Opening of the New Building
Sadly, we have experienced further delays with the new building and won’t be able to hold our “open building” event on Monday 13 March. This event will now be held on Monday 20 March 2023. The internal works will be almost completely finished that day, with the external works due to be completed a few weeks later.
I invite you to drop off your children on the morning of 20 March, grab a free coffee from the new Sippers and have a wander through the new facility. While it’s frustrating that it wasn’t ready for the start of the School year, I think you’ll agree when you see it in action that it has been worth the wait.
We are looking to create an interactive sculpture in the building. It will be something to really inspire the students, particularly those interested in engineering. We have engaged Russell Anderson to create this and have already received a considerable donation towards its cost. If you would like to make a tax deductible donation towards the building, please go to the School’s website and choose “Make a General Payment”, then choose “Building Fund Tax Deductible Donation” from the drop down list.
Parent Engagement Survey
Thank you to all those parents who have completed the 2023 Parent Engagement Survey. For those continuing parents, you will know that we send this survey out each year, but it’s usually a little later in the year to give the new families time to settle into the school. We decided to conduct that survey earlier this year because we needed to gather your feedback on the proposed Learner Profile (ie. the plan to replace the current student reports).
Sabbatical Leave
Approximately every five years an independent school principal is entitled to take sabbatical leave, and I will be taking this leave from 22 March until 8 June 2023. During my leave I will be engaging in further study at Wycliffe Hall at the University of Oxford, which will be a great privilege.
During my absence Mr Nigel Grant will be the Acting Headmaster and Mr Des Hylton will be the Acting Executive Director of Faith and Community.
I will miss the School community while on leave and look forward to returning late in Term 2.
Kind regards
Paul Browning
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Letter to the editor
Our Headmaster, Dr Paul Browning, has a letter to the editor published in The Australian newspaper.
Dr Browning wrote the letter in response to an article in Wednesday’s paper discussing how AI will impact the future workplace and what jobs will be required to maximise productivity. The article had a special focus on the lack of women in STEM subjects.
Dr Browning’s letter agrees there should be more efforts made to encourage women and girls into STEM-related career pathways, but also broadens the conversation by asserting that, in a world dominated by AI, the skills and dispositions students need to flourish can’t be narrowed down to purely focus on STEM.
St Paul’s School was featured on 7.30 on ABC News as part of their special report investigating ChatGPT from OpenAI.
It was a fascinating piece that explored the implications of ChatGPT on education. Our Headmaster, Dr Paul Browning, discussed how education needs to change to ensure today’s students are prepared to thrive in a world dominated by AI.
Well done to students Max and Annabelle who spoke so well, and a special thanks to the Year 10 science class with Mr Hylton for working so well despite the shining lights and TV cameras tracing their every move.
The core values of St Paul’s School are Faith, Learning and Community.
But what does it mean, in modern (multicultural, pluralistic and largely secular) Australia to have “Faith” as a core value? I wonder what you thought you were signing up to, when you enrolled your child(ren) at St Paul’s?
On our website you will find the following. I hope it doesn’t surprise you. This is who we are. This is what we do.
I trust you are already finding that St Paul’s is a welcoming, inclusive and tolerant community. Our school community of students, parents and staff includes people of all faiths and none. However, we don’t resile from the fact that our mission and philosophy are based around helping students realise that each of us “is uniquely crafted in the image of our creator God, each with gifts, talents, strengths and weaknesses. From birth we are on a journey towards the fulfilment of our God-given purpose. We were designed to be relational beings (both socially and spiritually), interacting with the world which has been entrusted to our care and interacting with each other in community”.
I really hope that as you partner with us in the raising of your children, both you and they have the opportunity to consider some of life’s big questions and issues of ultimate importance. What does a ‘good life’ look like? Does my life have meaning? Just who was the man, Jesus Christ, who changed the course of history around 2000 years ago and who still guides the actions of more than 2 billion people around the world?
One of our community groups, open to all staff and parents, is called ‘Wayfarers’. The name was chosen deliberately as we recognise that, in a sense, all of us are pilgrims, wanderers and travellers through life. Wayfarers was created in recognition of the fact that we all, at some time, will have spiritual needs and questions about faith which may not be being met anywhere else.
Wayfarers has been intentionally designed to be a place where honest questions will be taken seriously. It’s a place for believers and also for skeptics. It’s a place for churched, un-churched and even de-churched people. Members of all Christian denominations, people of other faiths and people of no faith are all invited. We may not agree on all issues, but we agree to respect and love each other as we share the journey together.
Wayfarers meet monthly, on the 4th Sunday of the month, from 5.00-6.30 pm. We all bring along something to eat and drink (to share). Our purpose is that Wayfarers will be to be an opportunity for –
Christians from all denominations, who happen to be affiliated with St Paul’s School, to come together regularly for fellowship and celebration;
People (students, staff and parents) who are interested in finding out more about Christianity, as well as those who have walked away from the Church, to discuss faith in an informal context;
Sharing of life’s joys and sorrows;
Bearing one another’s burdens (Galatians 6:2);
Praying for one another (Ephesians 6:18) and for the ministry of the School.
If you would like to join us, you would be most welcome. Our next gathering will be on Sunday 26 March. If interested, please email –
I felt that keenly in my first week at the school.
I was disorientated and bewildered by this new way of teaching. I knew it was good, but I it was challenging to comprehend and put into practise.
I can only imagine what it must be like for students and parents who join St Paul’s. Many families are looking for a new start or a new type of education that will prepare children for the future.
St Paul’s is a ‘Ways of Being’ and “Realms of Thinking’ school.
This means that we know that success is not about regurgitating content. Walker Percy put it best, “You can get all A’s and still flunk life”.
At St Paul’s School we are committed to education that equips all our students with the dispositions and skill to succeed in a technologically advanced world. We also believe that character is vital in a world that is only increasing in complexity.
However, as Head of Family Engagement I am aware that parents want to know more about the St Paul’s education framework and how it impacts and prepares their children.
With that in mind, Sarah Gover (parent of past students) and I will be running an introduction seminar for parents called ‘An Education Worth Having’ on Tuesday 2nd May (Week 3, Term 2). This will be an excellent opportunity to understand and partner with St Paul’s in your child’s education.
Enjoy the latest insight from Happy Families (previously Parenting Ideas)
James Anderson encourages parents to allow their children to face challenges. We would say it helps them to become more resilient. He says – “By teaching them that effort is the cost of growth, and normalising the struggle that comes from being in their Learning Zone, we help them become “comfortably uncomfortable” with challenge, and put them on a path of continuous growth.”
Well done to overall winners, Scudo House and spirit winners, Gladius House!
The swimming carnival, held on 14 February, was an amazing day of competition, rivalry, enthusiasm, participation and support. Almost every race had full lanes of participants and it was a delight to see the amazing effort students had put into their posters, costumes and war cries.
The event was capped off with a teachers vs students relay where the students took home a close victory.
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Keeping our campus beautiful
Clean Up Australia Day was held on Thursday, 2 March.
Our Service-Learning Committee had 48 Students assist in cleaning up our campus and ensuring it looks beautiful. Well done Service-Learning students for your dedication to St Paul’s.
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STUDENT SUCCESS: Oliver Rauchle
Last weekend against St Columban's College, Year 10 student Oliver Rauchle scored 100 runs - a feat not achieved by a St Paul's cricketer in over 10 years! The SPS Instagram account fortunately captured the moment Ollie brought up three figures.
Ollie’s superb effort was part of a dominating performance from the St Paul’s First XI, scoring 354 runs off 48 overs. St Columban’s were bowled out for 46 in 23 overs – an amazing win!
Ollie and Tommy Clay put on 154 runs for the 4th wicket which is fantastic.
The House Spirit on show over the past few weeks has been fantastic as students competed in the Junior School House Reading Challenge.
The challenge was timed to coincide with Queensland School Libraries Week and our students put in a massive book-reading effort. Over two weeks, students in Pre-Prep to Year 2 were awarded one point per book read (or read to them). For those in Years 3-6, one point per minute spent reading was awarded.
The final totals are pretty incredible:
1st – Boek 27,975 points
2nd – Mitre 25,025 points
3rd – Taja 23,908 points
4th – Scudo 22,013 points
5th – Gladius 21,328 points
Congratulations to Boek for winning the House challenge!
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Year 6 Controlling Light Session
In collaboration with the University of the Sunshine Coast (https://mindset-do.edu.au/) our Year 6 students used a growth mind set to solve the problem of programming lights to the beat of music.
The students used Arduino programming to develop their computational thinking skills and deepen their understanding. They combined their knowledge and understanding of electrical circuits from the Year 6 Physical Science curriculum, with their application of programming to identify problems with code and ways to overcome problems.
The design brief was to create a visual sound system for the deaf and hard of hearing by designing an electrical system using an Arduino and programming it to control light (colour, on/off rhythm, brightness) matched to a 2-minute piece of music. Students used the learner dispositions of “trial and error” and “imaginative, curious and perceptive” to engage their thinking.
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International School
Kanagawa Gakuen Junior High School
St Paul’s International School welcomed the first Study Tour Group in this term from Kanagawa Gakuen Junior High School!
They studied English and joined PE lessons and Japanese classes for some integration with St Paul’s students.
They also get to experience Australian culture by living with our homestay families.
The group left with full of wonderful memories in Australia. We greatly appreciate the assistance of all St Paul’ staff, students, and Homestay families.
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Music
It’s been a flying start to the year already in the Music Centre, with almost 500 instrumental students commencing lessons and rehearsals in Week 2. We’ve already had a trip to QPAC and Music Tour and there are a whole heap of performances around the corner so it’s definitely shaping up to be a busy 2023.
We were in the room where it happened… In Week 5, Year 12 Music and Music Tech students, along with Year 11 Modern History students, took a trip to QPAC to see the Broadway musical Hamilton. The musical tells the story of the rise and fall of American founding father, Alexander Hamilton, expertly set to music by Lin Manuel Miranda. Both the students who had never heard any songs from the show and those who couldn’t stop singing along loved it and had a great time. Thanks to Mrs Waterford and Mr Portch for organising a great night out.
Music Camp Concert Band and Allegretto Strings students are probably feeling pretty tired right about now after their time away at Luther Heights on Music Camp last weekend! It was a great few days of intensive rehearsals and sectionals, and both groups have improved enormously as a result. On Saturday night, the Music Captains hosted some excellent games for the musicians, including a Trash Fashion Parade, which was won by Year 7 model Dani Finlay.
The camp finished with the ensembles performing for each other. They’re all sounding wonderful and are looking forward to performing for everyone at our first big event, Music in the Dark, on Saturday May 27.
A huge thanks to Allegretto Strings director Mrs Gibbs and Concert Band director Mr Weal for conducting our students at Music Camp, and for Mr Cotgreave and Miss Chou for assisting. Thanks too to our Music Captains and mentors for all their help throughout the weekend.
New enrolments Is your child musical, and wanting to have lessons on an instrument at school? The Music Department accepts enrolments at the beginning and end of each term, and registration can be made at any time by filling in this online form. (Please note that you won’t receive a response from Music until the enrolment period opens for Term 2, and there are some instruments for which students will need to go on a waiting list.) If you have any questions about lessons, policies, or fees, please visit our Music website at www.stpaulsmusic.com.au.
Performance dates and social media Terms 2, 3 and 4 are always very busy for Music students, with many competitions, performances and school events to play at. To find out about all our Music events, please visit the Events and Performances page on the Music website. All known performances for the year are currently on this page, and more will be added as they are confirmed.
You can also keep up to date with Music department happenings by following us on Instagram @musicsps and liking our St Paul’s Music Facebook page.
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General News & Notices
Meet An Authorpreneur
Michelle Worthington is an international multi award winning author, screenwriter and businesswoman.
Shortlisted twice for the Children’s Book Council of Australia’s picture book of the year, two-time winner of the International Book Award and finalist in the USA Best Book Awards, Michelle also received a Gellett Burgess Award and a Silver Moonbeam Award for her contribution to celebrating diversity in literature. Michelle was the recipient of the 2018 AusMumpreneur Gold Award for Business Excellence and the winner of the 2018 Redlands BaR award for Best Start Up Business.
She has also ghost-written children’s books for the Duchess of York. Michelle is a delightful and inspiring speaker, and you can learn more by visiting her website www.michelleworthington.com
We are excited to welcome Michelle to St Paul’s and invite you to book your tickets to the event below.
Students in Years 3, 5, 7 and 9 will participate in the National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN).
Years 3 & 5 will undertake the tests on 15, 16, 17 & 18 March as previously advised through Junior School communications.
Years 7 & 9 will undertake the tests on Wednesday 15 & Thursday 16 March in the Walker Centre.
NAPLAN involves tests in Reading, Writing, Language Conventions (spelling, grammar and punctuation) and Numeracy. This year, we will once again deliver NAPLAN in an online environment. To help prepare students, our school has undertaken a practice test in the online environment, and students can access the NAPLAN Online Public Demonstration site to further familiarise themselves with the online delivery mode.
It is important to note that NAPLAN is not testing content. Therefore, beyond ensuring that students are familiar with the test formats, it is not something that requires extensive preparation. Teachers will have explained the conditions of the tests and they will have provided students with opportunities to experience these.
Parents can support their children by encouraging them to have a good night’s sleep and to eat a healthy breakfast. Checking that students have the appropriate equipment for each test will also be helpful. Parents can talk about the test in a positive way and they should consider it as an activity within students’ normal learning programs. NAPLAN results provide parents and schools with an understanding of how students are performing at the time of the tests and are not intended to replace the extensive, ongoing assessments made by teachers about each students’ performance.
The NAPLAN website provides useful information and answers to “Frequently Asked Questions” about:
From Term 2, 2023 all fee statements will be emailed, not posted.
From Term 2, 2023 all fee statements will be emailed, not posted. Please make sure your email address is up to date in the Parent Lounge to ensure you receive your copy. If you still wish to receive a hard copy please contact Charyn at [email protected]
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Disability Car Parks
A friendly reminder to please refrain from parking in disability car parks, even for a brief moment. These car parks are reserved for those who have permits. Thank you for helping us make St Paul’s accessible and safe for all who visit.
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Are your contact details up to date?
If your details have changed, please log into Parent Lounge to make necessary amendments.
It is vital that all contact details remain up to date so that we can contact you as necessary and continue providing your family with relevant information via email, phone and post.
Did you know you can report your child’s absence from School via Parent Lounge?
Parents/guardians can report their child’s absence from school via parent lounge. An email detailing the process will be sent to you in the coming days.
If you have forgotten your Parent Lounge password, you can reset this yourself via theParent Lounge login screen. If you have forgotten your Parent Lounge username, please contact the School’s reception.
This change is another improvement in the School’s approach towards child protection as it adds a level of security and authentication to child absences from school. If you have any questions please contact the Risk and Compliance Officer, Mark Barratt ([email protected]).
Please note, if your child will be absent for three days or longer email your child’s House Leader.
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Wellbeing Centre
Counselling
GETTING INTO THE LEARNING ZONE
How does your child approach challenges? Do they often take the easiest option? Do they sometimes give up when learning starts to get tough? Do they dislike the struggle that comes with learning something challenging?
Our relationship with challenge is one of the key elements of Learnership – the skill of learning. In this insightful and powerful session, James Anderson will show you how you can help your child develop a strong positive relationship with challenge. He’ll show you the practical strategies you can use at home and in school to put your child on path towards embracing challenges and becoming a skilful learner. He’ll show you how to get your child into their Learning Zone.
COUNSELLING We’re excited to introduce our new School Counsellors: Ms. Morrison, Ms Bertwistle, and Mr Adams. They bring a wealth of experience and are dedicated to providing outstanding support to our students. If you’re in Years 10 – 12 and would like to schedule a counselling session, you can book an appointment by contacting Mrs Harding at [email protected].
Hi from Ms Morrison!
Given that I am brand new to the St Paul’s community, I would like to take the opportunity to say hello and introduce myself. I’m a registered Clinical Psychologist and have worked predominantly in Queensland Health with Children’s Health Queensland. I work with young people and their families and have experience treating an array of mental health presentations. I’m a big believer in protecting and looking after mental health in order to build a meaningful life, where you can make the most of opportunities, have positive relationships with others, and most importantly like the person that you are! Outside of the psychology world, I love camping, being at the beach, hanging out with my big Golden Retriever, and of course cheering on the Brisbane Lions at the Gabba. I’m still finding my way around campus, so please forgive me as I will likely need some help to learn all the buildings. But please don’t hesitate to reach out for support. I am very happy to be a part of the wonderful counselling team at St Paul’s School.
Hello from Ms Bertwistle! (Wed & Friday Y10-12)
So lovely to be part of this wonderful community! I am slowly getting to know some faces and my way around the beautiful grounds. Feel free to come and say hello if you see me, I would love to meet you.
A little about me, I am a registered counsellor and run my own private counselling practice. My background is primarily working with at risk young people, and I have spent many years working with homeless young people and their families within a residential setting. It is the greatest privilege to walk with someone as they share their story. To work together to identify ways to navigate this life with all of its ups and downs. Prioritizing wellbeing and providing space for each person to seek out a full, rich and meaningful life.
I have two amazing children who are now young adults, and we adore our little dog, Maverick! I live locally and love being out and about with my family and friends. I treasure people and love nothing more than good quality conversation and sharing the journey with others. Thanks for the warm smiles and welcome and I look forward to being part of the amazing wellbeing team here at St Pauls.
Ross Adams!
Hi all, I am Ross Adams and I have done part time work in the counselling centre at St Paul’s since mid-2020. I have thoroughly enjoyed working here and being part of the team here with the other counsellors and the House Leaders.
My background with St Paul’s actually goes back to 1968 when I started as a student here in Grade 8 and I did Senior in 1972 which was the last year of a completely external exam process for school leaving.
My history in counselling is that I am a Clinical Family Therapist and have been involved in School Counselling since 1984 with the Department of Education in schools mainly on the Redcliffe Peninsula and surrounding areas.
Coming back to St Paul’s has given me an opportunity to witness many wonderful changes in how students are supported and how staff work together for their wellbeing.
Outside of work I am involved in Veterans Cricket and play throughout our season in the middle of the year.
I look forward to more wonderful experiences in my work here at St Pauls in this coming year and to be part of a great counselling staff, well supported by our wonderful Mrs Harding on the front desk.
On Wednesday we celebrated International Women's Day.
At St Paul’s School our focus is on preparing students for a rapidly changing future. We’re so grateful to all the wonderful women and girls who are part of the St Paul’s community and look forward to walking alongside each of you towards the theme of this year’s IWD: #EmbraceEquity
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ySafe
Last week our students from Pre-Prep to Year 12 have attended online safety education sessions with presenter Dave Smith from ySafe.
Students have learned valuable skills on how they can stay safe and develop healthy online behaviours.
Did you know that we have a SPS Careers Website? You can find it on the School Portal or at https://www.stpaulscareers.com.au/. Check out the Important Info section that has a Calendar of Events from Universities, Defence, TAFE, Expo’s etc!
To see the latest Career Tools Newsletter click here. You can also click here to view SPS Career Tools Weekly on the SPS Careers Website.
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2024 Scholarship Program
Our 2024 Scholarship program is now open.
Please note that our academic and specialist scholarships are offered to Australian residents only.
The 2023 scholarship exam will be held on campus on Saturday, 25 March 2023.
Registrations are now open and will close on Friday, 17 March 2023.
Congratulations to past student Melissa Kugelman (class of 2013) for recently receiving the 2022 Susanna Richardson award for best Masters thesis, supervised by Dr. Theresa Scott. She received the award at the AGM for the APS College of Counselling Psychologists.
Melissa completed her Masters in Counselling Psychology at University of Queensland in 2021 and since then has been working as a registered psychologist.
Well done, Melissa, on your outstanding achievement! We wish you all the best for your next chapter working in community mental health.
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Lachlan Carter
Congratulations to past student Lachlan Carter (class of 2020) for his recent outstanding academic achievements at Queensland University of Technology.
Lachlan is studying a double degree in Business and Law focusing on Economics and has recently been named to the Dean’s List for his Business units in Semester Two.
To qualify for the Dean’s List, students need to achieve a 6.5 GPA or higher, which is an outstanding achievement.
The St Paul’s community is very proud of your success, and we wish you all the best for the remainder of your studies.
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Supporter Groups
Parent Supports Group
An Education Worth Having.
At St Paul’s we do things differently. Realms of Thinking and Way of Being teach students to be creative innovators with a heart to lift others up and change the world for the better.
‘An Education Worth Having’ is an interactive introduction to the ways St Paul’s is leading education in the 21st century.
All parents are invited to come and experience the brand-new Innovation Precinct and the St Paul’s School educational model.
I look forward to sharing an amazing learning experience with you all.
Rev. Stephen Brown
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NOTICE OF AGM: PARENT CONNECTIONS SUPPORTER GROUP
The Parent Connections Supporter Group (PCSG) is one of the sub-groups of the St Paul's School Supporters’ Association. We are a committed group of enthusiastic parents who help to promote community within the school. The PCSG meets on the third Monday of each month, during term time, in a lower Sutton building classroom at 6:30pm (refer to School Calendar).
The PCSG supports the St Paul’s School parent community through providingevents and activities to promote parent engagement and foster.
Membership in this group enables parents to be more actively involved in school with extra advantages, such as:
• Providing a clearer understanding of the learning environment of St Paul’s School
• Knowledge is shared and decisions are owned collaboratively through discussion
• The opportunity to put ideas forward and discuss new initiatives. Innovation is encouraged!
• Meeting with a group of like-minded people to share ideas and socialise
You are hereby given notice of the Parent Connections Supporters Group Annual General Meeting (AGM) will be held on Monday 19th March 2021at 6.30pm in the lower Sutton Building.
To ensure the Parent Connections Supporters Group continues to support the school community, we encourage all families to play their part moving forward. To achieve this we need voices from across allyear levels, so please accept our invitation to become involved. There are many ways in which you can become involved:
1. Participate at PCSG meetings (held 3rd Monday of each month during term time) 2. Sign up to receive the PCSG meeting minutes to be kept informed
We understand that attending meetings is not possible for everyone
If you have any queries or would like to know more, please don’t hesitate to make contact: [email protected]
Looking forward to working with you!
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Junior School Supporters Group
Term 1 Events
The SPS Junior School Supporters Group are preparing for a busy Term 1. Click to see the Term 1 Events
