Hi Year 8 Families.

A warm welcome to the end of Week 5.

In our Year level assembly this week we focused on the College SPIRIT value of Perseverance.

One of my great loves of life is the coaching and mentoring of young people through rugby union. I have always found this an amazing sport to coach and work with young men and women, as it provides a great platform to teach life skills of perseverance, resilience, mental strength, rising above challenges and teamwork all in a fun and supporting but physically challenging environment.

In our assembly, I spoke and shared the story of Nathan Charles, a former Western Force and Wallaby player who was born with Cystic Fibrosis. Nathan spoke passionately about the challenges of living with this depilating condition, but also that the ability to overcome challenges and fears is the most important skill one can take with them through life’s journey.  You may wish to watch the clip here:

My primary message to the Year 8 cohort was to face their challenges every day and to build their perseverance and their resilience as they progress though 2023.

We also acknowledged the great work that so many of our Year 8 students do every day which they may think goes unnoticed. We have 266 students in the year level, and it is so pleasing for me to see their positivity, their desire to do the right thing at the right time, and their work ethic so often every day.

Waves Forward Program 

As the school grows, we continue to seek out opportunities to support the diverse cultures that make up the Foxwell community. The WAVES Careers and Mentoring Expo is just one avenue we have explored to support our Indigenous, our Māori and our Pacifika students. Permission forms for this activity were distributed to your young people this week. I encourage all students who identify as such to join in on this unique opportunity.

Uniform and Student Code of Conduct

Ms McClymont outlined our uniform expectations in last week’s newsletter. As we have fielded several enquires around this, I thought it would be pertinent to resend our Student Code of Conduct:

This very comprehensive policy covers all aspects of student expectations at Foxwell, from uniform, to behaviour whilst in the Foxwell uniform, to levels of support, to curriculum and pedagogy and more. I would encourage all families is they have any questions regarding student policy and expectations that they familiarise themselves with this document.

Jason Breese 

Head of Year 8