In this issue

Newsletter Article: Term 1, Week 10 2024

Our Dynamic leaders of Stuartholme

It was exciting recently to celebrate the launch of Stuartholme’s 2024-2027 Strategic Plan which builds on the goals and vision of our Founder and lays the foundation for us to achieve its central goal to “Shape the girls who will shape the world”.

A key strategic pillar is sustaining our dynamic workforce culture.

Much is being written in the media nationally at present about the major challenges facing Australia’s teacher workforce and its school leadership pipeline.

At Stuartholme we are well ahead of the curve with our “Dynamic Workforce Plan” where we invest in our staff – our most valuable resource, at all stages of their career.

We are very excited about our well-established partnership with Cut through Coaching, and our continued implementation of the Habits of Leadership program which develops the leadership skills and capabilities of both our existing and aspirant leaders.

Our Stuartholme leaders are also certainly making an impact on the national and international education conversation:

• Tom Lillyman, Leader of Learning – Careers, and Emma McCarthy, Director of Sport have been successful in their expressions of interest to present their innovative work in New Zealand to a broad Sacred Heart Community at the annual conference.
• Emma McCarthy has also been appointed as the Coach for Rowing Queensland which is a fine achievement.
• A shout out to our staff that are authoring key educational texts. Ben Hegerty, Leader of Learning – Humanities, contributing to the revised edition of a Senior Ancient History textbook with Cambridge expected to go to print later this year and also Wendy Macdonald, Leader of Learning – Science, is working on a revised edition of a senior Psychology textbook for Oxford University Press. Jarod Costantini, Director of Staff Development and Co-Curricular, has also contributed to the recently published Cambridge Humanities and Social Sciences text for Queensland.
• Lucy Harkin, Leader of Learning – the Arts, continues to shape Arts Education through her work as Vice President of Drama Queensland and a myriad of work in partnership with industry and through her contribution to teaching resources to be published in new plays this year.

 Wishing you a Blessed Easter

It is indeed such a privilege to be blessed with the talented leaders that we have at Stuartholme and to implement the range of innovations where we are leading the way in “Shaping the Girls Who Shape the World”.

I wish you and your families a blessed Easter and look forward to seeing you in Term 2. Each of us will continue to play an important role in supporting each child to develop the courage, compassion and confidence required to make a difference in the world, or in the lives of others.

Deborah Lonsdale-Walker
Deputy Principal

Newsletter Article: Term 1, Week 10 2024

As we journey deeply into Holy week we are reminded of Jesus’ acts of service, selfless love and resurrection into new life.

On Holy Thursday, Jesus demonstrated an example of perfect love, humility and service as he showed us a way forward in intimate leadership for ourselves and each other.

Good Friday is a time of reflection, where we remember the suffering and death of Jesus on the cross. As we contemplate Jesus last moments, we seek to deepen our understanding of the infinite love of Christ’s sacrifice, and to reflect on our own capacity for love and selflessness.

Easter Saturday and Sunday, welcomes our celebration of the resurrection of Christ, and the triumph of life over death. This day serves as a reminder of the hope and joy that can be found in our faith, and the transformative power of Christ’s message.

As a community we are richer for the opportunity to share in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus as we are renewed in this Easter season!

Andrew Beiers

Dean of Mission

Newsletter Article: Term 1, Week 10 2024

Over the weekend I had the opportunity to participate in a retreat program with some of our Religious of the Sacred Heart and colleagues from Sacred Heart schools across Australia and New Zealand.  It was an opportunity to connect and learn more about Saint Madeleine Sophie Barat’s story and her vision for the education of young women. Sophie received a holistic education that was remarkable at the

time.  Our students today benefit from her passion and commitment to providing other girls with similar opportunities for learning.

Sophie’s efforts to ensure her students’ intellectual formation, at a time when universities were not open to women, are captured in some of the 14,000 letters that she wrote over her lifetime.  Our own Sister Rita was kind enough to share some of these letters with me.  Below are some excerpt which communicate, in Sophie’s words, her courageous approach to academia, especially reading and writing.

In 1816, Sophie advised Adrienne Michel: “If you have the letters of Saint Jerome, ask to read the ones on the education of little Paula and Pacatula; those are the only ones you will read.”

Books were often in short supply, so she asked a few Religious to write them.  In 1819, Sophie commissioned Mother Michel with this task: “…what has been begun (a copy of the Constitution) will be finished by someone else’ write the history text-book instead.”

Nearly 40 years later, she asks Mother de Curzon: “Do you have the book of Mgr du Panloup (sic) on education?  It is a marvellous book!  It is intended for young men – he wrote it for them – but so many of his maxims can be applied to women!  And so we are giving it to our school-mistresses, and it helps them a great deal to succeed in their exalted and very thorny task of Education!”

Today, thanks to Sophie’s ambition, our experience of education is far more rosy than thorny.  Her passion for writing and reading lives on through our students today.  Our Year 5 scholars have been learning about Sophie and recently wrote and illustrated their own picture books to share her story.  This terrific work showcases their commitment to learning and I am sure that Sophie would be very proud of their efforts on these projects and throughout their first term at Stuartholme.

Well done to all our students and staff for a successful term of academic growth and discovery. I wish everyone in our Sacred Heart community a happy and holy Easter and look forward to journeying with you into Term 2 following the well-deserved break.

Annie Van Homrigh

Dean of Teaching and Learning Innovation 

Newsletter Article: Term 1, Week 10 2024

To conclude the term, I am delighted that our School Psychologists have provided a wonderful article for you, around the benefits of Rest and Restoration for Young People.

I wish you all a happy and holy Easter.

Elizabeth Foxover

Dean of Student Wellbeing  

As we head into the Easter break as a community, it is important to consider how your adolescent and your family can rest, restore energy, and spend time together in a meaningful way.

What do you consider when you think of the word “rest”? Dr Saundra Dalton-Smith is a physician, researcher and the author of the book “Sacred Rest: Recover Your Life, Renew Your Energy, Restore Your Sanity.”

Saundra considers rest in a range of different forms including physical, mental, social, emotional, spiritual, sensory and creative rest. You may want to consider which types of rest you and your family need more of over the holiday break.

1. Physical Rest (both active and passive): Active physical rest links to improving the body’s circulation and calming the nervous system. This may include soothing activities such as stretching and yoga. Passive physical rest includes sleeping and taking a nap.
2. Mental Rest: Indicators for needing mental rest may include having multiple “tabs” open in your brain at once, issues concentrating and struggling to calm the brain and settle for sleep. Mental rest may involve the process of “slowing down”, mindfulness activities, taking regular breaks throughout the day or writing down thoughts and feelings.
3. Social Rest:Social rest involves the process of assessing the friendships and relationships that “fill our cup” verses relationships that can drain and exhaust us. You may want to help your adolescent to reflect on how they feel following time spent with different friends and whether they need “social rest” from friends that may be becoming draining.
4. Emotional Rest: This is defined as having the time and space to freely express your feelings and reduce people-pleasing behaviours. Saying “yes” to others often means saying “no” to oneself, particularly when we do not have the emotional capacity to be helping others. This can often lead to burnout. Does your adolescent agree to things that they don’t want to do? Do they fill their schedule up with little time for themselves? They may need emotional rest.
5. Spiritual Rest: Spiritual rest is the ability to connect beyond the physical and mental and feel a deep sense of belonging, love, acceptance and purpose.To receive this, you and your adolescent may want to consider engaging in something greater than yourself and add prayer, meditation or community involvement to your daily routine.
6. Sensory Rest: Our world is overstimulating –bright lights, computer screens, background noise and multiple conversations to name a few. This can lead to a sense of overwhelm. Sensory rest can involve doing something as simple as closing your eyes for a minute in the middle of the day, as well as by unplugging from electronics at the end of every day. Intentional moments of sensory deprivation can begin to undo the damage inflicted by the over-stimulating world.
7. Creative rest: Creative rest reawakens the awe and wonder inside each of us. Nature is perfect for creative rest – heading to the beach, going for a hike or a simple walk in the park can provide this. Enjoying the arts (in any form) is also perfect for creative rest.

You can find Dr Dalton-Smith’s TED talk on this subject here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZGNN4EPJzGk&feature=youtu.be

 Apps helpful for rest:

• Smiling minds
• Headspace
• iBreathe

 From the Wellbeing Team

Eloise Conrad, Sally Blight & Natalie Morgan (School Psychologists)

Newsletter Article: Term 1, Week 10 2024

As we approach the end of term, it is crucial to take a moment to pause and reflect on our well-being. Amidst the hustle and bustle of academic and extra curricular pursuits, it is easy to overlook the importance of rest. Yet, rest is not merely a luxury- it is a fundamental necessity for our physical, mental and emotional health.

How often have you- or your daughters- despite having a good night sleep, awoken feeling tired? Recently, after Stuartholme Community Mass, I had the privilege of sharing, with our boarders, a TED Ed talk by Dr Saundra Dalton-Smith the difference between sleep and rest and the various types of rest we all need to prevent feelings of exhaustion and overwhelm. Dr Dalton-Smith highlights seven distinct types of rest, each essential for our overall well-being.

Physical Rest – lack of sleep and/or overactivity can drain our body’s energy and drive. The two types of physical rest can help:

Passive – get restful sleep (7+ hours a night); take power naps, as needed.

Active – stretch; gentle movement; take deep breaths; get a massage.

Mental Rest – to recover from focusing on too many things at once or overtaxing our thinking:

take breaks during productive periods or from problem-solving; schedule a time specifically for “worrying;” write down your to-dos; create a transition ritual to separate work and life; listen to music or meditate; doing something mundane, like folding laundry, washing dishes, etc.

Emotional Rest – withholding our emotions, or not expressing them freely, requires a lot of energy. Emotional rest deficit occurs when you feel like you can’t be authentic. Counter this by creating space to process your emotions, share your inner experiences with others, and be your truest self:

Honour your boundaries; connect with people you feel safe with; talk to a therapist or a good listener to relieve yourself of emotional labour

Social Rest – consider your relationships, and their positivity, support, and meaning:

Spend more time with people who give you energy, support you, bring out the best in you, and less with those that steal your energy; for some, it means taking a break from socializing, or blocking out time to be alone

Creative Rest – if most of your day involves coming up with solutions to problems, your creative energy most likely needs a replenish. Dr. Dalton-Smith writes that creative rest is about reawakening “the awe and wonder inside each of us.” We need to make time for things that inspire us: create to create, rather than produce; read a book for fun; go on a walk in nature; take in a sunrise or sunset; visit a museum; engage with inspiring music, documentaries, etc.

Spiritual Rest – we all have a fundamental need for belonging! Take part in something bigger than yourself: engage in things that give you a sense of meaning and purpose; volunteer; find communities; do something that grounds you, like meditate; pray, recite affirmations or mantras; participate in faith-based activities (if aligned with your beliefs)

Sensory Rest – our senses are continuously receiving input from our surroundings. Give your senses a break from external stimuli: wear blue light glasses during screen time; unplug from technology; find quiet and calm; sit in silence or dim lighting; take a break from social media(s); turn off notifications.

Our boarders have accepted the challenge to reflect on which 1-2 types they feel they are experiencing the biggest rest deficits. Over time, with the support and guidance from staff, they will continue to build the different types of rest into the structure of their daily and weekly lives to provide the most benefit. Developing an ongoing recovery process allows us to produce at a sustainably high level, while maintaining a well-rested and balanced life.

This month, we focussed on our physical, social and spiritual rest. Recently, we had the pleasure of welcoming Alum, Nicola Bone’s Sound off for Schools, to lead our boarders in a special wellness session. We were guided through a transformative session encompassing yoga, pilates and mediation. The feedback from our boarders was overwhelmingly positive, underscoring the importance of providing our young people with opportunities to prioritise their mental and physical health.

As we head into the holidays, I encourage everyone to take a moment or two to examine the types of rest they may be in deficit of and try to incorporate these into daily routines.

I wish you all a very restful, happy and joyful Easter!

Jane Morris
Dean of Boarding

The Lift Her Up award recognises students who display Compassion, Courage, or Confidence during Term One. Congratulations to the following students.

1. Indigo Hill

Indigo was nominated for her confidence, compassion, and courage. She isn’t confident in the way that she is boastful in her actions or words, she’s confident in herself and her ability to make people smile. She has an outstanding sense of humour that lights up the room and makes everyone around her feel warm.

She constantly goes out of her way to make people feel loved. The way that she spreads her compassion is in the way she gives her time and attention – she’s an excellent listener when you need someone to chat to and always speaks extremely highly of the people she loves.

She shows her courage everyday as part of her morning routine – arriving at school, walking all the way over to the year 12 area to drop off school bags and having to face Amy Kampe head on.

2. Poppy Noonan

Poppy has demonstrated Compassion to everyone from peers to teachers, truly demonstrating what it means to be a Stuartholme Girl.

She is a kind friend and always willing to help out anyone. Her calm, happy nature is always appreciated by everyone around her and she’s always willing to help out the younger girls. Everyone would agree that she is a sweet, loving and compassionate young woman. She is loved by everyone around her.

3. Annie King

Annie was nominated for her courage. She’s not one to show it, but she perseveres through tough times in her life without blinking an eye or letting it show. Her courage often goes unnoticed because of her infallible composure, but it’s a testament to her that she puts a brave face on and carries on with her life regardless of what is happening. It takes a special kind of courage to do this kind of thing, but Annie King is a prime example.

4. Catherine Katter

Catherine displays confidence by working on the “Lord Mayor’s Environmental Youth Leadership Project.” She represented Stuartholme at this event, showing many signs of confidence and leadership through all her hard work and determination. She takes a positive and confident approach to this project and shows great skills of a leader.

This girl is also one of the genius’ behind the new Stuartholme Pantry Project for people in need (to be launched in term 2). She is unfailingly kind and generous in sharing her ideas and talents.

5. Serafina Bird 

Serafina shows both confidence and courage. This student is someone who goes above and beyond and shows confidence to all her classmates and teachers.  She is always a helping hand with-in the classroom and will always have your back. Her courage is unmatched and throughout the term, her strength has truly been a gift to watch.

6. Lucy Hedberg

The nominator wrote, “I believe this girl has demonstrated the 3 C’s through her captaincy of our team this term. With her kindness, empathy and humour she made me, and every AFL girl feel included and empowered to try our hardest and have fun whilst we do it. I’ve never played AFL before, yet she was right there to cheer me on both on and off the field. She brought the positive vibes and kept the stu spirit alive. Not only does she show compassion for her team members, but she shows it to her coaches, being the first to put up her hand to help with pack up and makes the extra effort to really thank her coaches. I believe Lucy Hedberg truly earns this award as she’s not only a great team member but she’s also a great friend. Everyone needs a lucy in their life.”

Dear Year 8 Parents, Guardians and Students

As Term 1 comes to an end, the Stuartholme Arts Department would like to look ahead to Term 2 and share a ‘Save The Date’ with you all!

The Arts Department warmly invites you to our Year 8 Arts Extravaganza evening on Friday 7th June from 5:30pm for a 6pm start

Arts Extravaganza is a wonderful opportunity for all Stuartholme Year 8 students to share their achievements in Drama, Visual Art and Music with the community.  During the evening, we aim to open up our Arts classrooms to you all and share with you our students’ creative work. Students will be performing and exhibiting their class work and assessment from Semester One.

This year we are very excited to premiere our production of ‘She Doesn’t Go Here‘ a brand-new play written by award winning playwright, Steve Pirie. 

The evening will include:

•            A production of She Doesn’t Go Here performed by Drama students with features from Music and Visual Art students 

•            Music students performing collaborative work focused on popular music

•            Visual Art Exhibition 

Drinks and light snacks will be available to purchase from the café from 5:30pm   

More details of the event will come in Term 2!

We look forward to you joining us for an evening of sharing and celebrating the achievements of our Year 8 Arts’ students.

Please feel free to contact Lucy Harkin (Leader of Learning – The Arts) or your child’s teacher classroom Arts teacher if you have any questions or queries.

Tickets for our inaugural Picnic on the Green event are closing today! Secure yours before sales close by clicking here.

A warm thank you to our amazing gold and bronze sponsors, including Cooltimes, Green Options, Armstrong Builders, Eaton Services Group, and Eurofurn, for their generous support of our inaugural Picnic on the Green.

At the Picnic on the Green there will be tables reserved for parents in each year group.  If you are interested in being allocated a seat at a table for your year level, once a ticket has been booked, please contact Lauren Rose at events@stuartholme.com.

There are still sponsorship opportunities available, to find out more or to get involved please contact events@stuartholme.com.

Stuartholme Sport Term 1 Recap

Congratulations to our sport students for an amazing start to the year!

Over 600 of you represent Stuartholme at one sport or more and we have had huge success so far!

Some of our major highlights include:

• Stuart won the interhouse swimming carnival, as well as the Spirit Stick.
• Two records were broken by some speedy relay teams, unfortunately not the staff team though!
• Stuartholme won the 2024 CaSSSA Swimming Championships for the eighth year in a row and our Year 5s did us proud at their carnival, finishing third.
• Our Tennis team finished Runner Up and brought home the Percentage Trophy for the tenth year in a row!
• We had two teams in the Water Polo finals – 15 Red and 13 Red. Our 12 Gold Team smashed their season with a cracker game to win bronze. We had a record number of teams in the quarter finals which is great progress for our team.
• Our year 5s finished third in their touch football gala competition against other CaSSSA schools.
• The students battled a tough game to take out the inaugural staff v student netball challenge.
• Seven riders – Bridgette, Gabi, Scarlett, Laura, Piper, Annie and Sophia are representing Stuartholme at the SEQ Regional Equestrian competition this weekend as they work towards qualification for the State Championships later in the year.

Away from STU, some of our students have been performing incredibly including:

• Gretta Johnson was selected to represent Australia at the Cross Country World Championships. She was also selected in the Queensland Triathlon Team but was unable to travel. Gretta will be competing tonight at 8pm (11am Belgrade time). If you would like to watch, please register via the link https://worldathletics.org/competitions/world-athletics-cross-country-championships/belgrade24/where-to-watch?countryCode=AU

• Beth Hewett was selected to represent Queensland in the Open Womens Canoe Polo Team
• Daisy Plawecki won a silver medal at the Australian Rowing Championships and Greta Nott and Millie Davies were selected to represent Queensland in the Schoolgirls Pathway Team. Sophia Wright is the cox of the Queensland Masters Mens Rowing Team.
• Sophie Fryer, Olive Plawecki, Tyra Jensen, Elke Jensen and Greta Nott all won State Championships in QLD and NSW and competed at the Australian Rowing Championships.
• Addie Przybylak is a member of the Football QLD Emerging Goalkeeper Program
• Hayley Wilcox represented Queensland Metro in the Regional Softball Championships in Canberra.
• Bridgette Dalmau is in the Queensland Young Rider Squad for Dressage
• Grace Gardiner came fourth at the Queensland Athletics Championships
• Thirteen students have been selected to represent Met West at their respective State Championships across water polo, triathlon, swimming, rugby league, rugby union and hockey.

From the 2024 CaSSSA Sport Season, our AFL team finished undefeated and will play their rescheduled final next term. The Senior Cricket team finished Runner Up in the finals.

Each term, we select the Hallmark Award winners for each team.

The Hallmark Award recognises students who lead their team with good sportsmanship, 100% effort and great attitude. They are considered great role model and awesome team player.

On Wednesday, we had a wonderful morning watching the Year 5 students perform for one another. We extend our gratitude to all our tutors who have done an exceptional job in just 8 weeks of running the program.

We eagerly anticipate holding a performance for the Year 5 parents at the end of Term 2.

12 Business – engaging in Unit 3 Topic 2 – Strategic Planning

 Year 12 Business students have enjoyed a productive and successful Term 1, completing Unit 3 Topic 2 on Strategic Planning, submitting IA2 assessment meaning they have now completed 50% of their summative assessment and engaging in rich learning experiences including a recent field trip to Sealy as reported by one of our year 12 Business students and an alum guest speaker.

Field Trip to Sealy

Our trip to Sealy for our business excursion was a real eye-opener into how they make their mattresses. We first explored how their springs were made and how different types of springs changed the comfort/style of the mattress itself. Then, we got to tour their second factory, where their mattresses were made using the springs we previously saw being manufactured. This also included different fabrics and pieces of foam being built into the mattress. We even got to lounge on an $18,000 mattress, which, I have to say, was like sleeping on a cloud. What I found the most interesting was the Research and Development department, where they would test multiple fabrics, springs etc, to find the products with the highest quality. They even had a machine that would make a mattress age 10 years! This experience was very insightful, and I hope to one day own that $18,000 mattress. By Sophie Horswill

Guest Speaker

In Week 5 we were fortunate to have Stuartholme alum, Sisha Heffer, visit to speak to us about marketing and share valuable insights into its different types of marketing in a real-world context from her experience. One of the many helpful pieces of information Sisha shared with us was on brand marketing – the process of growing a relationship between a brand and its customers. It involves the customer’s perception of a brand and trying to get the brand message out and known. Sisha shared that an effective way to do this is through member marketing, which is the idea of keeping customers loyal to the business. In her words, “it’s easier to keep a customer than acquire a new one” which aligns with our study of the “80/20” rule known as the Pareto Principle.

THE HIVE – ALL WELCOME

The latest edition of the Cor Unum is now available online. If you would like a hard copy please visit Main Reception to collect.

Dear Parents, Caregivers, Staff, and Students,

Stuartholme School’s Celebration of Excellence serves as a pivotal moment for us to recognise and honour educational excellence that define Stuartholme. It is an occasion where we come together to acknowledge the remarkable achievements and contributions of our students, staff, and community members.

We write to inform you of an important update regarding the Celebration of Excellence event. After consultation with QPAC the date has had to be rescheduled to Wednesday, 16 October.

More information around the event will be shared closer to the time.

Thank you for your continued support.

Warm regards,

Daniel Crump

GeoSnapShot | Photo access

Stuartholme School uses GeoSnapShot, a platform for securely storing and sharing photos from school events and activities with our community.

To access GeoSnapShot, you can navigate through your MyStuartholme toolbar under ‘View Photos,’ as shown in the image below.

Please note: Your photos will not show on your GeoSnapShot account if you do not have photo permission.

If you have any questions or concerns, please contact marketing@stuartholme.com.

Reminder | Update details on Consent2go

This is a reminder to please check that your daughters photo consent details are up-to-date in Consent2Go via the MyStuartholme- Update details tile.

Details that are up-to-date give photo permission for student images to be used in social media, print and online publications. Students that have consent will also have permission to have their photos uploaded to GeoSnapShot, a program that Stuartholme uses to share photos easily with families. You can access these images through MyStuartholme.

If you have any questions or concerns, please contact marketing@stuartholme.com.

NEW Labelling Service Available

The School Shop offers day and boarding students a labelling service. A minimum of 10 garments are to be placed into a bag with relevant paper work obtained through the school shop. The items are then sent to the laundry to be named. The laundry will return the labelled items back to the school shop for payment. Labelling will be done usually on a Wednesday with items returned to the school shop the following Friday.

You can purchase these along with the other products available at our School Shop through Flexischools: https://flexischools.com.au/

If you need a new unform and it to be professionally fitted, book an appointment here: SHS School Shop (office365.com)

HOST AN INTERNATIONAL STUDENT ATTENDING STUARTHOLME SCHOOL

Stuartholme has partnered with International Student Care Australia (ISCA) to provide international students the experience of living with an Australian family and immersing themselves in the Australian culture and way of life. Homestay Accommodation is available to International students as a temporary option when the boarding house is at capacity.

Stuartholme School Homestay Program is operated by our approved third-party provider, International Student Care Australia (ISCA).

If you would be interested in hosting an International Student, please contact John Coade to find out more.

Mob:    + 61 0427 269 360

Tel:       + 61 7 3851 0704

Email:     isca@isca.net.au

Web:    http://www.isca.net.au