Welcome Class of 2030 – and what a welcome it was for the graduating class of 2030 as some 200 young students entered the gates of their new school, St Ursula’s College, Kingsgrove for their Orientation Day.
The College was buzzing with excitement, eagerly anticipating showing off their school to its newest students. Natalie Quail, Year 7 Co-ordinator says “It’s a big day and such an important one too. It’s all about the students getting to know their new school community which they will be an important part of and feeling comfortable right from day one.”
The “Big Sister” program at St Ursula’s sees every Year 7 girl having a “big sister” in Year 12 – and the big sisters are most definitely a part of Orientation Day, helping to guide the newer students on a one on one basis through the first year of their high school journey. Typically, the high school campus is much larger than primary school and involves moving from one classroom to another, often in different buildings. This can be quite daunting for new students and the Big Sister Program is just one way to assist with the transition to high school.
“Our incoming students experience taster lessons throughout the day” explains Anne Sukkar, Leader of Wellbeing”. The cooking classes, art and music are usually the most popular orientation classes with a lot of hands-on activities, says Anne. She continues, “This year, we had the Hot Potato Band, an energetic, interactive brass band, perform and it was wonderful to see the students so engaged, realising that learning is actually fun!”
Principal, Vivienne Awad, comments “This is one of my favourite days of the year; meeting these new young students invigorates the entire College with hope and celebration for the future and inspires us to continue to offer these young girls an excellent Catholic education in a warm and supportive environment.”
St Ursula’s has much to offer including the Newman Selective Education for gifted and talented students, the Amadeus Music program, a broad curriculum with extensive extra curricular offerings including Sport, Duke of Edinburgh, Environment Group, clubs, after hours tutoring, overseas educational tours and a strong outreach and community service program.