Opening of Michael Morgan Rowing Centre

On Friday 26 February the Michael Morgan (ON 1964) Rowing Centre was official opened. The Headmaster, Dr David Mulford, welcomed Mr Michael Morgan OAM (ON 1964), his family and other guests and thanked the 39 donors for the generous support of this brand new facility. Special thanks were extended to the organisers of the fundraising – Marty Nicholas (ON 1987) and Head of Sport, James Godfrey (ON 1993).

Prior to unveiling the plaque Mr Morgan thanked the generous donors for their contribution to building such a fabulous facility for Newington College. Mr Morgan also acknowledged the coaches for their dedication to coaching our upcoming rowers and personally expressed how thrilled he was that his family were able to attend the opening of the centre. Mr Morgan’s closed his speech with the following words:

Not everybody wins, and certainly not everybody wins all the time. But once you get into your boat and push off, tie into your shoes and bootstretchers, then ‘lean on the oars’, you have indeed won far more than those who have never tried.

The Michael Morgan Rowing Centre includes both a technical training facility as well as a Rowing specific Strength and Conditioning room. The technical facility will be used by boys of all ages across the Newington College Rowing program. The Strength and Conditioning facility will predominantly be used by Year 9 and 10 students both off-season and in-season for their strength program.

The event was a great success with over 40 guests attending. A total of $116,950 was raised. The College matched an anonymous $20,000 donation and has also contributed a further $21,000 from its Maintenance budget towards meeting the overall costs. Total costs of the Centre are $177,640. With a $20,000 shortfall there is still opportunity to donate to the facility by emailing community@newington.college.nsw.edu.au or phoning the Community and Development Department on 02 9568 9374.

Sport Report

Term 1 Sport

This Saturday will be the final weekend of Summer Sport for Term 1. Boys in Years 8-12 will transition to Winter Sport the week commencing Monday 14 March. Year 7 boys will start on Tuesday 8 March. We thank all staff and coaches for their contribution to the season.

There will be Saturday fixtures on Sat 19 March and on Sat 2 April.

We will have a comprehensive wrap of the Summer season in the next edition of Black and White.

Rowing

To all the boys who have done Rowing this year, congratulations on your season! To the crews rowing at the Head of River Regatta on Saturday 12 March we wish you all the very best. The College will be there supporting you!

Student-Run Sport Supporters’ Page

A group of senior boys have put together a student-run Facebook page called ‘The Black and White Army’. This supporters’ page will feature details from each week’s sports fixtures along with pictures from events and information about boy-led supporter events. Don’t forget to jump onto the page and give them a ‘Like’.

From the Boarders

Visit from NIAS

On the weekend of Friday 12 February, we warmly welcomed 20 boys, girls and coaches from the Northern Inland Academy of Sport. On Saturday, the Boarding House watched the U16’s NIAS men’s team convincingly beat Newington opponents and the girls just miss out on an upset win against Newington’s U15’s A team. It was great fun to watch the two games but the Sydney Uni match we watched together that night was highly enjoyable. Clock winding down, Sydney Uni is two points behind the travelling Perth team, the ball moves to the corner where a Sydney Uni player shoots for the three, just beating the buzzer – but to no avail as the shot goes wide. The incredible game filled with threes and and-ones proved to be one of the most tense and yet crazy outings the Boarding House has had been to in a while. The best boarding experience however was still the one watching the Wallabies downing the All Blacks last year in the Bledsoe Cup.

GPS Swimming Carnival

On Friday 19 February, the Boarding House set up and ran a BBQ for the GPS Swimming Carnival. With tireless work from all the boys manning the BBQ, particularly Campbell Haylen (12/MA), as well as the help from staff members Mr Stanley, Mr Lever and Mr Cosgrove, we successfully collected $600 for the Boarding Tupou Fundraiser. Money raised will go towards buying rams for the Tupou College farm, an initiative started by Mr Stanley on his most recent trip to Tonga last year. We also ran a weekly campaign by making muffins and selling them at the school or on the Wyvern courts for the fundraising initiative. We have done it for the last two weeks and will continue this for the next two so I’d encourage you all to get down there!

Alvin Song (ON 2015) at ENCORE

On Monda, 22 February Mr Stanley, myself and four other boys attended the ENCORE concert held at the Sydney Opera House to watch boarding alumni Alvin Song (ON 2015) perform his HSC Music 2 repertoire. Along with other spectacular performances from the best-of-the-best of last year’s Music HSC course, Alvin Song performed his own piece and the Beethoven ‘Ghost’ Trio marvellously. The range of performances, including Music Theatre, Heavy Metal, Stravinsky and A Capella, all together made the night both intriguing and spine tingling. The event is not-to-be-missed, so if you get a chance to go next year, go!

Alec Fuller (12/MO)
Senior Boarder Prefect

Workshopping the Non-Representational with Mikala Dwyer

There’s plenty of activity at Concordia Gallery at this time of the year with Year 11 Visual Arts boys busy tapping into the knowledge and experience of our current P&F New Artist in Residence, Mikala Dwyer.

Mikala is an installation artist with more than three decades of experience in the art world. She is currently helping the boys delve deeper into the land of non-representational art, teaching them how to access their intuition and learn how to respond to intangible influences that may affect the way they perceive and sense the world around them.

In preparation for the first Concordia Gallery exhibition of 2016, the boys have been working with life-size shapes which they paint in a colour that represents them. The painting process will be filmed to produce a video piece while each of the boys’ life-size shapes will be brought together to create a puzzle-like wall work.

Mikala began her residency in January. Her most recent exhibition, ‘The Letterbox Marys’, was shown at Rosyln Oxley9 Gallery in November 2015. Her works can also be seen at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Sydney.

In Pursuit of the Holy Grail

Praise and congratulations to the cast and crew of our school musical this year, Spamalot. Not only was this an incredibly professional and thoroughly entertaining show but it also has given me inspiration for one of my last entries in Black and White before I head off into the green pastures of Bulahdelah bush in April.

This musical, based on Monty Python and the Holy Grail, is all about King Arthur and his loyal companion Patsy, and a ragtag band of “Knights” who go out in search of the Holy Grail. For this search they need cunning, good luck and above all great perseverance (which also happens to be the theme of the House Chapel I conducted this week for Fletcher House).

Eventually with all of these things in place, and against seemingly unsurmountable challenges, including the Knight of Ni, the Black Knight, Tim the Enchanter, and a vicious flesh-eating white rabbit, they succeed in their quest and find the Holy Grail.

And one of the underlying themes of course, in a very humorous way, is that we all have our own “holy grail” to pursue. This is all well and good except what if we find out at the end of our journey that our “holy grail” is worthless and futile – a “chasing after the wind” as the Philosopher Ecclesiastes has so succinctly put it? What do you do?

Surely it is incredibly important that what we are chasing after is worthy of our commitment? If the “holy grail” for our young people is merely a university degree (or three of them), and a high paying job – will this really deliver the happiness, the deep inner sense of fulfilment and peace that a life of determined perseverance deserves? Some of the most miserable and empty people I know are the wealthiest and most highly educated and at the end of theirs days I’ve seen them experience the “clunk” of a broken bell – of a life wasted.

A great saying of Jesus was “seek first God’s kingdom and all the rest will be added to you.” This means recognising that “all is vanity and a waste of time” (Ecclesiastes again) unless God our Creator is at the centre of one’s life – as tough as that may be to commit to in the society in which we live right now.

May God bless you as you seek to discern the worth of your “holy grail”, and that of the children within your household.

Rev David Williams
College Chaplain

In Spamalot!

With over 100 students involved on stage, in the orchestra and in the crew, Spamalot was the biggest production Newington has seen for some time. For some, it was their first experience on stage, while for others, it marked the end of a long and fruitful contribution to the Drama/Music programs at the College.

Below we hear from the boys in the cast and crew about what it was like working behind the scenes and what they thought were those eye-opening moments.

Michael Li (12/MA) – Sir Bedevere

What was the most memorable part of Spamalot?

The most memorable part of Spamalot was undoubtedly the performance nights. Of course, the rehearsals were enjoyable, but seeing everything come together during the final production week was extremely satisfying. During the final nights, there was a particularly intimate atmosphere among the whole cast. The overwhelming energy of performing to over a thousand people in total was definitely an unforgettable experience.

What’s the one lesson you learnt during the production that you will take away with you into future productions at Newington and beyond?

On a theatrical level, I have realised that the audience can only appreciate the musical once the actor has emotionally engaged with their character.

Harrison Stirton (11/PR) – Head of Crew

What was the most memorable part of Spamalot?

The most memorable part of Spamalot would have to be the NIDA stage manager giving me the opportunity to learn to fly (a.k.a. use the ropes to pull curtains, the disco ball etc. up and down).

What was the most challenging part of the production?

The most challenging part would have to be putting together the scene sets booklet. I had to type up all the props, queues, and transitions to minimize errors of the crew and it had to take in to account the cast’s use and movement of props. I also had to draw up all the scenes with where and how everything comes on then how all of it comes off.

What was the most valuable part of the experience that you will take away with you?

The opportunity given to me by the NIDA Stage Manager Bryte, who through her fun and supportive attitude, has convinced me that becoming a Stage Technician will be a rewarding career opportunity. It’s now at the top of my list for possible Uni courses.

Fin Casey (11/KL) – Tim, the Enchanter

What was the most memorable part of Spamalot?

The most memorable part was performing in front of a huge and responsive crowd alongside so many talented people.

What was the most challenging part of the production?

The most challenging thing was having serious rehearsals for such a ridiculous and funny musical.

What was the most valuable part of the experience that you will take away with you?

I learnt that things I thought weren’t possible (such as performing with a Scottish accent!) are actually achievable if I practiced enough.

Nelson Crossley (10/PR) – Ensemble Cast

What was the most memorable part of Spamalot!

I can’t really nail down a best part as the whole thing was amazing. It was so fun and really satisfying. My favourite part was probably at the end of the first night when the curtain webt down and we all hi-fived each other and just had so much fun.

What was the most challenging part of Spamalot?

Probably the holiday rehearsal and late nights but it was all worth it in the end.

What’s one lesson that you learn during Spamalot that you will take with you into future performances at Newington and beyond?

Have fun with everything you do and try your best. Because if you do that, the whole thing will be 100% worth it. Yes I am 100% doing another show no doubt about it.

Tom Naayen (12/FL) – Ensemble Cast

What was the most memorable part of Spamalot?

The most memorable part of Spamalot was on the opening night once the curtain had come down after the finale. Everyone just stood there, letting it sink in. We had just performed the first show and received a standing ovation.

What was the most challenging part of the production?

The most challenging part of Spamalot was the fact that I had to focus on singing as well as performing the choreography. For someone who hasn’t had very much experience in either singing or dance, it was something that presented numerous challenges.

What was the most valuable part of the experience that you will take away with you?

The lesson I learnt was how much it meant to me when my mates, who don’t really have an association with music and dance, turned up to watch and then came out the back to the stage door to congratulate me. I now understand how just turning up to support someone can mean a massive amount to the people involved.

Sam Burkitt (9/FL), Dominic Young (9/PR) & Haydon Ashley(9/LE) – Ensemble Cast

Spamalot the Musical was recently on and we had the pleasure to be part of it in the ensemble. It was an amazing experience and we got to know some of the older boys, gained an understanding of how theatre works as well as learn how to sing and dance! The behind the scenes action was fascinating and we got to learn about things such as physical and vocal warmups and working in a professional theatre. Performing to a sell out crowd at the closing night show was a once in a life time experience. We can’t wait for the next show!

Ms Tamara Smith – Spamalot Director

It was an absolute joy and privilege to work with all of the boys involved. I congratulate every boy involved for their contribution and enthusiasm. The show would not have been what it was without the brilliant work of our Knights of the Round Table and their King. To Harrison Saunders (12/LE), Elliot Ulm (12/LE), Jack Ryan (12/KL), Jeremi Campese (12/MA), Leon (12/KL), Michael Li (12/MA) and Geordie Maclean (10/KL), my heartfelt congratulations. Sincerest thanks to all members of the College community who came to support the show; we had a ball putting it together, but none of our hard work would’ve been worth it without the laughs and cheers from the audience.

Newingtonian, Hugh Howes falls in Mesopotamia

It is tempting to think of the period between the evacuation from Gallipoli in December 1915 and the horrors of Fromelles and Pozieres in July 1916 as a welcome quiet time for Australians in the First World War. The story of Hugh Howes reminds us of the continuing toll as the war ground on in other ‘foreign fields’.

Hugh Gilbert Howes went to school at Newington for only a short time, from May to Christmas 1913. In that time, he played Rugby in the 2^nd XV and was described in The Newingtonian as ‘a general favourite’. He had served in the Senior Cadets at the Cleveland Street Superior School and had come to Newington with the intention of entering the Duntroon Military College, but was unsuccessful in the entrance examination. He worked as a salesman before enlisting on 17 August 1914. He had been promoted to Sergeant by the time he embarked for Egypt with the rest of the 3^rd Battalion, in which many other Newingtonians were serving.

In Egypt Hugh qualified for a commission and a week before the Gallipoli landings, transferred to the Indian Army Reserve of Officers. He was attached to the 2^nd Rajputs as a Second Lieutenant and served on the Suez Canal defences till the end of 1915. Early in 1916 the battalion was transferred to Mesopotamia (modern Iraq) and, on 8 March, took part in an attack on Turkish positions as part of an attempt to reach Anglo-Indian forces besieged at Kut-Al-Amara on the Tigris River. When he was last seen, Hugh was leading his men under murderous fire but was still ‘laughing and cheering’ as reported by his commander, Captain Noyes. He was one of 4000 Anglo-Indian casualties in the attack which, for all their sacrifice, failed in its objective.

Hugh’s loss was keenly felt. ‘I cannot tell you how valuable an officer he was to me’, Noyes wrote to Hugh’s parents. ‘His cheerfulness under all conditions (and they have been very trying sometimes) and his keenness on his job were making a very fine officer of him in a short time. He was very popular with the men and took a great interest in them.’ Back home, reporting his death, The Newingtonian asked: ‘What is war? We who stay at home know not; we read about it, we have soldiers in our midst ready to go forth, but they as yet know not. But at times we catch a glimpse, fleeting, it is true, but still it leaves its lesson. A young life is snatched away by this rude ravager, and then we see.’

Hugh’s name is on the Basra War Memorial with those of some 40,000 other Allied soldiers who died in Mesopotamia but have no known grave. His ‘Dead Man’s Penny’ is in his parents’ gravestone at Waverly Cemetery, and his name is on Newington’s First World War Honour Roll. His connection to Newington lives on through current student, Matthew Fisher (11/KL), who is a relative through his mother’s family. I am grateful to Wendy Fisher for providing information used in this story.

Mr David Roberts
College Archivist

Year 7 Vaccinations

Vaccinations for Year 7

As part of their schools program, NSW Health will offer the following vaccinations to Year 7 only:

HPV vaccine in three doses – in previous years, Newington has had an over 80% uptake of this vaccine.

Diptheria-Tetanus-Pertussis (whooping cough) booster – one dose, brought forward from age 15 years in the Blue Book.

Varicella – one dose. This is not required if your son has had chicken pox previously or if he has had a previous vaccination for chicken pox.

Please note that consent forms were given to each Year 7 student last week. If you wish your son to be vaccinated, please complete the form and return the form to Mentors promptly. Spare forms can be collected from me.

The dates for Year 7 vaccinations are March 10, May 19 and September 8. If your son is absent on any of these days the nurses will be able to ‘catch them up’ at the next visit. If you have any questions please feel free to contact me or if your son is particularly nervous about vaccinations please do let me know.

Healthy Breakfast Ideas

Eating breakfast is an opportunity to ‘break the fast’ from the night before and refuel your energy stores. You are more likely to eat well during the day if you have a healthy breakfast.

Some studies have shown that skipping breakfast can make weight control more difficult and it can also make kids feel tired, restless, or irritable.

Do you eat breakfast? Remember children imitate their parents behaviour!

Here are some healthy options:

A bowl of whole grain cereal with reduced-fat milk and sliced fresh fruit
A delicious smoothie made from reduced-fat milk, fresh fruit and yoghurt
English muffins or crumpets with some reduced-fat cheese, baked beans or avocado
Untoasted muesli or rolled oats
Poached eggs on whole grain toast with tomato, or boiled egg with soldiers
Prepare some bircher muesli the night before
Mushrooms on toast
Hummus on toast with avocado
Pancakes with fresh fruit
Limit fruit juice to ½ cup as it has a high sugar content and is often low in fibre
Hot chocolate or milo in milk

Sister Margaret Bates
College Nurse

Building Resilience

Psychological resilience is defined as an individual’s ability to properly adapt to stress and diversity. It can be learned and should therefore be seen as a process rather than a personality trait. Enjoy success by all means, but experiencing failure is just as important.

People with resilience are not free from negative emotions, rather they navigate their way through them. Adapting to challenging and adverse situations is a skill that can be learned and a skill we should be teaching our children. We can introduce some protective factors which assist our boys with coping, and even growing, through disappointments and failures.

There are several skills which can sustain a person’s resilience such as making realistic plans and taking realistic steps towards achieving them, possessing a positive self-concept and knowing one’s key strengths, being able to communicate well and solve problems with assistance, and manage one’s own impulses and feelings. Resilience is a central theme at Newington, appearing in our Vision, our Learning Framework, and our Co-curricular Cultural Framework.

The ability to persevere, to persistently work towards a goal, even if success is not immediately forthcoming, is known as ‘grit’. Grit can be linked to Positive Psychology, and particularly persistence and endurance. The ability to continue trying and not to give up is a huge indicator for success. To our boys these can seem quite abstract terms but with specific examples from their day-to-day lives, they can contribute to their own success.

I have long been a fan of the marathon as an athletic event. It does not have the dramatic excitement of the 100m, but it shows athletes when they are physically and mentally exhausted who continue to work hard and push on. This event shows incredible resilience and grit.

Recently we celebrated the success of many 2015 students who excelled academically. They could not have achieved their success without resilience and grit. Talent alone could not have led to their achievements. And what about our rowers? On 12 March, the whole school will support them at the Head of the River out at Penrith. There can be no doubt that they have shown incredible resilience and grit. Things have not always gone their way this season but we admire their endurance and persistent effort, often without a single supporter in sight.

Failure to achieve something immediately is a good thing in the long run. Bill Gates, founder of Microsoft, and a corporate icon, encourages us to “heed the lessons of failure”. He adds that “success is a lousy teacher; it seduces smart people into thinking they can’t lose”.

Our advice to our boys at the school is to manage failures appropriately. Avoid shying away from shortcomings and aim to improve them. There is much support here at Newington. Their mentors, teachers, counsellors and Heads of House can plan the reasonable and realistic steps to achieve and to manage some failure. Our boys must develop this skill of resilience for their own benefit; a skill that will be with them for life so when they do experience disappointment and failure, they are better able to cope with it and grow from it.

Mr Bob Meakin
Deputy Head of Stanmore (Students)

Swim Club competes in Ocean Swim for a good cause

On Sunday 21 February, eight students, two staff members and a committed group of parents and siblings fronted up to support the Rainbow Club’s Malabar Magic Ocean Swim at Malabar Beach. Swimming in less than favourable conditions, the Newington College team battled on to complete the race to help raise money for the Rainbow Club.

The Rainbow Club is a charity organisation whose aim is to give children with a disability the opportunity and confidence to extend their abilities through swimming. The Rainbow Club has a strong association with Newington College – one of their branches is based at our swimming pool every Saturday afternoon.

In preparation for the swim, the students practiced doing 500m sets to get used to swimming the distance. Year 8 swimmer Zak Murray (8/MO) said, “I really enjoy swimming and when I found out there was going to be a 1km ocean swim I quickly decided to do it. The good thing about this particular swim was the fact that it was for charity.”

On race day, there was rain and sporadic lightning making many swimmers nervous. The event organisers tried to ease everyone’s jitters by telling a couple of jokes over the loudspeaker before the 9:00 AM start.

Another competitor, Liam Wood (11/PR), pointed out his sense of achievement at having completed the race in such tough conditions. “It was great to know that I put myself in a pretty uncomfortable, cold and wet position on the day, for the benefit of someone else. It would have been very easy to pull out, but I didn’t!”

“I would recommend this swim to others,” he continued, “especially if they’re new to ocean swimming, because the water is pretty flat, so it’s a good way to ease into the sport. And of course, the feeling of achievement when you finish is great”.

A big pat on the back to all seven Swim Club members who completed the 1km ocean swim:

Nik Albin (9/FL)
Tom Ball (9/KL)
Isaac Carriline (9/MO)
Zak Murray (8/MO)
Finn Oddy (10/LE)
Tom Petkovich (10/JN)
Luca Polvere (10/KL)

Congratulation also to Liam Wood (11/PR) and Director of Aquatics, Mr Ryan Moar, on completing the 2.4km ocean swim.

A number of other students including Charlie Farr-Jones (7/JN) and William Gray (7/KL) also took part and we commend them on their stellar efforts!

Alvin Song (ON 2015) debuts at ENCORE

Huge congratulations to Alvin Song (ON 2015) on making his debut at ENCORE at the Sydney Opera House. Alvin performed his Music Extension ensemble piece and the first movement of Beethoven’s ‘Ghost’ Piano Trio for the concert.

ENCORE showcases the best performances and compositions from all HSC music courses from all schools throughout NSW. Whilst there have been many nominations, this is the first time in over 12 years that Newington has been included in this program. Alvin is Storr Scholar and his performance at the Sydney Opera House Concert Hall stage was the ‘cherry on the top’ of two years of great experiences for this fine young man from Jakarta, Indonesia. He was joined in this performance by Cellist Val Suraev (ON 2014) and Violinist and Newington staff member, Hiroko Rossé.

Maasai Warriors at Newington

As part of their tour Down Under, the Maasai Cricket Warriors dropped by the Stanmore campus to play a game of Last Man Stands and shine a light on social issues faced by young Kenyans today. All the way from Laikipia, Kenya, the Maasai Cricket Warriors have been pioneers in drawing attention to the growing HIV/AIDs epidemic, drug and substance abuse and gender discrimination in Kenya – all through the camaraderie of sport!

We hope to welcome our new friends back on campus soon and thank them for taking the time to come and visit us!

Academic Excellence Assembly 2016

The annual Academic Excellence Assembly in Term 1 is always a fantastic occasion to formally celebrate the hard-earned results of last year’s Year 12 boys. It’s the one time when these boys return to the College free from the stresses of the exam season and refreshed after a good Summer’s break to take their place on stage and reflect on how far they have come, as well as to reflect on the road that lies ahead. For the boys in the crowd, still in their Black and White, they look on with wonder and admiration. The whole assembly is one that inspires hope and propels us to strive towards something better, harder and higher.

Traditionally, the dux of the Year 12 class who is seven years the senior of the current boys being celebrated is invited back to address the Year 7 students. This year’s speaker is Eric Shi (ON 2010) and for his speech he took a moment to reflect, rather ironically, on the lessons that you don’t learn through academic excellence.

Now on his way to starting his sixth year at University, Eric offered some wise words on the fickleness of failure and how sometimes, despite one’s greatest efforts to control all variables and work hard towards a desired result, things won’t go your way. Despite this however, Eric says that “to be able to extract the positives even from unfair and undeserved moments of adversity can strengthen our resolve and preparedness for the future.”

Eric also mentioned that another thing he has learnt during his time beyond the College gates was that while plans can be useful, it’s equally important to examine where those plans may lead you, and what goals lie at the end. Will achieving that goal and being successful bring you the experiences and teach you the life lessons you desire?

“Sometimes, taking time to reflect about our own motivations not only allows us to define success in a way that makes it easier for us to drive ourselves to achieve our goals, it allows us to view our past experiences through new lenses and to learn new lessons from them. Most importantly, it can also expose us to new challenges and new possibilities for success.”

“I am certain that many more successes lie in wait for all of you, even if the path that leads there may resist you at times and your final destination may surprise you.”

To read Eric’s full speech, please click here.

Update from Basketball

Northern Inland Academy of Sport Basketball Program (NIAS)

The weekend of 12 to 14 February saw the Northern Inland Academy of Sport (NIAS) basketball program visit Newington for a weekend of all things “hoops”. The 20 athletes (10 boys and 10 girls) and four coaches were exposed to on-floor practice sessions, games against our boys and a visit to Sydney University to watch the Sydney Flames play Perth in the Women’s National Basketball League (WNBL). Some of the highlights for the NIAS athletes, who hail from North/West NSW, included a tour of the Stanmore campus and some quality time spent with our boarders. For the record books, the NIAS boys team defeated our 16As and Newington’s 15As defeated the NIAS girls.

CIS Dinner

Friday 19 February saw the NSW Combined Independent Schools Sports Council hold the 2015 Awards Presentation evening at the Waterview in Bicentennial Park, Homebush. Newington was well represented with four boys gaining Honours for there performances at State and National level. Receiving NSW Blues were Grant Anticevich (12/KL) and Makuach Maluach (12/FL) for Basketball and Cameron Murray (ON 2015) for Rugby League. Augus Ole (7/PR) received his NSW Reds for Basketball. Congratulations to all the boys on your achievements in 2015 and we look forward to witnessing your future prowess in the sporting arena.

Mr Rex Nottage
Director of Basketball

Jonathan Edwards (9/ME) and Jaison Burgess (9/MA) Win UOW STEM Award

Two Year 9 Newington boys – Jonathan Edwards (9/ME) and Jaison Burgess (9/MA) – have won first place and runner up in the Year 9 Industrial Technology Engineering Competition hosted by the Faculty of Engineering and Information Sciences at the University of Wollongong.

Both Jonathan and Jaison studied structural and mechanical engineering that makes up part of the Stage 5 Engineering program. Aimed at engaging students with this multi-facetted discipline, the program required boys to design a flying structure which could travel a minimum of 25 metres from the Function Centre balcony in the Taylor Sports Centre. The model planes needed to be tested and the boys composed designs electronically before building a prototype. The documentation from their work (otherwise known as the Engineering Report) was what both Jonathan and Jaison entered in the STEM competition.

Jonathan’s work was so impressive that it was announced as the winner of the entire Year 9 Industrial Technologies competition and he was presented with a cheque for $375.

Congratulations to both Jonathan and Jaison!