Principal’s Update

May 9, 2024  

Rain, Rain and More Rain

What a few weeks we have seen! The rain seems to have been unrelenting. The deluge from a few weeks ago caused the school grounds to be drenched, and the level of saturation has continued to increase.

Regrettably, as a result, as well as shortening the Year 9 camp, we have had to cancel two important school events – the Mother’s Day Breakfast and the Great Fete.

Sadly, postponing the fete is not an option. The booking of providers requires a considerable notice period, as does the use of the IGC facility which is about to be set up for School Production, and then for exams, and so on. Illawarra Grammar is a busy school and, consequently, its calendar is tight. Nonetheless, Ms Clayton and I are looking at ways that our youngest students can perform their practised routines for a suitable audience.

Huge thanks are extended to our P and F and our other volunteers who had contributed so generously to both the Mother’s Day Breakfast and the Great Fete. It is sad that their work was thwarted by the weather! Nonetheless, I remain grateful for their efforts.

I will be discussing this dilemma with senior staff to determine ways we can avoid cancellation in future years.

On a more positive note, the new gardens in the Junior School are really enjoying the rain! And the Mother’s Day Stall was a wonderful success. Thank you, again, to all the parents involved in making this a wonderful experience for our children and a moment of great relief for our fathers!

Student Leadership and uniform update

As I outlined to the students in Assembly this week, over the next few weeks, Mr Hackett will be talking with some Senior School year groups, especially Years 9 and 10, about ways to maximise their leadership opportunities. As mentioned in the Senior School News article, Year 10 will soon be moving their lockers to the Senior Square and changing into the senior uniform in Term IV as the next stage of their leadership journey.

The current students in Year 9 will change into the senior uniform from Term I, 2025, when they move into Year 10.

New Bus Routes

Thank you to all the families who have sent through such encouraging feedback about our new bus routes. This feedback, along with participation rates, are helping us determine our new comprehensive bus routes for 2025.

Happy Mother’s Day

My best wishes are extended to all our mothers and grandmothers. I hope you have a wonderful day on Sunday.