Hobart College Newsletter 3 2011 - Tasmanian Academy

From the Principal...
American Diplomat visits Hobart College!
Premier’s Young Achiever Award
Welcome to our third newsletter for this year. With every edition I have the
opportunity to reflect on what has been happening in the College since the last
newsletter and I am always surprised at how much has been achieved in such
a short time. This newsletter showcases the recent Careers Expo, visiting
American Diplomat, Dan Callaghan, photos from the College Production,
Chicago, as well as individual sporting, cultural and academic achievements of
students.
Hobart College is well known for its very diverse international community and
we have regular exchange programs with schools in China, Japan and Korea.
In early May we hosted a delegation of staff from our sister school in China
- Fuzhou Number 8 Middle School. 2011 celebrates the 30 year anniversary
of Fuzhou as a sister State to Tasmania so we have a very special relationship with this province and school. In the
September holidays last year I accompanied a group of teachers and students to visit Fuzhou as part of a school trip
to China and it was a fabulous experience learning about the Chinese educational system and culture. We are hoping
to organise another school trip to China in June 2012 so please see Debbie Halliday if you are interested in joining
this group.
We are now in the middle of the musical production season and it is very exciting seeing all the hard work from
the last few months come to fruition for the cast and crew of Chicago. The Performing Arts are such a vital part
of a holistic education and Chicago is a fantastic celebration of what can be achieved when staff and students work
together on a real life project. Congratulations to everyone involved in this production!
The Mid Year Assessment Period (MYAP) begins on Monday July 25 until Tuesday August 2. The examinations, tests
and practical assessments undertaken during MYAP are important milestones in the academic year. For pre-tertiary
subjects they provide students with the opportunity to experience formal exam conditions and it is a valuable learning
experience for students to reflect on the specific areas they need to improve on over the rest of the year. Although
exams can be daunting, there is lots of support available to help students with their preparation. Encourage your son/
daughter to talk to their Home Group Teacher about planning their study time and to take advantage of the subject
tutorials.
In conclusion, I would like to stress that it is really important to us that every student feels connected and supported
as a member of our college community. We value our partnership with parents and if you ever have any concerns,
please contact us and we will do our best to help.
Tracy Siedler
Interim Principal
Welcome - Nigel McBrien
In the last newsletter we farewelled Jo Pang; this time we welcome our new College Chaplain,
Nigel McBrien who began here just before Easter, scoring his first coup by arranging for My
Kitchen Rules stars Esther and Ali to attend the Food Fair. Nigel has lived in Australia for only
the past two years relocating from the North of Ireland. He brings a wide range of talents and
interests to his Chaplaincy role as he quietly settles into College life.
Farewell - Joellen Bird After ten years of teaching drama at Hobart College Joellen
Bird has decided to swap greasepaint for grandparenting as she brings her illustrious career as
one of the state’s top drama teachers to a close. Joellen produced many high quality theatre
productions from Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream to the confronting contemporary
Australian play, The Boys. Students appreciated Jo’s exacting standards and the polish she
brought to both performance and production. Working with the ensemble groups in Theatre
Performance were among her career highlights. The College has appreciated the enormous
commitment of time and energy that Joellen brought to her classes, plays and musicals. She has
been instrumental in enriching the life of the campus through her vibrant productions.
Farewell - Ian Burleigh After eleven years of teaching Design in Metal, Plant and
Agricultural Science, Vet Engineering and Future Options at Hobart College, Ian Burleigh has
decided to leave teaching for greener pastures, literally. As a keen farmer, vigneron and beekeeper,
Ian will devote much of his time to the land and to sheep grazing. A very versatile and
multi - skilled teacher he has been instrumental in setting up, developing and contributing to a
variety of areas of the College. A former Fitting and Turning engineer, Ian opted for a career in
teaching and he has shared his knowledge and skills with his students, giving them the benefit of
his broad experinece. We wish Ian all the best in his retirement and in his future endevours.
On Thursday May 5 we had the pleasure of having
Dan Callahan the Political/Economic Officer at the US
Consulate General’s Office in Melbourne come and speak
to us. It’s not every day we get a chance like this, so it
was terrific to have so many interested staff and students
come along and gather in the Theatrette for an hour!
Dan led an interactive discussion on a wide range of topics
including the U.S/Australia Alliance and the relationship
our two countries enjoy, Afghanistan/lraq and a ‘Day in
the Life of a U.S Diplomat’.
The audience was keen to ask some tricky questions
and Kate Parrott got the ball rolling with her question
about international criminal courts and the United States’
role. Students were particularly interested to grill Dan
on what he thought about Bin Laden’s demise which has
featured prominently in the news.
Dan also plugged some of the opportunities that U.S
colleges and universities offer, so if you are interested in
studying in the U.S in the near future, please check out
www.educationuse.info/melbourne or
www.ThinkEducationUSA.com for more information.
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We are proud to acknowledge that former Hobart College
dux, Stanislav Shabala, is the recipient of this year’s
Premier’s Young Achiever Award. After leaving the College,
Stas went on to complete a PhD at the University
of Cambridge and held a research fellowship at Oxford.
He is an ARC Super Science Fellow in the Astrophysics
and Environmental Geodesy groups at the University
of Tasmania and was awarded the Bok Prize for the top
astrophysics honours thesis in Australia in 2003.
During his time at Hobart College Stas won prizes for
Twentieth Century History, Chemistry and Physics and
the Ethnic Communities Council Prize for the highest
TCE score for ESL in Tasmania as well as being the 1999
Dux. His achievements at College were even more
remarkable, given that, as a relatively recent immigrant
from Russia, English was his second language. Physics
teacher, Craig Herbert, remembers having lots of
interesting conversations with Stas about the meaning of
the universe, “He was a very bright boy and what we
were doing at College was just laying the foundations for
him to build upon.”
The premier, Lara Giddings, made mention of the fact
that Stas, “has excelled academically to the point of being
internationally renowned in the field of astrophysics. This
is an amazing achievement for any pioneering scientist,
and Stas has achieved this at the age of 27.” Dr Shabala ‘s
work at UTAS involves the analysis of black holes.