Week 3, Winter Term 2020
Dear Boarding Families
I write to you on a really strong day for boarding at Scotch. At assembly this morning we had a wonderful presentation by our Captain of Residential Life, Patrick Eastough on “What it means to be a boarder”. Patrick spoke about shared values, lasting relationships, broad experiences and a strong identity – all of the things we love about Scotch boarding. Patrick’s speech also led really well into our celebration of our Bibbulmun Track End-to-Enders. Patrick introduced Tom Graham and James Rex to the stage to speak about the 5 years on the track for this graduating cohort and it was great to hear them share some stories with the rest of the Senior School about how important the Bibbulmun Track has been to their Scotch experience. The boys showed a great video made by Cooper Young. It was interesting to hear from the Headmaster during his address to the school and he mentioned that when he was asked in his initial interview for the job about something that struck him that made Scotch special, Dr O’Connell mentioned the Bibbulmun Track experience as a defining cultural experience at Scotch. Congratulations to the boys who completed the track from Kalamunda to Albany: Bourke Carrington, Digby Cleland, Zedd Garbellini, Liam Gollan, Hamish Gooch, Tom Graham, Will Graham, Toby Humphries, Angus Johnston, Tom Keamy, Lachie Raffan, James Rex, Beau Staines, Sam Meecham and a special mention to Tom Delroy, who didn’t receive his Certificate, as he started in Year 9 walking with the group till the end. CONGRATULATIONS!!
I ask all parents reading this to encourage their boys to walk the track and commit to this very special element of Scotch boarding.
We will Rock You – The Musical
Another fantastic element of the Assembly today was the promotion of the Drama production We Will Rock You and, again, boarders featured prominently. Patrick Eastough, as Captain of Drama introduced the group and Arad Rad also featured as the star of the show. Arad performed one of the songs from the production in front of the whole assembly. It really was a special moment. The Musical is being performed from 26 – 29 August in the Dickinson Centre and tickets are available through Trybooking at https://www.scotch.wa.edu.au/view/events
Middle School Academic Excellence Certificates
Later in the day I was lucky enough to attend the Middle School Assembly and see the presentation of Academic Excellence certificates. I wanted to take some photos for parents but was unfortunately too far out the back to get any. However, it was lovely to see some parents make the trip to Perth to help celebrate the boys’ achievements. A special congratulation to Xavier Risinger, Lachlan Gooding, Rory Purser, and Oliver Wandel for their remarkable efforts.
NAIDOC Week Assembly
Last week we celebrated NAIDOC week as a College and it gave us a good chance to celebrate our Indigenous Students as well, many of whom stepped up to help lead our various events throughout the week, whether it be sand murals down in front of the Boarding House or kangaroo and emu sausages at lunch time. We also had a wonderful NAIDOC Assembly last week and saw a very special interview with our own Daniel O’Meara about life in Swanbourne compared to life in Derby. Daniel gave some great insights and helped people to understand some of the opportunities and challenges of “walking in two worlds”. The bravery and resilience of our boys is quite inspiring.
Boarding SPIRIT Award
This week coming up we celebrate our Boarding SPIRIT awards in what will be a very special ceremony on Wednesday night. We also get to hear from our Year 11 boys who have nominated to be our Captain of Boarding for 2021. It is sure to be another special week in Residential Life.
I wish you all a restful and enjoyable mid-term break next weekend. And in the week afterwards I hope to be able to see many of you at our Headmaster’s Tour of the Wheatbelt in Northam, Merredin and Dalwallinu, with some stops along the way. If you want to connect whilst we are on the road, please RSVP to ResidentialLife.admin@scotch.wa.edu.au
All the best
Jordan
Wheatbelt Tour 2020
Dr Alec O’Connell and Jordan Owenell will be touring the Wheatbelt region at the end of August. They will be holding functions for current, past and prospective families within our School community and promoting Residential Life at Scotch.
31st August – Northam
Temperance Bar
122 Fitzgerald Street, Northam
6:00pm – 9:00pm
1st September – Merredin
Wild Poppy Cafe
88 Barrack Street, Merredin
7:00pm – 9:00pm
2nd September – Dalwallinu
Dalwallinu Hotel
19 Johnston Street, Dalwallinu
7:00pm – 9:00pm
If you are in the area and would like to catch up, please RSVP to ResidentialLife.Admin@scotch.wa.edu.au and we look forward to seeing you then.
REACH – Voyage – Holiday Travel Arrangements
We have a new process in Reach to add Holiday Travel arrangements for boys that travel by plane, bus or train.
When in Manage Leave, and you are wanting to add a New Leave Request do the following:
- Add your son’s name from the drop down list under Boarder
- Add the date and time your son is leaving Scotch Boarding
- Under Leaving Transport Details, go to the bottom of the drop down list to VOYAGE TRANSPORT TYPES and choose how your son will be travelling. This is to be used instead of the Standard Transport Types.
- The second picture shows you the fields that need to be filled in for eg: if travelling by plane, or by Bus (see the last picture)
- Always choose HOLIDAY TRAVEL ARRANGEMENTS for Mid Term Breaks and Start and End of Term.
If your son is travelling on more than one flight or train/bus, then you can add another leg of his journey, by clicking on Add Leg + at the bottom of the drop down list.
TRANSWA – September/October School Holidays Bus and Train services flyer
If you use the train or bus services of TRANSWA, there is an attachment you may be interested in below.
Photograph Competition
It’s not too late to enter the 2020 Boarding Photography Competition. Send your amazing photographs to Sean.Mecham@scotch.wa.edu.au by Tuesday 25th August.