As Term 3 came to a close, it marked a series of lasts for Year 12 – last Maths class, last English essay, last game, last lunchtime. However the end of term also marked the start of new beginnings. With their exams now well underway, the boys have almost completed the transition from their life at school to their life beyond.

On Friday, 22 September, family, friends, staff and members of the Newington community gathered to celebrate and acknowledge the Year 12 cohort of 2017 as they stepped towards life beyond school. Valedictory Day marks the end of a 13-year education and all the challenges and achievements that have marked each student’s journey at Newington.

With an address from Headmaster Dr David Mulford and Senior Prefect Mitchell Long, the College celebrated Year 12’s contributions to the school – the relationships formed, the lessons learned and the triumphs made during their time here.

The assembly was followed by a Guard of Honour where family, friends, boys from Years 7–11 and staff bid farewell to the Class of 2017 and welcomed the new 2018 School Leaders:

Senior Prefect – Lachlan McIntyre (11/JN)
Deputy Senior Prefect – Matthew Dyster (11/FL)
Deputy Senior Prefect – Alexander Humphreys (11/JN)

Senior Boarding Prefect – Richmond Sear (11/MA)
Deputy Senior Boarding Prefect – Anthony Kama (11/FL), Tua Mahe (11/FL), Long Duy Pham (11/MO), Finn Sleigh (11/PR)

Fletcher House 
Captain – Dale Schlaphoff (11/FL)
Vice-Captain – Thomas Barker (11/FL), Nicholas Fitzsimmons (11/FL)

Johnstone House
Captain – Justin Raja (11/JN)
Vice-Captain – William Mellor (11/JN), Michael van Walsum (11/JN)

Kelynack House
Captain – Nicholas Maclean (11/KL)
Vice-Captain – Angus Bell, Gus Burton (11/KL)

Le Couteur House
Captain – Liam Nikos (11/LE)
Vice-Captain – Angus Crump (11/LE), Alec Machin (11/LE)

Manton House
Captain – James Roach (11/MA)
Vice-Captain – Daniel Baykitch (11/MA), Andrew Harrison (11/MA)

Metcalfe House
Captain – Nolan Whitcomb (11/ME)
Vice-Captain – Kelvin Du (11/ME), Nazim Rahman (11/ME)

Moulton House
Captain – Darcy McDonald (11/MO)
Vice-Captain – Anton Fichtenmaier (11/MO), Riley Vaughan (11/MO)

Prescott House
Captain – Matteo Lannan (11/PR)
Vice-Captain – Hunter Karam (11/PR), Andrew Liu (11/PR)

Though the boys leave the College gates behind, they will remain an important part of the Newington community as they transition into the Old Newingtonians’ Union.