RHHS Excellence Assembly 2013

Missing Link 2013 EXCELLENCE ASSEMBLY EDITION

PRINCIPAL’S EXCELLENCE ASSEMBLY ADDRESS Your belief in our school is critical to the success we enjoy both as one of the best schools in western Sydney and, after our 50th anniversary in 2012, as one of the best known. Our key PERSIST value for 2012 was success and we had lots of it as you will see today.

We enjoyed visits from the Minister for Education, the US Consul, the European High Commissioner and delegations from Dubai, China and other Australian states. We presented to conferences and then hosted large numbers of professional visitors and our students represented us in major business forums and in the community. It seemed like we were everywhere and our success was being acknowledged in the wider community. Many times we were asked how a “normal” school with no additional National Partnership funding could achieve so much. And, perhaps the best compliment of the year came from another high school principal who said we had probably the best tone of any school she has visited in western Sydney. That is a fantastic piece of feedback.

Rooty Hill High School Learning, Leadership & Achievement North Parade, Rooty Hill NSW 2766 P.O. Box 70, Rooty Hill NSW 2766 Phone: 02 9625 8104 Fax: 02 9625 4208

Find us on: Web: www.rootyhill-h.schools.nsw.edu.au Facebook: www.facebook.com/rootyhillhs RHHS Alumni Network: www.linkedin.com (GROUP: Rooty Hill High School)

What was our recipe for success?

When we wrote our school plan for 2012 – 2014 we had an overall purpose – to lift expectations, capacity and achievements for students, staff, parents and the community. I want to take just a few moments to highlight how we lifted each of these in 2012 and how, by the end of our 50th anniversary year we took for granted how positive, strong and successful our culture was.

Expectations: Underpinning our success as a school in 2012 was a growing belief that we can do well and achieve – as individuals and as a school.

The demand for places in the school continued to grow as did our retention through to the senior years. Even though the New School Leaving Age has only been in place since 2010, almost all our students now expect to complete Year 12 and many more are successfully seeking university placement. These are the facts and figures but not the whole story. In 2012 we saw so many great stories – one I wish to share is about two Year 12 students – David Hanshaw and Raheem Khan. continued on page 2

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After very successful work placements for VET, both boys were interviewed for traineeships through the Motor Traders Association with Mercedes Benz Trucks.

They also completed, along with 11 other students from this school a preapprenticeship course run by the MTA at the school after the HSC. Both of these fine young men are now employed in a great job with a great future. They hoped and expected to do as well as they could and the result was an excellent opportunity for employment and travel. They showed what students at this school can do when they expect to do their best.

Capacity: One of the most powerful strategies any organisation can adopt is to build the capacity of its people, its programs and its culture. In 2012, the school joined the Empowered Local Schools National Partnership to focus on improving its school planning and capacity to deliver more innovative programs in the school and community.

This was done with the strong support of parents and the community. We received $40000 funding for a middle years program with the other Learning Neighbourhood schools that will help us have capacity to deliver the Australian Curriculum. We received over $30000 to establish the Confucius Classroom and we now have Mandarin programs for students in Year 7 and an outreach program to Year 6 for 2013. Perhaps most exciting is our first elective Mandarin class and over 50 students in Year 8 who will do a special 50 hour language and culture course this year.

This program will make a huge difference to the ability of our students to confidently engage with Asia as tourists and business people in the future. And we also received $20000 to support the senior school through our professional learning team program.

The teachers worked in cross faculty teams to develop capacity in curriculum, assessment, vocational education, professional standards, digital learning and innovative classroom strategies.

The result is a much more effective and innovative approach to building the quality of our work. We are about learning at this school – all day, every day and our capacity is getting better all the time.

Achievements: It is finally in our achievements that we will be measured and judged. How well did we do in 2012? How well did we do at what we did? How do we know? Our annual school report will show how well we did 2

in each subject and how well our students did in external examinations.

Our overall results in external examinations showed steady improvement in the junior school and our Year 12 students showed strong growth compared to their Year 10 results. Attendance improved; poor student behaviour declined significantly; participation increased; retention from the start of Year 11 to the end of Year 12 improved. Individual students achieved personal best results including some who were recognised with university offers for more rigorous academic study, scholarships and special opportunities. The citations for the Years 10, 11 and 12 duxes show just how exceptional these young women are and I make a special note of the outstanding performances of Carmen Lee, Madison Nixon and Ashleigh Ross all of whom have been recognised beyond the school for their talents and achievements.

We will hear more today as 130 students accept individual awards for academic success, success in sport, success in school and community service and success in the arts.

us to work together? Success is never an accident; it requires three things – creativity that leads to innovation, persistence and constant questioning and inquiry.

As I said in 2012, the school still faces many challenges including uncertainty of funding, ability to be innovative in our digital learning, creating a 21st century curriculum and managing a rapidly changing community as the local Council makes Rooty Hill a high density urban hub. However, as principal never have I been more confident that our students, our wonderful families, our partner primary schools, our staff and the community are “up for the challenge” and are ready to think and act “outside the box” to continue to build on the 50 years of tradition that resulted in the success of 2012.

Congratulations to all our award winners and all those whose work and persistence brought them here today.

Christine Cawsey 8 February 2013

However, this is the twenty first century and, as the century unfolds it is becoming more apparent that innovative and successful teams are going to be the key to a successful community, school, class and program.

I would like to thank our teachers who work in both faculty and cross faculty teams all the time for the benefit of students. I would like to thank our School Council and P&C, both of which have become successful teams. And I would like to thank our student teams – in sport, in school service, in SALSA, in social justice, in debating, in mock trial, in slam poetry, in the performing arts, in volunteering, in the the student ambassador program and, of course the SRC and student leaders – both 2012 and 2013.

By focusing in 2012 and, again for 2013, in lifting the expectations and capacity of our teams the school has demonstrated that through cooperation Above: Chifley School Service Winners (not competition), working together (not Below: Our Year 7-11 Duxes working alone), having a core set of shared (not individual) school values and a common (not varied) core purpose, the school can not only achieve success but sustain it. To sustain success in 2013 we will focus on the core school value of innovation and creativity and ask ourselves each day – is there a better, smarter way for

2012 EXCELLENCE ASSEMBLY MAJOR AWARD WINNERS SPECIAL ACHIEVEMENT AWARDS LEADERSHIP FOR LEARNING AWARD ! Thelma Vuki BETTY ANDERSEN MEMORIAL PRACTICAL SCIENCE AWARD

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Taif Al-Kahili

SCARF AWARD FOR SCHOOL SERVICE

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Courtney Vanderkolk

CALTEX BEST ALL – ROUNDER

Stephanie Valvis AUSTRALIAN DEFENCE FORCES LONG TAN LEADERSHIP & TEAMWORK AWARD

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Year 10 – Julie Massaquoi Year 11 – Missy Tapaitau Year 12 – Michelle Manodon

CHIFLEY SCHOOL SERVICE AWARD

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Year 7 Year 8 Year 9 Year 10 Year 11 Year 12

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Harsha Kumar Jack Clifton Beau Hardy Reece Morris Charity Dave Gemma Barbagallo Imraan Daniels

DEPUTY PRINCIPAL’S MOST IMPROVED STUDENT AWARD

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Year 7 Year 8 Year 9 Year 10 Year 11 Year 12

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Anna Barbaro Toni Kitcheman Blake Cannon Shontell Neighbour Bianca Bailey David Hanshaw

JAN VAN DOORN PERSONAL BEST AWARD

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Year 7 Year 8 Year 9 Year 10 Year 11 Year 12

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Matthew Varley Ari Ngati Chloe Chua Kyle Wilson Aakell Naera Luke Linsdell

PARAMOUNT TROPHIES REPRESENTATIVE TEAM OF THE YEAR !

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Boys in Harmony Jim Ahofono Leon Fuimaono, Tyrae-Shai Tautaiolefue, Chris Togaga’e & Urima Jamaine Toomalatai

SPORTS CHAMPION OF THE YEAR

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Junior Boy – Ryan Fitzgerald Junior Girl – Sparrow McCarthy Senior Boy – Sebastian Viemero Senior Girl – Charlotte Laurenson

STUDENT OF THE YEAR

Ryan Romero PIERRE DE COUBERTIN AWARD

Ashley Menolotto HSC BAND 6 RESULTS

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Dong Wok Hong - Extension 2 Mathematics Jake Jarvis! - General Mathematics

DUX YEAR 7 – 11

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Year 7 ! Year 8 Year 9 ! Year 10 Year 11

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Lisa Vu Emma Jurd Clare Da Silva Ashlea Ross Madison Nixon

DUX OF THE SCHOOL

Carmen Lee

DUX OF THE SCHOOL 2012 ADDRESS - CARMEN LEE I found Year 12 to be a competitive, challenging and a self-exploring experience. It was extremely stressful but I learnt to cope with the high demands of assessment tasks and examinations. The HSC isn’t a test to see whether you can win or lose. It is about the hard work and dedication that you put yourself through. The countless nights reading over your essays, giving in drafts, revising and organising a study timetable or a group after school.

It wasn’t easy but I’ve done what I had to to get the results I needed. It showed me that I had the courage to manage these situations. A great friend once told me that ‘Practice makes perfect’ and indeed the practice did pay off. To the current year 12’s of 2013, I believe that you can achieve your true potential if you put yourself through these obstacles.

I would like to thank our 2012 year group and my friends for making last year such a fun year. We endured so much yet we’ve come this far and I would like to wish everyone the best of luck for the future. I would like to thank Ms Munzie and Ms Gatt for the wonderful support and guidance they had given to everyone last year because without their help we wouldn’t have come this far. I would like to thank

Ms Cawsey for your support and sharing your wisdom and knowledge towards our year group.

I thank all my teachers for giving me the opportunity to have a good future, allowing me to have the strength, diligence and ability to reach my goal a n d f u t u r e p r o s p e c t s . Yo u r encouragement and pushing me to my limits finally paid off. I would like to give a special thank you to Ms Pollard for putting up with all my essays during the upcoming weeks of the HSC and actually reading all my essays. Ms Haigh and Ms Wilkins for being there for me during my mental breakdowns and for supporting me all the way. Ms Aroney for staying back after classes showing me how Math’s is really done and knowing that I can succeed anywhere as long as I have Math’s as my sidekick. Ms Andrews for believing that I can reach my true potential and being there for me not only as a teacher but as a friend. Also Mr Lawlor for making our Biology lessons interesting and worthwhile because without you I wouldn’t have known what course I would have chosen for University.

These people are inspirational because they made me become the better person I am today. I’m more proud of them than they are of me.

Dux Carmen Lee presented her awards by Hon. Richard Amery

Former DP, Jan VanDoorn presents the Personal Best wards

Aust Defence Forces Long Tan Leadership & Teamwork Award Winners 3

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