2017 Awards

VALEDICTORY ADDRESS

Jeremy Hansen

Good evening parents, staff, students and special guests. Tonight is a time when we reflect on the year that has been, celebrate the achievements of students in all facets of the College and kindle the fire of the Trinity Spirit that each of us holds dear.

This year can be characterised by the principle of innovation. Every Pillar in 2018 witnessed monumental success, with innovation being the guiding force that drove both students and staff alike to push the boundaries and create something new within Trinity College.

In the Faith Pillar, innovation was present with Unfair Day (Edmund Rice Day) being moulded into a full day event, in which the College was able to acknowledge and embrace the Edmund Rice tradition that acts as the scaffolding upon which our College is built. Furthermore, Religious Education at the College has experienced positive changes throughout this year and we encourage the continued growth and refinement of this department, to ensure that Edmund Rice’s vision for Catholic education is upheld.

Innovation was apparent in the Academic Pillar through the growth of co-curricular activities, such as debating, as well as the introduction of the Co-curricular Carousel for Year 7 students, which sought to enlighten the younger students to the wonderful academic pursuits that can be explored. In addition to this, innovation was present with the creation and support of new ATAR courses at the College, such as Aviation and Dance ATAR, which have allowed students to grasp a wider range of skills and gain clarity in their search for vocation.

The Cultural Pillar experienced innovation through the College Musical, The Pirates of Penzance, which was the first musical to take place at the College since 1995. The musical was a remarkable success, with it winning the Dominican Sisters Award for Best Musical in the Catholic Performing Arts Festival. Trinity students also won eight other shields across the Performing Arts Festival, resulting in the College winning the Zenith Clock for the 15th year in a row. This success would not have been possible without the hard work from all members of Trinity’s Performing Arts, with a huge thank you going to Dr Robert Braham, Ms Lisa Laurino and Mrs Paula Nicoletto.

Even in the Sport Pillar innovation was present, with a variety of changes being made that have further strengthened the atmosphere and culture around sport at Trinity. Senior School students, especially those in first teams, started playing a more active role in Middle School sport, with many participating in Middle School training and seeking to build a rapport with the younger athletes. The peak of innovation in the Sport Pillar, however, is exemplified in the vision of Athletics Captain for 2018, Thomas Throssell (12.4), who sought to revolutionise Trinity Athletics. With a passion, he was able to inspire a full College to embrace athletics and the staff, in turn, were able to allow this passion to take form through their hard work and determination. This inspiring leadership and tremendous growth in athletics is truly a fantastic success of which the entire College should be proud.

Head Prefect Jeremey Hansen and Deputy Prefect Asher Fatin

It is through innovation across all Four Pillars that the Trinity Spirit has continued to flourish in the hearts and minds of every person involved. This innovation has and will continue to reap enormous benefits for the College, and for that, every member of Trinity should be proud of their efforts this year.

Innovation, however, does not come without hard work and perseverance, which has been present in all communities that work within the College and tonight I wish to acknowledge and thank them for their service. Firstly, to all the staff, from teachers to coaches, I would like to thank you for your continued commitment to both this school and its students. The Trinity Spirit that burns in every student would not exist without the holistic education that you all provide. Not only are you dedicated to ensuring every student can be as faithful, smart, fit and musically talented as they can possibly be, but you all also seek to ensure that we can be pure, honest men. A specific thank goes to Mr Clint Testa, who in his past two years has been a fantastic head of year for the Class of 2018, guiding all of us to be the best possible men that we could be.

I also acknowledge Mr Ivan Banks and Mr Shaun Kenny, who have served as Headmasters over the course of the year. Both men exemplified the TC Spirit in their actions and deserve a considerable amount of recognition. Mr Banks, who now holds the title of longest serving Headmaster at this College, served Trinity with pride and will always hold a special place in the hearts of many here tonight. Mr Kenny has done a remarkable job to step in for this semester and while he has done a tremendous amount of work behind the scenes, there is one action I’d specifically like to thank him for on behalf of the boys standing behind me. Mr Kenny, throughout the semester, has consistently given up his recess and lunch breaks to interact with the Year 12 boys and establish a genuine relationship with us all and for that, we thank you immensely.

I thank the parents and guardians of all students. Your dedication to the school is truly inspiring, with you all sacrificing significant amount of your time and energy to ensure that we as students get the most rewarding opportunities we can. By listening to other parents from other schools, one can quickly realise that the commitment of the Trinity College parents to this school is unmatched by others and for that we are all extremely grateful. I also extend an enormous thank you to Deputy Head Prefect, Asher Fatin (12.1) and the Prefect body for 2018. As a Prefect group, we sought to defy the common expectations for College Prefects, by ensuring that we went above and beyond in everything we did. The idea of leaving a legacy and the principle of innovation inspired us to invest our entire potential into shaping the College as its leaders and I can now proudly say that we couldn’t have done anymore. Through the co-curricular carousel, the Run for Refugees the Get on the Team campaign and many other initiatives, we hope that we have demonstrated strong, positive leadership and have changed this College for the better.

To the future leaders of Trinity, I hope that you can continue to be guided by the principle of innovation and seek to extend the work already done by previous leaders. Steve Jobs once said that “innovation distinguishes between a leader and a follower” and I encourage all of you, staff and students alike, to strive to be leaders and achieve innovation in your respective field. If you want to leave a legacy at this College and reach your potential, you must seize every possibility and while it may seem challenging at the time, be comforted in knowing that you will be truly instilling the TC Spirit amongst all people.

Now tonight I’ve mentioned this TC Spirit frequently and for a visual representation I’d like the audience to view the proud men standing on stage. These men, the Class of 2018 and my brothers, have fought hard to embody the Trinity College spirit over both the course of this year and their time at Trinity and I hope you will all be able to agree that they represent it.

We’ve had a long journey together boys, a journey that has seen vast achievements, camaraderie and the formation of bonds that will last a lifetime. As tiny Year 7s anxiously walking through the gates in 2013 to find the ‘ginormous’ Mr Andrew Osnain telling us about this scary Trinity College, we never could’ve imagined the enriching experiences that would derive from our time here. Yet here we stand, some of us having spent nine years at this school, having embraced the TC Spirit and left our mark on the College as the Cohort of 2018. It has been an honour to lead you boys as your Head Prefect and I hope that I have served you to the best of my ability.

Let it be known that 2018 was the year of change. The year where the College tried something different. The year where new ideas reinvigorated old tradition. And most importantly, the year of innovation.

Thank you all very much and God bless.

Jeremy Hansen (12.4)

Head Prefect 2018