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High Notes, Vol 26 No 4, February 28 2025

From the Principal

High Talent

Leon Park (7T) won gold in the U13/66kg Division at the Judo ACT Canberra International Open. Well done, Leon! Congratulations to Joshua Sim (8R) who gave up his time for a charity - Kids Giving Back – helping to make 650 meals, breakfast boxes, snack packs and care packs for homeless and needy people. Justin Nguyen (SHS-2024) was awarded a UNSW Co-op Scholarship in Electrical Engineering.

Junior Awards Assembly 2025

My address at the Junior Awards Assembly on 26 February is reprinted below:

"Good morning and welcome to our Awards Assembly for the Junior School, held on Gadigal land, to whose elders past and present I pay my respects. At these assemblies it is pleasing to see so many boys, who embody the ethos of our school, being recognised. We value integrity and dedication. You have shown them in your wide participation in school life. When the Student Awards Scheme is taken up seriously by our students, we also do better academically. High participation rates in the Student Awards Scheme help co-curricular and academic success.

"We want all Year 7 and later-enrolling students to take up the challenge to participate in school life. There are five good reasons you should participate. First, you will develop your social skills more quickly in more contexts and you will build positive relationships with more people. Second, you will learn how to manage your time better because you will be busy. Third, you will be able to explore a wide range of interests. Fourth, you will learn the value of commitment to an activity over time – i.e. dedication. Finally, your self-esteem and self-confidence will be lifted by your involvement with others as you grow a stronger sense of connection with High.

"The Student Awards Scheme at High evolved from a six-level system with an honour board entry for all school trophy winners, when Nathan McDonnell (SHS 2008) earned so many extra Award Scheme points that we set up a 7th level for him. The McDonnell Award then became the honour board level. Shuming Wang (SHS-2013) earned a whole lot more points than the McDonnell Award required, so an 8th level was added, named after the first Principal of High, Joseph Coates. An extra honour board was added for this award in recognition of the wonderful involvement in school life demonstrated by the recipients. Beyond that level, recognition is sought for boys at a state level.

"How the scheme works is if you earn 30 points within a category (there are seven categories) then you are awarded a nomination for that category. If you achieve three nominations, you will receive a Bronze Award. Eight nominations earn a Silver Award and 13 nominations, a Gold Award. It is possible to earn a maximum of two nominations in one category in any one year. This restriction preserves some breadth of participation in the Awards Scheme. The administration of the scheme is electronic, with a running tally of points being kept for every student. For any discrepancies discovered with a student’s individual tally, the student must contact the teacher in charge of the program. The closing date for adjustments to be made to a student’s tally is by Friday Week 9 of Term 4 in the corresponding calendar year. No retrospective points can be allocated once a calendar year concludes.

"Last year students in Years 7 & 8 earned 138 (2023 -153) bronze medallions, 43 (2023 - 54) silver and 7 (2023 -11) gold medallions – 188 (2023 - 217) awards in all.

"I want to thank each student receiving an award today. You showed by your broad participation in school life that you understand our driving purpose here – to enlarge ourselves as people, in our IQs, PQs EQs, CQs - as citizens, caring about other people and collaborating or cooperating with them. The Student Awards Scheme helps to develop character (strong mental and moral qualities). Above all, let’s show respect for one another as individual people. Our goals are collegial as well as individual. We want you to be dedicated students and participants. We hope you will show compassion through school or community service or just helping a friend or asking RUOK. Get involved this year for the first time or stay committed to the Scheme if you are in it. Show integrity. If you do, you will feel a greater sense of belonging to the school; and you will also understand better what we mean when we say, that we have High spirit. "

Senior Awards Assembly 2025

My address at the Senior Awards Assembly on 25 February is reprinted below:

"Good afternoon and welcome to our Student Awards Scheme Assembly held on Gadigal land. I pay my respects to elders past and present and who are custodians of our timeless culture, and to any Aboriginal people here today.  To all the Awards recipients, well done and thank you for your dedication and integrity in staying the course. Students who are strongly connected to our school tend to be fully involved in the Student Awards Scheme. U.S research shows that co-curricular engagement while at high school, if undertaken for two years or more, benefits individuals in multiple ways during tertiary study. Also, in a study of first year college students, their scores on a test of optimism were better predictors of their first-year college assessment grades than were their SAT test scores from high school. Work on your optimism through service. Our most successful years academically come when our boys are also the most engaged in school life, when they have the most hope and self-efficacy, so you can understand why I would prefer everybody to be in the Student Awards Scheme. If you qualified for an award in 2024, I really want you to continue in 2025 and earn another one.

"Our Student Awards Scheme evolved from three levels to six and later to eight. Only Nathan McDonnell and Joseph Coates Awards are awarded on Presentation Night and have honour board entries for the recipients. Several boys have been so committed to school life that we have sought and received further recognition for them at state level. Today, students receive school trophies manufactured in-house using our laser cutter. I want to thank Ms Dam and Mr Comben for the time and effort spent in manufacturing and engraving these handsome trophies each year. My thanks go also to Mr Kay and Mr Barris who worked hard alongside our student management system provider Sentral to revamp the Student Awards Scheme to fit inside the architecture of the Sentral program last year. I want to thank them for making the Student Awards Scheme more equitable, accessible and efficient in its operation.

"How the revised scheme works is if you earn 30 points within a category (there are seven categories) then you are awarded a nomination for that category. If you achieve three nominations, you will receive a Bronze Award. Eight nominations earn a Silver Award, 13 nominations, a Gold Award; 18 gets you a Platinum Award; 24 a School Plaque, 30 a School Trophy, 37 a Nathan McDonnell Award and 44 a Joseph Coates Award. It is possible to earn a maximum of two nominations in one category in any one year. This restriction preserves some breadth of participation in the Awards Scheme. The administration of the scheme is electronic, with a running tally of points being kept for every student. For any discrepancies discovered with a student’s individual tally, the student must contact the teacher in charge of the program. The closing date for adjustments to be made to a student’s tally is by Friday Week 9 of Term 4 in the corresponding calendar year. No retrospective points can be allocated once a calendar year concludes.

"We depend upon coaches, MICs and program managers to submit text files of the names of boys who have satisfied requirements for the completion of an activity. Nonetheless, students need to check their files frequently to see if they have been awarded all the points they are entitled to. It is their individual responsibility to advocate for the points they deserve.

"I want to thank Mr Kay and Mr Barris for managing the scheme and Ms Ashton for her ordering, sorting, and checking of hundreds of awards each year. It is a lengthy and complex operation, but I think it describes the co-curricular life of our students accurately. Academics and co-curricular involvement complement each other in character development. That is why we go to so much trouble to record and recognise both aspects of personal enlargement. Learn organisation and self-management by involving yourself in school life. It will help your study.

"Last year for Years 9, 10 and 11, there were 100 bronze medallions, 126 silver, 81 gold and 48 platinum. Also, 9 School Plaques. We are making 364 Awards today. As well, 6 School Trophies, a McDonnell Award and 9 Joseph Coates Awards were presented at Presentation Night.

"To the students receiving an award today, you have shown by your broad participation in school life that you understand our primary purpose here – to grow as people, to enlarge our characters through our involvement with other people. We try to develop our physical, emotional, cultural and cognitive intelligences. Stay involved in the Scheme right until the end. Don’t drop off in Year 11 or 12. Universities appreciate students who can demonstrate broad-based commitment over time to co-curricular endeavours as well as to academic success. It shows integrity. You do what you say you are going to do. It shows dedication – you stick at what you do over time to improve yourself. You grow your self-efficacy. Treat all others with dignity – that shows respect. Treat others as you would be treated – that demonstrates compassion.  Congratulations again to everyone acknowledged this morning."

2025 Budget Summary

Balance brought forward was $987,344. Total revenue was $18,995.84. The appropriation from DoE was $13,615,742. Total income from school and community sources was $5,370,009, including school generated revenue ($5,017,190); donations and individual contributions ($223,598); sale of goods and services ($76,328) and investment income ($39,407). Total expenses were $19,920,909, predominantly salaries and wages for staff ($15,297,112) and operating expenses ($4,623,737); including fees for service rendered ($1,373,610), mostly coaching payments, and other operating expenses ($3,250,177) - teaching and learning ($327,709); property maintenance ($387,299); furniture and equipment ($296,045); and computer costs ($240,319). Deficit for the year was $925,069. The carried forward figure of $62,276, does not include the unspent contract for the table tennis Centre ($450k +GST). The building fund capital is to be expended on the proposed Table Tennis Centre.

Overall, expenses as a percentage of revenue were 105%, meaning all our reserves are gone. Why? DoE removed $170,000 from our budget during the year. The wages’ structure was changed – casuals had to be paid a high minimum wage of $30 and a minimum hire of two hours. Salaries were increased for teaching staff and support staff during the year. There was a surprise deduction of $542,000 for December for wages, which we had not estimated. Our wages costs ballooned. We had multiple capital projects in the pipeline that we had to see through. We committed to using our carried forward buffer to preserve all our services to our boys and complete the projects. All the funds we received were spent to benefit your sons. We cannot do it again this year. We will have to increase income and reduce expenditure to break even this year. At High, the very strong reliability of our income flows from parents through donations and contributions. This has allowed us to maintain an extremely high expenditure percentage for 25 years. I am counting on that great support continuing in 2025!

Dr K A Jaggar
Principal