Minerva Autumn 2021

The Magazine for the Kelvinside Academy Community March 2020 - January 2021

ViseUp Start Up

Expressive Arts Special

Academical Rugby Focus Minerva

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Welcome from the Rector Welcome to a bumper 2021 Minerva Magazine.

In pandemic times inevitably priorities shift and timescales are extended, and I am delighted to share with you an insight into life at Kelvinside Academy over the last year (from Easter 2020 to January 2021) and urge you to read and digest the superb achievements and involvement from our current pupils and Academicals.

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This edition’s front cover marks a moment of historical significance, with RSM Poppy Graham representing the CCF in our online Remembrance Service in November. Poppy is our first female RSM and has performed the role with honour, keeping the high bar of RSM performance that pupils have displayed in the years before her. She has shown the values that we would all wish our national leaders to have and hope our children will develop in their formative school years. Leadership, confidence, integrity, honesty, vision and ambition.

The handover to next year’s CCF Team marked another first, in that Poppy handed over to our second female RSM Alice Ptolomey, who was the standout candidate from the thorough selection process.

At our recent Prize Giving, I referred to the adaptions and agility of the school community during the pandemic and picked out some highlights and positives that we can take from our response to a most challenging time in our lives.

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In academic pursuits I highlighted the increased individual responsibility for learning that pupils had to show during the periods of remote learning.

Parents and children sharing home wifi and often working side by side at dining room tables or in sitting rooms. The physical separation of children from teachers and the proximity of children to their parents offered great insight into the motivation, effort and determination required to learn. Our Summer assessment results for senior pupils evidence that our pupils have achieved superbly this year and can feel very proud of their effort and work. Our Junior School have had a remarkable year of change with refurbished classrooms following a New Year’s flood, the introduction of Innovation onto the curriculum from J1 up to J6 this year and completely new interdisciplinary learning topics which have been a huge success. The Junior 1 work has been closely observed from the Rector’s study and I was even given an opportunity to introduce the class to circus skills and juggling, which was great fun for teachers and pupils.

In the expressive arts, I will continue to highlight the importance of the Arts for our positive mental wellbeing and would thoroughly recommend that if you enjoy the artwork on display in this edition of Minerva, that you access our school gallery online @KA_CreativeArts on Twitter or connect to the school Instagram account. Our musicians have played their part too with KA Concert Cuppa performances every Friday lunchtime throughout lockdown. They can also be accessed on the same Twitter account . I love the inclusive approach of our departments, that as a school - learning, rehearsing and performing are all important. Performances should be the best that our pupils can achieve in the circumstances and if mistakes are made, we learn from them and are better for them. Our youngest Junior School performers are a delight. Listening to their musicality and watching their faces, shows the concentration and effort they are giving to their performance piece. A privilege to see, made so much more accessible by the move to video and online sharing, another positive we must take from our adaptations.

I hope you enjoy the stories and articles here and look forward to seeing you all at sports at Balgray or events at School as soon as we are able.

Daniel J Wyatt BA (Ed) Hons Rector

CONTENTS

4-5

6-7

STORY OF VISEUP

STAFF NEWS

INNOVATION SCHOOL

14-19

EXPRESSIVE ARTS SPECIAL

20-24

25-27

28-29

30-31

32-35

36-37

38-71

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COMMUNITY

CCF

SPORT

TRIPS

ACADEMIC

ACHIEVERS

MINERVA TRUST KELVINSIDE ACADEMICALS CRAIGHOLME FORMER PUPILS

Connect with /kelvinside1878 www.kelvinside.org Minerva

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Story of a COVID Start-up On 20 March 2020, Kelvinside Academy closed its doors to all but the children of key workers. Like every other school in the UK, the COVID pandemic had reached the school gates. Simultaneously, the story was emerging of a desperate need for PPE across almost every sector of healthcare. Staff at the front line in hospitals, care homes, surgeries and hospices suddenly found themselves working with little or no personal protection. An unprecedented healthcare crisis had exploded, it felt, out of nowhere.

It was the emotional pleas on social media that provided the call to action. Working alongside the impressive tech knowhow and dogged determination of our Kelvinside IT Technician Ed Longmore – we put the Innovation School’s fast prototyping tools (its 3D printers and laser cutters) to good use, and turned the workshop and design studios into a manufacturing and distribution hub for PPE. Very quickly, a motivated group of people and organisations coalesced around our efforts: Kelvinside Academy, SWG3, Hydro-C, The Glasgow School of Art, City of Glasgow College, NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde to name just a few. Colleagues from these businesses and organisations were able to provide huge support in terms of medical advice, resourcing, logistics and funding. Michael Murphy,

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infection control specialist, kept us right regarding visor efficacy. Andrew-Fleming Brown from SWG3 initiated a GoFundMe campaign for ViseUp+ which quickly reached £75,000. Hasan Heshmat from Hydro-C (his Oil and Gas procurement management and services company), was able to source an array of high-quality materials required for the manufacture of visors. Added to the mix were some wonderful colleagues from Larbert and Caldervale High Schools, who quickly became stalwarts in our efforts at the Innovation School. And so, ViseUp+ was born!

Within a very short space of time, a community of makers, printers and cutters came aboard to help with our manufacturing efforts. Local organisations like the Glasgow School of Art and Glasgow Print Studio, would cut to our file specifications. Rolls Royce and GE Aviation were happy to put their printing technologies to the ViseUp+ effort. And latterly, local companies like Ardayre Interiors in East Kilbride, and Eadie Brothers in Selkirk added their digital cutters and injection moulding technologies to the mix. Our very own Ben Faulkner (S3) joined a small fraternity of pupils from Kelvinside, Mearns Castle and Rosshall Academy heroically printing visors on their own 3D printers. On the distribution and assembly fronts, logistics company Badaboom

and the furloughed staff from SWG3 gave up many a sunny day to assemble, box and distribute tens of thousands of visors across Scotland and the UK. It’s impossible to talk about the ViseUp+ journey without mentioning creativity. ViseUp+ seemed to nourish a whole range of creative responses – from photography, to film making to prototyping to storytelling. One particular instance came when we were in touch with Foster + Partners, an architecture practice based in London. Although clearly outside their remit, they designed a visor to help with the PPE effort, and were delighted when we came on board to manufacture and distribute their visor.

Day after day, surgeons and nurses, care home staff and pharmacists would arrive at the Innovation School and leave with boxes of visors feeling like it was Christmas. It was moving and humbling to meet so many people working in such trying circumstances.

In a matter of weeks, ViseUp+ scaled from 0 to 80,000 units of PPE delivered to 800 separate healthcare settings across Scotland and the UK. We demonstrated how, in a fast-prototyping environment, creative solutions can be found to address real-world needs, and in the process, showed that social value, learning and potential commercial opportunity can all productively co-exist.

With the threat of COVID reduced and hopefully, in time, banished, we want our young people to join the story.

Pre-COVID, we already had a significant appetite for innovation and product development. To build on this passion, ViseUp+ will be seeking partners across a range of sectors, from industry, science, arts and academia. With their input, students will be guided through a variety of product development projects from engineering to music technology, from aviation to EdTech, and from fashion to healthcare.

In the process, ViseUp+ aims to become a blueprint for how young people can learn the skills necessary for Industry 4.0, and develop the habits of mind to succeed in an increasingly uncertain world.

David Miller, Director of Innovation School

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Staff news Welcome We welcomed a number of new members of staff to the KA community over the last year.

A very warm welcome to: Mr Euan Smith a new Modern Language Teacher and to Ms Hazel Duff who has joined the Music Department. Junior School welcomed Classroom Assistant Mrs Kirstine

Donaldson and Mr Ross Duncan is our new CCF School Staff Instructor. Mr Andy Prior joined the Facilities Team, Mrs Cathy Gibson joined the Development Team and Mrs Jennifer Aire is a new Receptionist. Mrs Veronica Lynch and Mr Kyle Branchesi joined us in the Innovation School and you can read more about them later.

Farewell We were very sad to see the retirement of two long standing KA teachers.

Head of Expressive Arts, Mrs Jenny Cunningham left in August to explore new life adventures. Jenny taught and inspired KA pupils for 21 years, leading numerous choirs, orchestras, ensembles and inspiring a love of music and performance in 1000s of pupils from J1 right up to S6. Jenny established a tradition of unique informality at school concerts which encouraged the less confident pupils to give their first public performances and made audiences feel part of something special. She also motivated and enthused the more gifted musicians to even greater achievements and was never scared to try ambitious pieces with senior choirs and ensembles.

Her role as Music Director of our school shows helped to elevate these to unforgettable performances and her gentle persuasive approach saw senior pupils giving singing performances having never been on stage before. Beyond the Expressive Arts domain, Jenny was known and loved throughout the school as she often supervised DofE expeditions and supported CCF camps.

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French Teacher Mrs Heather Jephson retired at the end of the 2019-20 session after 22 years at KA. Heather instilled a love of languages and French culture in pupils from J1-S6, and is fondly referred to as Madame Jephson by all. As is often the way at KA, Heather had many other roles including taking charge of Stage Management for all the school shows and performances. She made it cool to work ‘back stage’ and her team of black clad shadows expertly manoeuvred and organised set changes of many shows over the years.

Also retiring this year were Junior School Teacher Mrs Anne Stevenson, Secretary Mrs Ina Lindsay and Receptionist Mrs Suzy Lander.

Mr James Addison has returned to NuVu in Boston following two years as our NuVu Fellow in the Innovation School and we were sad to say goodbye to Chemistry teacher Miss Sam Johnstone after her probationary year. We have no doubt that her time with us was just the start of a wonderful teaching career.

We would also like to acknowledge the fantastic contribution made to the School over the years by other leavers; Head of Digital Learning, Mrs Joanna Maclean and Junior School teachers, Mr Neil Armet and Mrs Sheelagh Paterson. Also leaving us are History Teacher, Ms Deborah Laverick and our Outdoor Education Instructor Mrs Bex CurrieMoodie who has secured a place at Edinburgh University to qualify as a PE Teacher. We wish them all well in their future careers. Finally, we would like to thank Mrs Claire Craig and Mrs Elizabeth Orenes for the warm and friendly welcome they offered so many parents and visitors arriving in Reception at KA and wish them well in their next roles.

It’s like you are actually here…

With prospective families unable to visit Kelvinside Academy during most of 2020, we had to make many adjustments to our Admissions process. One of the biggest new projects was designing and shooting a 360° Virtual Tour of our School buildings and grounds. Now families can take a tour from the comfort of their own home by using the drop-down menus or arrows to navigate around classrooms,

corridors, theatre, games hall and public areas.

There are additional information buttons along the way and a series of new videos produced to help provide a window into life at Kelvinside Academy.

These virtual experiences have proved invaluable to our Admissions journey and have been a big hit with prospective families.

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Junior School bursts into the Innovation School We are delighted to announce that August saw the full immersion of the Junior School into the Innovation School. We have been able to secure the services of two innovation coaches: Kyle Branchesi and Veronica Lynch, both highly qualified across a range of disciplines: art, design, manufacture and architecture. The place is buzzing with youthful creativity!

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Junior School pupils have embarked upon a series of innovation projects using a range of fabrication equipment and resources including the laser cutter.

Pupils have been building articulated mechanisms, making parrot puppets, exploring future modes of transport; designing chocolate boxes… Pupils will continue to work on innovation projects throughout the year, on subjects that align with their classroom themes.

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The Senior School Innovation Programme continues apace S3 are embarked on a studio called Animated Futures. Focusing on animation techniques, pupils are delving into the entire process of creating a short film piece, from storyboarding to directing to sound mixing, and everything in between. Using Adobe Photoshop and After Effects, pupils will be creating an engaging instructional video based on a near-future scenario.

the multimedia creation tool, Unity3D, pupils are creating imaginary projects using sketching, physical modelling, and representation to dream up future worlds along with 3D modelling to represent their ideas.

All in all, a rich and varied programme across the school.

The S4 Studio is called Social Robots. In this studio, pupils are working on human-robot interaction to create a robot that uses sensors and effectors to emulate ‘empathy’. Microprocessor electronics, 3D modelling software, and prototyping techniques are all being leveraged to design, build, and activate social robots. Pupils are learning how to create behaviours using external sensors and actuators into their designs to create responsive social robots.

And finally, the S5/6 Studio is called Virtual Reality Worlds. Here, using the power of Virtual Reality, pupils are working towards the creation of a full simulation of an imagined world. Working with

Meet our new coaches Kyle Branchesi gained a Master of Science from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology where he explored the role of design and technology within digital fabrication. Prior to MIT, Kyle worked in Moscow as a designer for the Garage Museum of Contemporary Art, and in the Emirates as an architect for His Highness Sheikh Hamdan, The Crown Prince of Dubai. He holds a Bachelor of Architecture from the Southern California Institute of Architecture and studied also at Universität für angewandte Kunst Wien in Austria. Kyle’s work has been exhibited at the Venice Biennale in Italy, the Victoria & Albert Museum in London, The Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts in Copenhagen, the

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Pompidou Centre in Paris, and the Het Nieuwe Instituut in Rotterdam.

Veronica Lynch (pictured right) is a dual qualified innovation expert with degrees from both Glasgow School of Art and the University of Glasgow.

Veronica studied design at Glasgow School of Art, specializing in silversmithing and jewellery, and after graduating exhibited in London, Glasgow, and New York. She has worked with one of Scotland’s leading glass studios, as a stained and decorative glass artist and designer. Passionate about architecture, she has for the past three years participated in Cakefest, recreating well known architecture in cake as part of a larger edible map of Scotland.

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The Land Rover Challenge Massive congratulations to everyone involved at the Scottish Finals of the Land Rover Challenge.

This world-wide competition involves up to six team members working together to design and build a radio-controlled four-wheel-drive vehicle, to set specifications. The vehicle must be able to successfully negotiate a specially designed test track emulating real life and it must perform as a full-size SUV would do off-road.

The engineering industry requires creative, multidisciplined individuals who are capable of problem solving through individual tasks and working in motivated teams. This project replicates a ‘real-life’ work situation where specialists come together to share intellectual and practical ideals to resolve a complex problem. The Challenge is an excellent opportunity for students to work in teams to Team - G.Eco

gain awareness and understanding of project management and other key skills.

Three KA teams emerged victorious to qualify for the National Finals that were scheduled to take place in March 2020. Kelvinside had entries in both categories – Professional Class and Development Class – and were placed first in each category as well as picking up six of the possible seven awards.

G.Eco – Navraj Dhillon (S6), Megan Toney (S6), Kai Ye (S5), Zuzanna Rosinska (S6) Professional Class 1st place overall as well as Best professional engineered car & Best portfolio.

Tyro – Finlay Speirs (S3), Benson Murray (S3), Samuel Garcia Herreros, Anna Craig (S3), Kirsty Rodger (S3), Harris Burns (S3) Development Class 1st place overall as well as Best Development track performance & Best Development engineered car.

Bee-lieve – Martha Armstrong (S4), Evie Smith (S4), Natalie Binama (S4), Alice Ptolomey (S4) and Joshua Zacharia (S4) Development Class 2nd place overall as well as Best Showroom & Research and Development Award.

Sadly due to the COVID pandemic both the UK and World Finals were cancelled.

Team - Tyro

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Team - Bee-lieve

Landrover Challenge Charity Donation from S3 Due to the final being cancelled, Team Tyro donated £700 of their sponsorship funds raised to the ViseUp+ fundraising campaign. Finlay Speirs, Anna Craig, Kirsty Rodger, Samuel Garcia Herreros, Benson Murray and Harris Burns unanimously agreed to donate their money to the ViseUp+ initiative.

Finlay Speirs said: “If our donation can help all the doctors and nurses in our hospitals stay safe then

I think that is a bigger achievement even than winning the whole Land Rover Challenge. We’d also like to thank all of our sponsors, Nevis Capital, Argyle Locksmiths, Dalziel, Richard Henderson, NRS Group and Noel Regan & Sons Building & Civil Engineering Contractors UK Ltd who generously agreed that their donations could be put towards this cause.”

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DRAMA The Show that never was! - A Fond Farewell to “My Fair Lady” - June 2020 June 2020 should have been the first School production ever held in the Summer Term. The resplendent spectacle of “My Fair Lady” was set to bedeck the stage with a stellar cast of seasoned actors, keen to share their acting, singing, dancing and musical talents.

The notoriously difficult role of Eliza, who evolves from a Cockney flower seller to a cultured lady, was energetically mastered by Pippa Cooke (S6) and Ashanti Magoma (S6). Pippa had bewitched us as Puck while Ashanti dazzled as Titania in last year’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream”. Pippa’s versatile ability with accents and movement and Ashanti’s strong vocal ability, assured the audience of engaging performances.

The commanding Professor Henry Higgins was embodied by the towering presence and crisp articulation of Angus Mathews (S6) and the charm and eloquence of Yannik Borzynski (S6). A foil to the gruff Professor is the gentlemanly Colonel Pickering: James MacCuish (S3) tackled this role in his inimitable style, engaging intelligently with the word play while Lachlan Philbey (S4) exhibited a calm and controlled intellectual presence. The household was kept in check by the controlled demeanour of Lara Ptolomey (S4) and eloquent delivery of Eilidh Galloway (S6) as Mrs Pearce.

In contrast, Adam Campbell (S5), as the comic, larger – than – life Alfred Doolittle, burst arrestingly onto the stage singing with gusto.

Henry Higgins’ mother’s regal poise and graceful speech was adopted by the balletic Imogen Philbey (S5) (also a spectacular Puck) while Megan Toney (S6) created this imperious role in contrast to her lovelorn Helena.

The socially aware Eynsford Hills were tastefully represented by Olivia Morwood (S5) and Tara Smith (S5) as the mother, with Ana Martin (S5) flighty and Aoife Fee (S5) frivolous as Clara while the soaring tenor voices of Marley Boweh (S4) and Lewis Baxter (S5) perfectly presented the adoring Freddy.

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As ever the actors were wonderfully supported by a creative Production team: Costume - Izzy Crone (S6), who made, designed and attired our actors; Set Design - Paige Redmond (S6) and Lucy Robinson (S6) who patiently created colour & style; Make up - Tess Pirrie (S6) and her gorgeous girls; Stage Management – Abbey MacCuish (S6) and her team of silent magicians.

My thanks go to my colleagues Mrs Sarah Gillan and Mrs Jenny Cunningham as inspiring Musical Directors and the artistic visionary, Ms Jane Hardy for the Production Team. Stage Management was led in the wings by the methodical Mrs Joanna Hannah and problem-solving Mrs Heather Jephson.

Now retired, I would like to thank Mrs Jephson for all her expertise and calm work behind the scenes over the years of shows.

Sadly, Mrs Jenny Cunningham also left KA for retirement in June 2020 so will not see this musical take the stage, but we must thank her for the countless hours given to KA Productions and her musical prowess from which so many have benefitted and excelled in performance.

I am hopeful that once social distancing allows, we will soon once again able to thrill you with an outstanding performance from the pupils of Kelvinside Academy.

Angela Schneeberger – Drama Teacher

MUSIC The Music Department has seen a lot of change this year. Aside from the obvious impact of Coronavirus, Mrs Jenny Cunningham retired as Director of Expressive Arts in June. She left a wonderful legacy and a strong Music Department now led by Mrs Sarah Gillan, Head of Music. In August, we welcomed to the Music team Ms Hazel Duff who is teaching our Junior School Music classes and comes with a wealth of experience in Kodaly, having worked for NYCOS, RSNO Junior Chorus and is now Choir Director of NYCOS East Renfrewshire.

Apart from staffing changes, we have had to adjust our teaching and output considerably due to the government restrictions placed on the Arts and music in schools, particularly with regard to singing, woodwind and brass. For over a year there has been no class/group singing, woodwind or brass in schools so we have had to be creative and look for ways to keep as much going as possible. Our instrumental instructors set up to teach pupils virtually on Teams every week in the portacabins,

which allows our pupils a safe space with plenty of ventilation and fresh air. All surfaces are wiped down at the start and finish of lessons, and these aerosol producing instruments play and sing out of open windows with the doors open. It was cold in the winter months, but we are proud to have found ways to continue despite the restrictions. Our new Folk Group is also now up and running and will be available for gigs once live performance is permitted. We have even managed to include some flutes, (although they have to stand outside to play!

Talk about resilience!)

Cloisters Performance Three of our senior vocalists, Hannah BurnettGodfree (S5), Rachel Gray (S5) and Lucy TeoWinter (S6) spent a very special time in the University of Glasgow Cloisters recording ‘Frobisher Bay’ by James Gordon. You can find a link to hear their beautiful recording on the School website.

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Where the Georgia Schmolke (S6)

Art

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A selection of artwork showcasing the fantastic work of last year’s Higher and Advanced Higher pupils. The work was of an excellent standard and demonstrated a range of innovative ideas and techniques.

Nico Rigg MacInnes (S5) Ushna Waseem (S6) Jessica Zhu (S2)

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Tara Smith (S6) Teri-Mae Kilbride (S2)

Ushna Waseem (S6)

Sam Kennedy (S2)

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Photography Teachers, Mrs Anne Gallie and Mrs Jackie Sampaio, started the Higher Photography course earlier than usual in April 2020. We have a strong group of pupils studying Higher Photography and engagement was high during lockdown, despite the circumstances of teaching on Teams. Pupils engaged well with the new concepts and there was a mix of different strategies to engage pupils using mobile phone cameras or whatever camera was available to them.

The pupils have had to adapt their main projects bearing in mind changing restrictions around social distancing and sharing of equipment. The pupils have shown tremendous resilience and the course aims to encourage independence and individuality in the pupils.

Charli Burns (S5)

Sara Schofield (S6)

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Duncan Munn (S6)

Music Technology Over the past two years, the Music Department has invested in Music Technology and recording equipment, something that has proven to be invaluable in these times where it is very difficult to make live music. This has allowed us to develop our new SQA Music Technology Course and is proving to be a popular option with our pupils.

The investment in Music Tech equipment is also providing a way of sharing our performances with the wider community. Our “humming choir” with strict restrictions in place was able to record for the Virtual Remembrance Service, we now have an active PodKAst club and held our first KA Virtual Intermediate Music Competition which was a great success with 24 entries. The full line up of all our virtual concerts and competitions can be found on the KA website.

appropriately and how to process recordings using tools such as equalisation and dynamic processing tools such as compressors and noise gates. These audio production skills will serve pupils well in the post-Covid world where they will spend more time than ever communicating and working online using digital technologies in both their private and professional lives. With access to a suite of iMacs, microphones, sound production software and MIDI keyboards, we are well placed in the music department to prepare students for future study and work in sound production and digital media.

It has been a busy term for the Music Technology pupils. The S4 class have been working towards their National 5 folio and are currently learning how to produce sound and music for film. Pupils have been recording sound effects, experimenting with creative sound design and learning how to mix and master a complete soundtrack using Logic Pro X. The S3 class have been learning how to produce high quality recordings of the human voice. This has involved learning how to choose suitable microphones, position a microphone Minerva

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JUNIOR SCHOOL Diwali Clare Sweeney, Head of Junior School has introduced many new additions to the Junior School curriculum and with children from diverse cultural backgrounds, she was excited to plan a wonderful day of Diwali celebrations. The learning activites included Diva lamp making, lotus flower design, Rangoli design and Rama and Sita puppet making.

Pupils and teachers had a joyous and informative experience and parents were hugely appreciative of the new initiative.

One KA parent emailed her appreciation of the celebration.

“For us Diwali is a time of celebration spent with family & friends. It is important for our children’s emotional & psychological development to celebrate key milestones but reimagining traditional celebrations in the time of COVID can be exhausting;

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it is often a painful reminder of how much we have lost.

Friday was a wonderful celebration of our children’s rich cultural heritage. Biracial children such as ours, often struggle with their identity. Being part of a school wide celebration of Diwali gave them an immense sense of pride & belonging. You may have seen this but what you might not fully appreciate is the ripple effect. The joy it brings our family here & in India to see our children connecting with and celebrating their culture at school is immeasurable.

This is even more poignant for our relatives who arrived in Glasgow from the Punjab at a less tolerant time, when difference was a source of stigma and shame, not celebration. Auntie is bursting with pride sharing images of the boys’ rangoli, lotus flowers & candles.”

Nexus Children Global Summits Summit 1 - Beth Scrimgeour (SP) was chosen to represent Scotland at the first Nexus Global Summit in December 2020 – organised for primary aged children around the world to share experiences and thoughts on current challenges and solutions.

Staged as an early breakfast meeting, Beth took part in an online call with other pupils from across the world including Turkey, New Zealand, UAE, Malaysia, Doha, Canada, Australia, Dubai, Spain and Papua New Guinea. Beth introduced herself and then gave a simple outline of what life is like during the pandemic – including how many cases in there were Scotland, if school was open, describing remote learning, restrictions around shopping and meeting other people and wearing a mask. The children shared concerns and positive solutions to helping well-being.

Summit 2 - the second summit took place in April 2021 and as Charlie Rigg MacInnes (SP) had been the pupil observer in December, he took the reins for this event. The theme was ‘The Importance of Diversity’ and his presentation follows:

Diversity is the differences between all people, for example: race, gender, age, ability, language, nationality.

In a world where everyone is the same, things would be very different than they are right now.

For example, everyone would have the same skill set, so all but one industry would just cease to exist without any workers who are able to do what is necessary. There would be high demand for certain products and food, as everyone would like the same thing and not others.

Beth Scrimgeour (SP)

It is important to embrace differences as if we only talked to, or only worked with people the same as us, then we would miss out on many opportunities, and many friends. There are so many things we can learn from each other, like what other people have learned in their youth, and life lessons that they follow that would benefit us.

Advice I would give to people who are worried about being different is that we are all different. You are no more different than anybody else around you.

Just because you look different, or speak a different language, doesn’t make you any more different from them, than they are from each other.

If I saw somebody being treated unfairly or bullied because of a difference I would tell somebody who had the power to act on this situation, as nobody deserves to be bullied for anything, never mind something that they can’t control, or were born with.

Advice I would give to people who don’t embrace diversity is that YOU are different. YOU are diverse.

Not embracing diversity is like disliking everyone in the world for what they were born like, or something which is not in their control. How would you feel if someone who wasn’t like you came up to you and just automatically didn’t like you for how you were made?

All in all, diversity is one of the building blocks of society, without which the world’s social and economic development would backtrack greatly.

Together we can help and encourage the building of a more diverse society. All our actions count!

Charlie Rigg MacInnes (SP)

Charlie Rigg MacInnes (SP) Minerva

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J1 PROGRESS In Junior 1 pirates and fairies do exist! They may be small and loud but they definitely do live around the corridors of our School. Mr Wyatt could certify that with the Rector’s study being so close to J1! This is because our new Junior 1 pupils are full of imagination and creativity, energy and enormous fun.

We all set sail back in August on the KA Jolly Roger and captured Captain Blackbeard (thank you Ana Martin (S6). The boat was built by our little pirates and it sailed well. It took us on several adventures across high seas and dangerous situations but we all made it back safe and sound in time for our new adventure in Fairyland.

When the children were asked where they would like their next high seas adventure to be, one little boy replied enthusiastically ‘Gleneagles!” Ahh, we can only wish!

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Here are some of our thoughts on Junior 1 so far.

“I like when we sit and listen to a story.”

“I like to play with my friends.”

“I have lots of friends. I like when I get house points for helping friends.”

“I like to come in and learn something new every day.”

“I used to be nervous but I am not so much anymore.”

“I like how we learn to read and write.”

Chess School Chess Club has seen a lot of interest recently due to the popular Netflix show, The Queen’s Gambit, so Mr O’Neill is looking forward to school leagues getting started again. Before lockdown last year, there was time for one school match against The High School of Glasgow.

School Match Win – KA vs High School of Glasgow KA - 3.5 : HSoG – 2.5 Aryan Munshi (S2), our top player, fought a hard draw with the HSoG Number One, before new KA team member Ashley Tandon (SP), annihilated her opponent. Novice player Angus Smith (S4) lost his first match but shows big potential and a great attitude.

It all came down to James MacCuish (S4) who getting destroyed in the middle game, then pounced on an error by his opponent to fork the king and queen with his knight. It still wasn’t over, but he played the endgame perfectly to go on to win.

Aryan is no Rookie!

Aryan Munshi (S2) continued his chess successes despite all competitions taking place online, competing in events and tournaments nationwide and internationally. He played wonderfully in the prestigious UK Chess Challenge and qualified for TeraFinals in September 2020. Aryan was also chosen to play for Scotland for the Euro Youth Championship.

Robin Stevens Author Event – J6 As part of Book Week Scotland the KA Librarians applied for J6 to take part in a Virtual Author Tour Event with the incredibly talented Robin Stevens – author of the Murder Most Unladylike series.

Hosted by The Scottish Book Trust, the event showed an exclusive pre-recorded short film in which Robin Stevens shared her background and the inspirations for writing her books, followed by a live Q&A session with the author herself.

KA was extremely fortunate to be selected to take part in this event alongside a small number of schools

across Scotland. The talk slotted aptly into J6’s Crime Scene Investigations topic. What better way to end the topic than by witnessing an author’s in-depth study and research which culminated in the ultimate children’s crime novel?

Robin spoke eloquently about the techniques used in creative writing and shared handy tips on how to write and become an author. Several KA children were delighted to have their questions answered by Robin at the end of the session. The J6 pupils showed exemplary behaviour, genuine interest and enthusiasm to be proud of.

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S4 Work Experience – February 2020 Criminal Law Placement I did my work experience placement at McCready and Co., a law firm in Stirling. Throughout the week I got to experience different parts of life as a criminal lawyer and was able to get an accurate insight into the reality of what working in this area of the law entails. On Monday, I was lucky enough to attend a sentencing trial in the high court of Edinburgh. On Tuesday, I sat in on a jury trial in Falkirk; where I was fortunate enough to see multiple lawyers cross examining witnesses and the impact that their participation here had on the overall case. Wednesday, I spent in Stirling Sheriff court sitting in on different trials evaluating a wide variety of

cases. Come Thursday I was presented with the unique opportunity of visiting a prison and speaking face to face with one of the prisoners. On Friday, I attended a trial in the Glasgow sheriff court and later on in the day, was able to sit in on an ID Parade at Stirling Police Station.

The entirety of this week allowed me to meet a range of different lawyers from across the country and listen to their views and opinions on their profession. These inside perspectives immensely benefitted my outlook on law and helped me to form the answer to whether law is what I want to pursue as a career.

Evie Smith (S4)

BBC Work Placement For work experience, I did a week’s placement at the BBC Scotland archive unit. The BBC are known for producing some of the most favourite and high-quality TV programmes in the world. One of the most important departments in the BBC is the archive. The archive is one of the most used, relied upon for production purposes and income generator for the BBC. The archive contains clips and rushes from the news, radio and tv programmes. They are electronically catalogued, edited and stored clips that they are useful for future news stories or even tv and radio programmes. This digital library also contains archives of old tv shows and radio from the 1920’s onwards. I worked with the News and Radio Department, editing news clips which would be

NATIONAL GALLERIES COMPETITION Congratulations to Tom Shields (S3) who took 3rd prize in the S1-S3 category of the National Galleries of Scotland school art competition from 1500 entries! Under the theme ‘Climate Change’, Tom took a photo which he manipulated with drawing software.

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used later that day and even watched the news live! I also developed an archive section on well-known British personalities. The most challenging part of working at the BBC was working to short deadlines to get archive records completed. The most interesting part of working in the archive was seeing old tapes from back in the 1900’s and how people’s views have changed, and life was really different. I met a lot of lovely people and my team were very professional and gave me a good grounding in all aspects of the archive. It was fun and I even managed to meet some News presenters and saw sets of the coolest tv programmes. I hope to return someday.

Alice Ptolomey (S4)

Kelvinside Sleigh Ride We kept up School spirits in numerous ways over the last year but the highlight of the Autumn Term was the Christmas Extravaganza organised by Junior School staff. We had a ‘snow blizzard’, Santa and

his elf arriving on their sleigh and a very welcome return of BobCat Alpacas dressed in their festive best. What a treat!

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Berlin Bound The S6 charity committee plays an important role every year, selecting a charity each term and then creating fun and exciting ways to fundraise to generate donations and raise awareness throughout the school.

During summer term 2020, the committee carefully selected The Glasgow Children’s Hospital Charity (GCHC) as their first charity to focus on. The reason for this choice was simple for the committee - due to the current pandemic, we wanted to have a way to give back to our NHS staff and what better way to help kids, just like us, have a chance at a somewhat “normal” life. The committee had many brainstorming sessions to come up with ways to fundraise and eventually we decided that our 1st

YPI Scotland

The Youth and Philanthropy Initiative is a powerful active citizenship programme, empowering young people to make a difference in their communities, while developing a range of skills. S3 worked hard on their pitches - careful researching, planning and then presenting their case trying to win £3000 for their chosen charity. After an initial class final, 4 ‘bids’ were chosen for the final - pitching for

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XI hockey team would do a sponsored challenge to collectively “walk” the distance to Berlin. We chose this because it gave us a challenging distance, and our tour to Berlin had to be cancelled, so we thought combining the two was a good idea. The team worked hard and was successful in their mission with each player adding their miles to the running total. They made it to Berlin in 3 weeks, raising a total of £1,231 for GCHC. Adding this to our annual non-uniform day fund raising, where students were asked to donate £2 to wear their own clothes, the total raised for GCHC is £1,826.

Ellie Rowand (S6) and Daniella McCann (S6)

Shelter Boutique, Crisis Scotland, Refuweegee and Scottish Families Affected by Alcohol & Drugs. The judging panel of Mr Wyatt, Ms Gallacher and Miss Orr, chose Shelter Boutique as the winning ‘bid’.

The winning S3B group of Amal Jillani, Amy Kerr, Anvi Pandit, Manal Mohammad and Ella Taylor requested that the money be used to make up care packages for the homeless.

Doddie Gump Challenge During lockdown at the start of the year, ‘Scotland’s PE teacher’ and rugby legend Doddie Weir inspired our staff and pupils to step away from screens and clock up thousands of miles to raise cash for Motor Neurone Disease (MND) research Our PE Department embedded the Doddie Gump challenge – which called on participants to log exercise miles to raise money for the My Name’5 Doddie Foundation – into its online curriculum. It was a move to encourage pupils away from screens and out of homes to exercise in a more fun and inspiring environment during the ongoing lockdown.

The Doddie Active Inter-District (Aid) Challenge was the brainchild of Doddie’s former Scotland and British and Irish Lions teammate, Rob Wainwright, and saw rugby’s old Scottish inter-district championship dusted off and its five teams – the South, Edinburgh, Glasgow, North and Midlands and the Scottish Exiles – resurrected to see which could clock up the most miles.

Any form of exercise counted towards the total, from running to rollerblading, cycling or just adding up daily steps. Kelvinside Academy pupils added their miles to the Glasgow district effort.

Former Scotland and Glasgow Warriors star Kelly Brown was a captain of the Glasgow inter-district effort, and joined 1st XI Hockey Captain Ellie Rowand (S6) for the launch of the school’s challenge.

The former Scotland captain said: “Kelvinside Academy has shown true commitment to the Glasgow district cause, and we are delighted to welcome their support. Anything that provides more motivation for youngsters to get fit, active and

healthy is a massive plus, and by adding Doddie’s famous sense of fun too, we can raise as much money as possible for his foundation.”

Leading the KA initiative, our Rugby Development Coach Mr Thomas Davidson said: “We have worked hard to ensure we retain physical activity within the day-to-day schedules of our pupils even when learning from home. However, as distance learning continues, it is vital for pupils to get away from screens and out of their homes to exercise, and by incorporating the Doddie Gump challenge into the Kelvinside Academy curriculum, we hope to introduce an element of fun and competition that will inspire pupils to go the extra miles.”

Rector, Mr Wyatt, added: “Our pupils are excited to have this challenge ahead as we start remote learning on Monday. Motivation is so important right now, and by adding an extra element of friendly rivalry through the Doddie Gump challenge, we can make a big difference to our pupils’ health, fitness and wellbeing, and also raise money for an incredible cause.”

“We have made this move as we believe physical education is just as important as academic lessons as pupils learn from home, and hope other schools too will follow our lead. Who better to inspire classes than Doddie Weir – the nation’s PE teacher.

Come on Glasgow!”

The My Name’5 Doddie Foundation, founded by former Scotland International and British and Irish Lion, Doddie Weir, was set up in 2017 following his Motor Neurone Disease diagnosis to fund research for a cure to the devastating disease.

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HANDBALL Mrs Fiona Kennedy reports on the 2019-2020 season which came to an abrupt end due to the outbreak of COVID-19.

The final league matches, Cup Finals and J6/SP Schools’ Championships were all cancelled. For two of our teams this didn’t end our trophy winning hopes but it was unwelcome news for some of our teams.

S1/S2 Boys & Girls Crowned Champions Both our S1/2 Boys and Girls squads were announced as clear Season Champions. Both squads had enough match wins that no other team would’ve been able to catch them even if remaining games were played. Captains Jack Dalziel (S2) and Louise Kemp (S2) are looking forward to collecting the trophies, on behalf of their team, once the new season starts again.

Cup Final Weekend initially due to be played in March, before ultimately being cancelled, was going to be a ‘first’ in KA Handball history. Never before had a KA team qualified in every age group.

Although it would have meant a very busy day having 5 teams in the Finals, it was something we were looking forward to. All of our teams qualified comfortably.

The second half of the Schools’ Competition season falls to the boys. First up in January were our S1/2 boys, the S5/6 boys in February and the last competition before lockdown was the S3/4 boys. Unfortunately, the J6/SP competition was cancelled as it was due to be played the week lockdown began.

S1/2 Boys’ Schools’ At the schools’ competition we qualified with ease, winning all our group matches. We knew the final would be against Marr (Troon). Schools’ matches are different as they are played over 10/12 mins, shorter than one half of a normal Handball match.

The Final was very close and a very lucky shot in the final seconds of the match saw Marr clinch victory.

We’ll take the title back next year for sure!

S3/4 Boys’ Schools’ Just before lockdown the boys had the opportunity to compete at their Schools’ tournament. A great run of results in the rounds saw us face Marr (Troon) in the final. The match was very close and the boys

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matched Marr goal for goal. As with all schools’ events the match was over in 10 minutes (a fifth of their usual playing time) and the score was level 5-5.

The trophy winners would be decided on penalties.

All credit to James for saving several of Troon’s best efforts. It wasn’t to be our day with none of our boys able to score a penalty. This will now feature highly in training! It’s not easy taking a penalty when you know what’s at stake and thank you to the boys who stepped up to take them. They were all bitterly disappointed with the schools’ results and I hope this will provide the necessary motivation during our current training block.

Handball Coaching Course Fifteen S4-S6 pupils gave up their September Weekend to be the first to complete the SHA’s new coaching qualification. Over lockdown the SHA formed a coaching group to re-write and restructure the coaching programme. The new Fundamentals 1, an introduction to coaching mini Handball, was trialled with our senior players. The course seemed to go down well and the SHA have made a few tweaks after receiving our players’ feedback.

Luckily for us the sun was shining as the course was delivered outdoors! Well done to the 15 KA pupils who completed the course and hopefully we have some future coaching stars in our midst.

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RUGBY Congratulations to 1st XV Captain Duncan Munn and S5 pupils Aaron Burgess, Ewan Brannan and Calum Ferrie who were all named in the 2021/21 FOSROC Regional Academy.

FOOTBALL Congratulations to Ally Shaw (S1) on renewing his contract with the Rangers Youth Team for 2021.

This is a fantastic achievement.

CLIMBING Congratulations to Ava Hamilton (S2) on being reselected for GB Girls climbing squad. Ava has moved up an age group to Girls B (born 2006 and 2007) and will get the chance to compete for GB on the European stage this year.

DANCING S5 pupil Molly McKenzie and her dance partner Noah McLean (Stewart’s Melville College) were the only qualifiers to represent Scotland in the finals of online World Unity Latin and Ballroom Dance Championships.

Entered in the open age category, they were competing against adults from all over the world. Although Noah is an experienced dancer in this field, Molly only started learning Latin and Ballroom dancing at the end of December 2019. Her success demonstrates just how hard work can really pay off. Earlier on this year, due to their success in Scotland, Molly and Noah were asked to participate in a short film for a digital production company as well as performing a dance on the catwalk to open the Edinburgh Wedding Fair.

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Duke of Edinburgh In September, despite ongoing COVID restrictions, there was amazing resilience on show by the S4 and S5 pupils who completed their Duke of Edinburgh Bronze Expedition. The groups experienced sun, wind, rain, and more rain but remained upbeat and cheerful throughout.

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Leadership Camp – October 2020 The COVID travel restrictions meant that our Annual CCF Leadership Camp was held closer to home and base camp was set up at Pollok Park. Run by the S6 leadership group, the S5 cadets quickly discovered that the 3-day camp was not all about physical challenges – thinking time and planning were just as important.

The final day saw the teams having to dig deep during a tough ‘March & Shoot’ exercise; pushing

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exhausted minds and bodies to new limits. It was all about team work and supporting each other. Team obstacle course, competitive camp fire building and a tense accident response exercise added to a very busy day.

Huge thanks to the S6 leadership group, Mr Shaw, Mr Duncan, Miss Edmond, Mr Lau and Mr Simpson for the fantastic organisation and making this a memorable weekend for our S5 cadets.

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POPPY PLANTS A POPPY TO SUPPORT POPPY SCOTLAND We appointed our first ever female Regimental Sergeant Major in June 2020 and appropriately named RSM Poppy Graham (S6) led her classmates in planting a poignant poppy field in time for Remembrance Day. Poppy Graham was joined by Amanda Reid (S6) and Ushna Waseem (S6), who were appointed to senior Combined Cadet Force positions, in planting 800 poppies.

We were once again also one of a handful of iconic locations across Scotland to ‘Light Up Red’ in support of Poppyscotland in recognition of the 177 Kelvinside Academy pupils who fought and lost their lives during the conflicts of World War One and World War Two. Rector, Daniel Wyatt, said: “We truly value our military connections and operate one of the largest CCF programmes in the country, supporting our boys’ and girls’ character education and leadership development superbly. The commitment and bravery of the armed forces is close to our hearts and plays a significant part in our identity and history.”

The School, was also the first school in Scotland to officially sign the Armed Forces Covenant, an initiative which provides existing and past members of the armed forces with access to jobs, financial assistance, education and well-being support.

Poppy Graham said: “Gratitude, discipline and togetherness have been incredibly important this year. By taking time to honour and remember those pupils at our school who came before us and made the ultimate sacrifice, we have learned valuable

Graham Family Handover Another of Poppy’s first jobs was to hand over the commemorative photo to the previous RSM recognising his leadership during the 2019-20 session. It was a family affair as Poppy made the presentation to her older brother Tom Graham (2020) the RSM of 2019-20.

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lessons and gained real perspective. “ “Since joining the CCF unit at Kelvinside Academy in S3, I’ve learned so much about the sacrifices our armed forces make. We are forever indebted to the pupils just like us who lost their lives during World War One and World War Two.”

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Snow much fun Predazzo, Italy While storm Ciara was blowing and Storm Dennis was on its way Mrs Kennedy, Mr Miller and Mrs Currie-Moodie headed off with 25 eager pupils to Italy for a week of skiing.

After a very early 4.30am start we were off on our long journey to Predazzo. Our first morning saw us heading up to Bellamonte for a gentle day of finding our ski legs…turns out the only people needing to do that were myself and Mrs Kennedy! We had blue skies and fresh piste all day. The pupils spent the day being led around the slopes to help sort them into their respective ability groups. It was hard to tell the beginner from the expert as all the pupils did an amazing job! After a hard day skiing it was off to the hotel for dinner and then out for ice cream!

Over the next three days everyone had the chance to really push themselves on all the slopes from blues to the expert blacks as we were guided around the beautiful Alpe di Pampeago Ski Resort.

Catching up with a few groups throughout the days it was lovely to see that our pupils where getting on like a house on fire with the pupils from Auchinleck High School who we were paired with. The resort itself sits at around 1757m and is a vast expanse of

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beautiful runs taking in some amazing scenery and also celebrating the German influence along with the Italian. Obereggen was a favourite place for the groups to visit providing some challenging runs to get there.

Monday night saw the much anticipated (dreaded by some) karaoke night! While it took a while for everyone to warm up we have to thank Ellie McKendrick (S3), Rebecca Sloan (S4), Amy Turpie (S4) and Holly Parker Croft (S3) for getting the party started with the first song. That night saw both Gilli Jones (S3) and Marley Boweh (S4) blow everyone away with their angelic voices and even I got up for a tune. Our second last night meant that all three visiting schools, Kelvinside, Auchinleck and Cathkin High got together for our disco and just like the karaoke it took a bit before everyone got their dancing shoes on. Floor fillers like The Casper Slide, Saturday Night and The Macarena eventually got everyone up having a great time! As well as wonderful singing abilities, the skiing talent we have within the school is astounding and there is real hope for a future KA Ski Team.

Mrs Bex Currie-Moodie Outdoor Education Instructor.

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Upcoming Events Kelvinside Academy Soiree Saturday 20 November 2021 This is a great opportunity for us all to come together again post COVID. Our Soiree will be held in the Hilton Grosvenor Hotel in the West End of Glasgow.

Burns Supper Friday 14 January 2022 This is now an annual fixture in the calendar and we have a fantastic line up of talent in place.

Summer Ball Saturday 25 June 2022 Work is well under way for what will be the main event in the Calendar next year. Further information will be released in the Autumn Term. Sponsorship opportunities will be available and details can be obtained from Development Manager, Elaine Solman.

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Business Breakfast Friday 5 November 2021 Paul Richards (2000), CEO, TOGETHER ENERGY We are honoured that Paul Richards will be our guest speaker at the Business Breakfast in November.

Paul is founder and CEO of Together Energy and CEO of Bristol Energy, both of whom supply renewable energy to UK residential customers.

With a turnover of £300m and employing more than 300 staff across sites in Clydebank, Bristol and Warrington, the company is committed to a radical recruitment policy: 90% of its staff come from the poorest 10% of residential postcodes. As measured during the latter half of 2020, the company was the second-fastest growing energy company in the UK. On completion of his degree in English Literature and International Relations from the University of Aberdeen, Paul joined Centrica, on their Graduate management programme.

Thereafter, completion of the Centrica Graduate Scheme provided Paul with access to a range of roles across the energy industry- from the customerfacing pressures of the contact centre to the number-crunching demands of the trading floor... and from Uddingston, to London to Mumbai. On relocating to Scotland, Paul embarked on a career change, moving into management consultancy, with several global companies, and leading a range of multimillion-pound capital projects across renewables and energy distribution, as well as water and energy management.

Paul’s 10 years of professional experience would ultimately lead him back to Clydebank, where he grew up. There, in his hometown, he would focus all that he had learned, on a singular project: to provide job stability, a living wage for all, training and education –all of this within the framework of the company he would found: Together Energy; the name itself, testimony to his faith in community.

A keen sportsman, Paul finds himself a rather more active spectator, than participant these days. But he maintains his devotion to rugby and can often been seen at Clydebank rugby club, Scotstoun and Murrayfield.

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Minerva Educational Trust Update Message from MET Chairman, Allan McKenrick (1984) I would like to start this update with thanks to Mel Scott (1979), who chaired the Minerva Educational Trust for the last 5 years. As we all know Mel has done a splendid job and the success in his tireless fundraising efforts for the School are evident every time we look at the NuVu building. Thankfully he is remaining as a Trustee and Board Member. Mel has also taken up the post of Vice President of the Academical Club.

The pandemic has rather curtailed our fundraising activities over the last year and we cancelled all events up to the end of the Academic year. That said, there is an exciting timetable of events planned for the coming year, when one hopes we will be able to return to some form of normality and we will all feel safe as a community once again. There is no doubt that the strength of the KA Family will help drive us forward with further improvements and initiatives.

Listed on page 38 are some of the events taking place and we would ask that you put these in your diary. Obviously, everything will be subject to any Government restrictions.

Trustees Update We are delighted that Mrs Sarah Sloan has become a MET Trustee. Sarah is a current parent in Senior School and is married to Academical, Alasdair Sloan (1987). Sarah’s family have a long history with Kelvinside Academy as her brother, father and father-in-law are also former pupils, Douglas Laing (1989), Randolph Laing (1963) and Graeme Sloan (1959). In recent years Sarah has worked with the PTA and is a member of the Ball and Events Committee. She will be a great asset to the Trust with a background in advertising, marketing and project management. Sarah is also a partner in a furniture and interior accessories business who have an outlet in Hyndland Road.

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The Innovation School The Innovation School continues to go from strength to strength and you will find an update at the beginning of Minerva on some of the many projects that have taken place during the pandemic. This would not have been possible without your help and together we have created a unique learning environment which has inspired our pupils from Junior 1 through to Senior 6. We are extremely grateful to the donors listed below who supported the project and we look forward to seeing them at one of the lectures planned for later this year.

Roll of Giving

Patrons Dr Charles A Berry

Mr Andrew R Ireland

Mr George G Stewart

Mr Jim H Taylor MBE

Mr Alastair A Johnston

Mr Murray A C Stewart

Mr Malcolm C Johnston

Mr J Kenneth Sommerville

Mr Douglas Knox

Mr and Mrs Jim H Taylor MBE

Peter and Sarah Kudirka

Mr and Mrs J Taylor

Mr N Bruce S Logan

Mr Mark Taylor

Mr Alan Loughray

Mr Alastair W Tear

Mr Alan MacDougall

Mr Alastair Thaw

Miss Lois MacGeachy

Miss Kelly Trainer

Founders Mr and Mrs R MacGeachy Peak Scientific McAlpine & Company Limited Mr Peter A Drummond Mr J Pirrie and Ms M Carey Benefactors Mr Wazir Ahmed Mr and Mrs J Aksi Mr and Mrs P Allen Mr John S Anderson Dr A Anyaegbunam Mr and Mrs G Bakewell Mr David J Banks Dr and Mrs Charles A Berry

Miss Tess MacGeachy Miss Poppy MacGeachy Mr John Mackenzie Mr A W H H MacLeod Mr Colin D Mair Mrs M Martin Mr Kenneth B McAlpine Mr K Graham McAlpine Mr James E McAlpine

Mr and Mrs Campbell

Mr David W J McGirr

Mr Joseph H Carroll

Mr Ian McKendrick

Mr Edward R N Q Clarke

Mr Robert F Mill

Mr Ian Coltart

Mr William J Murdoch

Mr Ernest F Cormie

Mr Colin T Orr

Mr Michael T Craig

Mr James H Peebles

Mr W A (Sandy) Dalziel

Mr James R Pollock

Mr Paul Davis

Mr G Alan Ramsay

Mr J.N. De Villiers

Mr William Roxburgh

Mr George S Drummond

Mr Melville B Scott

Mr Richard B Eadie

Mr Russell A Sim

Dr J Angus Ford

Mr Gordon M Sim

Mr and Mrs Nigel M Dewar Gibb

Mr Martin Sim

Mr and Mrs W Glass

Mr Frazer Simpson

Mr John B G Harvey

Mr Donald F Sloan

Mr Lewis Trainer Mrs Lisa Trainer Mr Matthew Trainer Mr Mikey Trainer Mr Colin T Orr Mr John Turnbull Mr and Mrs A Turner Mr Graham H Webster The Honourable Lord Weir Mr John A Welsh Mr Donald Wilson Mr and Mrs C L Wong The Rt Hon The Lord Woolfe CH Mr T Barrie Wright Mr Iain Wright The Culra Charitable Trust Kelvinside Academy Parent Teacher Association Kelvinside Academical Club Kelvinside Academial Club (London Section) Sim Property Management Limited 140th Anniversary Black and White And our Donors who wish to remain anonymous.

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Parent Teacher Association The PTA have been working behind the scenes this year and have been busy preparing their plan for next year. We would like to take this opportunity to thank them for their continued support and tireless energy they put into School events.

The PTA have Nearly New Uniform Sales throughout the year and if you have any outgrown uniform that is no longer required, we would be grateful if you could keep this safe until you are able to drop this into Reception in a sealed bag.

This session they have donated £4000 to Junior School to purchase exceptional building blocks for use in the Junior School playground.

All parents are automatically members of the PTA and if you would like to get involved with any events or regular activities please email pta@kelvinside.org.

Throughout the pandemic the Lottery has continued to grow and we have now managed to raise the fantastic sum of £20,000 for the School Bursary Fund. Thank you to everyone for their

continued Support. You will also find enclosed a form for completion if you would like to be included in future draws.

Christmas 2021 Star Prize This Christmas, in addition to the normal prizes listed below, we will be including the John Duff Lodge in the Wilderness Campus as a prize. This will be for a 4 day break and obviously will be subject to availability.

There are three draws per year and the Lottery takes the form of a monthly standing order of £10.00 per month, per ticket. Therefore, by the time a draw takes place you have a number of chances to become a winner. Prize Winners receive the following amounts: 1st Prize 2nd Prize 3rd Prize 4th Prize

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£500 for 1 person £150 each for 2 people £100 each for 3 people £50 each for 10 people

Congratulations to the following winners from draws that took place during the pandemic up until January this year. The Easter and Summer 2021 winners will be listed in the Christmas Minerva.

Mr and Mrs P Kudirka, Mr W Roxburgh, Mr G Fulton, Mrs M Martin, Mr W A Dalziel, Mr D Yao Yae, Mr A Neilson, Mr J Taylor, Mr S Orr, Mr K McAlpine, Mr J Dickie, Mr J Bleasdale, Mr H Miller, Mr P Drummond, Mr P Waddington and Mrs J Laughlin, Mr P Drummond, Mr D McGill, Mr D Wilson, Mr I Munro, Mr D Wyatt, Mrs N Mathews, Miss J Westwood, Miss D Scade, Miss AM Cormack, Mrs J McLean, Mr W Watson, Mr C Mackenzie, Mr J Smart, Mr A Palmer, Mr I Sinclair, Mr N Fyfe, Mrs L Hartley, Mrs S Taylor, Mr D Jerdan, Mrs A McGowan, Mr R Reid, Mr D Crowther, Mr A Ireland, Mr A McKendrick

Kelvinside Academical Club At the beginning of lockdown, like many others, there were countless work related worries alongside positive thoughts of being back in School during the Summer Term 2020. Now here we are in 2021, almost a year later, and looking forward to things hopefully being back to “normal” in August. As soon as it is safe to do so, we will embark on a programme of events and reunions which I am sure will be met with great gusto.

The pandemic has moved the world forward digitally at great speed and more people are communicating electronically. With this in mind, please complete the enclosed form with your up-to-date details to ensure

that you receive our electronic communications as well as postal.

We are extremely proud of our Academicals and interested in where life has taken you. If you would like to share any of your experiences or updates in Minerva, please email these to elaine.solman@ kelvinside.org If you would like to find out more about the Academical Club or details about events taking place throughout the year, please contact Development Manager, Elaine Solman (elaine.solman@kelvinside. org).

Message from Club President, Alastair Tear (1974) Academical Club Annual Dinner Friday 25 March 2022 One of the many exciting events that had to be cancelled was the Annual Academical Dinner in March 2020 and 2021. This would have been our largest dinner on record and our ambition is to reach this target in March 2022. Club President, Alastair Tear (1974), will confirm the new date later this year. We are also thrilled that Jamie Andrew OBE (1987) will still be able to speak at the dinner.

Academical Club AGM This has not taken place due to the pandemic and we will advise you of a date once restrictions allow.

Jamie Andrew OBE (1987) Minerva

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London Section We also had to cancel the London Section Annual Dinner in November 2020, where we would have been celebrating 100 years since the Section was officially formed.

Academical, Malcolm McCaul Watson, was the original founder of the Club and the official documents state “The idea to create a London Section was taken at a meeting in London towards the end of that year. It was attended by, among others, Fergus Morton and Malcolm McCaul Watson, who became the

first Secretary. The first Annual Dinner was held in 1921 in the Caledonian Club”.

The current London Section Secretary, David McGill (1973), has kindly given us the additional information regarding the reformation of the Club in 2004. The inscription on the silver Garvel says “Presented to the Kelvinside Academical Club London Section to commemorate its formation in 1920”.

David McGill (1973) The London Section went into “suspended animation” in 1979 possibly due to lack of London based Academicals when E H Leeming was president. However, during the late 1980s and early 1990s several Academicals represented the school in the annual London Scottish Schools Golf Society outing at Denham. Some current members of the London Section were aware of each other’s presence in London and in 2003 a decision was made to revive the London Section. John Miln (1968), Bert Bright (1968), John Burleigh (1972), Peter Camrass, Graeme Lambert and David McGill, the last three, all from the Class of 1973 were instrumental in making this bold move. Ably assisted by Elaine Solman who provided names and addresses. Contact was made with those Academicals living and working in the London area and the first dinner of the revived section was held in 2004.

Dinners have been held on an annual basis since, the

OBITUARY (Christmas 1953) Malcolm McCaul Watson “Malcolm McCaul Watson died at the age of 86. He went to Kelvinside Academy as a small boy in its very early days, and he retained to the end of his life a deep and lively interest in his old school.

He was the founder of the London Section of the Kelvinside Academical Club and acted as its Honorary Secretary for many years. Throughout these years the Section flourished under his benevolent guidance.

He found great joy in organising and attending our annual dinner and our golf competition at Fleet. The happy atmosphere at these meetings was largely due to Malcolm’s warm-hearted welcome of each arrival, his genuine interest in the doings of every member of the Section, and the care which he took to see that newcomers at once became ‘members of the family’.

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dinner in 2019 being our 16th. The first lady Academical, Hannah Stokes (2004), was welcomed in 2014 and it is hoped to attract more ladies in the future particularly since the merger with Craigholme. Whilst the nucleus of those behind the revival of the section were golfers, we are keen to offer other activities or outings to suit those who do not play and also to involve our partners.

In recent years we have attended T20 cricket matches, watched rugby at London Scottish and had a wine tasting evening.

A warm welcome awaits any London based Academicals who are advised to contact the secretary, David McGill (1973), (scotlandend@btinternet.com) for further details.

If it is safe to do so and subject to Government Guidelines, the 2021 dinner will be held on Thursday 11 November in the Caledonian Club.

Although he spent by far the greater part of his life in England, Malcolm remained the most loyal and devoted of Scots, and it was characteristic of him that his interests, outside his business and his creation of the London Section, were largely centred on the London Scottish Football Club and the Caledonian Club. In both of these Scottish institutions he was widely known and universally beloved.

Malcolm never grew old in spirit. The writer had the pleasure of visiting him many times in his home at Cookham, during the last years of his life. He was still, as always, the best of companions. He had read widely and thought deeply on many subjects, and all that he said was illuminated by humour, kindliness and love of his fellow-men.

He will be greatly missed and long remembered.”

North American Section - Your roots, your network We are delighted that Gareth Gaston (1994) and Paul Muir (1970) have agreed to be the Academical Official Representatives in North America and the following message has been sent to all Academicals across the water. If you didn’t receive the message, please contact elaine.solman@kelvinside.org.

former pupils of Kelvinside Academy.

The idea is simple - by having a KA North America Academical Section it is hoped that we: 1. Help each other both personally and professionally.

2. Find kindred spirits and friends.

3. Connect back to Glasgow and KA. Getting together is likely a non starter. So we are going to try a different approach. We have created a LinkedIn group for us to connect as the principle way of connecting.

Gareth Gaston (1992), San Francisco

Paul Muir (1970), New York

“The Academical Club in Glasgow obviously thrives as many people still live there and it’s easy to participate. The London Club was restarted a number of years ago and now has an active base with events throughout the year. We have tried to get a North American movement going but it’s obviously a huge distance to cover and hard to coordinate. There are about 100 of us here - a group that share the same roots and background - brought up in Scotland and

Angling Section Annual Dinner 2020 Members and guests of the Academical Angling Section enjoying a convivial Annual Dinner and Prizegiving at the Grosvenor Hotel in January 2020.

Founded in 1893, the Angling Section arranges

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/3743679 A Facebook Group is also available.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/kelvinside. na/?ref=share If you don’t use LinkedIn or Facebook no problem just contact Elaine who will forward your details onto us.

Once we get to know each other and what’s interesting to us, we aim to host virtual events with guest speakers and virtual networking opportunities.

Looking forward to connecting!”

about a dozen loch fishing outings each year for its members who compete for a number of trophies and the odd bottle of whisky!

New members are welcome and any interested Academical should contact Iain McDonald, Honorary Secretary at iainmcdonald53@gmail. com or 07522 581317.

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News Carly Bisset (2009) We are delighted that Carly has become an Office Bearer in the Academical Club Junior Committee.

Carly is a General Surgery Specialty Trainee in the West of Scotland and a PhD research student with the University of Aberdeen. She is also the 1st XI Captain for GHK Ladies Hockey Club, who compete in the Scottish Premiership league.

Ian Carter (1960) has kindly given us the following update.

I am a retired architect (2013) from of 1960. When I retired, I discovered I really didn’t want to be an architect, I wanted to be an artist; so, I have been painting in acrylics (mostly abstract/mixed media) and representational watercolours (mostly landscape), since 2014. If you check my web site (www.iancarterartist.com) you will be able to view these, and by clicking on “Jump to Collection” and then “More Information”, in the middle of each painting you will find out more about each. I did enjoy my architecture designing hospitals, and educational facilities in the US, Canada, Indonesia, Scotland, the UK, the Caribbean and, Nigeria.

I am finding that “isolation” is fine in many respects,

Hawthorn Gardens

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other than not being able to actually be with friends. We use Zoom a lot which has its many attributes including connectivity with people all over the world. I have never painted as much and I am enjoying it a lot. I even pick up my guitar and struggle playing some classical works. We do go for walks; in UBC where most of the pathways and forest walks offer the safe distance directed by Dr. Bonnie Henry. The air is so clean and crisp this time of year. From our balcony we can see Valdes and Gabriola Islands and beyond towards Nanaimo. The colours are so much cleaner and clearer; fewer greys and dark colours. The cherry blossoms have almost gone, but they lasted much longer than usual; to be overtaken by the beautiful Magnolia blossoms.

Tulips and daffodils persist.

Rocky Outcrop

News Zia Choudhury (1989) United Nations Resident Coordinator, Botswana “Zia Choudhury (Class of 89) has been appointed as United Nations Resident Coordinator (RC) in Botswana. The Resident Coordinator is the highest UN official in a country and chief of the UN diplomatic mission. The RC is the designated representative of the Secretary General, and is conferred the rank of an Ambassador of a foreign state.

After he completed his Highers at Kelvinside, Zia went on to read Geography at SOAS, University of London and Management at the University of Manchester. After two years as a researcher in Coventry and Sussex Universities, Zia moved for two years to a remote, disaster prone, island in the Bay of Bengal, and began his career in development and disaster management. He then worked for another 20 years in challenging humanitarian contexts around the word, including Sudan, Yemen, Somalia, Eritrea and Kosovo.

being fascinated and shocked by desertification and deforestation. I was also aware of the huge privilege and advantages of going to a school like KA but appreciate that we were guided to appreciate diversity and work towards a fairer society.”

Zia was born and raised in Glasgow. His wife is from Italy and they have 3 small children. Any KA students who pass through Botswana are always welcome to visit Zia, and if anyone is interested in following a similar career, please do get in touch via Elaine Solman.

Of his 5 years at Kelvinside, Zia says “KA introduced me to a huge variety of people who were motivated and inspired to work in a diverse range of careers. It was through Geography classes that I really started to take an interest in global issues, and I remember

Sophie Joint (2018)

Jessica Halley (2016)

Sophie is one of a small group of traditional music performers chosen for a cultural initiative by the Scottish Government. Their virtual concert for St Andrew’s Day started with a series of online Scottish festivals designed to last until Burns Night and boost Scottish connections at home and abroad. The idea is to highlight international community, creativity and co-operation, particularly at this time of pandemic when our links across the world are more important than ever. The students worked with international artists from a number of countries, including USA & China, to produce the arrangements in the film which can be accessed via both Royal Conservatoire of Scotland and the national gateway site www.scotland.org. Well Done Sophie.

Congratulations to Jessica who is studying at Quinnipiac University in the US. She has been appointed one of four Hockey Captains for the Bobcats Season 2020-21.

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Iona Holloway (2007) Congratulations to Iona on having her first book published, “Ghost Why Perfect Women Shrink”.

Iona is also the creator of “The Blacklight Method” which is her signature coaching framework.

Charles McAlpine (1992) Charles was elected to represent Australia in 2019’s Aquathlon World Championship in Fyn, Denmark, where he came a creditable 19th/32 in his age group (40-44) of the Finals, despite suffering an injury 4 weeks prior to the event which severely disrupted his training regime.

Colin Neill (1972) Congratulations to former pupil and past President, Colin Neill (1972) who has been elected Chairman of the Forty Club.

David Rowand (1986) GHK President Elect Congratulations to David on his selection as GHK President from June 2021. We look forward to strengthening our relationship with GHK during his term and David is looking forward to welcoming our Academicals to GHK next Season. If you would like any additional details on GHK or would like to join the Club, please contact elaine.solman@kelvinside.org.

Douglas Schreiber (2009) Congratulations to Douglas on being appointed Partner at NFU Mutual Edinburgh and the Lothians.

Douglas was appointed in October and deals with nearly all aspects of Commerical Insurance, Pensions and Investments. Douglas is also a member of the Academical Club Junior Committee and we look forward to working with Douglas again in the coming months.

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Colin Risk and Steve Rodrick (1970 - 1977) - A Friendship across Half a Century Following in the footsteps of his father, Tom, uncles John and Ralph and brothers Keith, Michael and Tim, Colin started at KA in Lower 1 in 1964 and on 1st September 1970 was joined by Steve in Remove. Over half a century later, despite various relocations, they are still friends.

Their paths first crossed on the 1st September 1970, their first day in the Upper School. As their surnames begin with RI and RO respectively, they were on the register side by side and in those days only lived a few hundred yards apart in Bearsden.

For many years they got the bus home together the Number 12 to Milngavie and shared the trek up Boclair Hill - but that ended when Colin acquired a Suzuki 50cc moped as so many did in that era.

After School, Steve studied Forestry and Ecology at Edinburgh University and Colin, Printing and Publishing at Napier College. At this point their paths drifted apart and, as both sets of parents had moved away from Glasgow, they no longer shared any home turf and lost touch.

During the next twenty years or so Colin’s career took him from Suffolk to Oxford and on to Milan before returning to Oxfordshire where he was Managing Director of the Imago Publishing Group. Steve’s career in forestry and landscape conservation took him to the Chilterns Area of Outstanding Natural

Beauty where he was the Chief Officer. In 2002 through Friends Reunited they made contact and to their amazement discovered they only worked five miles apart. Colin lived in Oxford and Steve twenty miles down the road near High Wycombe. The coincidence goes further as they both have second homes in France.

They re-established their childhood friendship over many post work drinks and as the years passed both ended up retiring in 2014 and moving out of the Home Counties. Colin sold up first and rented a house on the East Sussex coast in Hastings, St. Leonards. Steve and his wife Sara stayed with Colin and his husband Bakani whilst house hunting. By another twist they’ve both ended up buying houses a couple of miles apart in Hastings. In retirement they spend much of their time in France and regularly make the cross- country trip between their homes in Provence (Colin) and the Dordogne (Steve).

In their own words, ‘And so here we are fifty years on and far away from Kelvinside enjoying life in Sussex and France, but even now our conversation often turns to school and growing up in Glasgow. It seems like yesterday when we first met so it’s very hard to believe it’s really half a century’.

Colin Risk and Steve Rodrick

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Iain Sinclair (1994) The following article appeared in Scottish Business News A former professional rugby player has been appointed to help Global Energy Group gain advantage in the renewables and energy transition market.

Iain Sinclair, a former Glasgow Warriors and Edinburgh flanker, has more than 18 years’ experience in energy and infrastructure, including as managing director of Forth Steel and Murray Plate Group.

He’ll help the Inverness outfit cross the gain line for low carbon work as it plans to set up a new base in Edinburgh next year.

In the new role of executive director of renewables and energy transition, Mr Sinclar will have a groupwide remit to develop opportunities in offshore wind, hydrogen and sustainable infrastructure.

Global Energy Group, which employs more than 1,500 people, has invested £90m to date in its Port of Nigg facility in the Cromarty Firth.

Global has already delivered “significant contracts” for the huge Beatrice and Moray East offshore wind farms in Scotland.

Chairman Roy Macgregor said Mr Sinclair is wellsuited to tackle the job.

He said: “Iain joins us at a pivotal time as we continue our journey to support the energy industry with the transition to net zero. His background and experience are an ideal fit for our future ambitions.

He will be responsible for supporting our portfolio businesses in building diverse expertise to increase our contribution to the low carbon sector.

“I look forward to working with Iain over the coming months as we develop our clean energy strategy.”

Mr Sinclair, who played rugby professionally for four

James Whittle (2012) Congratulations to James on his recent performances captaining the Strathclyde University Team on University Challenge. They are now through to the quarter finals - further than any Strathclyde Team has ever got before. It is interesting to note that Strathclyde is also the only Scottish University left in the Competition. James is pictured below during the match against Durham University.

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years until 2001, said he’s excited to join Global Energy Group.

“The speed in which the energy transition has accelerated means we are at an incredibly exciting time for the industry as a whole with major infrastructure projects on the horizon and the ScotWind leasing round”, he said.

“Having worked as a supplier to Global Energy Group for several years, I have been impressed with the entrepreneurial spirit, ambitions and investment commitments to support the clean energy industry.

“I am thrilled to be leading this area of the group and, together with the business unit leaders, further enhancing our offering as we establish a presence in Edinburgh next year.”

Craig Wright (1982) Congratulations to Craig who has been appointed Cricket Scotland’s Men’s Assistant Coach. We wish Craig well going forward. Craig retired from playing for Scotland in 2009 after 12 stellar years as an allrounder, making 195 appearances, which at the time was a record, and captaining the side 107 times.

Old Carradale - Anyone for Herring ?

Iain Wright (1965) has just written a book on Old Carradale, which is a small village on the east Kintyre coast looking towards Arran and just north of Campbeltown. It has been famous for herring fishing in the Firth of Clyde for hundreds of years, but only a small number of boats now trawl for shellfish and prawns. The village was an attractive port for the Clyde steamers, when regular annual visitors came as tourists and who continue to arrive for the challenging golf course, the walking routes and the

various bars and restaurants. In summer of 1960 Iain was in a party of Remove boys who camped for a fortnight under the control of Mr Mackay, their schoolmaster. A photo of the campsite appears at page 40 of the book.

The softback book has 60 pages, covering the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, each with a fully descriptive caption. Signed copies can be ordered from i.wright237@btinternet.com at a cost of £10.95 post free.

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George Stewart (1938) George is our oldest Academical and turned 100 in December 2019. We had planned to visit George and unfortunately COVID19 came along and we had to postpone our visit. George is pictured with his son-in-law, Alan Begg (1972), on his right and son, Alan Stewart (1973), on his left. George is an inspiration to us all and was still skiing in February this year. Belated Happy Birthday to George.

George’s father Herbert Stewart also attended KA. George said “He was invited to go skiing with his son, Alan (1973), and it was too good an opportunity to miss and off I went to the Pyrenees with the family.

I am very happy to report that I can still ski with some comfort as you can see. I believe that I am only the second person from Britain to have done this and I am pleased with my achievement and the good fortune that allowed it” Club President, Alastair Tear (1974) and Development Manager, Elaine Solman are hoping to visit George, after this pandemic, to present him with a gift from the School.

The following article appeared in The Daily Record “VE Day was the day after my final shots were fired, I believe.

“The news somehow got through to us. But there were no celebrations of any kind. We paid no attention to it, going about our normal business. My reasoning was that the war was far from over. We were only too aware that the conflict continued in the Far East and we were likely to be sent there at any time, a prospect we dreaded with such a brutal, cruel enemy.

“It was only when VJ Day arrived that we were able to sigh with relief - WWII really was over.”

George had been called up in 1940, a fresh-faced science student, and his one-time Territorial Army regiment played its part in the North African campaign under Field Marshal Montgomery.

“El Alamein was my first experience of action, in 1942” recalled the one-time forester. “Later we went into Sicily and worked our way up through Italy. It was grim. But it was war and we just did what we were told to do.”

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The Countries oldest Skier, George, who is getting around on crutches after tumbling during a family trip to the Pyrenees earlier this year, had intended to join the VE Day commemoration parade planned for Edinburgh before the pandemic struck. Ironically, his passion for skiing dates back to the Italian campaign, when he acquired a pair of wooden skis in Florence during a lull in the fighting, and bashed nails into his army boots for binding.

“The British Legion had asked if I would take part and I would have been proud to remember my old comrades. I lost a lot of friends during the war,” he said.

“I would have dusted down my uniform and joined in, even on crutches if necessary. But sadly, like everything else, the parade has been cancelled because of the pandemic.

“This would have been a rather special occasion, probably the last of its kind as none of us are getting any younger. It’s such a pity.”

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Kelvinside Academy and World War II War Memorial

The World War II Memorial Plaque unveiling ceremony took place on 11 November 1947. The service was conducted by the Reverend Doctor Jarvis of Wellington Church whose son Jim’s name was on the plaque and the unveiling was performed by the mother of George Muir, an Academical who had, before the war, became the School’s youngest Governor, whose name was also on the plaque. Captain James Jarvis died on 18/2/1944 aged 21 and is buried in the Sangro River War Cemetery, Italy and Pilot Officer George Muir died on 21/2/1941 aged 36 and is commerated at the Alamein Memorial, Egypt.

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After the unveiling ceremony in 1947 the guests were invited to inspect the newly purchased property at Mirrlees Drive. This was funded from the War Memorial Fund (set up at the end of the war) and two substantial bequests. One from the parents of Lieutenant W Cecil Bergius (1935) RNVR, who died on 1/3/1944 when his boat (HMS Gould) was torpedoed in the North Atlantic. Cecil was 25 years old and is commemorated on the Plymouth Naval Memorial. The other was from the Trooper Herbert Henderson who died aged 72 at his home in Bulawayo in 1942. Trooper Henderson was awarded the VC for gallantry in saving a wounded comrade, Trooper Celliers, at Campbell’s Store, Bulawayo, Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe), on 30 March 1896 during the Matabeleland War (1893-1896). Trooper Henderson is pictured below along with the only photographs that we have for Lieutenant Bergius. Cecil Bergius was Steersman in the School Yacht Team and is on the left hand side.

He was also a talented gymnast and is included in the photograph of the gymnastic display, for which he won the Senior School Silver Medal. Cecil and Herbert have Memorial Rooms in Mirrlees Drive and their plaques remain in place till this day.

VE Day Celebration Memories Lord Weir (1944), “Strangely I recall VE Day as something of an anti-climax. We had been expecting the event for at least a fortnight, but it kept being postponed while sporadic fighting continued. On the day I heard Churchill’s speech on the radio, but I do not recall celebrations. Our house had not

been long reoccupied after being badly damaged in an air raid on 13 March 1941 and I think we were glad to be safely there. Ralph Risk (1950) is the fairhaired small boy in the centre of the front row and I am third from the right.” The staff and pupils in evacuation are pictured below in Arran in 1939.

Alan McChleary (1958) “Still alive at 80! I was born in Clouston St. No. 51, not too far from KA. When the Clydebank blitz occurred, stray bombs fell all over Glasgow, North and South of the river.

Bearsden (bomb hole next 9th green as I recall) Hardgate, Dalmuir and Clydebank itself. On the night of 15th March (so I’m told) a stick of bombs fell across Maryhill, one lodging in No 60ish. It did not explode but killed some folks as it passed through the 4 floors. My father was on ship to the Middle East so mother was left to look after me, her mother and her mother’s sister. The latter was a widow from WWI.

your father I was told. Dad had been in the Desert, Tobruk, El Alamein and Palestine since 1941 and had gained a deep brown pallor.

One unforgettable event which was the very first father and son adventure we undertook was travelling in the front upstairs glass box on a tramcar (caur as I also recall as in move up the caur) after dark. On at Coopers at Bank Street and over the brow to Botanic Gardens. From that brow I saw the street lights all the way to Anniesland. I have never forgotten that image. Pictured below is VE Day in George Square, Glasgow.

We were evacuated and eventually spent the rest of the War in Callander. I started school at the MacLaren High School in the village.

About mid 1945 we were told we could return to the flat in Clouston St. VE Day came and Mother heard that Father, a Lt Colonel in the REME, had foregone a flight home and chose to travel from Marseilles with his men by train. His stories of this 6 day journey were hilarious. However, none of this was known to me as a 6 year old. Secrets were kept.

One day a bit later, there was a knock at the door and I rushed to answer it. Apparently, I slammed the door and screamed and ran to my Mother yelling “there’s a great big strange man at the door” It’s Minerva

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Dr Joseph Caplan (1950) “My recollection of VE Day is lights! We went downtown and every building had all their lights lit. There was a movie house on Renfield Street, north of Sauchiehall street, the “Playhouse” with flashing red and green lights that I had never seen turned on during the war. Everyone had their house lights on, with the blackout curtains pulled back, as a gesture of victory.

Services.” Joseph is in the V Upper photograph 1948-49 below. Also pictured below in George Square and the City Chambers on VE Day which was where fairy lights hung from the lampposts and spot lights placed around the Square.

There was no school that Tuesday. It was known that it would be a holiday. I recall that none of us had relatives in the military. We were a “sandwich” generation. Our fathers were too young for WW1 and too old for WW2. They were Air Raid Wardens etc. I don’t recall anyone having older brothers - this was a Depression era group. A few years made the difference. A friend of my father was a few years older and he had three sons and a nephew in the

Post War Memories from Jim Peebles (1950) I too have a copy of the 1948/49 year photo and most of those in the photo, like myself, joined the school in September 1944 after the school building was vacated by the Army. Although Upper 1 (as it was called) had two classes, A and B, there were only 20 in Upper 2 and only 6 in Upper 3.

Accordingly, it took a few years before our Rugby 1st XV could play against other schools 1st teams.

This too had a knock-on effect on the Academicals who had a very small pool of players to choose from for some years. Indeed, it was a joint team of West of Scotland (who had no ground for several

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years after the war) and Kelvinside Academicals, who played against other Scottish Rugby Clubs.

Eventually West of Scotland got their new ground in Bearsden and we were sole users of Balgray.

Until evacuation, I understand the school had an OTC, and in September 1947 it was restarted under the name of the Combined Cadet Force with Army and Navy sections. I regretted the lack of an Air Force section. Later, after I left school and studying accountancy, I was accepted for pilot training in the RAF (quite rare) during obligatory national service, and the CCF Cert A no doubt helped.

Tom Neill (1938), father to Colin (1972) and Roddy (1977), was a character and well known Academical both on and off the Rugby pitch, a long-standing member of the Angling Section and a keen cricketer. When he left School, he joined the RNVR and was called up as soon as war broke out in 1939 to serve as a rating, on convoy protection duty, on a destroyer in the Atlantic.

Tom was soon commissioned, and within months had become a Naval Officer, learning navigation the hard way (sextant, clock, stars and all). By 1941 Tom was ‘Officer commanding’ a Motor Torpedo Boat. These were designed for high speed and manoeuvrability on the water to get close enough to launch their torpedoes at enemy vessels. With next to no armour, the boats relied upon their agility at high speed to avoid being hit by gunfire from bigger ships. Based at Felixstowe on the east coast of England, Tom captained his boat on numerous trips across the North Sea, sometimes laying mines and generally making the coastline of continental Europe as dangerous as possible for anything the enemy dared to send to sea. In June 1942, Tom’s boat and a companion MTB on patrol off the Hooke of Holland were surprised by the bursting of a star-shell right over their heads from a now horribly close and very large German E-Boat in the company of a group of other enemy ships. Tom’s companion boat took sensible evasive action, but cut across Tom’s bows in doing so, and Tom having slowed to avoid a collision decided to cut his speed down further so that he could launch his torpedoes. Slowing down and heading straight for an enemy warship was not top of the good ideas list but Tom lined his boat up at the enemy, released his torpedoes, and then Tom turned his boat away, only for it to be hit hard by enemy gunfire which wrecked his MTB’s steering gear. Tom kept his boat heading away from the enemy by manipulating the power of the engines, being rewarded by the explosion of his torpedoes hitting. By 1941, at aged twenty-one, he was a fully-fledged Naval Officer with two full years of warfare experience under his belt.“The German ‘E-Boats’ were terrific compared to ours, bigger, faster, more guns, but we were better sailors than them,” Tom modestly mentioned. Tom was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross for gallantry during active operations against the enemy at sea.

In 2007, having heard his war time exploits, the Royal Navy invited Tom to spend a day at sea on HMS Smiter, fast patrol boat based at Faslane. It was no less than 61 years since Tom had left the naval service in 1946, Tom was delighted to accept the invitation and was welcomed aboard by the Officer Commanding HMS Smiter, Lt Kate Doran RN, and they were soon sailing a little east of south down Gareloch heading for the narrows at Rhu. Lt Neill RNVR (retired) took control of the boat and berthed her beautifully on their return to HMS Clyde, much to the delight of those on board. Tom passed away aged 91 in 2012 but is still remembered fondly by many.

Tom is pictured below with sons Colin and Roddy, as a young Officer in 1942, at Sea in 2007, and playing Rugby at Balgray after the war.

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Academical Rugby Focus Kelvinside Academy has produced more international and district players over the last 5 years than any other school in the West.

Mr David Wilson, Director of Sport and Head of Rugby, continues to work with Kelvinside’s team of school coaches to inspire, develop and nurture positivity through the whole school rugby programme. He is currently part of a select group of coaches within Scotland who has achieved the UKCC level 4 award and is currently completing his Masters in Performance Sport Enhancement.

He is currently the School 1st XV coach, and works in a variety of other coaching environments. He is involved in the U18 National programme with previous roles with U19, Head Coach responsibility with U17 and U16 programmes. Out-with the National and School environment he is currently defence coach for Boroughmuir Bears Super 6 squad, and is Head Coach for National 1 side Biggar RFC. Previous coaching

Andrew Davidson (2015)

Congratulations to Andrew on his latest signing.

The following article appeared in the Rugby Press earlier this year.

“Gloucester is set to add Scottish lock Andrew Davidson to their squad next season.

The former Newcastle Falcon will head to Kingsholm this summer once his contract at Edinburgh expires, as revealed by TRP on December 20.

Davidson will become the second arrival at Gloucester from Scottish rugby, having already signed Adam Hastings from Glasgow Warriors to replace Danny Cipriani.

It means Davidson, 24, will spend only one season in Edinburgh after making the switch from Scotstoun last year.

Upon announcing the signing of the 6’7″ forward, Alex Brown, chief operating officer, eluded to Gloucester’s desire to add an imposing figure to their pack.

“Andrew is a towering lock and a very powerful presence on the pitch. His signing adds to the strength we have in our pack for next season.

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responsibilities include premiership Head Coaching roles with GHA and Glasgow Hawks.

The School programme continues to evolve and adapt by applying current coaching framework methodologies, catering and supporting pupils who desire to play at the level that suits their abilities, needs and aspirations. This is achieved through positive supportive environments, building strong pupil relationships and providing challenge through hard work and enjoyment. A key factor in this approach has been the introduction of a School Rugby Development Coach, Thomas Davidson, who is able to offer specialist input through individual and group skill sessions, analysing individual/team performances and providing individual player development plans for those pursuing Regional or National aspirations. We also support all Senior pupils with the option of attending fundamental movement and strength & conditioning morning sessions delivered by a fully qualified S&C Coach.

Seeing the progress of some of our former pupils into the world of professional sport and achieving their ambitions is absolutely fantastic. It firmly reinforces that with hard work and dedication, inspirational things will happen.

We are very proud that Kelvinside Academy has been part of that journey.

“He’s also still only 24 and has plenty of rugby ahead of him as we build our squad for the longer term under the stewardship of George.”

A graduate of the academy at Glasgow Warriors, Davidson made the move to Newcastle in 2016 where he spent three years playing for Falcons before returning to Scotland.”

Richie Gray (2007) Fantastic to see Richie back in Glasgow and hopefully he will visit Kelvinside once COVID19 restrictions have been lifted and it is safe to do so.

The following article appeared in Planet Rugby.

Richie Gray’s impressive return gave Glasgow a lift at the weekend but assistant coach Kenny Murray revealed the Scotland lock had already made his mark before getting back on the pitch.

Gray was the outstanding Warriors performer in Saturday’s 10-7 defeat by Edinburgh in the PRO14 as he made his comeback following a lengthy concussion lay-off.

And the 31-year-old former Sale, Castres and Toulouse player’s commitment in training has also drawn praise.

“I thought he really exceeded anyone’s expectation of him in terms of coming back from a head injury having been out for so long,” Murray said.

“To come back into a derby match like that and play so well was a real testament to his commitment.

“Defensively he was very good, made 12 tackles and

didn’t have any misses. In the line-outs he was very destructive, stealing throws and putting Edinburgh under pressure.

Top-quality performance “I thought it was a real top-quality performance from Richie. He’s got through the game well and he’s feeling good this week at training so hopefully that’s him (up to speed) and we can get him for a while now.

“The reason we brought him in is he’s such a good player, particularly his set-piece work.

“At the end of the day he’s a (British and Irish) Lion and if you’ve got a Lion in your team then players will automatically, especially the young guys, look up to him.

“About three or four weeks ago when he was injured he did an academy session with the young boys. He came in and trained really well and for those young boys in that session to be training with a Lion and watch him bursting his backside in a kids’ session shows just how dedicated he is to getting back.”

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Scott Cummings (2014) We are delighted that Scott has agreed to stay in Glasgow for the time being and maybe we will see him on the sidelines next year encouraging the 1st XV. The following article appeared in Planet Rugby.

“Glasgow Warriors second-row Scott Cummings has pledged his long-term future to the club, after the Scotland star put pen to paper on a new multiyear contract with Danny Wilson’s side.

One of the most highly-rated young second-rowers in northern hemisphere rugby, the 24-year-old’s renewal comes as a major boost ahead of the club’s return to action against Edinburgh at Murrayfield this weekend.

Having made his Glasgow Warriors debut against the Scarlets in the opening match of the 2015/16 season, Cummings has gone on to become a mainstay in the engine room for both club and country.

The former Scotland U20 captain has made 73 appearances to date in a Glasgow jersey, his setpiece intelligence and dynamism around the park making him a key asset in the Warriors setup.

Cummings was a key member of the Warriors squad

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that reached the Champions Cup quarter-finals in 2017 and 2019, whilst he was integral to Glasgow’s run to the 2019 PRO14 Final at Celtic Park.

His form in that run saw him earn a first senior Scotland cap against France in the summer of 2019, before being selected for the 2019 Rugby World Cup in Japan.

Since making his Scotland debut, he has been an ever-present in international matchday squads; the second-rower has been involved in 17 consecutive Tests across the Rugby World Cup, 2020 Six Nations and the 2020 Autumn Nations Cup. Glasgow Warriors head coach Wilson was delighted to have secured the signature of Cummings, a man identified by many as a potential contender for the 2021 British and Irish Lions tour of South Africa.

“Scott is a good athlete and someone with a fantastic rugby brain,” said Wilson.

“Having worked with him when I was with Scotland, I knew how talented an individual he is. From my experience at Scotland and Glasgow I’ve been ever more impressed with absolute hunger and desire Scott has to push himself to be the best rugby player he can be.”

Sam Thomson (2011) Congratulations to Sam on his latest signing with Toshiba Brave Lupus.

The following article appeared in GH Media.

“Last summer Scottish rugby player Sam Thomson took in the iconic North Coast 500 when he was back in his homeland – now he is getting ready to take on iconic rugby stars such as Kieran Read, Willie le Roux and Michael Hooper this weekend in Japan.

Sam, the 27-year-old second-row who played for Edinburgh Rugby in 2019/20, has never been afraid to move outside his comfort zone during his sporting career having experienced life in New Zealand, France and Australia already. And when the Japanese Top League gets underway in the coming days, he will start in the second-row for Toshiba Brave Lupus away to a Toyota Verblitz who have named double World Cup winning All Black Kieran Read at No. 8.

Sam will have some big names for company on his side in Saturday’s clash too though with Michael Leitch, the back-row who led Japan at their home World Cup in 2019, in the Brave Lupus starting XV.

“I can’t wait to get going out here in Japan,” Sam, who is originally from the village of Strathblane in Stirlingshire, said from his base in Fuchu which is a suburb of Tokyo.

“The Top League over here has attracted some really big names from across the world including former Scotland captain Greig Laidlaw [playing for NTT Communications Shining Arcs] and I am excited to be playing against guys like Kieran Read, Willie le Roux and Michael Hooper in our first match. As soon as I got the chance to come and experience playing in Japan it was something I jumped at because the World Cup in 2019 over here showed everyone that they are mad about their rugby and that they like to play a face paced game and being part of a league that is growing all the time was something that really appealed to me. In training already over the last few months I have learnt so much from someone like Michael Leitch who is just a true professional. He is a total legend out here and the way he carries himself on and off the pitch is exemplary and he is a great link between the Japanese players and the foreign guys in our squad.”

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OBITUARIES It is with great sadness that we report the deaths of the following Academicals and former staff members.

We send our deepest sympathy and condolences to their families at this sad time.

William (Bill) Frame (1954) We are very sad to report that William (Bill) Frame, 83, passed away in September 2020 after a long illness. Bill attended Kelvinside Academy from 1946–1954 and went on to become a successful Chartered Surveyor and Project Manager. Bill’s wonderful wife, Norma Frame, sadly preceded him in death in 2008 and should be heartily credited for being the backbone of his successful and happy life. He was a keen tennis player, golfer, fisherman and car enthusiast. Among these passions, his most ardent was perhaps Kelvinside Academy where his children also attended – Jason from 1986–1998 and Laura from 1999–2002 – followed soon after by his grandson, Daniel, who joined Junior School in 2009.

Bill was President of the Academical Club from 1994–95 and joined the Board (Kelvinside Academy War Memorial Trust) in 1995, becoming Chair in 1998, at which point he appointed John Broadfoot as Rector. Generally a private, quiet person, Bill’s unassuming ways often hid his progressive method of thought, and in 1998 he spearheaded Kelvinside Academy’s switch to coed. This foresight and keen instinct for knowing how to lead organisations was evident in other roles in his life, including his role as President of Western Lawn Tennis & Squash Club where he created one of Scotland’s first full-time coaching roles at club level. Equipped with an eye for detail and a legal mind, Bill’s counsel was often sought by his peers across a wide range of business and personal matters, and later in his career, Bill became a Chartered Arbitrator, drawing upon his years of experience to mediate professional disputes. Bill put much of his time, energy and resources into conserving the Kelvinside Academy.

He pulled in favours from contractors from his professional life to upgrade and future-proof the school buildings, and was instrumental in the sale of the school’s land at Auchenhowie to Rangers Football Club. He also arranged leasing what was then the Nursery building (now the Sixth Form Centre) from his predecessor on the board, John Mackenzie. Together with John Broadfoot, Bill launched a fund-raising appeal in 2001. This led to the creation of the Kennedy Mall, which was opened in January 2004 while he was still Chairman. After he stepped down as Chair in March 2004, the building

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programme and fundraising drive continued leading over subsequent years to the Gilchrist Theatre, the all-weather hockey pitch at Balgray, the David Boyd Memorial Pavilion at Balgray and, most recently, the Innovation School at Kirklee Road. When he stepped down as Chair of Governors in 2004 he then chaired the Minerva Educational Trust for the next two years, thus continuing his active involvement in the School’s development programme. Bill finally retired as a Kelvinside Academy Governor in 2012. He will be remembered as a generous, supportive and humorous friend and father, and a strongly business-minded and active member of the community, going out of his way to help others in any way he could.

Laura (2002) and Jason (1998) Frame

Dennis Leslie (1955) Dennis’s time at Kelvinside Academy was quite short, because he left to board at Merchiston Castle School.

Having retired from Rugby, Dennis took up running and with single “N” completed several Glasgow marathons and a London marathon.

Having completed his education and national service with the Black Watch, he returned to Glasgow, and joined the Kelvinside Academical Club, which was to be a huge part of his life going forward.

In the winter Curling called, with Kelvinside Academicals the Minerva Club.

Dennis was a born organiser and immersed himself in the rugby section. Over many years, he was to play scrum half for most of the four to five teams which were fielded on a Saturday but more importantly, took over the duties of match secretary. He would send out postcards to all the players who had been selected telling them when and where they were playing the following Saturday. It was an onerous job. Sandy Dalziel told me that if you called off on Friday night, you would never be chosen again.

Clearly you didn’t mess with Dennis.

On his return to Glasgow, Dennis joined the firm of Simpson and Lawrence, as buyer, based in St Andrew’s Square it was there that he met Denis McDonald (Single “N”) who was to become a lifelong friend.

After some time with Simpson and Lawrence, Dennis acquired the firm of Mitchel Outboard Services and relocated to the arches, under central station, on the Broomielaw. What a dull dark dank, place that was, but successful. He would, on occasion, phone me to ask about the weather, as there was no daylight in his office.

Dennis had been a member of East Renfrewshire Golf Club in his youth but now in the west end, he joined Douglas Park Golf Club and of course enjoyed outings with the Kelvinside Academical golf section.

Dennis was a very good Bridge payer and when I recall the various fours, they were nearly all Kelvinside Academicals.

On returning to the south side to live, Dennis joined Pollok Golf Club and in retirement it became a second home to him .

It was no surprise to me, when invited to a Tuesday game, to find that while the 20 / 30 of us were having a coffee, Dennis was finding out who was playing 10 holes and who was playing 18 holes and organising the tee off times.

Latterly, Dennis was the starter for Saturday medals a duty he shared with another. He got his reward when Pollok decided to host a ladies open day and he volunteered to be the greeter and starter.

All the ladies though he was so helpful, dapper and charming, and he was!

Peter Donald (1963) Past President

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Alastair Moodie (1948) Alastair was born in Largs on the 11th August 1930. He described it as the riviera of the west of Scotland, only a short sail to the “exotic” coastal towns of Rothsay, Millport, Brodick & Lamlash.

Although they moved to Carmyle soon after Dad was born, the sea was in his blood-he used every opportunity to get back out there. He used every water bound vehicle he could - canoes, dinghies, windsurfers, sail boats, ferries or large cruise ships - he even part invented his own - the Stowaway - a “foldable submarine”, many of his contemporaries at the time called it.

Alastair was an enthusiastic Academical, a former President of the Academical Club, Kelvinside Academy Board Member and was the founding member of the Curling Section. He remained interested in the School throughout his life and we had the pleasure of his company at a recent Past President’s lunch at Balgray. Alastair was highly respected by the KA community and will be sadly missed. Our thoughts are with his family at this very difficult time.

Alastair founded Vango (Scotland) Ltd, now AMG group with his brother Gary in 1966 and was its first Managing Director. He used an anagram of the company’s home, Govan, to rename its predecessor firm’s title James McIlwraith and Co, which he deemed too hard for non-Scots to get their tongue around. Vango has its roots in a Victorian company, Andrew Mitchell & Co, which developed fabrics for the shipping industry. In 1966 the Moodie family led Andrew Mitchell to the acquisition of tent maker James McIlwraith, based in the Govan area of Glasgow. Vango was bought by Black’s & Edgington, owners of Black’s of Greenock and Millets, in 1984.

Following a reorganisation, the Moodie family was able to reacquire Vango, Black’s of Greenock and Andrew Mitchell.

The company said “Alastair Moodie Snr was always driven to succeed, be innovative and build the Vango brand while delivering the very best service to his customers and partners. Alastair retired in 1996, but always remained interested in his ‘baby’, joining the Vango team for its 50th birthday celebrations on Loch Lomond in 2016”.

Current managing director Stephen Newlands said: “I highly respected Alastair Moodie on both a professional, and personal basis. He will be sorely missed. Although he had retired, he kept up to

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date with what was going on and was proud of his achievements.

Once Alastair retired from work, curling, golfing and sailing, he had more time for local activities and clubs. Painting was one of his passions and joined the Carmunnock Art club where he was an active member. We have lost count of the number of paintings he framed but are now donated to local care homes and many family members now have them hanging in their houses and flats. Dad was also an active member of Burnside in Bloom, and he helped keep the roads around Burnside and station full of bright flowers all year round and was an active member of the Macular Society, an eye problem Dad suffered from, he worked as a volunteer for them and gave talks locally to clubs.

Wife Linda, Claire, Steve (1978) and Alastair Jnr (1978) will miss him enormously – he was a true inspiration.

Guy Robertson (1979) It is with deep personal sadness that I must convey to the Kelvinside Academy Community the passing of Guy Robertson (1978) on 1 June 2020 following a tragic accident walking through Dawsholm Park on a sunny afternoon to visit his father. Guy joined Kelvinside Academy aged 9 in 1970 from Atholl Preparatory School in Milngavie (before the Accies got their hands on it). At the time Kelvinside Academy was under the leadership of the redoubtable Colin Mair and whilst Guy was never in the running for the Dux Prize he recalled in an article in January 2020 that his favourite teacher was Alan Mabon from whom he learned to enjoy the works of Arthur Miller which was the basis of a solid pass at Higher level (he claimed). Guy described his time at Kelvinside as extremely happy, leaving with not much in the way of academic achievements but with a great command of language and most importantly friendships through the golf team in particular and which formed the nucleus of many of his pals he still has to this day. People like Gordon Ronald, Hamish MacFarlane, Paul Davis and Graham Ross. Guy valued friendship more than almost anything.

After leaving Kelvinside in 1978, he initially turned his hand to surveying, however, after writing off his father’s Partner’s car he was graciously moved on and joined Grant Forrest Advertising. It was in marketing and advertising that Guy’s gift of the gab and grasp of how brands needed to be presented flourished. With the closure of Halston Advertising, where Guy was the Branch Manager, he was spurred into setting up his own as the Guy Robertson Partnership which over the following 25 years grew to be one of Scotland’s largest and most successful agencies with a multi-million pound turnover, large purpose built offices and a national and international list of clients.

During this time Guy was elected Chair of Independent Practitioners in Advertising and was instrumental in setting up the Scottish arm of the National Advertisers Benevolent Society who have described him as one of the Society’s greatest supporters.

Unfortunately, his business did not downsize quickly enough around the time of the Global Financial Crisis and he and his Partners eventually closed the doors in 2011. But not for Guy, the usual story of businesses failing and the owners running off with all their assets protected. Guy’s heart ruled his head and as he wrote at the time, he left the business with little to show financially for 25 years but with his head held high with support from clients, suppliers and staff ringing in his ears. He re-entered the market as Guy Robertson Advertising (GRA) as a sole practitioner bringing in services and skills when required for clients rather than building up another business that would need constantly supported and quietly over the past 9 years that business has grown and thrived not least because he was joined in business by his daughter Jemma, a Graduate of Aberdeen University

with a Degree in Business and Marketing. That fresh prospective together with a solid and longstanding relationship with Angela reignited in Guy a passion for business that had on occasions been understandably missing.

Over the past couple of years, I noticed a real change in him and on the occasion of his 59th birthday in February this year I spoke to him remarking that there was worrying evidence that he may well be leaving his troubled teenage years behind him and emerging from that man-child character that could be wonderful company and insightful but also incredibly infuriating and wonderfully politically incorrect. To myself and others, Guy was a one off. He could light up rooms flashing a pearly smile at the ladies and always first at the bar for the boys. He was generous with his time and money, made friends wherever he went and when his mask of self-assuredness and confidence occasionally slipped the sight of his vulnerability only endeared you to him more.

What has sustained our family more than anything in the days and now months since we lost Guy, has been the incredible support from people across Glasgow, Scotland and internationally with hundreds of letters, calls, emails, texts and messages of condolence but also with wonderful memories from his many friends in Glasgow Golf Club, across business and of course Ashton Lane.

None more so though than from his school friends like Gordon Ronald whom Guy would catch up with a couple of times a year from Gordon’s base in San Francisco.

Most recently, Guy had taken a role on the Board of the Minerva Trust looking to use his marketing experience to guide the School to even greater success and whilst he was never one to view himself as part of the Establishment, the Establishment embraced him because of who he was. Once again, I would like to extend my family’s gratitude to the School for allowing us to give Guy a rousing send-off attended by several hundred people on the 12 June and to the many within the extended Kelvinside Community who have reached out to offer their condolences.

Grant Robertson (1983) Minerva

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John Duff (Former Rector and Associate Academical) The Governors appointed John H Duff, MA (Cantab), MA (Edin) to succeed Mr Colin Mair in 1980. He was a bachelor aged 39 years who came originally from Selkirk.

John was educated at St Mary’s School, Melrose, and Edinburgh Academy. He obtained an Honours Degree in Economics at Cambridge University and an Honours Degree in History at Edinburgh University.

Before going to Cambridge, he taught for a year at Malsis School in Yorkshire and, between his Cambridge and Edinburgh degrees, at Allen Court School in Essex.

He also taught at Kelly College, Tavistock, Devon, where he was a House Master, in charge of athletics, crosscountry running, squash, adventure training and ski-ing.

An all-round sportsman, he was a Devon County squash player for eight years.

In 1969 he was commissioned in the T.A.V.R and has served in the Royal Marine Section of the Combined Cadet Force.

John is pictured below in 1980 instructing the art of javelin throwing and in 1998 when he retired.

Many Academicals will be aware of John’s love of the outdoors and travel. You will also remember the many trips to the “old cottage” and below is an extract from an article written by John in the 1996 Chronicle.

“The Cottage The cottage trips over weekends or in the holidays were again generally over-subscribed and about a hundred and fifty boys made the journey North over the year. As has become the pattern, the walking programmes were the most popular and a good selection of the high tops in the Cairngorm area were all included. In the early summer, glissading off the tops was the best for years, and for the first time ever, I managed to get the whole

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way down the White Lady and Coire Na Ciste ski runs (head first, of course), a feat not usually possible until the ski season has ended.

The criterion for enjoyment is a total abandonment of common-sense, and apologies and grateful thanks are due to all the mothers whose washing machines are subject to such gross abuse on return.

Unfortunately, the cottage trips are not really suitable for beginners at present, although I had made arrangements to use a proposed new development which would have been ideal for them. As things turned out, the snow came from a different direction this year, and the project never got off the ground, though I shall keep it in mind for the future” The new Wilderness Campus has 11 bedrooms, 4 public areas and a John Duff Memorial Room. We are also honoured to have received all of John’s travel albums.

John only had two countries left to visit in the world.

These albums will be available for our pupils to view when they are at the Lodge. John’s legacy will live on for many years to come as the pupils enjoy their time spent at the Wilderness Campus.

Julian Hankinson (Former Head of English and Deputy Rector) (1962-1980) “Hank” or “Mr H” to his pupils, “JDH” to his colleagues, Julian Hankinson came to Kelvinside Academy as a teacher of English, after taking his PGCE at Leicester University. He went on to become Head of English, Assistant Rector and then Deputy Rector, as well as producing memorable school plays, coaching rugby and cricket, and being Contingent Commander of the Combined Cadet Force (CCF).

Julian brought elements of his own upbringing into his work. Having read English Literature at Selwyn College, Cambridge, he demonstrated a love of words, books, poetry and drama with which he inspired in his pupils throughout his career, one recalling that he was “an amazing storyteller: books came to life”.

As a Boy Scout, Julian had appeared in the Gang Show (allegedly as an 18th century princess!), and his taste for drama led to his involving many boys in school productions. He also co-opted his then 3-yearold daughter, Julia, into appearing as the child at the centre of the conflict in The Caucasian Chalk Circle.

Julian loved sport and the outdoors; he had also spent his National Service years as a 2nd Lieutenant with the Royal Norfolk Regiment. It was no surprise, then, that he should take on roles such as coach of the 1st XI, and Contingent Commander of the CCF, leading adventurous training expeditions in Scotland, and camps in Germany. He brought the outdoors indoors, too, when he used his camping stove on Shrove Tuesdays to make pancakes in his classroom: “The highlight of our year!” according to one pupil.

Julian believed in education not only in the academic sense, but in and for life. Described as an inspirational, exceptional teacher – formidable but fair, “how teachers should be”, Julian is also remembered as a great character-building teacher, “a fantastic role model for humility, leadership and kindness”. One school cricketer remembers: “He came back to look

after the 1st XI after a few years away, not because he wanted to but because there was no-one else and we needed him. That’s the man he was.”

As in his professional life, so in his personal life: Julian was a much loved and admired husband, father, grandfather and great-grandfather. He met Jeannette in 1964; they married in 1966. Their four children went on to give them 15 grandchildren and 12 greatgrandchildren. Jeannette’s backing and support were unconditional elements of his life, and it was said that when they met, they began a conversation that never ended. Julian took his family on camping holidays both at home and abroad, gave them confidence and interest in the world, expanded their language skills and told them wonderful stories.

Julia describes her father as “always having a hanky, a plaster, and some polo-mints in his pocket”. That sounds like a teacher!

Julian went on from Kelvinside to Queen Victoria School, Dunblane, as Headmaster, filling that role until his retirement in 1994. Even as a Headmaster he found time to produce plays and teach English.

It was one of his greatest sources of pleasure to see previously under-attaining students succeed in the subject he loved so much.

In retirement – on Bute, where Jeannette had been brought up – Julian was no less busy, taking on many roles locally, becoming a lay preacher on the island and beyond, writing poetry and researching his family tree.

Julian died at the age of 84 on 26th April 2020, having tested negative for Covid19. Julia and Jeannette were able to visit and support him in his final weeks and he was buried on a beautiful Spring day, 1st May, in the family plot at Cnoc na Rath cemetery. A memorial service will be held when conditions allow.

Wendy Bellars, February 2021

Julian Hankinson, Front Row 3rd from right Minerva

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Norman Grassie (former Governor) Prof. Norman Grassie passed away on 2 March 2020. Norman had been a Governor of KA for twenty years from 1965. His son, Dr Donald Grassie (1974), has provided the following information.

Norman had been orphaned by the age of 10, but after several moves in the North of Scotland, settled in Stornoway, where he became the first incomer Dux at the Nicolson Institute. He returned to his home town of Aberdeen to complete his BSc and Ph.D. in Chemistry. He remained eternally grateful for all who had seen his potential and had supported his development. He believed that his role as Governor at KA provided an opportunity to repay some of that support, and he developed a close working relationship with Colin Mair, the then Rector.

Norman was a Chemistry Professor at Glasgow University for much of his career, specialising in Polymer Degradation and Stabilisation. He was internationally renowned, and made significant research contributions from introducing polymers to Spitfire canopies during the war, to developing flame-resistant shields to solve re-entry problems of space vehicles. Research was his passion, and he cherished the opportunity to work with Sixth Year KA students at the University during Mr. Fleming’s time as Head of Chemistry.

Donald Grassie (1974)

Sunday 5 September 2021 KA BBQ at Balgray Friday 17 September 2021 Class of 1980 Reunion Friday 5 November 2021 Business Breakfast Thursday 11 November 2021 London Section Annual Dinner Saturday 20 November 2021 KA Soiree in Grosvenor Hotel

Dates for your Diary Over the coming months we plan to add events to the Calendar. Please also note that these will be subject to Government Guidelines. If you would like any additional details on any of the following, please contact Development Manager, Elaine Solman.

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Friday 14 January 2022 Burns Supper Friday 25 March 2022 Academical Club Annual Dinner Saturday 25 June 2022 Summer Ball

Craigholme

Former Pupils Club

Some time has now passed since we had our Coffee morning in November 2019 and our plans to re-establish the Former Pupil Club was put on hold when COVID19 struck.

Unfortunately, the Annual Dinner that was due to be held in March 2020 and 2021 had to be cancelled and this has now been rescheduled for Friday 25 March 2022. We look forward to seeing you at this historical

event, as Craigholme School and Kelvinside Academy come together for the first time.

As we enter the next stage of your lifelong relationship with Craigholme School and Kelvinside Academy, we are planning to reinvigorate the Former Pupil activity and, once restrictions are lifted, there will be a number of events that will give us the opportunity to meet and Network.

Craigholme Committee

Craigholme News

We are delighted to advise you that we have now formed a Committee with 5 former pupils and we will look at ways to rejuvenate the Club.

If you have friends that are not receiving the Minerva Magazine and would like to be added to the database, please ask them to contact elaine.solman@kelvinside.org.

We are always delighted to receive former pupil updates that we can include in the Minerva Magazine. The Magazine is printed twice per annum and there will be a Craigholme Former Pupil Section. Please note this edition of Minerva covers from March 2020 - January 2021 and the next edition will be from January – July 2021.

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Coffee Morning November 2019

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We were delighted to welcome over 150 Craigholme Former Pupils back to the School in November 2019. It was a great success and a fantastic opportunity for everyone to see the School.

News The News Section will be a regular feature and for our first one here is an article that appeared in the Glasgow Herald on former pupil, Krysty WilsonCairns.

From running errands for Taggart cast to Hollywood red carpet.

Her first foray into the world of film and television saw her run errands for the cast and crew on Taggart.

Almost two decades later, Scottish screenwriter Krysty Wilson-Cairns, 32, has been nominated for an Oscar for her work on First World War epic 1917.

A graduate of the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland (RCS), she is up for the Writing (Original Screenplay) award after co-writing the war epic alongside the film’s director Sam Mendes.

After winning two Golden Globe Awards for Best Director and Best Motion Picture – Drama, 1917 has been nominated in ten categories at this year’s Oscars, including Best Picture, Cinematography, Directing, Music (Original Score) and Production Design.

The film follows two British soldiers in the First World War as they race against time to deliver a message to warn of a deadly attack, and stars Colin Firth, Benedict Cumberbatch and the writer’s fellow Scot, Richard Madden.

Miss Wilson-Cairns from Glasgow, where some of the film was shot, has also been nominated for Original Screenplay at the Writers Guild Awards and 1917 is up for nine BAFTAs including Best Film.

Steven Spielberg, the film’s executive producer, has described her work as ‘extraordinary’.

Professor Jeffrey Sharkey, Principal of the RCS said: ‘We are absolutely thrilled for Krysty

and congratulate her warmly on her Oscar nomination.

‘By example she shows there’s a path from Glasgow to Hollywood for talented storytellers with real authenticity and great humanity. Krysty is such an inspiration to our students here and to all young people in Scotland with bold dreams.’

Professor Sharkey added ‘She’s also a great role model. We’re incredibly proud of her and wish her every success for the glittering occasion.’

Miss Wilson-Cairns attended private school, Craigholme in Glasgow’s south side, which was only made possible by her grandparents spending every spare penny they had to help pay the school fees.

Talking of her childhood earlier this month, she said: I sound working-class, but because I went to a private school and because my grandparents and parents worked so hard, I’m incredibly privileged.

At the age of 14, she performed work experience on detective drama Taggart after the crew started using her father’s garage in Govan to park their vehicles. She later went on to work as a TV runner when she was 16 years old.

Following her graduation from the RCS she became a writer for the British-US gothic horror series Penny Dreadful, produced by James Bond director Mendes.

Discussing the impact of studying at the RCS, she once said: ‘Without it, and the excellent lecturers who work there, I would not be where I am.’

By John Paul Breslin.

Sam Mendes and Krysty Wilson Cairns Minerva

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DATA PROTECTION In May 2018 there were changes to the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and we continue to look at our policies and the ways in which we communicate with the Kelvinside family. Over the years we have worked hard to ensure that we keep your personal information secure and we will never share it with a third party without your express permission.

We will continue to send you Minerva and to tell you about forthcoming events, dinners or reunions, and to send you details of our development plans and sponsorship opportunities. Should you wish to discontinue receiving this information please contact Development Manager, Elaine Solman (elaine. solman@kelvinside.org)

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