2025. I think we are all so pleased with the authenticity of each leader and everyone’s genuine drive to improve our school. In terms of our goals, we aim to be open-minded and kind, not only with each other but with the ideas within our cohort. We also strive for more engagement with the younger years, and we hope to connect our student body more than ever.

LB: What role does service play in your approach to leadership?

LKP: I feel that service is almost entirely the approach I take in my leadership. I wanted to be School Captain because of my genuine love for this school and its people, and I consider this role a way to serve and give back to this community. I will continue to put my time and effort into cultivating a positive and supportive school culture. I understand that it’s not about me but instead what I do for my school and how to best represent that.

SS: I believe being a leader is to be someone who is able to embody the quality of service. As a leader within our school community, I constantly strive to serve our school in the best possible way, as they have supported me in so many ways. Service is an integral part of being a leader not only in our school, but in life as well. Good leadership is built on the back of strong qualities of service, kindness and inclusiveness.

LB: Leonie, your authenticity shines through whenever you are tasked with speaking at an event, whether it's at an assembly or in front of new families at the Middle School connect. Is this a character strength that you value and look to embrace as School Captain?

LKP: I am so thankful that I am able to come across in this way! It’s such an important component of being a leader to me, it’s about being able to relate and interact with people across every age group. I want it to be known that a part of being a leader is being yourself. By knowing who I am and the values I hold, it allows me to be more certain and confident in my leadership.

LB: Spencer, past School Captains might have had a parent or relative who has previously led the School who they could use as a sounding board for their new role. You are one of the few to have a sibling. How valuable have you found it to have Hudson's guidance? And did watching him lead up close give you a bit of extra insight into how you might like to approach the role?

SS: Being able to have the opportunity of having a brother in this same role just one year before me is something that I am so grateful for. I have found Hudson’s guidance to be very helpful in the early stages of my new role, and feel very fortunate to have access to such support. Being able to watch him in the same role last year definitely made me think about how I would like to lead, if given the opportunity. I've definitely been able to use Hudson's advice to influence my approach, however, I have tried to stay true to myself, as I want to lead as my own person.

Spencer Siebel (Yr12 M)

Leonie Kosasi-Papdan (Yr12 A)

138 VCE GRADUATES

58 IB DIPLOMA CANDIDATES

7 VCE-VM GRADUATES

We are delighted for all our Year 12 graduates who contributed to outstanding academic results in 2024, despite a time of significant challenge and disruption. The combined IB/ VCE median ATAR of 84.7 is the School’s highest academic result since 2015 and continues what has been sustained improvement over the past six years.

As an open entry school dedicated to providing an all-round education, we celebrate each student’s performance in delivering their personal best. Our students are offered a choice in pathways that is aligned to their interests, talents and goals through the Victorian Certificate of Education (VCE), Vocational Education and Training (VET), and the International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma Programme. Out of these tertiary pathways, both the VCE and IB provide our Year 12 graduates with an Australian Tertiary Admissions Rank (ATAR).

High Achievers

VCE student Charlie Cook (P’24) is Geelong Grammar School’s Dux for 2024. Charlie achieved an ATAR of 99.10.

Dylan Jupp (P’24) is Proxime Accessit for the Class of 2024, achieving an exceptional IB score of 43 out of 45, which converts to an ATAR of 99.05.

31 students across the IB and VCE achieved an ATAR of 95 or above. In addition, seven IB candidates – Dylan, Cindy Xu (A’24), Steven Wan (FB’24), Nick Wang (Cu’24), Olivia Blaik (He’24), Samuel Cameron (A’24) and Josiah Simatupang (Cu’24) – achieved an IB score of 41 or above (ATAR of 97+), while nine VCE students – Charlie, Sean Brophy (P’24), Ned Brown (FB’24), Giselle Harvey (Ga’24), Scarlett Leondis (He’24), Charlie Kirby (M’24), Tilda McKay (Ga’24), David Perry (P’24) and Peggy Neville-Smith (Ga’24) – achieved an ATAR of 97 or above through the VCE.

Our 2024 School Captains, Olivia Mann (Cl’24) and Hudson Siebel (M’24), led by example, balancing responsibilities throughout the year to each achieve an ATAR of 90+ and receive their first preference when it came to university offers.

Charlie, from Gheringhap on the outskirts of Geelong, joined the School as a day boarder in Year 7 in Highton House, progressing on to Timbertop before joining Perry House at the start of Year 10. Coincidentally, the release of VCE results fell on Charlie's 18th birthday, and he received an early gift when he saw his score. "I felt nervous beforehand and then I was amazed to see my score!" Charlie said.

Charlie's score was built on the back of strong results in Science (Chemistry and Physics) and Mathematics (Methods and Specialist). "Science and Maths have always been a strength of mine but, more importantly, they were subjects that interested and engaged me." Beyond the classroom, Charlie will remember fondly the sports teams he was a part of at GGS—"I found the friendships and competition, especially in the team sports I played, to be one of the highlights of my school experience"—and life in his boarding house, Perry. "Perry has a strong culture of brotherhood and friendship, and events like House Swimming, Aths and Music really put on show the pride we all have for our houses." Charlie is set to commence a Bachelor of Science at The University of Melbourne next year, with a view to studying Medicine in the future.

2024 Proxime

Accessit

Dylan Jupp (P'24)

Dylan, from Kew in Melbourne’s eastern suburbs, joined the School in Year 8 in Barwon (now Parrwang) House. Dylan won the School's Prize for Physics in Year 12, and the Prize for Practical Physics and Chemistry in Year 11. A talented musician, he was a member of the School's guitar ensemble and was one of two winning soloists at this year's GGS Battle of the Bands. Beyond the classroom, Dylan has represented the School in badminton and soccer, and was a member of our Global Citizens Council. Dylan intends to attend university in the UK.

Scan here for more on the Class of 2024

Charlie Cook (P'24)

2024 Dux

TERTIARY DESTINATIONS

99.4% of our Class of 2024 who applied through the Victorian Tertiary Admissions Centre (VTAC) received a firstround offer, with 77% of those students receiving offers for their first two preferences. Overwhelmingly, those offers came The University of Melbourne (46%), followed by RMIT (26%) and Monash University (12%). Many GGS graduates also undertake tertiary studies interstate and overseas, with several students planning further study in the UK and USA in 2025. While we are yet to receive confirmation of all overseas and interstate offers, we are excited to share a handful of inspiring stories from our Class of 2024.

Abbie Tolhoek

Abbie Tolhoek will pursue her passion for performing in the USA in 2025, having been accepted to study at the Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD) in Savannah, Georgia. From Peregian Beach on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast, Abbie joined the School at Timbertop in Year 9. One of our Drama Captains in 2024, Abbie featured in an array of musicals and productions during her time in Senior School. For many, pursuing acting is a lifelong dream, however, in Abbie’s case, it wasn’t until Year 11 Drama classes that this future crystalised for her. “Drama class never felt like school to me; it was the part of my day that I looked forward to the most,” Abbie said. “That year was filled with so much laughter, creativity and energy—I genuinely had the most fun exploring different characters, devising scenes and collaborating with my classmates. That’s when I knew acting was the career I wanted to pursue. Performing in Fame in 2023 was also a pivotal moment for me. Even with a minor role, I never felt minor to anyone. The sense of inclusion, collaboration and shared passion within the cast made me realise that no matter the size of the part, I loved every second of being on stage.”

Nick

Nick Wang has achieved his dream of attending Oxford University’s prestigious Mathematical Institute, which is the largest mathematics department in the UK and a world leader in the fields of geometry, logic and number theory. From Doncaster East in Melbourne’s eastern suburbs, Nick joined the School in Year 7 as a weekly boarder in Barrabool House, before spending his Senior School years in Cuthbertson. Nick achieved a stellar IB score of 41 out of 45, excelling in High Level Mathematics: Analysis and Approaches and receiving the Mackinnon Prize for Mathematics. “This (attending Oxford) has been my dream ever since Year 10, and I couldn’t have been happier when I received the decision,” Nick said. Beyond the classroom, Nick performed brilliantly for the School’s First Badminton team. He won the team’s MVP award in three-consecutive years (2022-24), represented the APS three times, and achieved the rare feat of representing a 1st team while in Middle School.

Wang (Cu’24)

(Ga’24)

Flora Gillies (Ga’24)

Flora Gillies discovered a love of Literature in Year 11 that is transporting her to the hallowed halls and labyrinthine corridors of Oxford University’s Bodleian Library, renowned for its rich history and extensive collection of rare books and manuscripts (and for featuring in the Harry Potter films). From East Melbourne, Flora joined the School as a day student in Year 7, but her love of language wasn’t ignited until Year 11. “It wasn’t until having Bortho (Andrew Borthwick) as my teacher in Year 11 that I actually started to develop a love for English, especially Literature,” Flora said.

“His approach to teaching and that focus on a love of learning is what really helped me.” Flora will depart for the UK in October, achieving a dream she has had since the start of her GGS journey.

“I was really interested in Oxford’s teaching style, which focuses on small classes, and their emphasis on a love of the subject.

Mum and Dad really encouraged me to reach for this goal, even at times when it seemed unattainable.” Flora’s family looms large in her life. She was awarded the Judges’ Prize at the 2024 Coriobald Prize portrait exhibition for a portrait of her grandmother, and she has delayed her move to the UK to ensure she is still in the country to celebrate her sister Fiona’s (Yr12 Ga) 18th birthday.

However, boarding in Garnett House these past three years has prepared Flora for life studying abroad. “I found that the routine of boarding at GGS has helped me pursue many different activities and has helped me develop a disciplined approach to my studies. Additionally, the close relationships formed at GGS meant I had a big support network in all that I did, so when things got overwhelming there was always someone to lean on.”

Annabel McDonell (Cl’24)

Growing up on mixed sheep and cropping farm at Darraweit Guim on the edge of the Macedon Ranges provided a solid foundation for Annabel McDonell to achieve an outstanding VCE study score of 41 in Agricultural & Horticultural Studies. Annabel is now planning to study Agribusiness at the University of New England (UNE) in Armadale after a gap year as a jillaroo on a sheep farm in the northern tablelands of NSW. Annabel joined the School as a boarding student in Year 7 and selected Agriculture and Land Management as an elective subject at Timbertop. “Growing up on a farm, it’s an area that I have always been interested in,” Annabel explained. “But I’d really only helped out on the farm on my holidays, so I learnt a lot about different agricultural practices and operations at Timbertop.” After trying a variety of different subjects in Year 10, Annabel returned to Agricultural & Horticultural Studies in Year 11. “I really enjoyed it as a subject. I found the different topics really interesting and some of the content crossed over into other subjects, such as Geography.” Annabel reflected that studying Agricultural & Horticultural was one of the many unique opportunities she embraced at GGS, which included rowing in the 1st VIII crew that won the APS Heads of the River title in 2024. “I really enjoyed rowing. I loved how it was a team sport, how we all had to work together to achieve success, and the strength of the friendships and memories we created.” She also cherished her family’s connection to Clyde House, following in the footsteps of her mother Elizabeth McDonell (Cust, Cl’88) and grandmother Kathleen Cust (Mason, Clyde ’62). “I loved the community in Clyde. Everyone was very close. It’s been different without the structure and routine of boarding school, but it’s been really exciting too, to hear about everyone’s adventures.”

INQUIRY IN ACTION

Our youngest learners at Bostock House and Corio are embracing the inquirybased approach of the Primary Years Programme (PYP) of the International Baccalaureate (IB). The introduction of the PYP curriculum framework at Bostock and Corio was successfully evaluated and authorised by the IBO in 2024. The four-year process has strengthened our cross-campus learning community –our Toorak Campus was the first school in Victoria to be accredited to teach the PYP in 2000 – and embedded a school-wide GGS Primary Strategic Plan. “It is a change in systems and process, but most of all, it is a change in thinking,” Head of Learning and Teaching/ PYP Coordinator (Geelong Primary), Michael Stafford, said.

“There has been a lot of professional development about inquiry-based learning and the transdisciplinary approach, so subjects are not isolated in boxes,” Michael said. “The PYP builds concepts of understanding across subjects and positions learning in an authentic framework.”

The PYP focuses on the development of the whole child and has evolved from educational research conducted with IB World Schools – the PYP is taught in 2,275 schools in 127 countries. “It is a good fit for Geelong Grammar School and our philosophy of a balanced, holistic education,” Michael said. “We’ve been developing ways the PYP curriculum aligns with our strategic educational pillars of Adventure, Positive and Creative Education, and synthesizing some of the Pos Ed language and concepts so they work together with the PYP framework –things like the alignment of the IB Learner Profile with the 24 character strengths.” It has also elevated cross-campus collaboration between Bostock, Corio and Toorak Campus, with regular staff workshops, sharing of resources and development of strategic assessment goals. “Collaboration is one of the pillars of the PYP,” Michael said.

There are 48 Units of Inquiry from ELC to Year 6, framed within six transdisciplinary themes. Each unit of inquiry is an in-depth 6 to 8-week exploration of a central idea that encourages students to develop conceptual understanding and connect knowledge across subjects. “For example, the unit of inquiry for our Year 1 and Year 2 students focused on ‘Living Things and Life Cycles’, which began by teaching students the difference between living and non-living things, and the unique characteristics of each,” Michael explained. “They are learning about the life cycles of plants and animals, developing an understanding of processes like metamorphosis, but it’s not just science and biology. It’s very hands-on, so students go out into the field and collect data, which uses mathematical methods and tools. That data might be water salinity in Limeburners Lagoon, or it might be data of what species live in an area. They are gathering and measuring information,

and then creating charts and graphs to organise, interpret and analyse the data. They are developing critical-thinking skills, using the data to draw conclusions. They are presenting their findings, so using communication skills and crossing into English to author information reports. They might zoom in on a specific species and some more creative tasks, like poetry or illustrations or drama to express the transitions of life cycles. Everyone jumps on board the inquiry process and each teaching team connects to collaborate and explore how we can amplify the transdisciplinary opportunities of the inquiry. Typically, there is always some way to find an authentic connection.”

The PYP culminates with the PYP Exhibition in Year 6, where students explore a topic of personal interest related to their local community or the world. The PYP exhibition incorporates the five essential elements of the Primary Years Programme: knowledge, skills, key concepts, attitudes, and action. “It’s an opportunity for students to showcase their skills and abilities as independent and collaborative learners,” Michael said. Middle School at Corio piloted a PYP Exhibition in 2024 and despite the relatively recent introduction of the curriculum framework, the high standard of inquiry projects on display has Michael excited about what the future holds. “We want to set the bar really high and see what our students can achieve,” he said.

ENHANCING LITERACY SKILLS

Year 7, 8 & 10

Over the past two years, the English and Humanities faculties have collaborated on the development of a shared approach and associated suite of resources designed to support the development of literacy skills at Years 7, 8 and 10. Accessible via the School’s online Learning Management System (Hive), the Interdisciplinary Literacy Hub assists students develop a wide range of literacy skills, such as analytical, creative and persuasive writing, as well as instructional material to support the acquisition of techniques to build vocabulary, expand sentences (from simple to complex), analyse visual images, deliver presentations, take notes, summarise and annotate text. “The resources are really useful for our students and provide information on how they can improve literacy skills that they will use and apply across subjects,” Head of History, James Bett, explained.

Underpinning the literacy resources on Hive is a consistent instructional approach to help students achieve a structured progression of their literacy skills. This includes embedding a shared language for literacy terms and concepts so there is a collective understanding of terminologies, phrases and acronyms, such as TEEL (Topic, Evidence, Explanation, Link) paragraph structure. “It supports our students to have a shared language and makes the classroom experience more consistent across English and Humanities subjects,” James said. “It also enables more effective collaboration, where there is a shared approach to how we teach literacy skills, recognising that it’s not the sole responsibility of the English Faculty, but that it’s a collective responsibility that benefits all students.”

The interdisciplinary approach to literacy was created through extensive collaboration with The University of Melbourne’s Graduate School of Education. “We engaged a guest expert (Dr John Whitehouse) to work with our teams, utilising professional support to devise a best practice approach to the development of literacy skills,” James said. This professional development opportunity was enabled by the Frank Callaway Endowment, which was established in 2016 through a bequest from Supreme Court judge Frank Callaway to enable Senior School teaching staff to participate in courses to improve their qualifications and experience. Dr Whitehouse is a Senior Lecturer in Melbourne University’s Faculty of Education and Humanities Coordinator in the Master of Teaching program. He frequently works with schools and education authorities at state, national and international levels developing curriculum and pedagogy.

The collaboration between English and Humanities (Commerce, Geography, History) teachers included a review of how curriculum was delivered to support the acquisition and structured development of literacy skills.

“The aim was to align where literacy skills were being taught across subjects to decrease the cognitive load on students,” Head of English, Vana Watkins, explained. “There was consideration for different kinds of assessment, and adjustments to unit scope and sequence,” Vana said. “That led to an adjustment of timetables to better serve student skill development.”

The literacy project initially focused on Year 7 in 2024, developing continuity and consistency with the teaching of literacy skills across English and History subjects, augmented by online resources. The plan is to expand to Years 8 and 10, when students engage in more advanced reading comprehension, complex writing, and critical analysis. Vana noted the need to equip these students with the skills to engage with a wider variety of text types and genres, including scientific reports, literary texts, and other complex materials, in preparation for Years 11 and 12 and beyond. “Content changes but skills are perpetual,” she said.

SENIOR SCHOOL HOUSE MUSIC

The trophy cabinet in Clyde House is overflowing after an outstanding all-round performance at this year’s Senior School House Music competition. The crowd in the David Darling Play House was treated to a glorious afternoon of music from our 10 Senior School boarding and day houses, with Clyde rising above a quality field to take home the overall prize, along with best conductor, best solo/ duet and best house choir. Garnett won best ensemble and Lana Karlusic (Yr11 A) won best original composition. Songs that feature in movies was the theme for our House songs this year and the Play House was rocking and singing along all afternoon, with artists ranging from ABBA to Smash Mouth covered by our choirs.

S.T.E.M SQUAD

One of the goals for the freshly-merged Science and Technology Faculty in 2024 was to establish a Senior School STEM club to highlight the complementary nature of the Science and Technology learning areas.In Middle School, our students can satisfy their scientific curiosities through the robotics club and an academic workload heavy on practicals, and there was an ambition to extend cocurricular opportunities in Senior School.

Expressions of interest were sought from the new batch of Year 10 students and the response was overwhelming. Ultimately, 20 students joined the STEM Squad, and it was decided that the annual Science and Engineering Challenge (facilitated by the University of Newcastle) would be the vehicle to test what they’ve learned. The SEC involves a range of activities replicating real-world situations, including bridge building, designing wind turbines to generate the highest RPM, and the ever-popular confounding communications task, where students design efficient codes to send secret messages along fibre optic rods using pulses of coloured light.

At the Science and Engineering Challenge

The STEM Squad took all before them, winning the regional round and the State finals – both held at Deakin in Geelong –to advance to the National final in Townsville in the last week of October. While they didn’t win first prize at the National finals, the students gave their all and achieved a top-eight finish; a remarkable achievement in their first year and an experience they will cherish for many years to come.

For Aryan Saraswat (Yr11 Fr), the highlight of the STEM club was the opportunity to apply their knowledge through hands-on experience. “Class-based theory, while important, can only get you so far in your learning, and I believe the hands-on experience we got will help us better understand the real-world problems and applications of STEM.”

Charlotte Langdon (Yr11 Cl) would love to continue with the STEM club throughout her Senior School years, as it “offers an engaging and enjoyable experience, while being highly educational”, while Fred McKenzie (Yr11 M) is “very excited to remain involved to help the next group of Year 10s achieve the same success.”

While the opportunity to apply their learning was the major highlight of the experience, a trip to sunny Townsville, as well as Magnetic Island, was an added bonus. “It was still cold back in Geelong, but in Townsville it was warm all the time,” Angus Perry (Yr11 FB) recalled. “Magnetic Island was my favourite part, since I could go swimming in the warm ocean with my mates.”

AFL & AFLW DRAFT Success

The number of Old Geelong Grammarians in the AFL/ AFLW ranks swelled by three in 2024, with Lou-Lou Field (Fr’24), Xavier Ivisic (A’24) and Sam Lalor (FB’24) selected in their respective drafts in November and December.

Lou-Lou Field (Fr’24)

Lou-Lou became the fifth GGS student drafted by Carlton in the past eight years when her name was called with the 46th pick in the AFLW Draft. “A prolific defender, Lou-Lou has really impressive intercept ability, but what stands out most is her football IQ and her understanding of the game,” Ash Naulty, Carlton’s Head of AFLW, said after the draft.

Lou-Lou was vice captain of our Girls’ First Football team in 2024, contributing heavily to the School’s most successful season in the young history of the programme. “Finishing third in 2024 was such a great achievement, but I think the best part was seeing how the group grew together across the season, making such a successful year possible,” Lou-Lou said. “Being able to connect with so many different girls, on and off the field, and build relationships is something I’ll always be grateful for.”

Lou-Lou plans to give her first season in the navy blue her all, in the hope of earning her debut in the 2025/26 season.

Sam Lalor (FB’24)

Sam’s was the first name called in November’s AFL Draft, joining a Richmond team looking to kick-start their rebuild; he was the first of seven selections made by Richmond in the first 30 picks of this year’s draft, having traded away several older, premiershipwinning stars prior to the draft in return for picks.

Sam is the third GGS student to be drafted with pick 1, following in the footsteps of Paddy McCartin (Fr’14) and Nina Morrison (A’18).

Sam’s 2024 season was often interrupted by injury, but he still had enough moments of brilliance to convince the Tigers to draft him first. Sporting our light blue, Sam’s highlight came in round 1 at home against Wesley College. Sam entered the match at about 50% fitness after an interrupted pre-season. After an energy-sapping first half playing in his primary role in the midfield, Sam was sent to the goal square in the second half, dominating the forward 50 to finish with seven goals.

Sam burst onto the scene in his AFL debut, guiding Richmond to what was dubbed one of the biggest upsets of all-time in Round 1 against Carlton at the MCG in front of more than 80,000 fans. Trailing by 41 points in the second term, Sam and the Tigers kicked 12 of the last 14 goals to run out 13-point victors. Sam kicked two majors and collected 18 disposals in a performance that earned him the Round 1 AFL Rising Star nomination. In an encouraging sign for Richmond supporters, Sam has reserved his two best performances through four games for the MCG. After two quiet weeks, Sam returned to the home of football in Round 4 and gathered a career-high 24 disposals, to go with another two goals. His early-season performances are made all the more impressive by the fact that Sam suffered a broken jaw in Richmond’s final preseason game and only started eating solid foods again one day before the Round 1 clash with Carlton.

Xavier Ivisic

(A’24)

Xavier had to endure two long nights across the Draft process, going undrafted through the National Draft and having to wait for the Rookie/ Pre-Season draft the following day to hear his name called. “I went to bed pretty shattered that night,” Xavier told the Geelong Advertiser. “But I knew there was still a day tomorrow, Friday was my best crack.” Xavier was one of only eight players new to the AFL to receive a chance through the Rookie Draft this year, and was grateful for the opportunity to get a chance with his home-town club. “It is unreal, when I saw my name read out by Geelong, I actually couldn’t believe it. I will be forever grateful that I’m staying at home and it is just five minutes down the road,” Xavier said.

MIDDLE

House Swimming

This year’s Middle School House Swimming competition, held on Thursday 27 February, was contested in a wonderful spirit, with our students giving their all for their House both in the water and on the pool deck. In what was the first cross-campus sporting contest for the year, our Year 5/6 students from Toorak Campus displayed their exceptional ability in the pool, returning home up the Princes Freeway with the Boys' and Girls' Under 11 and 12 trophies in tow, while Kunuwarra and Parrwang won the Under 13/14 Girls' and Boys' sections, respectively.

FOUNDATION CHAIR PROGRESSING OUR MASTERPLANS

The Geelong Grammar Foundation is excited to announce a significant $10 million gift from our Endowment Fund to support the Corio Campus Masterplan. The Foundation is incredibly proud that this leading gift will play a vital role in the progression of the Masterplan, which was created collaboratively to provide plans and guiding principles for the future development of the Corio Campus. School Council is directing the Foundation’s gift towards the construction of the new Junior School at Corio, which is a visionary project that will transform the campus and a key component of the overall Masterplan.

This $10 million gift is a cornerstone of the Foundation’s ongoing commitment to supporting the School to provide exceptional educational opportunities – for current GGS students and for those who will come after them. It is an investment in the future of our School that will not only benefit our students but contribute to the broader educational landscape of the region by providing world-class facilities and resources, with a particular emphasis on nature-based learning that leverages the Timbertop experience. The $10 million gift will be used to support the construction of modern classrooms, specialist learning spaces, and adventurous playgrounds that connect to the natural ecosystem as well as the existing playing fields and facilities that Corio has to offer.

The Foundation, in partnership with School Council, remains committed to continuing to build its corpus and to raise additional funds to ensure the successful completion of the many other important projects in the Masterplans for Corio, Timbertop and Toorak campuses. The Masterplans provide a roadmap for future development to help support the progression of the School’s Strategic Framework. We will have many more great things to announce regarding these plans in 2025.

Every gift has a long-lasting impact. The Foundation’s gift to the Corio Campus Masterplan is made possible by the foresight of past donors to our Endowment Fund and the prudent management and growth of these gifts over many years, thanks to the expertise of our Allocations and Investment Committee. The legacy of donors who have supported the Endowment Fund continues to inspire and support future generations of GGS students. I extend my heartfelt thanks to these generous and visionary individuals whose contributions have paved the way for this exciting new chapter in our School’s history.

The Foundation Board recently had the privilege of visiting the building site for the new Junior School at Corio. As the directors toured the site, we were filled with excitement and anticipation for the future. The potential of this site is truly inspiring. The Foundation’s $10 million gift is a significant step towards realising the School’s vision for the development of our campuses to provide our students with exceptional opportunities to learn, grow, and thrive.

The $10 million gift to the Corio Campus Masterplan is a highlight of another year of growth and achievement for the Geelong Grammar Foundation as we continue to make progress towards the even more considerable opportunities that lie ahead. In 2024, we witnessed the ongoing commitment of our community to the life-changing opportunities and transformational impact of education through gifts of over $1.27 million towards our scholarship program. Our building fund also received significant support in 2024 with $750,000 in philanthropic contributions across the year. We are particularly pleased to confirm that our much-loved and world-class organ in the Chapel of All Saints will undergo a full restoration thanks to the generosity of donors. I know this will come as welcome news for the many OGGs, parents, staff and students who have so missed the melodic sounds of this unique piece of Australian music history.

Membership of our Biddlecombe Society continues to flourish with hundreds of members and friends connecting with us through events, visits and meetings across the second half of 2024. We were particularly delighted to reconnect with our community members in Adelaide, Melbourne and Sydney, and to showcase the talents of our OGGs and past scholars through our events, including the inspiring Easton Wood (Cu’07), rising AFL star Ollie Lord (M’20) and high achieving university student Harriett Furphy (Cl’20). What a wonderful demonstration of the impact of giving these young people provide!

I am very proud to be a member of our exceptional School community and even more honoured to have concluded my first year as Chair of the Geelong Grammar Foundation. I am uplifted to see such significant progress and a shared commitment towards advancing our great School. I acknowledge the sincere generosity of time, expertise and leadership contributed by my fellow Foundation Board directors and committee members throughout the year.

I provide my heartfelt thanks to the generous donors whose support has made all of this work possible in 2024. As we look to the coming 12 months and beyond, we remain committed to continuing to partner with you in providing exceptional educational opportunities for GGS students and ensuring the long-term growth, sustainability and aspirations of our School.

Vanessa Mahon Chair, Geelong Grammar Foundation

1. Charlie Sutherland (P’86), Nean Furphy (Weatherly, Cl’88), Harriet Furphy (Cl’20), Adam Furphy (M’89) and Vanessa Mahon at the Sydney Biddlecombe Society Luncheon.

2. Rebecca Cody in conversation with Colleen and Sandy McLeay (P’57) at the Adelaide Biddlecombe Society Luncheon.

3. Charlie Sutherland (P’86), Edward Wajsbrem (FB’63), Judy Mackinnon, Nigel Tait (M’60) and Vanessa Mahon at the Melbourne Biddlecombe Society Luncheon.

4. Charlie Sutherland (P’86) and Ollie Lord (M’20) at the Adelaide Biddlecombe Society Luncheon.

5. Gerald Lipman (Cu’67) and Rebecca Cody at the Adelaide Biddlecombe Society Luncheon.

6. Ern Pope, Andrew Burgess (FB’81), Vanessa Mahon, Bill Anderson (M’59) and Kate Anderson at the Sydney Biddlecombe Society Luncheon.

BIDDLECOMBE SOCIETY

Membership of the Biddlecombe Society and the bequest programme at Geelong Grammar School now includes 284 living members. All have made commitments to support the School through a gift in their Will. Established in 2002 to recognise and grow this important community of donors, today the Biddlecombe Society is thriving. This special community, which operates at the heart of the Geelong Grammar Foundation, features passionate, kind and altruistic members.

The outgoing Chair of the Biddlecombe Society, Charlie Sutherland (P’86), whose parents (Ivan and Liza Sutherland), and grandparents (James and Margaret Darling), served the School for many decades, said “the long-term prosperity of the Biddlecombe Society and the future wellbeing of GGS are inextricably linked.”

The generosity of our community of bequestors has delivered more than $15.8 million in support for the School since the Biddlecombe Society was established in 2002.

After seven years as Chair of the Biddlecombe Society, Charlie takes pride in what the membership has achieved during this time and acknowledges the legacy of bequests at GGS. “Thank you to all our bequestors and members. The impact of this kindness on Geelong Grammar School cannot be understated,” he said. “I know the generosity of our members will live long in the hearts and minds of those who benefit from it now, and into the future. We are incredibly grateful for the commitment of our bequestors and Biddlecombe Society members.”

Charlie will be succeeded by Jim Gall (Cu’91) as Chair of the Biddlecombe Society – but his passion for how the bequest programme can support the future of our School remains undimmed. “Bequests are such a powerful tool to create a lasting legacy. You can see how the giving back is shaping and inspiring future generations,” Charlie explained. “Geelong Grammar School is a life-changing, character-shaping, unique, exceptional education. What better place is there to direct support, and to enable and to educate other high potential young Australians?”

103 bequests realised

$7.2M largest bequest received BEQUESTS GGS 2002 - 2024

284 Biddlecombe Society members and living bequestors (19 new in 2024)

$15.8M in bequest income (average of $718.2k bequest income per year)

50% of bequests are valued at $10,000 or less

39 21 3 3 6 6

14% of bequests recieved support Scholarships

The Gift of a Lifetime

TEndowment Fund

Scholarship Fund Building Fund

Building Fund $ 7,750,692

Endowment Fund $ 5,705,963

Library Fund $ 53,328

Scholarship Fund $ 2,329,251

74% of bequests from Old Geelong Grammarians

$186.3k

average bequest size

he quiet hum of the Corio campus belies the vibrant tapestry of stories woven within its walls. One such story, though understated, is a testament to the enduring impact of bequests, a legacy that continues to shape the lives of countless students. Maxwell Herbert Schultz (FB’50), a name perhaps unfamiliar to many, left an indelible mark on the School through his generous bequest.

Max grew up in the small Wimmera town of Nhill, where his father owned and operated the Royal Picture Theatre and where Max attended the local primary school. When Max to came to Corio in 1946, his love of the performing arts was nurtured and became a lifelong passion. He also played sport, particularly cricket, and developed a love of learning, receiving the Mackinnon Prize for Mathematics and the Whittingham Scholarship. Max studied civil engineering at Melbourne University and his career as an engineer designing bridges for the Country Roads Board (now VicRoads) was augmented by attending concerts, plays, ballet and opera with his wife Jill.

Max’s bequest established the Maxwell Herbert Charles Schultz Scholarship, a beacon of opportunity for talented students from rural and regional areas.

This scholarship, awarded for the first time in 2023, embodies Max’s belief in the transformative power of education. It provides financial support, enabling deserving students to access the world-class facilities and academic rigour of Geelong Grammar School.

The impact of Max’s gift extends beyond the scholarship itself. It inspires others to consider the lasting legacy they can leave through bequests. It encourages a culture of philanthropy, where individuals recognise the potential to shape the future of education and empower young minds. The Maxwell Herbert Charles Schultz Scholarship is more than just a financial award; it is a symbol of hope, a catalyst for dreams, and a testament to the enduring power of generosity. It is a reminder that the impact of a single individual can ripple through generations, leaving an enduring legacy that enriches the lives of countless students, just as Max’s bequest continues to enrich the lives of those who follow in his footsteps.

The first Geelong Grammar School ‘FAIR HOME!’

The relocation of Geelong Grammar School from central Geelong to Corio in 1914 was a significant moment of progress in our School’s history. As building commences of the new Junior School at Corio and the imminent relocation of our Bostock House community, it is timely to appreciate the echo of history with each progression. School Historian, Sophie Church, explores the history and mythical allure of the first purpose-built Geelong Grammar School, following its foundation in temporary premises at Villamanta Street in 1855.

In central Geelong, within a few hundred square metres bounded by Maud, Moorabool and McKillop streets, and a service road named Backwell Lane, is a cluster of buildings that might be found in any regional Victorian town – a Beaurepaires tyre shop, an Art Deco picture theatre and a 1980s motel. But wedged between them and set back behind an ignominious carpark is another edifice, with gabled rooves, scalloped bargeboards and even a hint of a castellated parapet. To the imaginative mind, this gingerbread house sits more comfortably in a fairytale than an Australian vernacular streetscape. The fairytale analogy may seem extravagant, but this building is now the only surviving remnant of the first Geelong Grammar School. As such, it occupies a somewhat mythical place in our School’s history, expressed in classics master and poet JL Cuthbertson’s sentiment: “Fair home! Thou reignest in our hearts a queen”.

In the centre of the façade, a flight of steps leads over a ‘moat’ to an imposing entrance. In April 1863, the second headmaster, been unoccupied, and the School closed, a sad denouement to the the School’s first headmaster Rev. George Vance, moved into their had been colossal, over £13,000, and in June 1860 the School was

George Vance’s deputy, John Bracebridge Wilson, kept most of the pupils together in temporary premises, and was rewarded for his efforts in 1863 when he was appointed headmaster of the re-formed school. To comprehend the extent of the costly building works, the grandeur of the original edifice must be recreated in the mind’s eye, informed by photographs and contemporaneous descriptions. The remaining portion is only one wing of what was once a quadrangular bluestone structure with white stone cornices, designed in a late Gothic style by the architects Backhouse and Reynolds. Its grand public entrance fronted Moorabool Street –where the Palais Theatre now stands – denoted by a castellated tower with a turret, which housed the school bell, and an oriel window, a feature recognisable from Oxford colleges. Architectural references to English scholarly traditions were deliberate, inferring that there was no need for Australian boys to make the long and perilous voyage to the ‘mother country’ to receive an education. Aspirations for the School were high.

The building was carefully designed so that domestic and scholastic functions were separated but closely aligned. Externally, the separation was demarcated with prominent gables for the headmaster’s quarters, evoking an English vicarage, and castellated parapets for the school zones. To either side of the public entrance on Moorabool Street were a library, junior classroom, the headmaster’s study and studies for the pupils. But the boys did not use this entrance; they entered the school from McKillop Street, where the large main schoolroom for up to 200 boys –known as Big School – was located. It featured a visitors’ gallery, from which the boys could be observed at their work. With no eaves to shade the windows, and only a single small fireplace, it was not a comfortable room for much of the year, but it was big enough to house popular Saturday evening entertainments, known as ‘Pastimes’. French and music rooms, which later became sub-prefects’ rooms, and a masters’ common room occupied the remainder of the ground floor of this wing.

The upper floor was largely given over to dark and badly ventilated dormitories – originally one draughty room but gradually partitioned into 19 separate rooms – unheated and lit by candlelight, as well as rooms for the resident masters and the matron, and a single bathroom with cold showers in a lead-lined well. “One of Saturday night’s joys on returning from a day in the bush was to plug the drainage hole with the posterior of a small boy, turn on all showers and flood the well,” recalled Noel Learmonth. Hot baths were a rostered weekly occurrence. The upstairs passages, and the studies below, were lit by open gas jets, dangerous but useful for boiling coffee or cocoa. It was “confined and cramped,” recalled Cliff Hunt. “Living like this tended to give a very intimate atmosphere. Sometimes there would be squabbles, when a master would take the dissenting pair to the armoury in the Bracebridge Wilson Hall and the affair would be settled with boxing gloves.” Daytime recreation took place in the central open-air quadrangle, where boys played marbles, yard cricket or a version of Eton fives. A gated entrance wide enough

Above: The school in 1864 soon after it reopened and with the garden newly planted. The photograph is taken from Moorabool Street, showing the west wing with the main entrance, and the south wing fronting Maud Street.

Below (clockwise from top left): Members of the Wilson family in Maud Street, with the headmaster’s residence and gardens behind (Oriana Wilson album); Leonard and Annie Lindon in the headmaster’s study; Boys relaxing in the quad, 1908, including (left to right, back row) Clive Rowan, John Roe, Alex Hunter, William Godby (senior prefect 1908), Frank Austin, Leslie

Hewlett

Robert

Alan

Left: Oriana ‘Minnie’ Wilson (Oriana Wilson album)

Above: Oriana Wilson on the steps of the headmaster’s residence (Oriana Wilson album)

Austin, (front row)

Wright,

Godby,

Bell (senior prefect 1909), Harold Austin (AJ McIntosh album); ‘Big School’, the main classroom in the north wing (AJ McIntosh album)

for carriages was locked at night but “a drainpipe solved the exit question, and many Saturday night parties in Geelong were graced by the presence of senior boys of the school,” remembered Claude Austin.

The eastern wall of the quad, where there was also a covered verandah, was formed by a single-storey service wing, with hay loft and servants’ quarters. It adjoined the south wing, the part of the building that survives, where a back staircase provided service access to the three-storey headmaster’s quarters. The engine room of the domestic operations was the basement running the length of the south wing. Here were kitchens, storerooms, a pantry and servants’ hall, thrumming with activity as meals were prepared and delivered by means of a rope-hoisted lift to the family quarters and the school dining room above. Trophies and photographs of sports teams lined the walls of the dining room, where the boys sat at three long tables, each waited on by a maid, assisted by the school porter. He also cleaned boots, rang the bell, swept the quad and lit fires. His female counterpart was the matron, Jennie Boyd in the 1890s, who repaired clothes and tended to minor ailments.

It was the role of the headmaster’s wife to manage the domestic operations of the school and to oversee the wellbeing of the boys. Until 1895, when she was widowed after 33 years of marriage and of service to the School, this was Minnie Wilson’s lot. Her well-thumbed and annotated copy of Mrs Beeton’s Book of Household Management – with a recipe for lemon cheesecake inscribed in the flyleaf – survives in the School archives as a testimony to the travails this entailed, managed alongside pregnancies, illness and her own family’s needs. In the residence, Minnie birthed three babies and suffered the tragedy of losing one of them, six-monthold Alice, who died from ‘convulsions’ in 1865. The extent to which her husband depended on Minnie is revealed in a letter written to a parent in 1869. “I must ask you on this occasion to take your sons home for Easter. My wife is at Queenscliff and it will be very inconvenient for me to have many boys left under my charge.” Minnie was recuperating from a serious illness that left her temporarily confined to an invalid chair. Her absence had “thrown much work upon” the headmaster. In 1887, she and about 20 of the boys, two servants and one of the masters were struck down with typhoid. Fortunately, no one died but alarmed parents withdrew their sons, some permanently. Though the School’s milk supply was identified as the likely culprit, on inspection the building’s sanitation provisions were found to be inadequate. Improvements were made to drainage and ventilation, sewerage arrangements were upgraded, and interior surfaces were renovated and repainted to promote infection control.

Oriana ‘Minnie’ Wilson’s dedication won favour with her young charges; one boy, Thomas Brown, later named his daughter Oriana in fond remembrance of Mrs Wilson’s kindness. Her successor Annie Lindon, the wife of headmaster Leonard Lindon, approached her role in a manner that challenged prevailing attitudes about the role of women. Demure she was not. Along with her husband she was an accomplished mountaineer, climbing alpine peaks in New Zealand in the school holidays and telling tales of her adventures upon her return. She visited the boys at their Saturday camps by the river, and soon after arriving insisted that coffee and biscuits were available in the hall for boys returning from their early morning swims. To the boys she was an active presence in their daily lives. But her many suggestions for changes and improvements were too much for the School Council. The next headmaster’s contract included a clause forbidding his wife from having an organisational role!

Over time, ivy covered most of the walls, and the gables and parapets appeared to protrude from a verdant oasis. The present asphalt carpark is a calamitous obliteration of a once picturesque

garden, much of it planted by John Bracebridge Wilson, a renowned botanist. “How sweet the scent of the November rose! How fair to see the honeysuckle twine, with white and scarlet blossom, and the line of lilies waving when the west wind blows!” eulogised Cuthbertson. Young Oriana, the Wilsons’ eldest daughter, as a toddler jumped over a Norfolk pine sapling planted in front of the residence, which later grew to a mighty tree before it was eventually cut down in the 1970s. Pines, clematis, lilacs and Moreton Bay figs adorned the west terrace on Moorabool Street; gums, shrubs and pittosporum filled a ‘wilderness’ on the corner of Moorabool and Maud streets; a lawn was bordered by clumps of cactus and conical cedars; and pepper trees bordered a tennis court that took up much of the space between the north façade and McKillop Street. Kitchen gardens, a conservatory and rose gardens planted by Annie Lindon supplied food and fragrance for the table. This lost Eden may be glimpsed in the sepia-toned photographs that capture the Wilsons, the Lindons and their successors the Browns at leisure, enjoying some respite from their busy lives.

Nostalgia is generally a futile exercise, as was evident on 17 December 1913 when boys, staff and then headmaster Francis Brown and his family vacated the old buildings after more than 50 years of continuous occupancy. After the prize giving ceremony, and leaving piled heaps of packing cases behind, “the School slipped silently and unceremoniously away to the railway station, and the old place was left in solitude. It was pathetic to think we should know it no more and that young voices would never again re-echo in the deserted quad. But youth has little time for sentiment of this sort, especially with the long holidays in view.” They had been “evicted by success” as the dean of Melbourne put it, and Corio with its wide horizons and new red brick buildings, into which the foundation stone of 1857 was built, represented the opening of a new and exciting chapter in the School’s history. The old school, which once “givest life so vigorous and free”, in Cuthbertson’s words, awaited its fate.

The site had already been purchased by Geelong City Council with the intention of converting it into a new town hall, but these plans were considered profligate by the citizenry and soon abandoned, and the site was auctioned off in residential lots in 1916. The Beacon Trading Company, wholesale grocers, purchased the Moorabool and McKillop street wings, and the Maud Street frontage and its service wing were purchased by Mrs EJ Taylor and operated as Dysart guest house. The grand Moorabool Street frontage was the first portion to fall victim to the wreckers’ ball in the 1920s, followed in 1959 by the McKillop Street wing, which was demolished to make way for a motel. The bluestone was salvaged and used to build the seawall at Clifton Springs. Only the Maud Street wing survived, sold to the Reformed Theological College in 1961 and restored in 1979. The property has been sold three times since, and most recently refurbished into a student accommodation facility known as The Iconic.

Would the boarders of the nineteenth century be amused to know that their twenty-first century counterparts awarded The Iconic five-star reviews on Google? It may be imagined that they would have approved of the name, for in memory the old school became iconic, the alma mater, Cuthbertson’s “teacher of well-ordered liberty, the home of learning and loyalty”. Iconic buildings become anthropomorphic because they are capsules of memory: “if only these walls could talk”. They represent aspects of our past that we find hard to release, even when that past moves beyond the realm of living memory. Even now, more than a century on, the mythical allure of the old school remains and lingers physically in Maud Street, “firm set upon the wind-swept hill”, among the ghost of a garden.

References: JL Cuthbertson, Stet Fortuna Domus;The Corian, June 1972; The Quarterly, Dec. 1913; The Age, 26 June 1857; Letter book of JB Wilson

wire

supporting the gas

Below (clockwise from top left): members of the school bicycle club on the tennis court, 1881; view of the quadrangle looking west towards the back of the Moorabool Street wing, 1914; Walter Manifold on the tennis court in front of the pupil entrance on McKillop Street, c. 1907 (AJ McIntosh album); the library (some of these chairs are now housed in the Hawker Library)

Right: Dormitory corridor, north wing. The

brackets

jets can be seen on the wall. (AJ McIntosh album)

OGG PRESIDENT

In 2024, the OGG Committee continued to uphold the OGG Association objectives of uniting former students and supporting the School, and also welcomed four new members to the Committee. 10 reunions, 11 Connect events, a Timbertop Open Morning, OGG Business Breakfast, OGG Art Exhibition and OGG Motoring Event served to bring OGGs together and celebrate their skills, experience and shared interests. We acknowledged those OGGs who have left an indelible legacy on both the School and society with the memorial for Boz Parsons (M’36) and the plaque unveiling of the John Landy (M’48) Oval, as well as participating in the School’s Anzac Day Ceremony. Many OGGs continued to contribute to the School in other ways too, such as their involvement as mentors at the Year 10 Careers Day or as guest speakers at School events.

Two highlights of 2024 were the OGG Art Exhibition and the OGG Business Breakfast. The brainchild of OGGs Lucy McEachern (Ga’99) and Serena Zlatnik (Cl’83), and hosted in Serena’s gallery, a group of high calibre OGG artists were brought together for a two-week exhibition. Not only was this a wonderful display of artistic talent within the School community but these artists donated 25% of their sales to the Russell Drysdale Visual Art Scholarship, and I’m thrilled to advise that five artworks were sold.

The OGG Business Breakfast was a series of firsts this year. It was the first in-person business event since 2019, the first time we’ve had three panellists and the first time a business event has been held as a breakfast. Moderated by Committee member Nick Ashton (P’99), the three impressive panellists, Amanda Elliott AO (Bayles, Clyde’69), Charlie Gardiner (M’00) and Emily Mannix (Fr’12), drew on their experience and expertise in their respective sporting fields to speak about the business of sport. In addition to OGGs and their guests, 10 students braved the early morning to travel up from Corio for the breakfast and their efforts were well rewarded, with the panellists providing them with some terrific career advice.

Another event that is always a feature of the calendar is the Tower Luncheon. Now in its 23rd year, we welcomed the 1974 peer group for the first time. Professor Sandra Peake (Li’74) was

the guest speaker and participated in an engaging Q&A with Principal Rebecca Cody, reflecting on her journey from Geelong Grammar School and the changes in medicine throughout the years. Sandy is currently a Senior Staff Specialist in the Department of Intensive Care Medicine at The Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Adelaide, and her main research interest is largescale clinical trials to improve patient outcomes for the critically ill. Also for the first time, the lunch was held in the School’s Performing Arts and Creative Education (SPACE) building. This was a welcome change from the Dining Hall, offering better sound, greater movement and vastly more natural light. Guests enjoyed pre-lunch drinks on the SPACE lawn, while being entertained by Chloe Thomas (Yr11 EM). A sentimental favourite amongst OGGs, the Dining Hall was not removed as a feature of the day. Instead, the Alumni Office, working with the School’s Archivist, arranged for publications from the archives and a reel of photographs to be on display, while guests enjoyed morning tea in the Dining Hall. Chapel was, as always, well attended, and I would like to thank Reverend Howard Parkinson (Hon. OGG) for leading the Service, and Dianne Blood (Elford, P’51), Deryk Stephens (M’56) and Felicity Hocking (Waterman, The Hermitage ’67) for their participation. The day ended with enjoyable student led tours of the School and Boarding Houses.

Not to be outdone by 2024, the year ahead is already shaping up to be an exciting one. 2025 marks 125 years of the OGG Association and we’re looking forward to celebrating this and many other milestones with you. To stay informed, I encourage you to visit the OGG website, which is continually updated to reflect upcoming reunions and events. You can also update your details by contacting the Alumni Office directly or through the website to ensure that you are included on mailing lists for invitations and OGG Updates.

I’d very much like to thank all the OGG committee members for their support, contribution and participation throughout the past year and am looking forward to a busy 2025.

Andrew Burgess (FB’81) OGG President

At the 2024 Tower Luncheon were:

1. John McInnes (Cu’58), Julia Burgess, Andrew Burgess (FB’81) and Reese Burgess (FB’56)

2. Paddy Handbury (M’72), Vanessa Mahon, Sandy Peake (Li’74), Rebecca Cody and Andrew Burgess (FB’81)

3. Pauline Ball, Peter Latreille (Cu’62), Graeme Ward (P’58) and Michael Street (FB’58)

4. Bill Seppelt (M’64), Jacqui Seppelt, Robin Hunt (FB’64) and Ian Selkirk (M’62)

5. Sandy Peake (Li’74) speaks with Rebecca Cody during Tower Luncheon

6. Anne Hamilton (Coy, Clyde ’58), Fiona Chirnside (Macfarlan, Clyde ’54) and Johanne Stephens

7. Nigel Hocking, David Henry (FB’70) and Simon Waters (FB’69)

8. Maureen Hart and Noel Hart (FB’59)

9. Richard and Robyn Webster (Wilkinson, The Hermitage ’59), Mitchell and Sue Smith (Cunningham, The Hermitage ’60), together with Vanessa Mahon

10. Gail Arkins (Willis, Hermitage ’59), Charles Brett, Rebecca Cody, Charles Henry (FB’67) and Graeme Harvey (Cu’67)

CONNECT IN JAPAN

Wednesday 7 May 2025

1990 30 YEAR REUNION (Held over from COVID)

Saturday 14 June 2025

WESTERN DISTRICT

CONNECT IN HAMILTON

Sunday 3 August 2025

2010 10 YEAR REUNION (Held over from COVID)

Saturday 9 August 2025

1985 40 YEAR REUNION

Saturday 9 August 2025

2005 20 YEAR REUNION

Saturday 16 August 2025

1995 30 YEAR REUNION

Saturday 16 August 2025

1985 40 YEAR TIMBERTOP REUNION

Saturday 20 September 2025

OGG TIMBERTOP OPEN MORNING

Saturday 20 September 2025

24TH TOWER LUNCHEON

Saturday 8 November 2025

OGG MOTORING EVENT

Sunday 9 November 2025

Scan QR code for up-to-date OGG calendar events.

2019

5 Year Reunion

At the Class of 2019 5 Year Reunion were:

1. Sophie Blackney (Fr’19), Nick Johnson (Cu’19), Alan Sakajiou (P’19), Oscar Li (P’19), Tynan Mims (P’19)

2. Lucy Peddie (He’19), Claudia O’Callaghan (He’19), Harriet Shelton (He’19)

3. Jack Harris (A’19), Mia Scala (EM’19), Honor Clark (EM’19)

4. Max Hatzoglou (A’19), Connor Kennedy (A’19), Max Scobie (A’19)

5. Tillie Pridham (Cl’19), Sophie Shoebridge (Ga’19), Bella Canny (Cl’19)

6. Felix Cole (FB’19), Sarah Mactaggart (He’19), Millie Turnbull (He’19), Mason Denison (A’19)

7. Pip Southey (Cl’19), Flora Jamieson (Cl’19), Maddy Atkins (Cl’19), Lily Nithirojpakdee (He’17)

8. Henry Wang (P’19), Ivan Hou (P’19), Sam Larritt (FB’19), Rick Huang (FB’19)

9. Julia Bowden (A’19), Annick Paterson (Cl’19), Ines Leckie (He’19), Chandra Pickard (Ga’19)

10. Oscar Li (P’19), Amelia Rule (EM’19), Mickey Stewart (Cl’19), Ciara Patel (Fr’19), Meg Robinson (Fr’19), Nyah Furnari (EM’19)

11. Jack Harris (A’19), Chloe Kirby (He’19), Mike Mortimer (P’19), Jack Chomley (Fr’19)

12. Clara Orford (A’19), Julia Bowden (A’19), India Holman (Ga’19), Lucy Wischer (A’19)

13. Charlie Gill (A’19), Felix Cole (FB’19), Mason Denison (A’19)

14. Bobby Jamieson (M’19), Alec Mills (Cu’19), Nick Johnson (Cu’19), Christian Hay (M’19)

15. Pip Southey (Cl’19), Bella Canny (Cl’19), Adam Dean (Cloonan, A’19)

16. Nellie Worboys (A’19), Montana Wenzler (A’19), Claudia Lau (He’18), Celine Fang (Ga’19)

20 Year Reunion

1. Nathan Kotowicz (A’04), Stephen Daniels (A’04), Alex Wall (A’04), Bronwyn Tulloh (Cl’04)

2. James McEachern (P’04), Demelza Adams (Cl’04), Rachel Baxendale (Cl’04)

3. Luci Klendo (Mahar, A’04), Emma Finnie (Boylen, A’04), Helen Batho (A’04)

4. Charlie Palmer (P’04), Tiger Taylor (FB’04), Roly Mackinnon (P’04), James Furlong (P’04), Selwyn Wallace (P’04)

5. Harley England (A’04), Ander Percival (A’04) and Anthony Sfetcopoulos (P’04)

6. Lena O’Donnell (Fr’04), Will Thomson (P’04), Kate Brow (A’04), Mike Andrew (Fr’04)

7. John Payne (M’04), David Gallichio (Fr’04), Benjamin Watts (Cu’04)

8. Katy Southern (Fr’04), Catherine Gordon (He’04), Jessica Trezise (He’04), Harriet Birrell (He’04), Alana Gordon (Andrews, He’04), Eloise Williams (Ga’04)

9. Sam Hall-Haydon (Cu’04), Kin Seng Choo (M’04), Will Young (M’04), Ben Hall (Cu’04), Sam Hall (A’04)

10. Clementine Lucas (Walker, Cl’04), Chas Mackinnon (M’04), Hugh Robertson (FB’04), Denver King (FB’04)

11. Eloise Williams (Ga’04), Whitney McLaren (Hammond, He’04)

12. Andrew Burnett (P’04), Andrew Suvoltos (FB’04), Charlie Palmer (P’04)

13. Steph Hannah (Ga’02), Henry Cox (P’04), Steph Bovill (A’04), Alistair Noble (Cu’04), Christina Lloyd (Handbury, Fr’04), Catherine Gordon (He’04)

14. Geoff Tandy (FB’04), Julia Frost (Fr’04), David Gallichio (Fr’04), Kate Young (A’04)

15. Daisy Lynch (Ga’04), Will Burge (M’04)

16. Kate Brow (A’04), Natalie Schwerin (Temple, A’04), Lena O’Donnell (Fr’04), Katy Southern (Fr’04)

1984 40 Year

Timbertop Reunion

At the 1984 40 Year Timbertop Reunion were:

1. Emma Pierson (Bayles, Cl’87), Sarah Morgan (Cl’87), Sam Plowman (Cu’87) and David Bull (FB’87)

2. Tim Austin (A’87), Sarah Leslie (Je’86) and Katey Neville-Smith (Rattray, Ga’86)

3. David Chandler (Fr’87), Steve Lyons (Fr’87), Anouk Darling (Turnbull, Ga’87), Bronwyn Walker (Fr’87) and John Perry (A’87)

4. Tom Hall (FB’87) and Tim Box (FB’87)

5. Anthony Metcalfe (Cu’87) and Charles Tetaz (A’87)

6. Ross McDonald (P’87), Fleur Spriggs (Ga’87) and Eric Chow (Cu’87)

7. Guy Davis (A’87) and Tim Austin (A’87)

8. Tom Hall (FB’87) and Cathy Stewart (O’Hare Cl’87)

9. Julie Grills (A’87), Emily Caleo (Herbert, A’87) and Georgina Mainland (Robinson, Cl’87)

10. Will Davis (P’87), Drew Berry (M’87), Fiona Morris (Mackenzie, Cl’87) and Kim Dunstan (Je’87)

11. The 1984 year group attended the reunion at Timbertop campus in September

12. Emma Angas (Cl’87), Katherine Potter (Ga’87) and John Perry (A’87)

1954 70 Year Timbertop Reunion

1. Staff member Brad Bolden with Ian Smith (FB’57)

2. Andrew Bates (Cu’56) and Tony Bell (Ge’55)

3. Daryl Wraith (Cu’57)

4. Garry Spry (FB’57) and Rick Forster (Cu’56)

5. Sandy McLeay (P’57), Garry Spry (FB’57), Andrew Bates (Cu’56), Rick Forster (Cu’56), Tony Bell (Ge’55), Michael Hudson (FB’57) and Daryl Wraith (Cu’57)

6. Rick Forster (Cu’56), William Gatenby (Timbertop ‘24), Michael Hudson (FB’57) and Andrew Bates (Cu’56)

7. Tony Bell (Ge’55) with 2024 Timbertop students, Indiana Ambrose-Pearce, Olivia Johnston, Sanuli Tuduwage Don and Miette Egerton-Warburton

8. Michael Hudson (FB’57) and Sandy McLeay (P’57), with 2024 F Unit students, Jasper Preston and William Gatenby

At the 1954 70 Year Timbertop Reunion were:

were:

1. Jamima Jamieson (Cl’17), Emily Richards (He’17), Andrew Burgess (FB’81), Donna Burr, Vanessa Mahon

2. Charlie Sutherland (P’86), Paul Dowie (Cu’86)

3. Nick Ashton (P’99), Amanda Elliott (Bayles, Clyde ’69), Charlie Gardiner (M’00), Emily Mannix (Fr’12)

4. Amanda Elliott (Bayles, Clyde ’69), Charlie Gardiner (M’00)

5. Sian Martin-Jankowski (P’10), Whitney McLaren (Hammond, He’04), Jo Weir (Ashton, Cl’97), Troy Selwood

1. Tim Page-Walker (A’88), Eliza Chomley (Fr’16), Steve Carlile (Fr’04)

2. Coco Lu (Yr12 Ga), James Calvert-Jones (FB’11), Lilian Carter (Ga’99)

3. Steve Carlile (Fr’04), Will Clarke (Cu’18), Eliza Chomley (Fr’16), Tim Page-Walker (A’88), Alex Page-Walker (Walker, Fr’88), Cici Leung (Ga’10), Lilian Carter (Ga’99), Miranda Orford (A’11), James Calvert-Jones (FB’11), Ben Ranacher (Cu’14)

4. Ben Ranacher (Cu’14), Steve Carlile (Fr’04), Lily James (Yr12 EM), Sophia Clark (Yr12 Cl), Tom Bourke, James Calvert-Jones (FB’11), Arthur Veitch (Yr12 FB)

(Fr’16),

Ga), Cici Leung (Ga’10)

6. Alex Page-Walker (Walker, Fr’88), Sophia Clark (Yr12 Cl), Will Clarke (Cu’18), Lily James (Yr12 EM), Tim Page-Walker (A’88)

At the OGG Business Breakfast

6. Timothy Breadmore (P’83), Ben Rongdit (Yr12 P), Nickolas Chow (Yr12 Cu)

7. Will Bennett (Yr12 P)

8. Emily Mannix (Fr’12)

9. Mark Steven (FB’78), Ally Kirkwood (Cl’14)

At the Careers Discovery Day were:

5. Eliza Chomley

Miranda Orford (A’11), Xinyu Feng (Yr12 Ga), Fiona Gillies (Yr12

At the OGG Art Exhibition were:

1. James Robinson (FB’77), Lilian Carter (Ga’99)

2. Bill Parsons (M’66), Rosie Gilder (Cl’84), Kate Parsons

3. Artist Lucy McEachern (Ga’99) with Jennifer Thompson (Fenton, The Hermitage ’70)

4. Artist Camilla Dowling (Walford, Cl’05)

5. Sophie Church, Artist Serena Zlatnik (Cl’83), Peter Bajer (Hon.OGG)

6. Artist Nick Howson (FB’81)

7. George Jordan (A’81), Andrew Williams, Scott Morton (FB’81)

8. Helen Richards (A’92), Kevin Hui (M’93)

9. Joby Graves (P’77), Amy Graves (Cl’14)

OGG Christmas Connect:

1. John Officer (P’74), Louise Officer (Thomson, Li’74)

2. Katie Bennett (Je’93), Andrew Burns (FB’93)

3. Simon Kemp (Cu’70), Emilia Bajer (Fr’19), Alex Bajer (Fr’17), Donald Thomson (M’78)

4. Timothy Breadmore (P’83), Sophie Carnegie (Ga’89), Trine Shelmerdine

5. Alexandra Kent (Cl’14), Ally Kirkwood (Cl’14), Zoe Burgess (Cl’17)

6. Whitney McLaren (Hammond, He’04), Alexandra Gilbert (Fr’04), Annika Anderson-Carter (Anderson, Fr’04)

1. Judy Paterson (Handbury, Clyde ’74), Sarah Whinney (Paterson, Cl’00) and Tom Hall

2. Hamish Kelso (M’09) and Robert MacKinnon (M’10)

3. Harry Youngman (Cu’84) and Amanda Gubbins (Gunn, Cl’76)

4. Milly MacKirdy (EM’20), Isabella MacKirdy (EM’16) and Ellie Falkenberg (He’16)

5. Nick Dopheide, Andrew Burgess (FB’81) and Nick Falkenberg (Cu’83)

6. Emma Pierson (Bayles, Cl’87), Sarah Laidlaw (Seymour, Ga’86) and Jane Evans (Je’86)

15. Participants enjoying a picnic lunch at Tony Blakeley’s (M’77) property, Wormbete

7. OGG and their families are welcomed by Brad Bolden, acting Head of Campus, in the Dining Hall

8. Ian Erskine (Ge’65)

9. Anthony Cheung (P’10), Adrian Chan (M’10), David Tran (M’10), Maverick Chung (Cu’10)

10. Fleur Spriggs (Ga’87), Paula Spriggs, Andrew Greaves

11. The Timbertop Archives are included in the tour of Campus

12. OGG revisit the Timbertop Swimming Dam

At the Western District Connect were:

At the Timbertop Open Morning were:

At the OGG Motoring Event

13. Cars departing the Corio campus for the start of the rally

14. Cars lined up at the David William Robert Knox Equestrian Centre

Stuart Byrne and Jamie Ingle

Richard Molesworth (M’66) and Mike Burston (M’70)

3. Abby Paton, Amanda Laycock, James Laycock (P’90), Cara Crosswhite, Emma Williamson (Gaylard, Cl’85)

4. Deirdre Atkins, David Kemp (M’73), Rebecca Cody

5. Gordon Peardon (FB’07), Annabelle McDonald (Finlay, Cl’96)

6. Janny Molesworth (McIntyre, The Hermitage ’70), Jamie Maconochie (M’67)

7. Alister Haigh (Cu’72), Lilly Lipman

8. Chris Darling (A’93), Rosie Darling (Brown, The Hermitage ’53), Rebecca Cody

9. Bill Seppelt (M’64), Jacqui Seppelt and Judith Little

10. Diana Todd (Lewis, Clyde ’61), Emma Grave and Margie Rymill (Cornell, Clyde ’61)

11. Richard Clare (P’69), Anna Clark

12. Charles Burbury (FB’13), William Cope, Fiona Mackintosh Cope (Mackintosh, Cl’99), Sashim Vogt

At the Canberra Connect

13. Harriet Furphy (Cl’20), Rebecca Cody, Lucy Peddie (He’19)

14. Jess Holder (He’13), Fiona Nixon, Kate Scott (Cl’13), Ralph Nixon

15. Howard Charles (M’60), Rick Forster (Cu’56)

16. Marsali MacKinnon (Clyde’71), Jane Boardman

17. Graham Dodds and Suzi Hilton

At the Riverina Connect were:

1.

2.

At the Adelaide Connect were:

1943 Peter Champion de Crespigny (FB’43), who was born on 31 May 1926 and died on 7 June 2024, was a businessman and aviator, whose passion for flying –triggered when his father arranged for five-year-old Peter to have a flight with Charles Kingsford Smith at Ararat Racecourse on 8 March 1932 – was a lifelong joy.

Peter was the youngest son of Beatrice and Dr Francis (Frank) Champion de Crespigny, a general practitioner in Ararat, whose family’s French lineage originated with champions to the Dukes of Normandy in the eleventh century. Following his elder brothers Francis (P’35), James (FB’38) and Humphrey (FB’38), Peter enrolled at Geelong Grammar in 1939. At Corio, the advent of the war and the School’s proximity to Lara airfield (used by the RAAF for aircrew training) fuelled his obsession with flying and aircraft, most specifically the iconic Spitfire.

Peter’s nighttime exploits during 1943, as told years later to his son Richard, were akin to a Boys’ Own adventure. With a willing accomplice, “the plan started with secretly getting out of the dorm about an hour after lights off, getting our bikes out of the bike shed and riding off into the darkness towards Lara. On arriving at the field, we would proceed to the holding point where the aircraft conducted their pre-take-off checks. We had to quickly dash to the rear of the aircraft, open the rear door, jump in, and then introduce ourselves to the startled pilot as he prepared for take-off. The conversation would go like this: ‘Hi Officer! Can we come flying with you? We will sit on the spar and won’t say a word?’ The pilot always said, ‘OK’, and so off we would go, round and round, flying over the School below. After an hour or so of flying circuits, we would jump out of the rear door, collect our bikes, and head off back to school, where the challenge of returning undetected into the dorm lay ahead.”

Emboldened, and lured by the aviation activity at the International Harvester Works, Corio – where Spitfires, Airspeed Oxfords and Avro Ansons were assembled – Peter put on his Air Training Corps uniform and requested to speak to the Commanding Officer. Their conversation resulted in the offer of flying lessons, and by the end of 1943 Peter had accumulated 15 hours of flying time in Airspeed Oxfords. It was not until the end of the year, when Peter revealed his escapades to his parents as an explanation for his poor grades, that his mother revealed they already knew. James Darling (Headmaster 1930–61) was a personal friend and had written to explain about Peter’s flying exploits and to suggest that if they agreed, then there would be no intervention. “Their reasoning was that I should be able to achieve my passion. That passion was to fly. My father remarked, ‘I did not send you to Geelong Grammar to pass exams but to teach you to think’.”

Peter enrolled in the RAAF in May 1944 and finished near the top of his ground training course in June 1945. With the war nearing an end and a plethora of experienced wartime pilots now available to fill aviation roles, the Empire Air Training Scheme was disbanded. Peter was offered the option to continue in the RAAF as an administration officer, but he chose to discharge. Two years earlier, at a school cricket match, James Darling had arranged for Peter to meet Sir Ivan Holyman, the owner of Australian National Airways (ANA). His son, Ian (M’45), was one of Peter’s schoolfriends, along with John Fysh (M’43), son of Qantas founder Sir Hudson Fysh (GGS 1910-12). Peter visited Sir Ivan in his offices in Melbourne, asked for a job and embarked on a career with ANA. He had two wonderful years overseas in ANA’s new Cadet Training Scheme and on his return, aged just 26, became manager for Operations Hobart then for Operations Perth. After 11 years, Peter resigned on principle after a disagreement with Sir Ivan. Returning to Melbourne in 1956, Peter founded Stylecraft Desks and Chairs Pty Ltd, a business retailing, manufacturing and importing office furniture. In 1989, after selling Stylecraft, he relocated to Benalla, breeding alpacas.

Peter commenced commercial flying lessons at Moorabbin Airport on 8 March 1979, exactly 47 years after his flight with Sir Charles Kingsford Smith, and the same month that his son Richard started his pilot’s course in the RAAF. Peter gained his Private Pilot’s Licence in September 1979, and his IFR instrument rating in August 1980. On his 55th birthday Peter purchased a Piper Arrow aircraft with a $10 cash deposit. He maintained his licence and maintained the plane in his hangar at Benalla aerodrome until his death, aged 98.

There were two particularly memorable occasions during these years. On 22 August 2011, 85-year-old Peter flew in the Qantas A380 simulator at Mascot Airport with the astronaut Neil Armstrong, who later remarked that Peter was his inspiration to continue flying as he aged. On 3 September 2013, Peter finally realised his lifelong dream when – as a gift from his four sons – he flew a dual Spitfire Mark 9 (G-KJI) with British Airways pilot, John Dodds, from the Goodwood Aerodrome in Sussex, UK (pictured). Peter described this flight, in the aircraft he had idolised since making a model of one at school aged 12, as “the highlight of my life”.

Peter always attributed his extraordinary life firstly to his beloved parents but significantly to Geelong Grammar School and to the inspirational masters who had the time and wisdom to recognise passion in one young boy and allow it to develop. Peter married Patricia (Patti) Ward in 1952, who predeceased him in 1974. Their four sons, Michael, Simon, Richard and Christopher, six grandchildren and six great-grandchildren, survive them. In 1977, Peter married Mariea Elsie Dew who, after 47 years of marriage, continues the farm ‘Normandy’ in Benalla.

1950 Sir Roderick (Rod)

Howard Carnegie AC (Cu’50), who was born on 27 November 1932 and died on 14 July 2024, was an innovative and influential leader, a giant of the mining industry, and chairman of Geelong Grammar School Council from 1979 to 1982.

Rod was the eldest child and only son of Douglas Carnegie, whose family had established a very successful piano manufacturing company, and his wife Margaret (née Allen), a writer and art collector. Rod was followed by sisters Susan, Jane and Georgina. He commenced his schooling at Glamorgan in 1938, before boarding at Bostock House in 1941, when his father joined the AIF and was dispatched to the Middle East, becoming one of the Rats of Tobruk. Douglas’s army career was effectively ended when he contracted spinal meningitis and was repatriated to Australia on a hospital ship. On his recovery, doctors advised him to live in the country and in 1944 he purchased the 1000-hectare property, Kildrummie, on the edge of Holbrook in southern New South Wales, where he bred Poll Hereford cattle and Margaret embarked upon a career as a writer. The 1976 film, Mad Dog Morgan, was based on her book, Morgan: The Bold Bushranger (Hawthorn Press, 1974).

Meanwhile, Rod moved into Connewarre House at Corio in 1942. During his nine years at Corio, Rod was a cadet lieutenant, a school prefect, a keen oarsman, a member of the Areopagus Society, athletics and swimming committees, and a recipient of the Charles Murray Maxwell Prize for Science. In later life he became an active Old Geelong Grammarian, serving as a member of the School Council (1975–85), including as chairman (1979-82), and was a benefactor member of the Geelong Grammar Foundation.

After graduating Bachelor of Science at the University of Melbourne in 1954, Rod was accepted to Oxford University where he was president of the Oxford University Boat Club. He graduated Master of Arts with a Diploma of Agricultural Economics in 1957, following which he was awarded a scholarship to Harvard University from where he graduated Master of Business Administration in 1959, having topped the class. In the same year he married Carmen Clarke (Cl’56), of the family of Western Districts grazing pioneers. The couple had three sons, Mark (P’79), Charles (P’81) and James (P’84).

By 1959, Rod was working in Europe and the US as a consultant with the management consulting firm McKinsey & Company, where he was described by the legendary American business theorist and management consultant, Marvin Bower, as “a very brilliant young Australian”. Rod established McKinsey in Australia in 1962 and returned to New York in 1967 to become a director of the company. In 1972, he was appointed finance director of the mining company Conzinc Riotinto of Australia (CRA) Ltd. As chairman and CEO from 1974 to 1986, he was responsible for growing CRA to become Australia’s biggest mining company, expanding iron ore mining in the Pilbara, growing the Bougainville copper and gold mine, and developing the Argyle diamond mine in Western Australia. Renowned as a giant of the mining industry, he advocated for corporations to act in an ethical and sustainable manner.

Rod subsequently served on numerous boards, including as chair of property group Hudson Conway, as president of the Business Council of Australia, as a founding member of the General Motors Australian Advisory Council, and as a director of ANZ, John Fairfax Holdings, Lexmark International, Macfarlane Burnet Centre for Medical Research and the CSIRO. He was also a Fellow of Trinity College at Melbourne University and

a patron of the Australian Centre for Blood Diseases. He was made a knight bachelor in 1978 “in recognition of service to industry” and a Companion of the Order of Australia (AC) in 2003 “in recognition of service to the promotion of innovative leadership and to the development of competitive practices in business, both national and international, and to the community, particularly in the health and arts fields”.

Rod and Carmen enjoyed their property at Woodend, the historic Flint Hill estate, and Rod continued his mother’s passion of collecting Australian art. The artist Fred Williams’s Pilbara series, now in the collection of the National Gallery of Victoria, was the result of an invitation from Rod to visit the Pilbara. CRA acquired more than 30 of his works as a result. Rod was predeceased by Carmen in 2008. Their three sons and seven grandchildren survive him, including Bella (Cl’12), Cosima (Cl’14) and Tilda Carnegie (Cl’16).

1964

James Anderson Darling AM (FB’64), who was born on 25 November 1946 and died in a vehicle accident on his farm on 2 September 2024, was a farmer, conservationist, artist, writer, community activist and philanthropist who leaves behind an enduring legacy through his contributions to arts, culture, and conservation in South Australia.

Descended from pioneering Scottish grain merchant John Darling, who became Australia’s biggest exporter of wheat in the 1870s (known as the ‘Grain King’) and was an early investor and director of what was then the Broken Hill Proprietary Company (BHP) in the 1890s, James was the second of four children of Margaret (née Anderson) and Gordon Darling (GGS Council 1964–69), preceded by elder brother Michael (FB’63), and followed by sisters Sarah Darling (Clyde ’67) and Clare Cannon (née Darling).

James enrolled at Glamorgan in 1951 at the age of four and began boarding at Corio in 1958. He quickly compiled a distinguished school record, winning prizes in literature, history, poetry, and essay writing. James was editor of Tempo magazine and vice president of the Historical Society, receiving a Distinction Prize for a paper on Voltaire and Rousseau. He played the part of Duke Orsino in Twelfth Night “with great firmness and feeling”, delivered a “brilliant paper” on Camus to the Literary Society, and was an active participant in the Areopagus Society. James was a petty officer in the Sea Cadets, received school colours for football and cricket, and was vice captain (and wicketkeeper) of the 1st XI in 1964. “Those of us who were his contemporaries would know him as a good student, a competitive sportsman, a driven personality and someone whose destination seemed unlikely – if we’d thought about it – atop a D6 bulldozer clearing land in rural South Australia,” Tony Walker (FB’64) explained.

James was awarded a Commonwealth Scholarship in his matriculation year, went on to study a Bachelor of Arts at The University of Melbourne and then ANU in Canberra, majoring in English and philosophy. He spent the next decade overseas, initially in America, then London and Greece. “The Greek Islands, and Astypalea in particular, with his friend, filmmaker Jim Wilson (P’59), were a magnet for him throughout his life,” Tony noted. James said he “spearfished the Greek islands (when there were fish), lived in the country near Stratford, exhibited in London, farmed on the wilds of Exmoor, played cricket, made theatre, wrote, married, separated, went to China, rented in Fitzroy”. By November 1976, James found himself atop that D6 bulldozer clearing land at Duck Island, a property midway

between Keith and the Coorong River in South Australia’s southeast. “The property was largely scrub,” James recalled. “It was watercourse country. ‘That old swamp,’ the locals would say.”

In his nearly 50 years at Duck Island, James and his partner Lesley Forwood expanded the farm of less than 4,000 hectares, much of it uncleared, to more than 10,000 hectares, with large swathes of natural habitat and conservation reserves, including management of the surrounding Gum Lagoon Conservation Park. They created a successful commercial operation, breeding composite Angus and black Simmental cattle, targeting the EU market, and grew the herd to 4,000 cattle. They pioneered sustainable land management, with James contributing as a member of various agricultural and environmental groups, including South Australia’s Dryland Salinity Committee and the national Productive Use & Rehabilitation of Saline Land (PURSL) Committee, and as a district representative on the South East Water Conservation and Drainage Board and an advisor to the South Australian National Parks and Wildlife Council.

James became, in his own words, a “community activist”, preserving the environment and contributing to the cultural life of his local community. He was founding chair of the Keith Arts Council, an active member of the Keith Theatre Group, chair of Promoters of Entertainment and Arts in Keith (PEAK), trustee of the South East Cultural Trust and a driving force behind the redevelopment of the Keith Institute. Further afield, James was a supporter of the Art Gallery of South Australia (AGSA), Restless Dance Theatre, Adelaide Film Festival (AFF) and the Adelaide Festival of the Arts. He was a founding supporter of InReview, a not-for-profit arts journalism project designed to nurture professional arts reviewing in Australia. His writing was published in literary journals, including Overland, and he won the Max Harris Short Story Award in 2000. “He wrote both prose and poetry copiously,” Tony noted. “He had a novel accepted for publication but withdrew it. Writing in his journal became a daily discipline.”

James’s land-clearing exposed vast knots of mallee root, lignotubers of an arid-land eucalypt. With his partner Lesley, he adapted the flint-hard mallee roots for artistic purposes, creating installations that “speak of the evolution of our continent and confront our present day understanding of history, ecology and management”. “Our large-scale, ephemeral works make social, political and environmental statements,” James explained. The installations were exhibited in major galleries in Australia and overseas, including in Finland, Germany, Japan, Madrid, Paris, and Singapore, with the work Living Rocks: A Fragment of the Universe exhibited at the Venice Biennale in 2019 and at the ZKM: Centre for Art and Media Karlsruhe in Germany in 2022. “His immense contribution to the visual arts landscape as both an artist and generous supporter will forever be remembered,” Art Gallery of South Australia director Emma Fey said.

A book about James and his art, James Darling: Instinct, Imagination, Physical Work (Wakefield Press), was authored by art historian Daniel Thomas AM (FB’49) in 2001. James was made a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) in 2007 for “service to conservation and the environment, particularly through the development of sustainable land management practices, to the arts, and to the community of Keith”. He is survived by his partner, Lesley, two children, Edward from his first marriage (to Angela) and Alice (with Lesley), stepson Julian, and five grandchildren.

With Tony Walker (FB’64)

FAY MARLES

1926 – 2024

Fay Surtees Marles AM (née Pearce), who was born on 3 January 1926 and died on 1 November 2024, was a pioneering social worker, a trailblazing public servant and the first female chancellor of the University of Melbourne, with a close connection to Geelong Grammar School. Fay was the second of three children born to Jane and Percy Pearce MC. She was educated at Ruyton Girls’ School and The University of Melbourne, where she was a member of Janet Clarke Hall, graduating Bachelor of Arts with a Diploma of Social Work in 1948. She took a position with the Commonwealth Department of Social Services in Queensland but was obligated to resign upon her marriage to Donald (Don) Marles in 1951. In 1952, she became an assistant lecturer at the University of Queensland in the department led by Professor (Sir) Fred Schonell, an authority on remedial education.

In 1955, Don was appointed to the staff of Geelong Grammar School, where he was subsequently housemaster of Perry House (1963–71), Head of Corio and deputy headmaster (1973–78). The Marleses raised four children during their 24-year period of residence at Corio: Victoria (The Hermitage ’70), Jenny Green (Marles, Li’73), Elizabeth (Fr’76) and Richard (P’84). As well as filling the important role of a schoolmaster’s wife by making significant contributions to community life at Corio, including during the difficult period following the sudden death of headmaster Charles Fisher (1974–78), Fay “contributed to the life of the school in a unique way”. From 1970, she provided research assistance to historian Professor Weston Bate, who had been commissioned to write the history of the School (Light Blue Down Under, eventually published in 1990). Under Weston’s supervision, Fay submitted an undergraduate honours thesis on headmaster Leonard Lindon (1896–1911) in 1971, and in 1975 an MA thesis on headmaster John Bracebridge Wilson (1863–95). In 1978, Fay and Weston collaborated on the publication Dilemma at Westernport, a case study in land use conflicts.

Upon completion of her Master of Arts degree, Fay became a senior tutor in social work at The University of Melbourne and was appointed a lecturer in 1976. She was appointed Victoria’s first Commissioner for Equal Opportunity by premier Sir Rupert ‘Dick’ Hamer (M’34) in 1977, a position she held until 1987. Subsequently, while operating a management consultancy firm specialising in equal opportunity and workplace dispute resolution, Fay served on several boards and committees, including the State Trustees (1987–93), the Accident Compensation Commission Board (1988–89), the Mental Health Research Institute (1987–93), the Victorian Equal Opportunity Board (1987–93) and the Alfred Group of Hospitals (1986–95; president 1992–94). She chaired the Study of Professional Issues in Nursing inquiry following the nurses’ strike in 1986, and from 1989–90 the Melbourne Olympic Social Impact Assessment Panel. She was one of a three-member panel appointed by the Victorian premier to review the personnel management of the Victorian Public Service.

Fay’s lifelong association with The University of Melbourne flourished when she was elected to its council in 1984, in which she served for the next two decades. She was deputy chancellor from 1986-2001, when she was appointed the university’s first female chancellor, a role in which she served with distinction until 2004. Her many contributions included chairing the university’s Equal Opportunity Committee for over 15 years and

writing its first Equal Opportunity Policy, chairing the Human Resources Committee and Koori Education Committee, serving on the council of Medley Hall, and as a director of the Institute of Land and Food Resources. As chancellor, she focused on increasing the number of Indigenous graduates and actively encouraging international alumni support. In 2001, in honour of Fay’s dedication to human rights, the university established the annual Chancellor’s Human Rights Lecture in 2001.

Fondly remembered as an inspiration to many and a champion of equity in education, the workplace, and beyond, Fay Marles was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) in 1986 and awarded a Centenary Medal in 2003. Don predeceased her in 2017; their four children survive her.

JANET LANGLEY

1936 – 2024

Janet Margaret Langley (née Sides, Staff 1980–2000), who was born on 21 July 1936 and died on 9 November 2024, was a much-loved matron in Francis Brown House from 1980 to 1987.

Janet was born at the Red Cross Bush Nursing Unit in Hay and grew up on a remote property, ‘Arcadia’, near Goolgowi in the New South Wales Riverina. Her schooling was initially via correspondence (Blackfriars) before attending Hay Public School and boarding at Merton Hall, Melbourne Girls’ Grammar School from 1949 to 1953. Janet studied dental, general and mothercraft nursing before marrying John Langley (Glamorgan ’40) in 1957. They made their home at Eli Elwah before settling at Kolora on the Murrumbidgee River near Hay in 1959, where they raised their children, Fiona, Rowena and Jock Langley (P’82). Family was Janet’s foundation, and she instilled the intrinsic values of hard work, kindness and resourcefulness in her children. A quintessential country woman, Janet loved the bush poetry of Banjo Patterson, Henry Lawson and Dorethea Mackellar, and was passionate about rural and remote Australia.

Jock commenced boarding in Barwon House 1979 and Janet was delighted to be offered the role as matron in Francis Brown in 1980 to remain a guiding presence for him at Corio. Working alongside Head of House, Glen Bechly (Staff 1966-96), she provided a nurturing, home-away-from-home environment for the boys in Francis Brown, preparing an abundance of home-cooked suppers, delicious cakes and sandwiches to quell their hunger. She became a mother figure for many, forever referred to as “matey”, and was also known for making formal dresses for girls.

Janet adored her garden at Kolora and later at Benalla, a place where her perfectionism and creativity were on full display. One of Janet’s great joys was her long partnership with Peter Kemp (FB’41). They shared many adventures, travelling and enjoying the tropics at El Arish and Mission Beach in Far North Queensland, where Janet relished the more laidback lifestyle, before Peter died in 2011.

Janet faced life’s challenges with remarkable strength. Her ability to maintain her independence as she aged was nothing short of inspiring. An avid reader, her curiosity and interest in the stock market made her an interesting conversationalist. She will be warmly remembered for her love and affection, wisdom, enduring strength and unwavering courage. Janet is survived by her children and adored grandchildren, Fred, Thomas (P’19)

and Clementine Langley (Ga’21), and Alicia Nixon (Ga’17). Her eldest granddaughter Harriet Nixon (Ga’13) predeceased her in 2016. Janet was immensely proud of her grandchildren and loved watching them play sport and share their education and love of learning at Geelong Grammar School.

JOHN MARSDEN 1950 – 2024

John Marsden (Staff 1982–90), who was born on 27 September 1950 and died on 18 December 2024, was an acclaimed writer and legendary educator who was Head of English at both Highton and Timbertop.

John was born in Melbourne but spent the first 10 years of his life in country towns in Victoria and Tasmania before the family moved to Sydney. He attended The King’s School, Parramatta, from 1962 to 1968, but was unsuited to its strict military and sporting regime. His passion for reading and writing that had emerged in primary school became a major source of support and escapism during these years. In 1969, he started but did not complete an Arts/Law degree at The University of Sydney. After trying several jobs, in 1978 he embarked on a teaching career on the basis that it would “satisfy his need for creative expression, his love of variety and adventure, and his desire to nurture others”. His first appointment, at All Saints’ College, Bathurst, was followed by an appointment as Head of English at the Highton Campus of Geelong Grammar School in 1982, and two years later as Head of English at Timbertop.

Timbertop was a transformational experience for John.

“It (Timbertop) made me realise how much young people can achieve. 14 and 15-year-olds would achieve so much on both a physical and mental level – you’d never imagine their abilities.” Aware of the apathy of his teenage charges towards reading, he resolved to write books for that age group. His first novel, So Much to Tell You (Walter McVitty Books, 1987), was hammered out on an old typewriter each night after teaching commitments had concluded and the manuscript was completed in just three weeks. It won a string of awards, including the Children’s Book Council of Australia (CBCA) Children’s Book of the Year Award and the Victorian Premier’s Literary Award. He published six more books over the next five years, including Out of Time (Pan Books, 1988), the multi award-winning Letters from the Inside (Pan Macmillan, 1991), and Take My Word for It (Macmillan, 1992). His most acclaimed work, Tomorrow, When the War Began, was published by Pan Macmillan in 1993. Its setting was inspired by the mountains and valleys of the Victorian High Country around Timbertop, and its resourceful and resilient students.

It, too, won numerous prizes and awards, including selection onto the American Library Association’s list of 100 Best Books for Teens published between 1966 and 2000. A further six books in the series followed, and three additional works centred on the series’ main character, Ellie. “The Tomorrow series, I hope, is giving young people the message that they are capable of great things.”

Alongside writing and editing, which resulted in the publication of 40 books over his lifetime and sales of more than 2.5 million books in Australia alone, John continued as a teacher for some years as well as giving talks and running workshops in schools. In 1998, he bought an 850-acre bush property near Mt Macedon where he ran writing camps. Its success inspired him to start Candlebark, a primary co-educational school, in 2006. An artsfocused secondary school, Alice Miller, opened in 2016.

In 2006, John became only the fifth person to be awarded the Lloyd O’Neil Award for contributions to Australian publishing, and in 2008 he was nominated for the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award, the second largest literature prize in the world. But it is as a passionate educator that he is perhaps best remembered by many admirers. As Jeremy Madin (FB’64, Staff 1983–87), former Head of Timbertop, wrote, “His beautifully paced and thought-provoking books and the foundation and nurturing of Candlebark and Alice Miller schools serve as concrete legacies. But the relationships he forged, as teacher, colleague and friend, are more powerful, inspirational and enduring.”

Amanda Bissex (A’87), UNICEF human rights and child protection campaigner, was one of his students on whom John had a significant influence. “He had a very unorthodox way of thinking, and his classes were the same. We used to listen to Bob Dylan, we watched Cool Hand Luke, and we were taught how to protest. It was immersive protesting. We took banners and we walked around the school. But the values that were taught in that classroom were about challenging yourself, challenging your way of thinking, and looking at things from a different perspective – all skills that I think are incredibly important.” Rhys James (M’88), an award-winning jewellery designer, reflected that “John’s encouragement and wisdom inspired students like me to embrace their creativity and take risks. I will forever be grateful for having met the man.”

John is survived by his wife, Kirstin, and six stepsons.

TRAVIS McCOMBE

1950 – 2024

Travis Andrew McCombe (Staff 2022–24), who was born on 19 November 1971 and died on 19 November 2024, was a highly respected sports physiotherapist and much-loved member of our School community.

Travis was born in Sandaun Province (formerly West Sepik Province) in the northwest of Papua New Guinea, where his parents Moyne and Daryl worked for the Australian government. Travis spent the first 12 years of his life living in PNG and developed an abiding love and respect for the country, its people and culture that continued throughout his life. The McCombe family returned to Australia in 1983, settling in Portland in western Victoria, and Travis attended Monivae College in Hamilton, spending Year 11 in California as a Rotary exchange student. After finishing school, Travis returned to the USA for a gap year and then began work at Alcoa aluminium smelter in Portland.

Travis met his future wife Kelli in Portland in 1990 and the couple moved to Adelaide in 1996 where Travis enrolled in The University of Adelaide as a mature-age student, studying human movement and physiotherapy. He worked as a strength and conditioning coach with the Port Adelaide Football Club, briefly lived and worked in Warrnambool, before the McCombe family settled in Geelong in 2006, with children Finn (A’20), Sarah (deceased), Sammy, and Marley (A’24). Travis spent a season as a physiotherapist at the Geelong Football Club in 2008 before establishing Belmont Physiotherapy Centre in 2010 – he was voted Geelong’s number one physiotherapist in a Geelong Advertiser poll in 2024. After assisting on the sidelines at APS Cricket and Football fixtures for several years, Travis formally joined GGS staff in 2022 as a consultant sports physiotherapist.

Travis treated the injuries, rehabilitation and exercise performance of some of the School’s elite athletes, including AFL-listed players Noah Long (P’22) and Sam Lalor (FB’24), and Melbourne Renegades cricketer Ollie Peake (A’24), but was equally engaged in the lives of all students who came into his care, no matter the sport or level of performance. “Calm, humble and selfless, Travis treated every ‘hammy’ the same,” Principal, Rebecca Cody, explained. “His care was for the whole person and our School was enriched by his belief in our students and their future. He had a genuine way of connecting with our community and we are all beneficiaries of his positive influence.”

Travis died suddenly from a medical episode while leading a tour group on a remote island of Papua New Guinea. He regularly returned to the country of his birth, having established PNG Experience Tours and the Ali Island Project charity to support economic and tourist development on Ali Island and the neighbouring communities of Sandaun Province. “We take comfort in that full circle, that he was in the place that he loved,” Kelli said. Travis is remembered for his passion, energy and integrity. He is survived by his wife Kelli and their three children.

TROY SELWOOD

1984 – 2024

Troy William Selwood (Staff 2021–25), who was born on 1 May 1984 and died on 4 February 2025, was an inspirational Football and Sports Performance Mentor who played a significant role in our School community, supporting and guiding students, colleagues and families.

Troy was born in Bendigo in central Victoria to Bryce and Maree Selwood, arriving 18 minutes before his twin brother Adam. The twins were followed by younger brothers Joel and Scott. All four Selwood brothers would go on to play AFL football and break the record for the most AFL games of any set of brothers, with a combined total of 767 games. Troy grew up in the east Bendigo suburb of Strathdale and the backyard tennis court of the family home became a “battleground” for “epic” games of tennis, basketball, football and cricket. “If there wasn’t blood spilled by one of us boys during play, then it wasn’t played hard enough,” Adam said. Troy attended St Therese’s Primary School in the neighbouring suburb of Kennington, followed by Flora Hill Secondary College (Years 7–10), where he was school captain, completing his schooling at Bendigo Senior Secondary College (Years 11–12). He played junior football for the KenningtonSandhurst Dragons and was selected to represent the Bendigo Pioneers’ Under-18 team in 2001. As bottom-aged players, Troy and Adam became key components of the Pioneers’ team that played in the 2001 TAC Cup grand final on the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) – it remains the only Bendigo team to reach the grand final of the AFL pathways competition. In 2002, Troy represented Victoria Country at the Under-18 National Championships, was selected in the Under-18 All-Australian team and was subsequently drafted by the Brisbane Lions with pick number 19 in the 2002 AFL draft.

After not playing a senior AFL game in 2003 (when Brisbane won the AFL premiership) or 2004 (when Brisbane lost the AFL grand final to Port Adelaide), Troy made his AFL debut for the

Lions wearing the number 28 guernsey in Round 1, 2005, against St Kilda. His endurance and accountable style of play saw him mainly utilised in a tagging role on key opposition players. He played 75 games for the Brisbane Lions before being delisted at the end of the 2010 season. He was appointed co-captain of the Geelong VFL team at the beginning of the 2011 season and led the Cats’ VFL team to the 2012 premiership. He retired from VFL football at the end of the 2013 season. Troy worked in various off-field roles in his 10 years at the Cats, including football operations, academy manager and talent identification manager. He departed the club in 2021 to join Collingwood as list and recruiting manager before his appointment as Football and Sports Performance Mentor at GGS in October 2021.

“Teachers usually join the profession to influence young people positively,” Principal, Rebecca Cody, said. “Whilst Troy came to our School late in his career, and fulfilled a role often described as his ‘dream job’, he embodied a spirit of making a positive difference that suggested he was born for this.” Whilst Troy played a pivotal role in the burgeoning sporting careers of some of the School’s elite athletes, including AFL-listed players Ollie Hollands (P’22), Noah Long (P’22), Lou-Lou Field (Fr’24), Xavier Ivisic (A’24) Sam Lalor (FB’24), and Premier Cricket batsmen Henry Melville (Cu’23) and Ollie Peake (A’24), his influence was felt throughout the School’s sporting programme. He played a particularly important role in the development and growth of the AFLW programme at the School.

“None of us had Troy in our lives for long enough, yet at Geelong Grammar we cannot help but be grateful that he chose to spend time with us,” Rebecca said. “May Troy’s death be an awakening to the preciousness within us all – the loving, open-hearted and tender spirit of humility, kindness and generosity.” Troy is remembered fondly by our community for his resilience, courage and care for others. He is survived by his parents, siblings and two children, Tom and Sadie.

COGA

COGA AGM AND OLD GIRLS LUNCH

The COGA AGM and Old Girls’ Lunch at Royal South Yarra Tennis Club on Sunday 20 October was attended by 41 Old Girls. After the meeting, Anna Affleck (Durham, Clyde ’71) was welcomed as guest speaker, accompanied by OGG visitor Sophie Holloway (Mann, Cl’83). Anna’s lively and informative talk covered her decades of experience in house and garden restoration, tour guiding and travels throughout Australia and overseas, ’from Minjah to Morocco’. Her interest in drought resistant and Australian native gardens has grown, drawing inspiration from numerous helpful experts, landscape architects and designers, many of them prominent educators in plant ecology and adaptability.

1974 50-YEAR REUNION

The Clyde School Class of 1974 enjoyed a 50-year reunion during the weekend of 26/27 October, organised by classmates Judy Paterson (Handbury, Clyde ’74), Jane Dumbrell (Selleck, Clyde ’73) and Cas Bennetto (Clyde ’74).

On Saturday 26 October a minibus collected the revellers from the Windsor Hotel and headed to Cruden Farm, the former home of Dame Elisabeth Murdoch (Greene, Clyde ’26) where lunch and a garden tour were hosted by her granddaughter and current Chair of Trustees, Judy, who led the group through the garden. She captivated them with tales of her granny’s work over eight decades to create such a haven and the history of Cruden Farm.

On Sunday 27 October the girls gathered in Albert Park for champagne and oysters at Cas’ home, followed by lunch at Riccardo’s Trattoria in the village.

During the weekend, some memorable toasts and speeches were made, they sang (or yelled) the School Song and relished their ’lovely sense of connection and shared history that is so special’.

(Adapted from an article by Cas Bennetto (Clyde ’74), written for The Cluthan 2025)

Caroline Thomson (Kemp, Clyde ‘74), Trish Kearney (Clyde ‘74), Elaine Baker (Clyde ‘74), Caroline Adams (Blakiston, Clyde ‘74), Lyn Moore (Stevens, Clyde ‘73)

Front row: Tina Grindal (Gooding, Clyde ‘74), Deborah Noyce (Baxter, Clyde ‘74), Graham Maxwell-Russell (Maxwell, Clyde ‘74), Cas Bennetto (Clyde ‘74), Judy Paterson (Handbury, Clyde ‘74), Diana Reed (Diggle, Clyde ‘74),

3.

Deborah

At Cruden Farm were:

1. Left to right: Sally McKay (Pearce, Clyde ‘71), at back Sally Hudson (Mercer, Clyde ‘71), in front Pip Heard (Lawrence, Clyde ‘71), Angela Lyon (Rouse, Clyde ‘71), Anna Affleck (Durham, Clyde ‘71), Gillie Holyman (Clyde ‘71), Anna Tucker (Kimpton, Clyde ‘71), Tinks Urquhart (Austin, Clyde ‘71)

2. Elizabeth McDonald (Balharrie, Clyde ‘74) and Deborah Noyce (Baxter, Clyde ‘74)

Back row (Left to right): Jane Dumbrell (Selleck, Clyde ‘73),

Houghton (Clyde ‘74), Elizabeth McDonald (Balharrie, Clyde ‘74),

Michelle Cook (Chalmers, Clyde ‘74)

4. Tina Grindal (Gooding, Clyde ‘74) and Cas Bennetto (Clyde ‘74)

HOGA

CHRISTMAS LUNCH

The Hermitage Old Girls Christmas Lunch was held at All Saints Hall. We are very lucky to now have a pianist, Kristine Mellens (The Hermitage ’75), who ably played a number of Carols during the afternoon and, of course, ended with the School Song, which was sung with gusto! The food was delicious and the room was decorated beautifully by Felicity Hocking (Waterman, The Hermitage ’67), which gave it a festive appearance.

AGM

Our Annual General Meeting was another very successful day, with the present Committee being returned unopposed. Our guest speaker was Alexandra Hocking (He’99), an Old Girl, who was Captain of Morres House at Highton and boarded in Hermitage House during her Senior School. Alex’s topic was “A career with Princes, Presidents, Premiers and Protocol.” She had a captivated audience, with her tales of the behind the scenes working.

2. Jane Caldwell (Newman, The Hermitage ‘52), Janet Yeates (Bone, Fr’76), Jill Nicholls (Holmes, The Hermitage ‘68), Naida Hutton (Glen, The Hermitage ‘68), Kristine Mellens (The Hermitage ‘75)

3. Beverley Foster (Smith, The Hermitage ‘52) and Lesley Robinson (Donaldson, The Hermitage ‘51)

4. Sue Callahan (Holmes, The Hermitage ‘71) and Elizabeth Bennett (McDonald, The Hermitage ‘66)

5. Judy Read (Tucker, The Hermitage ‘53) and Felicity Hocking (Waterman, The Hermitage ‘67)

6. Nova Urquhart (Ince, The Hermitage ‘67), Di Ross-Harris (Harris, The Hermitage ‘68), Judy Aiton (Wookey, The Hermitage ‘69), Judy Delalande (Bent, The Hermitage ‘68), Jeanette McArthur (Drew, The Hermitage ‘65), Kristeen Hunter (Horne, The Hermitage ‘65), Dianne Wolff, The Hermitage ‘68), Prue Rees (Hortin, The Hermitage ‘67), Desiree Cohen (Horne, The Hermitage ‘68), Pauline Greaves (Harvey, The Hermitage ‘68), Merryn Pane (Harrod, The Hermitage ‘67), Sally Horne (Jaques, The Hermitage ‘68)

OLD GIRLS’ GOLF DAY

The Hermitage Old Girls Golf Day was played at Barwon Heads on 14 October. Jan Embling (Bell, The Hermitage ’71) was the individual winner and the winning team consisted of Jan Embling, Pam Macdonald (Philip, The Hermitage ’71), Cath Bell (Irvine, The Hermitage ’70) and Jan Curtain (Schofield, The Hermitage ’73). Naida Hutton (Glen, The Hermitage ’68) and Angie Worthy (Campbell, The Hermitage ’72) both won a nearest the pin.

REUNIONS

If anyone is willing to organise a reunion of their year, whether it be a significant year, just a good excuse to get together or if an Old Girl is flying in from overseas, please don’t hesitate to let HOGA Secretary, Jill Nicholls (Holmes, The Hermitage ’68), know, so that she can assist in any way.

If you have an interesting snippet that they would like to share in the next Newsletter, please forward it to Jill at hermitagegirls@gmail.com

1. Victoria Hickman (Carlyle, The Hermitage ‘75), Catherine Hallam (Kirby, A’74) and Glenda Barr (Holmes, The Hermitage ‘75)

John Landy Oval

Tony Landy (M’53) and sister Sue Manton joined Principal, Rebecca Cody, for the unveiling of the John Landy Oval plaque at the 2024 Athletics Day at Corio. The first School Sports Day at Corio took place on 23 October 1914 on the “new cricket field”, which “looked beautifully green and fresh beside the parched and burnt up land around it”. “Many visitors were present, coming out by car, train and drag,” The Corian noted.

The 1933 Sports Day (below) was held on what was then referred to as “the main oval”. The Corian report highlighted “the physical training display given by the four senior houses under Sergeant-Major Storey” (above left) and “a thrilling finish” to the mile handicap race between Bill Mollard (Cu’33), “who started from scratch and passed every competitor on the field”, and Mervyn Brumley (P’35), “who clung to him (Mollard) over the last lap, and just beat him to the tape by inches”.

At the 1948 Sports Day, John Landy AC CVO MBE (M’48) won the 440 yards, 880 yards and the Mile, and was named the School Open Athletics Champion. John would go on to become one of Australia’s greatest middle-distance runners. He was the second man to break the four-minute mile barrier and held world records for the 1,500 metres and the mile. While a staff member at Timbertop, John trained in the hilly terrain for the 1956 Olympic Games, achieving a bronze medal in the 1,500-metre race. He was responsible for what has been described as “the finest and

most selfless Australian sporting moment of the 20th century” when he stopped to assist fallen runner, Ron Clarke, during the 1956 National Championships. He also served as an OGG Committee member (1953-57) and as Governor of Victoria (2001-06).

When John died in 2022 at the age of 91, Dehne Jones (Cu’63) proposed that the Main Oval at Corio Campus be renamed John Landy Oval. In the following weeks and months, the School received written support for this proposal from many Old Geelong Grammarians, including outgoing OGG President, Ian Coltman (A’77). Principal, Rebecca Cody, announced the naming of John Landy Oval at the 2023 Athletics Day, and invited members of the Landy family to attend the official unveiling of the plaque at the 2024 Athletics Day. In addition to the plaque unveiling, an archival display of artefacts related to John’s time at GGS was displayed in the Hawker Library, while Max Clarke (Yr11 Cu) broke the school record for the under 16 boys’ high jump and received the John Landy Award for Athlete of the Year.

1914 Joan Lindsay (Weigall, Clyde ‘14) is having a moment. Acclaimed biographer and literary critic Brenda Niall has written Joan Lindsay: The Hidden Life of the Woman Who Wrote ‘Picnic at Hanging Rock’ (Text, 2025), whilst the Sydney Theatre Company has staged a new adaptation of Lindsay’s Australian gothic masterpiece. Niall is one of Australia’s most distinguished literary historians and her biography of Lindsay has been widely praised as “fascinating” and “engrossing” for the way it explores Lindsay’s life, frustrated creative endeavours (as both a painter and an author) and ultimate success with a Picnic at Hanging Rock (F. W. Cheshire, 1967), which was published when she was 71 years old. Lindsay’s story about a group of female boarding school students who vanish at Hanging Rock while on a Valentine’s Day picnic is regarded as one of Australia’s greatest novels. The boarding school, Appleyard College, was based on Clyde School, which was located in St Kilda when Lindsay was a student there from 1911-14, before it relocated to Woodend near Hanging Rock in 1919. After graduating from Clyde, Lindsay studied art at the National Gallery of Victoria (NGV) Art School, where she met her future husband, fellow artist Daryl Lindsay, who would become director of the NGV from 1942 to 1956 (and whose brother Norman wrote another Australian classic, The Magic Pudding). Joan Lindsay published her first novel, Through Darkest Pondelayo, under a pseudonym in 1936, and Niall’s biography illuminates Lindsay’s “hidden life” of balancing her creative ambitions with her husband’s career.

2025 marks the 50th anniversary of Peter Weir’s 1975 film adaptation of Picnic at Hanging Rock, which was both a commercial and critical success, and played a significant role in the resurgence of Australian cinema in the early 1970s, referred to as the Australian New Wave. Lindsay’s book was also adapted as a stage play in 1987, a BBC radio play in 1996, a musical in 2007 and a six-part TV miniseries in 2017. Australian theatre writer Tom Wright created a new adaptation in 2016 for a production at the Malthouse Theatre in Melbourne that was later staged at the Royal Lyceum Theatre in Edinburgh. Wright’s play was staged by the Sydney Theatre Company (STC), from February 17 to April 5. Directed by award-winning Noongar director, Ian Michael, the STC production has been described as an “eerie, beautiful and visionary take on the gothic tale that changed Australian storytelling forever”.

1978

Anson Cameron (M’78) was awarded first prize in the world’s richest short story competition, The Best Australian Yarn, in November. Anson attended the ceremony hosted by the State Library of Western Australia, where he received $50,000 for his short story, Vanilla… then Cinnamon, ahead of a record 6,020 entrants. Anson’s story, about the shifting relationship between a man in a coma and the nurse who cares for him, was described by Prize Jury Judge, acclaimed Australian novelist Robert Drewe, as “impressing the judges on emotional levels beyond storytelling”. Anson writes regularly as a columnist for Spectrum in The Age and Sydney Morning Herald. He has written six novels, Silences Long Gone (Picador, 1998), Tin Toys (Pan Macmillan, 2001), Confessing the Blues (Picador, 2002), Lies I Told About a Girl (Pan Macmillan, 2006), Stealing Picasso (Random House, 2009) and The Last Pulse (Random House, 2014), as well as two collections of short stories, Pepsi Bears and Other Stories (Vintage Books, 2011) and Nice Shootin’ Cowboy (A&U House of Books, 2012), the childhood memoir Boyhoodlum (Random House, 2015), and biography Neil Balme: A Tale of Two Men (Viking, 2022). Anson is the great-great-great grandson of Joseph Furphy, who wrote Such Is Life (1903) and is widely regarded as the father of the Australian novel. The long-awaited film adaptation of Anson’s rollicking environmental satire, The Last Pulse, is scheduled to commence production later this year.

1987

Mike Bodsworth (A’87) was elected Mayor of the Surf Coast Shire Council in November 2024. Mike was first elected as an independent candidate to the Surf Coast Shire Council in 2020, representing the Otway Range Ward, which stretches from Jan Juc to Lorne and inland to Deans Marsh. The Anglesea resident was re-elected in 2024 and will serve as Mayor for the first 12 months of his four-year Council term. “We’ve got some exciting projects coming up, including the Surf Coast Aquatic and Health Centre and Winchelsea Pool redevelopment,” Mike said. He holds a Master of Landscape Architecture and a Bachelor of Planning and Design. He has worked with the Department of Conservation and Land Management in Western Australia and the Great Ocean Road Coast Committee. A lover of the outdoors and an avid cyclist, Mike has also been a volunteer with the Anglesea Bike Park since its creation in 2006.

1989

Owen Guest (FB’89) was elected to Melbourne City Council in October 2024. Owen was elected as the endorsed Liberal candidate. It was the first time the Liberal Party formally endorsed candidates for City of Melbourne elections. Owen previously served as the Victorian Liberal Party’s state treasurer and was the Liberal candidate for the Federal seat of Macnamara (formerly Melbourne Ports) in 2016. He has a doctorate in economics and finance, as well as almost 30 years of experience running his own financial trading

company, having previously worked as a fund and risk manager at Phillip Capital and a financial analyst at the Commonwealth Bank. Owen has been appointed the Council’s portfolio head for Finance, Governance and Risk and portfolio deputy for Innovation and Education. He is also Council’s representative on the Audit and Risk Committee, Employment Matters Advisory Committee and the Victorian Local Governance Association (VLGA). Owen’s father, James Guest (M’55), was the Liberal member for Monash in the Victorian Legislative Council from 1976 to 1996.

Oopy (Julia) MacGillivray (Kimpton, Cl’89) saddled up her first Melbourne Cup runner with six-year-old mare The Map, which Oopy trains with partner Dan Clarken in Murray Bridge, South Australia. The Map qualified for Australia’s most famous horse race with a win in the Andrew Ramsden Stakes at Flemington in May 2024. In a field of international and big-money purchases, The Map was a $71 longshot that Oopy and Dan bought for just $35,000 as Lot 140 at the Adelaide Magic Millions yearling sale in 2020 (a daughter of Tasmanian based stallion Alpine Eagle, its name is a cheeky reference to its birthplace). While The Map ultimately finished near the rear of the field, it was an incredible achievement to get to the starting line – Oopy described it as like a dream that “you wake up and can’t quite believe it”. Oopy might be a relatively inexperienced horse trainer, but she grew up on a family farm outside Dunkeld and has been involved with horses her entire life, from riding ponies to competing in national equestrian events. “I was just a country kid, and we just always rode horses, did lots of stock work, I loved the horses, and it was a natural progression into show-jumpers and eventers,” Oopy told Racenet’s Bruce Clark. Oopy competed at the highest level of three-day eventing in Australia, with a win at the Wandin Park International Horse Event amongst her achievements. She briefly held an owner-trainer permit in Victoria in 2000, but got married, had a family and worked as an illustrator (she did a cartoon of a rider jumping the clock tower for the School’s Equestrian Centre) before circling back to horse training. “Horses are one of those things that, if you love them, it doesn’t matter how hard you try, they always seem to creep back into your life.” Oopy, Dan and The Map didn’t complete the fairytale of winning the Melbourne Cup last November, but you wouldn’t bet against her being back to try again. “I’ve always been a competitive person. I just didn’t want to send one out for fun. I want to win races.”

1996

Missy Morgan (Baillieu, Cl’96) won the 2024 Mongol Derby in August, completing the 10-day, 1,000-kilometre course across the Mongolian Steppe in just eight days to finish ahead of 2014 winner Sam Jones. Missy, who has been based in South Africa for the past 20 years, was inspired to tackle what is widely regarded as the world’s longest and toughest horse race after a good friend, Irishman Patrick Heffron, finished in 2nd place in 2022. The course for the Mongol Derby recreates the world’s first longdistance postal transmission system, established in 1224 by Chinggis Khaan, utilising a massive network of horse stations. The course covers a diverse range of terrain, across sand dunes,

rivers and open grasslands, passing through 29 horse stations and 68 checkpoints. Competitors change horses every 35 kilometres, with horses checked by a vet after each leg (with time penalties applied should the horse be seen to be dehydrated or showing signs of mistreatment). Missy was first across the finish line with zero vet penalties. She had ridden for four days without seeing another rider and, as she neared the finish, she took a moment to enjoy the enormity of her achievement. “I had 1% on my phone remaining and I left a voice note to my kids and my husband; I cracked up crying, saying, ‘I’m here and I’ve done it!’,” Missy told Equestrian Life magazine. “It’s not just relief… it’s so cool, you’re like, ‘I actually did this!’ For me it’s about the experience not the race.” The Equestrianists World Series website described Missy as “a very deserving champion”, hailing her “bloody good ride” as “about as good as it can possibly get”. It was also Missy’s first equestrian endurance race. “I did eventing and show jumping as a kid,” she explained. “These days, I’m a dressage rider. I have four competition horses and just compete whenever I can, which is not that often because I’ve got four children and life is busy. I try and make it to the big South African championships and a couple of the bigger shows throughout the year.”

1999

Geoff Lemon (FB’99) and his The Final Word Cricket Podcast co-host Adam Collins won the Best Sport Podcast award at the 2024 Australian Sports Commission (ASC) Media Awards, held at the SCG in February. Geoff and Adam were finalist in a highly competitive podcast category, alongside The Howie Games, ABC Sport Daily, The Female Athlete Project and Sportish. The Final Word prides itself on covering all aspects of the sport they love; from daily episodes during men’s and women’s test series and major tournaments, to weekly episodes covering the state of the game across the globe, as well as the fan favourite segment “nerd pledge”. Geoff has covered cricket as a writer and broadcaster since 2010, including touring with the Australian men’s and women’s teams since 2013, for outlets including the ABC, BBC, Wisden Almanack, The Guardian, The Cricketer, The Saturday Paper and Cricinfo. His book about the Australian cricket team’s 2018 ball tampering scandal, Steve Smith’s Men (Hardie Grant, 2019), won both the Wisden and MCC/Cricket Society Book of the Year.

2000

Charlie Gardiner (M’00) was appointed Executive General Manager of Football at Collingwood Football Club in December. Charlie was most recently Legal Counsel and Strategy at the Sydney Swans Football Club and prior to this, led the AFL Men’s Football Program as Executive General Manager of Football at the Swans. Charlie played 63 games for Geelong and St Kilda. He is passionate about sport and the management of it. In October, Charlie generously gave his time to be part of the panel to discuss the business of sport at the OGG Business Breakfast in Melbourne.

2004

James Thomas (M’04) led a team of current and past GGS students to win the John Kelly (M’43) Shield (D grade) at the annual Urquhart Polo Tournament in January. James teamed up with Jack Sanderson-Baker (A’22), Heidi Calvert-Jones (Yr10 EM) and Harriet Sanderson-Baker (Yr10 A) to compete in four games of polo over two weekends, culminating in the finals at Werribee. When not playing, James runs Venture Polo, which offers a comprehensive polo service for beginners through to professional players.

2012

Dev Tiwari (FB’12) was recognised at the 2024 Commonwealth Bank Teaching Awards for his innovative teaching methods and dedication to children and young people’s education. Dev received an Early Career Teaching Scholarship at a ceremony hosted by the Federal Minister for Education, Jason Clare, at Parliament House in October. At the time, Dev was Assistant Principal at Katherine High School in the Northern Territory, where he was responsible for leading professional development, implementing a literacy support system, and creating a new English and Humanities curriculum. He has since moved into a role as a Research Associate with UK-based not-for-profit Centre for Education Systems (CES), which distils and disseminates international policy reviews with partner academics and research organisations (such as the Education Policy Institute) to ultimately improve education systems and learning outcomes. Dev also works remotely as a Project Lead for Australian not-for-profit Ochre Education, which is developing an online library of evidence-based curriculum and teaching resources.

Dev studied a Bachelor of Economics and Bachelor of Laws (Honours) at the Australian National University (ANU) before completing a Master of Education through Teach for Australia’s Leadership Development Program. Dev started his teaching career at Huonville High School in Tasmania, assisting with the restructure of the School’s Year 11 and Year 12 programs and developing a professional learning framework for staff. In 2021, he was presented with the Early Career Teaching and Leadership Award from the Australian Council of Educational Leaders (ACEL). This award recognised Dev’s commitment to improving student academic outcomes, as well as his contribution to the broader Huonville High School community. He then taught at Stretton State College in Brisbane before his appointment as Head of English and Humanities at Katherine High School in 2023, and promotion to Assistant Principal in 2024.

2018

Nina Morrison (A’18) won the Geelong Cats AFLW 2024 Best and Fairest after her most consistent AFLW season since being selected with pick one in the 2018 AFLW draft. Nina suffered two serious ACL (anterior cruciate ligament) knee injuries early in her career and has demonstrated remarkable resilience and persistence to become Geelong’s premier player in 2024. The midfielder played her 50th game in the last round of the season, was named in the 42-player AFLW All-Australian squad and comfortably won the club Best and Fairest – Nina polled 138 votes in the count to finish ahead of Aishling Moloney (98) and Georgie Prespakis (74). Nina was appointed vice-captain in 2022 and Cats AFLW coach, Dan Lowther, said her preparation and professionalism set high standards for her teammates. “She prepares and drives this group, and she wants to win everything,” Lowther said. “She brings everyone along with her on the ride.” Nina said it was “exciting” to win the Cats top award and that she was “very, very hungry to go again in 2025” after missing the finals in 2024. Since graduating from Deakin University with a Bachelor of Exercise and Sports Science degree, majoring in Data Analytics, Nina has been juggling her football career with a role as a Data Analyst with the AFL. Having recently resigned from that position, she is excited to commence the next stage of her football career as a full-time professional.

BIRTHS

Martha Baillieu (He’05) and Timothy Amor, a son, Arthur Edward Baillieu Amor on 12 March 2023

Melanie Cutler (Ga’05) and Richard Cutler (FB’01), a daughter, Olivia Vanessa Helen on 8 May 2024

Jessica and Charles Coburn (Cu’12), a son, Rupert Charles, on 26 October 2024

Nikhi and Henry Cox (P’04), a daughter, Rose Michel Lindsay, on 3 June 2024

Rachel Gao and John Forster (P’07), a daughter, Evelyn Gao Forster on 10 July 2016, and a son, George Robert Forster on 15 August 2020 and a daughter, Faye Feng Forster on 22 August 2024

Sarah and James O’Hare (Fr’02), a son, Archie Maxwell on 24 November 2023

Elizabeth née Alder (Cl’03) and Charles Sullivan, a son, Sinclair James Robert 24 May 2024

Nell née Mott (He’07) and Lachlan Sullivan, a son, Douglas David Gordon, on 11 May 2022

Eleanor née Turnbull (Cl’08) and Alec Pengilley, a daughter, Sophie Isabel McMicking on 7 July 2024

MARRIAGES

Rachel Gao married John Forster (P’07) on 23 March 2019

Anna Pappas (A’82) married Malcolm McCullogh (A’82) on 16 February 2020

Sarah Rodd married James O’Hare (Fr’02) on 23 March 2024

DEATHS

Brian Lloyd Ansell (1945-1948) on 4 September 2024

Joan Patricia Audett (Clyde 1938-44) on 3 August 2024

Errol Stephanie (Stephanie) Day née Aikman (The Hermitage 1933-45) on 28 August 2023

Virginia Lindsay (Mitzi) Begg née Wilkins (Clyde 1943-50) on 4 November 2024

Andrew Steuart Brockman (1993-96) on 4 January 2025

Elizabeth Were Caillard née Hopkins (The Hermitage 1943-53) on 20 May 2024

David Timothy Henry Collins (1946-55) on 11 January 2024

David Baldwin Clayden (1950-54) on 16 November 2019

Antony Cramer-Roberts (1949-58) on 24 April 2024

Vi Tuong Dang (2005-07) on 26 October 2024

Henry Summerville Dixon (1939-46) on 19 October 2018

James Anderson Darling (1951-64) on 3 September 2024

James Stuart Dudley (1980-82) on 26 December 2023

Susan Elizabeth Duncan (Clyde 1963-68) on 30 November 2024

Andrew John Wynne Fraser (Andy) (1953-57) on 3 August 2023

John Bernard Forster (1950-53) on 22 August 2024

Davina Mary Hanson (Clyde ’62) on 14 October 2024

Peter Francis Hartridge (1955-57) on 10 July 2024

Jennifer Lesley (Jen) Stewart née Speirs (The Hermitage 1963-68) on 11 August 2024

Adrian Russell Hamilton Seymour (1948-60) on 17 July 2024

Richard George Hore-Lacy (Rick) (1952-1955) on 3 January 2022

James Keith (Keith) Jackson (1952-53) on 18 January 2025

Katherine Knox (1980-84) in August 2022

Gilles Thomas Kryger (1941-46) on 29 June 2024

John Douse Langley (1938-40) on 4 January 2025

Marjorie Elizabeth Lilian Lincoln née Lawrence (The Hermitage 1946-48) on 14 January 2022

Gillian Mallinder née Piesse (Clyde 1950-55) on 6 October 2024

Margaret Ann Mann née Scott (The Hermitage 1947-49) on 31 March 2022

John Marsden (Past Staff 1982-90) on 18 December 2024

Robert Earnest McArthur (1958-67) on 7 August 2024

Charles Matthew Moore (Matthew) (1959-65) on 18 November 2022

Catharine Kent (Kate) McLennan née Bland (The Hermitage 1938-45) on 19 September 2023

William David Campbell McCulloch (Dave) (1944-54) on 17 October 2024

Peter Stuart McColl (1958-1962) on 5 March 2024

Robert Alexander Oman (Sandy) (1966-72) on 26 September 2024

Alan William Officer (1938-44) on 19 December 2024

Geoffrey Maynard (Geoff) Orr (1949- 52) on 18 February 2024

Valerie May McDowell née Bendle (The Hermitage 1934-1944) on 9 October 2024

Geoffrey Charles Ponder (1963-74) on 17 November 2024

Judith Anne Reid née Everitt (Clyde 1943-44) on 07 October 2021

Judith Heather Reindl née Sterling (Clyde 1941-46) on 18 August 2024

Troy Selwood (Staff 2021-2025) on 4 February 2025

Richard Rebis (1959-63) in August 2024

Robert (Rob) McConnell Schofield (1955-66) on 17 November 2024

Peggy Vane Scott née Lansell (Clyde 1933-37) on 19 July 2022

Bernard Murray (Murray) Treseder (1972-74) on 9 October 2023

Keith William Urquhart (1942 – 46) on 11 November 2024

Graeme Louis Ogden Vine (1954-61) on 27 May 2024

Helen (Jane) Wilkinson (Clyde 1956-62) on 26 February 2024

IN 2025

ENROLMENT EVENTS:

Corio Campus Discovery Day

- Friday 9 May

- Friday 8 August

- Friday 14 November

Toorak Campus Open Mornings

- Wednesday 30 April

- Wednesday 21 May

- Wednesday 18 June

- Wednesday 6 August

- Wednesday 10 September

- Wednesday 22 October

OGG EVENTS:

OGG Timbertop Open Morning

Timbertop Campus, Saturday 20 September