The theme of this conference is “Creative girls, creative women”, and we will have an opportunity to hear from many international speakers, including Dame Jenny Shipley, former Prime Minister of New Zealand, about how best to equip our girls to make purposeful and innovative contributions to the world in which they live.

Following the conference, Ms Tracy Healy and I will go to Christchurch where we will visit our sister school, St Margaret’s College, where our Years 8 and 9 students are able to undertake a reciprocal, independent exchange for 4 or 5 weeks. These global networks are important in ensuring that our school continues to deliver world class, best practice programs and that our teaching, learning and care are informed by expert thinkers and practitioners.

Tonight the 2014 School production, The Wiz, opens at the Clocktower and I know that many families have already purchased their tickets to attend the performance. I look forward to seeing the show and enjoying the spectacle that our girls and the production team have put together. Being able to stage the production at the Clocktower Centre gives our girls exposure to a professional standard of equipment and allows them to reach a level of excellence that might not otherwise be possible. I’m sure we will all enjoy the performance.

This week we were visited by a delegation of international visitors who were looking at best practice in the delivery of Vocational Education and Training (VET) Programs around Australia. We were recommended by Independent Schools Victoria as being a relevant site to visit because of the way in which VET subjects are integrated into our Senior School and VCE Curriculum. Nadija Anin, our VET Coordinator, and some senior students, spoke to the delegation about the delivery of subjects such as Conservation and Land Management (undertaken by all Year 9 students and able to contribute to the VCE score), Hospitality, Dance and Equine Studies, each of which is undertaken by some of our Years 10, 11 and 12 students as part of their VCE program. It was a great honour to be selected for this prestigious visit.

We end our week on Friday with a casual clothes day to raise money for the Mainuddin school in Bangladesh which we established and fully fund each year. It is through the contribution of $4 for each of our casual clothes days through the year that we are able to support this important aspect of our School’s fundraising.