It was a privilege to welcome Mr Peter Malinauskas MP, Leader of the Opposition to the School on Thursday.
St Peter’s College alumni have made significant contributions to Australian politics, with ten old scholars serving as state premiers in South Australia and New South Wales. Mr Malinauskas reflected on this as he addressed our Senior School Muster and encouraged students to be engaged and participate in a way that is consistent with the breadth of opportunities offered at St Peter’s College. He emphasised that such actions will not only make meaningful contributions to society for future generations, but will consequently lead to greater personal fulfillment. Mr Malinauskas was very generous with his time, spending the lunch break debating key issues with members of our Politics Society and encouraging the students to pursue their interest in politics long term.
I commend the courage and initiative of Year 8 student Evan Nguyen. Less than one month after completing his own chemotherapy treatment, Evan set about raising funds for the Childhood Cancer Association to ensure other children and their families who journey with cancer can also access the wonderful care he received. At Thursday’s Muster Evan presented Ms Louise Rodgers, a representative of the Childhood Cancer Association, a cheque for $3,325.90 and thanked the Senior School for their support of his fundraising initiative. We, collectively thank you, Evan; you are a shining example to us all of what it means to serve others in our community and the rousing applause you received from your peers is testament to the respect they have for you and your incredible endeavours.
Our Reception to Year 2 students embraced the House spirit at the Junior Primary Sports Day last Friday and I thoroughly enjoyed watching all boys actively participate across many events. The Year 3 Strings Concert last Wednesday evening was a wonderful celebration of our young musicians’ learning. Students came together to perform in front of their family and friends and showcase their hard work throughout the year.
We welcomed our Year 6 students home from Kangaroo Island last Friday brimming with enthusiasm to recount stories of their adventures. It has been wonderful to see students right across the Junior School embracing our Outdoor Education Program with such zest. I am delighted to see this enthusiasm sustained across our Junior School service initiatives, specifically the Light Up Vanuatu campaign. Over the past three terms students have raised funds, by running a half marathon, to purchase 350 solar kits that they have now constructed. The kits will be sent to children in Vanuatu as part of an initiative to provide children access to safe and reliable lighting after dusk.
On Thursday our Table Tennis team of Peter Zhang (Year 8), Yimo Liu (Year 8), Glen Li (Year 7) and Alaric Zhang (Year 8) won the Statewide Schools Table Tennis Championships (8/9 mixed) overcoming strong competition from Glenunga High and Brighton High. Congratulations boys on a very successful Table Tennis season.
Congratulations also to the following students, who through their performances at the VIVA SA All Schools Games, have qualified for the 2022 National Track and Field Championships; Jonathan Harris (Under 18 1500m and 800m), Joshua Moro (U16 Long Jump, 400m and 200m), Ethan Allison (U16 Triple Jump), Araiz Ghuman (U14 100m), Jack Blackburn (U20 100m), Lawson Jones (U16 Pole Vault) and James Tolis (U14 400m).
In the Australian Intermediate Mathematics Olympiad, a 4-hour contest designed to stretch talented Years 7 to 10 students in mathematics, the following students performed exceptionally well achieving a High Distinction (top 5%): Darren Nguyen (Year 10) and Distinction (top 20%): Yitong (Jonny) Liu (Year 9) and Gunin Singhal (Year 10). Exceptional results were also achieved in the Australian Mathematics Competition with the following students receiving the national prize for their respective year levels; William Carrigan (Year 8), Yitong (Jonny) Liu (Year 9), Darren Nguyen (Year 10) and Nicholas Koh (Year 11). A special mention of Year 5 student Tao Wong who received the prize for the Year 7 competition. In the Australian Informatics Olympiad four students achieved medals in their respective divisions, Edward Gross (Year 8) – Bronze, Xander Grice (Year 11) – Silver, Nicholas Koh (Year 11) – Silver and Xian Huang (Year 12) – Bronze. Congratulations to all boys on these exceptional results.
As we reach the halfway point of Term 4, I urge all students to maintain their energy and enthusiasm around their studies and activities; it’s a busy four weeks ahead, but it’s a mere four weeks until you can all take a well-earned break.
Tim Browning
Headmaster