On Friday 19th May, following a narrow draw in the Student v Teacher Futsal match, the Student Leadership Team made a journey to Millgrove for the weekend under the guise of it being our annual Leadership Camp. Bus replacements and unexpected trips to get lunch did not stop us in arriving at Millgrove where it was simply put, a fantastic weekend.
After dinner and dessert, we partook in a Trivia Night where more than half the teams wrote down that the Ninety’s Building was constructed in the 1980’s. Simple questions can be the most complex.
Regardless, Saturday was an action-packed day where we were joined by Dr Mordini to discuss several points in relation to our school and the broader community. This discussion encompassed how we can have a strong link to our values that we represent as a body. A lot of us may overlook one-word values such as ‘Responsibility’, ‘Growth’ or ‘Respect’, but they shape our decisions, our mindsets, how we interact, and it was great to see the group so heavily involved and invested in such a complex idea. Through this, a handful of ideas were pitched which we want to build off of, which aims to provide greater autonomy for students, but also presents opportunities for better connections between all year levels. The knowledge and understanding gained from mentorships are a vital part of culture which we should latch onto.
For the first time, we also had the Wellbeing Team join us with Ms Martin and Ms Liando having a discussion about suicide prevention. This included us suggesting how greater action can be taken to have awareness for these situations as well as providing support that respects the individuality of everyone. Again, this is another part of our school that we need to develop a greater relationship with, and it was fantastic to see input from the year 9s to the year 12s.
Between that, we brewed milo in a giant pot, had table tennis matches, a volleyball game, shadowboxing, a conquest in the forest to find the illustrious Millgrove Man, kitchen karaoke and accompanying dances and many, many photos. Suffice it to say, a truckload of involvement was underway that weekend.
Sunday afternoon marked the end of a chapter for the Year 12s. Their last time at Millgrove. In a fitting goodbye, we got to write messages in the Millgrove Book where a number of the Year 12s took the chance to practice their writing abilities for the upcoming English SAC. Overall, I’m so glad I was able to be a part of this journey, this event, which has empowered a number of us.
A huge thank you to Ms Capon, who dealt with us the entire weekend and for her incredible support in one of our most memorable MHS experiences. Thank you as well to Ms Tsilimidos, Dr Mordini, Ms Martin and Ms Liando for taking their time to be with us and for providing us the tools to make meaningful change. As a part of my last entry in the Millgrove book, I wrote: “Here’s to 2023 and beyond”. I look forward to what we can and will achieve.
Noah Pappas
School Captain
