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Headmaster's Update

College Blog Headmaster's Update
3 September 2021

In this week's article, Headmaster Fenner discusses the recent winter intercollegiate fixtures, student conduct, staffing matters and more.

Winter Intercol fixtures
I would like to thank and congratulate the various staff involved in ensuring a highly successful round of winter Intercol fixtures. These are of course the culmination of our winter sports season and we were hosting all the first-team events.

Operating under some significant COVID restrictions, we had to limit the number of spectators for each event and reserved spectator places for senior students and parents and some family members of those participating. This meant that we did have to turn some people away did not have tickets for the event, which is a matter of great regret for us. We look forward to the resumption of regular arrangements, enabling us to welcome everyone onto the Campus again.

I would like to congratulate our boys for the way that they represented us throughout the Intercol fixtures. We were fortunate to be successful at first-team level in football, soccer, rugby, hockey, basketball and chess. However, our debating and table tennis teams also did a superb job in representing us very well in hard-fought competitions. In addition, we were delighted that our squash team got to play an unofficial, exhibition match in association with the Intercol fixtures and were successful in this as well.

Across the board our teams acquitted themselves very well, which is a credit to Director of Co-Curricular Activities, Troy McKinnon, Head of Sport, Paul Brown and all the coordinators and coaches. This was a highly successful end to our winter sporting season, with our rugby, hockey, chess, squash and basketball teams winning the SAAS or State Championship as well.

Parents may have seen the media reports about some of the St Peter's College footballers having misbehaved in the change rooms at both St Peter's and PAC. This was most unfortunate and did not reflect the conduct of the vast majority of Saints boys who visited us for the various Intercol fixtures. Saints has taken firm action on this matter, just as we would under similar circumstances, and we have expressed our support for them in this regard.

Student conduct

I received an email last weekend from a woman who had evidently lost her purse outside PAC.

I was contacted by the Adelaide police station on Friday stated in my purse been handed in to the police station by two students. My purse was found outside PAC and there was nothing missing from it. 
I am very grateful to these students. Their honesty reflects well on all young people and for me particularly, your school.”

This is of course the kind of message that we like to receive and I will be pleased to share this with the students as an example of the kind of conduct that we encourage.

Staffing

Joshua Goldsmith has joined us as a casual Outdoor Educator at Scotts Creek. Holding a Bachelor of Sport, Health and Physical Activity from Flinders University, Joshua also has a range of outdoor qualifications. He has worked in a range of outdoor education programs and locations over a number of years.

Andrew Barnes has joined us as a part-time Events Assistant. Andrew has a Diploma in Events from TafeSA, as well as training in multimedia. He has worked at a number of events in recent years as a volunteer and in a paid capacity.

Geraldine Hunter will be temporarily filling the role of Executive Assistant to the Headmaster, following Sarah-Jane Arnold’s departure.

Bradley Fenner
Headmaster