“Let us consider how to stir one another to love and good works.” Hebrews 10:24-25
Dear families and friends of St Edmund’s College,
Normally at this time we would be holding our annual Opening College Mass, usually held at St Christopher’s Cathedral. This is always a highlight of the year, having the whole school community together at the Cathedral to formally acknowledge the new year as well as celebrating the induction of our new student leaders. Unfortunately, Covid restrictions on schools has meant that we could not have an Opening College Mass this year. It saddens me deeply to know that we cannot gather as a whole school group until the restrictions on schools are lifted. In lieu of the Opening Mass, we held a very special assembly on Tuesday with students in Year 11 and Year 12, inducting our senior school leaders, acknowledging our Year 11 2021 academic award winners, acknowledging our 2021 Dux Nick Odgers and, for the first time in the 68-year history of St Edmund’s College, we commissioned every student in Year 12 to their unique and special position of leadership as the oldest students in the school.
A special congratulations to Andrew McFarlane for his well-earned Year 11 202 Dux Award as well as achieving the Caltex Best All Rounder award, and congratulations also to Daniel Isherwood for his remarkable achievement is achieving the Bronze Duke of Edinburgh’s Award.
Rather than write an article for this week’s Vortex, I would like to share with you two of the addresses given at the Assembly. The first address is from our College Captain, Andrew McFarlane, and the second address is from our 2021 Dux, Nick Odgers. Both speeches capture the essence of the character, spirit and nature of learning here at St Edmund’s College.
College Captain’s Address, Andrew McFarlane
Good morning Mr. Zavone, staff, students and most importantly all our Year 12 leaders of this school. Today is a celebration that recognises the capacity that we possess to lead our College as well as the responsibility that accompanies such stature. Responsibility is encapsulated in leadership in which I have the utmost confidence that our Year 12 cohort will uphold and thrive.
Firstly, I would like to congratulate all those boys who received an academic award today and for those who received them at the end of last year. This is a grand achievement and is, no doubt, attributed to the aggregate of hard work every student has put into improving their learning experience. We, as a College, pride ourselves on our ability to learn and improve ourselves. Today, we celebrate the example of this commitment that has been upheld in the classroom.
The challenge to leading is finding your own way to lead. There is no correct or incorrect way to lead. You must find your own version of leadership which best represents your own personal qualities so that each of us may lead your house or school with great pride. Leadership is accompanied by various supporting attributes that build a firm foundation for us to thrive in the community.
Resilience. Our greatest successes are often a product of great leadership. However, success is not something that happens overnight. Success is the consequence of persistent resilience, in learning from our failures and progressing to betterment. Failure can be good thing. Failure is a part of learning. Failure brings resilience to the forefront and allows us to adapt and learn. Good leaders stay resilient. When they fail, they become empowered in the learning experience they gain through the tough times.
The final attribute that I would like to touch upon is teamwork. A leader benefits from the networks that they have around them. They cannot work alone. A good leader understands, and invests in, the value of teamwork. A leader operates by using all the resources available to them. This means using their team. This also means knowing how to get the best out of their team. They need to be able to communicate well with their team. The key to success is holding the progression of the team equally to your own. At this College, the key is to work cohesively and selflessly in devoting yourself to the growth that each of us experience along our individual journeys. We as a leadership team and a year 12 cohort will practice upholding resilience, excellent teamwork and selflessness to make sure we work in the greatest interest of the College’s legacy.
To all the boys who are being celebrated for their leadership today, wear your badge proudly. Being a leader at this fine College is a rare and prestigious accolade that not many get to experience. Similarly, the pride of being a Year 12 student shows great loyalty and dedication to this College and should not be discounted. I encourage you, today, to not to take the badge for granted. Yes, leadership is more than a badge, but the badge represents a great opportunity and voice in the College community. We all must accept this opportunity to ensure we leave a positive legacy for the College upon our graduation. That we leave a lasting foundation for the future years of this College. We as leaders and men are the voice of the school and must fuse the qualities of resilience, a positive mindset and teamwork to attain greatness. The roles we have been given are not ours to keep, we are custodian leaders of the school and it is our job is to leave St Edmunds College at the end of the year in the best possible place.
I would like to extend a final congratulations to all the boys who won academic awards today and to all the leaders who were inducted today. This is a great honour that requires substantial dedication, which I am certain we will uphold as a cohort in 2022.
2021 Dux Address, Nicholas Odgers
Good afternoon staff and senior Eddies Boys. It is a real privilege to be standing here today to be able to share some advice I wish I had known when I sat in your position.
I’d like to begin my address today with a question. Does a mark of 60 constitute adequacy, and a mark of 100, perfection?
Throughout most of my schooling career, my answer to this question has been ‘yes’. Nothing can beat a 100, but a lot can beat a 60. Our education system had slowly ingrained this notion into my mind, to the point that I became so fixated on the result; on reaching the destination and not the journey. Before long, my achievement was dictated by a letter or a number on a test or assignment, and I did everything I could to maximise it. I reduced my learning to the constraints of the textbook; focusing solely on the topics that were to be examined. I would memorise formulas, quotes, and even full essays – anything I thought would help me do better. Anything to get closer to that 100 – the perfect number; the definition of success. But in chasing perfection, I learnt so much about the power that trying your best has on our learning.
Now, I want all of you to think forward to when you graduate, whether that be this year or next, and the many emotions that come with it. Graduation will be about the mountains each of you climbed along the way. It is about the feeling when you thought you had nothing more to give, but found another gear. It is about the times you fell, and the tenacity and perseverance you showed to pick yourself up and keep going. Whether you thrived or merely survived. You kept moving forward and you did it. You finished school.
But once you graduate, you no longer have the luxury of coasting through. The day you leave the walls of St Edmund’s College, you are no longer bound by a school curriculum or a daily routine, and no one is telling you what to do nor when to do it. You are governed purely by your own choices and judgement. You have entered the real world, where there are no report cards and assessments to keep track of your achievement. Without frequent tests and assignments, how then, can we measure if we are successful? Today, I offer a solution, one which saved me from the demands of perfectionism.
I shifted my mentality. I became determined to get the best out of myself, not for the validation that came with a high score, but for the intrinsic value of doing things well. I deemed ‘trying my best’ a success, to ensure I did not let myself settle for ‘good enough’. But what I learnt, is that you cannot do your best if you are worried you could do better. You must invest all your time into the present, and so I turned to the ‘how’.
How can I make sure I do the best I possibly can?
The answer I found to this troubling question was to use the resources available to me, and I want you all to do the same. Go to your teachers and show them your progress, ask questions (lots of questions), submit a draft. Your teachers are your helping hand, use them. Spend less time setting expectations for yourself and more time doing the things that will maximise your potential. Become process oriented, not outcome oriented and in time, you will find your way.
By redefining success as a process of improvement and focusing on the journey and not the destination, I could pursue excellence without the demands of perfectionism or the compromises that come with settling for good enough.
With this in mind, I challenge all of you to define your own process for success and live up to your own measures with commitment and passion. If you do so, you have succeeded. Success cannot exist without a thought behind it labelling it as one. Success is a choice. Are you holding yourself back?
Although my senior years at the College were extremely gratifying, they were hampered by a great deal of stress. I spent far too much time worrying about the future result, that I nearly missed the present. My advice for you all today is to try your absolute best and take comfort in knowing that. If you continue to try in all that you do, you will continue to learn beyond the classroom. If doing so, you are succeeding. Then, make sure you take some time to relax, unwind, and restore your energy before you try again.
So, each day I ask that you: get up, dress up, show up, but never give up. You only fail when you don’t try.
Edmund’s to the fore.
St Edmund’s College Prayer
Dear Lord,
Grant that we may live each day to the full, inspired by the Holy Spirit.
Let us cast away all worries and concerns into your Divine care.
Christus Lux Mea
Give us strength to confront all challenges that we face with hope and faith.
Let our community seek truth in all that we search for.
Christus Lux Mea
Let us stand for others always giving generously without counting the cost.
Blessed Edmund Rice, pray for us
Live Jesus in our hearts, forever
Joe Zavone
Principal
Christus Lux Mea