Back to Newington Day 2012 was indeed a tremendous team effort and I thank all our parents and friends for their support last Saturday.

Back to Newington Day: ‘In Black & White, we unite’

What a fabulous day! There was plenty of sunshine, community and colour on show last Saturday. The Market Stalls in Centenary Hall and their culinary delights attracted great interest, meanwhile the music of the Stage Band captivated the crowd amidst the exhilarating tries and goals being scored on Johnson and on the Buch. This was indeed a tremendous team effort and I thank all our parents and friends for their support. My sincere thanks to P&F President Andrew Hine and his talented and committed Executive for their outstanding planning and preparation, as well as to every volunteer in our myriad support groups for their tremendous organisation and energy. Your combined efforts ensured a most memorable Back to Newington Day. Head Groundsman, Mr Fotis Doulougeris and his staff: Kris, Joanne, Jay, Jason & Daniel also deserve special praise for their helpful and willing involvement.

Campus safety

All families who drive to school must adhere to the following protocols to ensure our students’ safety:

1. Please drive slowly and be considerate of others when you choose to enter the secondary campus.
2. Please be patient and understand that from time to time there may be delays on account of building works or other factors. Yellow stripes at the College entry indicate ‘a shared access zone’. Construction vehicles will also enter and depart the school at this point.
3. In the morning and afternoon, please keep in mind the interests of students, staff and other members of the community. Most importantly, if you are waiting for your son, you must remain in your vehicles at all times and refrain from blocking the access of other cars.
4. Only use the designated drop-off zones. Inside the campus, yellow painted curbs and sign posts indicate the drop-off zone near the Sevington car park. Traffic should move slowly through this area, only stopping to pick up or drop off boys. Again, please do not leave your vehicle and always consider the safety of others.
5. There is no parking in the yellow drop off area between 8.00 and 9.00am or 3.00 and 5.00pm.
6. If on the occasion your son is not ready to be picked up, please be considerate to others by moving through the zone and returning a short time later.
7. There are two drop off zones at the rear of the school. One is located at the top gate (corner of Newington Road and Newington Lane) and the other at the bottom gate (at entry to Sports Centre) for your son’s drop-off and/or collection. Double parking threatens the safety of students. These are public roads and all other motorists must be considered.
8. Finally, please note that the Concordia car park and/or Stanmore Road are not collection points for your children.

Please do not be offended when staff, Marrickville Council or the NSW Police enforce these rules. Remember, it may be your son who is placed in a dangerous situation on account of the poor decisions of other drivers.

Parent Survey

Please remember to complete your online survey. The survey should only take 10-15 minutes and is anonymous. Your feedback will influence our future developments. The survey closes on Sunday 10 June 2012 after which a full report will be made back to the Stanmore P&F at our September meeting.

P&F Term 2 General Meeting Thursday 7 June: Guest Speaker Mr Jonathan Doyle:

This term’s meeting will commence at 6.30pm in Centenary Hall with general business and a presentation from Head of Sport, Mr James Godfrey. At 7.00pm Jonathan Doyle will speak to all parents about how we can more successfully empower our young men to make great choices in life. Please visit his site to discover more: http://www.choicez.com.au/survey/. I especially urge all Year 10 dads to attend as the boys will partake in a related session earlier in the day.

Weekly Boarding opportunity

A reminder that two vacancies still exist for weekly boarders in Years 9 & 10. Please contact our Admissions Manager, Mrs Yvonne Kaloterakis on 9568 9337 for more information.

Good Luck

Finally, I wish our Years 7, 9, 10 & Senior B Debating teams every success as they prepare for the FED grand final this Friday at Knox Grammar School. Similarly, I wish the College Intermediate and Senior Theatresports Teams success in their state semi final knockouts next week.

Best wishes
Dr Andrew Hirst