OUR ALUMNAE – A COMMUNITY OF BELONGING
Our Alumnae - A Community of Belonging Community is a place of belonging, a place where people are earthed and find their identity. - Jean Vanier Amelia Tan | Events and Alumnae Relations Coordinator When I started working at Genazzano three years ago, one of the things that immediately struck me was the strong sense of community. I met various types of people connected to the College in my time as Events Coordinator; warm colleagues, welcoming families, remarkable students and sincere Alumnae. After recently becoming the Events and Alumnae Relations Coordinator, I thought it was important to introduce myself to you all. Unfortunately, I am not a Gen Alumna but have attended all-girls Catholic schools my whole life and know the experience well. I also have strong alumna pride for my alma mater as all the women on my mother’s side of the family went to the same school. The experience is so unique where you get to build such strong bonds. It really helped form the type of person I am and I believe your Genazzano experience has done the same for many of you. I love Genazzano’s rich history and how its values, so deeply ingrained in the community, has produced such strong women. I would love to get to know each of you and hear your stories; past, current and even future - it would be great to build on the Alumnae network’s sisterhood. More importantly, I look forward to engaging our community together with our Alumnae Association President, Emily Biasotto (2012). In working closely with Emily, I discovered how passionate we
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both are about connection and belonging, so I took the opportunity to interview her and find out more about what makes a Gen girl tick.
in, you’re not going to get anything out of it! 3.
In general, I look back fondly on recesses and lunchtimes sitting in the Atrium or outside in front of the d’Houet Building, or on the grass near the front gates, chatting and laughing with friends and deciding who had the best lunch that day.
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Life Is Excellent Day, started in 2010 which we then carried on to 2012. It was a busy few days leading up to it but the new Life Is Excellent Day Breakfast with pancakes was a real highlight, as well as having all the Year 12s to make cupcakes and Gen cookies to give out to the rest of the school.
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Playing netball on Saturdays was also a massive highlight. I did this from Year 7 all the way through to Year 12 and I absolutely loved finishing the week with a netball game!
Tell me more about your experience at Gen. I started in Year 7 at Gen in 2007 and graduated in 2012. My time at Gen was very enjoyable. I loved school. I am definitely a keen learner (I’m still studying) and Gen really allowed me to flex this muscle. As a whole, my experience of Gen was probably quite similar to most other Gen Girls, so I’ll share a few of my favourite memories: 1.
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I was a rower from Year 8 until Year 12. Nothing prepared me for the challenges of life like rowing did. Training many times per week and staring down the ergo screen before a test pushed me to my limit many times. But I am so grateful I was able to be a part of such a strong squad that continually demanded excellence. Furthermore, the friends I made are still my friends today. Let’s face it, you create a unique connection with people who have seen you at your very best and your very worst. In Year 12, I had Mrs Patterson for both Methods and Specialist Maths and not only did she teach me a lot about Maths but she also taught me a lot about life. She always urged us to give something a go, even if we thought we might get it wrong, because that is the best way to learn. The catch phrase I always carry with me is “if you write nothing, you get nothing”. This was talking about exams and tests but it carries a lot of truth if applied to life. If you don’t contribute or put any effort
All in all, my experience at Gen was a very positive one and I look back fondly on my time as a Genazzano student. Why do you love it? What makes Gen so different? I suppose primarily I love Genazzano because I spent so much time there in my formative years and it has a comforting familiarity to me. I do also love that Genazzano is an FCJ school. Marie Madeleine is a beautiful example of a strong, independent woman and I love that it is she whose footsteps we are following. Since it was founded, Genazzano has been led by a woman and I love this championing of female leaders. Since leaving school and meeting people who went to different schools, the aspect of Genazzano that I am most grateful for is this sense of belonging. That no matter where you go, what you do or who you become, the fact that you once wore the
