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High Notes, Vol 24 No 5, March 03 2023

From the Principal

High Talent

Ethan Yu (8F) has been selected to represent NSW at the Australian Youth Beach Volleyball Championships. Great work, Ethan!

Early Bird Discount ends on Friday, March 10

In order to help all areas of the school we offer a substantial discount to parents who pay their complete invoices before Friday, March 10. Having substantial funds early in the year allows us to make sure that orders are made promptly and that the boys get the maximum benefit out of equipment and services deployed for them. Capital contributed to the Building Fund can be invested for future projects or applied immediately to projects such as the new tennis clubroom, junior library air conditioning and equipment for the Governors Centre. Please support us as we carry on High’s self-help culture to put our fundraising money to work as soon as possible!

Weights Room 2023

Yearly memberships for the weights room close on Friday, March 10. If you want to have unlimited access to a supervised weights program, act now. No further membership opportunities will be offered after that date. At just $285 for a full year of unlimited supervised sessions, this is great value for money.

Sir Michael Marmot to visit High

Sir Michael Marmot CH FRCP FFPM FMedSci FBA is Professor of Epidemiology and Public Health at University College, London. He is the founding father of social epidemiology or the academic study of how society influences health, particularly cardiovascular health, and of health inequalities within and among countries.  Sir Michael was appointed a Member of the Order of the Companions of Honour in 2023 after having been Knighted in 2000.  The Order of the Companions of Honour was founded on June 4, 1917, by King George V as a reward for outstanding achievements. It is restricted to 65 members and has evolved as a reward for a major contribution to the arts, science, medicine or government lasting over a long period of time.  Its motto is ‘In Action Faithful and in Honour Clear!’ All living citizens of the Commonwealth realms are eligible for this very rare and prestigious award. Sir Michael is a High Alumnus from 1961.

Sir Michael will be visiting Sydney in March and has kindly offered to speak at the Governors Centre at 6pm on March 23. His topic will be Social Justice and Health. His synopsis:

"Taking action to reduce health inequalities is a matter of social justice. In developing strategies for tackling health inequalities, we need to confront the social gradient in health not just the difference between the worst off and everybody else. There is clear evidence when we look across countries that national policies make a difference and that much can be done in cities, towns and local areas. But policies and interventions must not be confined to the health care system; they need to address the conditions in which people are born, grow, live, work and age. The evidence shows that economic circumstances are important but are not the only drivers of health inequalities. Tackling the health gap will take action, based on sound evidence, across the whole of society."

Old Boys, students, parents, staff all welcome. Don’t miss this opportunity to hear the insights of the foremost world scholar in his field of expertise. Please register for tickets at the link below.

Our School Values in action – Compassion

I received this email from a commuter recently which demonstrates our school values in action. Well done, Ryan!

‘Usually when I see a high school student I tend to think of them to be disturbing and disrespectful, however a student from your school by the name of Ryan Park strongly disproved my perception with his actions. As he watched me struggle to lift my pram onto a bus today, not only did he help me lift up the pram but also gave up his seat to create space for me to sit. I think Ryan's actions are evidence of the great character Sydney Boys aspires to instil in its students. One cannot stress the benefits of compassion and empathy, and it is encouraging to know that students like Ryan uphold these principles both inside and outside of the classroom. I hope that other high school students see this behaviour and encourage them to be respectful and compassionate to others just like Ryan’.

Funds Held for the benefit of High boys

The ̽»¨ÊÓƵ Foundation Ltd holds funds for the benefit of the school. The SHS Advancement Fund enables tax-deductible donations to be made for the purposes of school buildings, scholarships and student support by way of bursaries. The Endowment Fund is designed to hold monies from non-tax deductible sources – bequests, trusts, gifts and the like. Accounts for the Foundation show that as of December 31 2022, there were the following balances within the Endowment Fund: $128,543 for the Ethel Killip Memorial Sub-Fund; $197,781 for Prizes; $140,551 for the Phil Day Memorial Scholarship Fund; $116,127 for the Student Participation Account and $9,227 for the Mitchell Seow Memorial Prize.

In total, SHSF manages $592,229 in funds for the school within the Endowment Fund. Artworks owned by or on loan to the school from the Ethel Killip Memorial Art Collection held in trust by SHSF are valued at c$200,000.

Usually, half of the interest earned on these managed funds is donated to the school for uses as determined by the Fund Deeds. However, due to a sustained period of very low interest rates, interest has been retained 2014-22, in the interests of maintaining the real capital value of the funds.

The Seow Fund is a specific prize commemorating the sudden death from unknown causes of a much-loved student who had just completed his HSC in 2005. The Student Participation Account supplements the DoE Student Equity Funds with direct financial help to students in necessitous circumstances. The Phil Day Memorial Fund finances an annual scholarship, worth $1,500, in memory of an Old Boy and long serving teacher, Head Teacher and Swimming MIC. The Prizes Fund helps to pay for some of the >$25,000 worth of prizes awarded each year to students. The Ethel Killip Memorial Fund pays for the replacement and upkeep of honour boards, memorabilia of Old Boys, photographs on walls and the school artworks collection. The Ethel Killip Memorial Fund purchased >$43k (2014-22) of indigenous artworks for our Na Ngara collection in McDonald Wing.

We are always seeking donations for any of these fund purposes. If you would like to help, contact 96629300 or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Sentence Conscious Pedagogy: Don’t always ‘go’

When writing, choose a word that characterises the movement you want to convey. Alternatives for ‘go’ might be - advance, depart, leave, make for, move out, pass, proceed, withdraw, set off, travel, decamp, run, journey to.
Dr K A Jaggar
Principal