head of junior school - Somerville House

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Upon arrival at Hangzhou Xuejun High School,we were warmly welcomed by school officials. After an exchange ofgifts between the two schools, students were picked up by each homestay family to start their Chinese homestayexperience.During the following week, Somerville House students spent time at the school with their Exchange partner toexperience the ‘Chinese way of learning and teaching’ as well as finding time to explore the local areas. Studentsvisited various tourist attractions and tried their bargaining skills when shopping.All participants enjoyed their homestay experience, the people they met, the food, the endless shoppingopportunities and the memories of China which they will cherish for years to come.The success of this trip has allowed us to build a strong link with our Exchange school, Hangzhou Xuejun HighSchool. We hope the first Chinese Exchange program will be finally established when the first group of Exchangestudents from Hangzhou arrives in 2013.DEAN OF STUDENTSI am seekingI am strivingI am in it with all my heart.(Vincent Van Gogh)Mrs K GrahamThere is no greater honour than to be appointed to a school of the calibre of Somerville House. The Dean ofStudents’ role is at the heart of student services: caring, nurturing, motivating and guiding our students from Prep toYear 12. Ensuring that the students’ behaviour is appropriate and intervening if necessary, to assist girls inmeeting the expectations of Somerville House, will be a priority too.Pastorally, the role covers the oversight of the Pastoral Care Program, liaising with teachers and Heads of Year.Parents’ first contact will be, in most instances, with the Tutor or Homeroom teacher or Head of Year, but there maybe occasions when the issue may be best discussed with the Dean of Students. Meeting with students, teachersand parents to ensure that our students’ needs are catered for with the best possible strategies and support is akey area of responsibility.The Dean of Students and the Student Counsellor/Careers, Ms Jan Cowen, are located in D Block StudentServices. In addition to the Student Counsellor/Careers, the School has appointed, Dr Filia Papadimitriou as theSchool’s Student Counsellor/Psychologist. All appointments can be made with Mrs Gillian Cunningham in theStudent Services Office.An exciting time ahead and a few challenges I’m sure but I can assure students and parents that I will be seeking,striving and in it with all of my heart.8
STUDENT COUNSELLORMrs J CowenCAREER CHATWelcome to 2013 from Jan Cowen, Student Counsellor/Careers at Somerville House. I look forward to workingwith your daughters, their families and the staff of Somerville House to provide career guidance and information toassist with decision-making and pathways for the future.In this column I will provide career information for students and families regarding tertiary courses and applications,scholarships, vocational pathways, holiday courses, subject selection, Queensland Certificate of Education updatesand QTAC updates, interstate and overseas study opportunities as well as other career information, as it comes tohand. Important career dates for your calendar will also be highlighted in this column. This Careers information isalso available on the Somerville House MySubjects website.The Somerville House Career Education Program ranges from Years 10 to 12. The Year 10 Program provides aseries of resources to help with the Senior Education and Training planning process and ultimately, the SubjectSelection Process. Included with these is a Careers Folder provided to each student to help her collate relevanttertiary and/or employment related resources over her senior years at Somerville House. She will also be guidedthrough a series of activities to help her realise her skills and attributes, as well as refine her career decisionmaking.She will, as well, receive the QTAC Tertiary Prerequisites 2016 and the Somerville House Senior SubjectSelection Guide.The Year 11 students will have the opportunity to complete a series of sessions exploring Employability Skills,which will include information regarding resume writing, hands-on practical interview skills, plus the realities of theworld of work.Year 12 has a more targeted tertiary preparation program that includes a number of presentations from variousUniversities, as well as an individual career interest inventory, detailed explanation of the QTAC process,information regarding interstate options, as well as information regarding scholarship opportunities, medicalapplications, etc. Year 11 and 12 parents are able to attend a Year 12 Studies/Tertiary Entrance InformationEvening and there will be other information evenings throughout the year, including the UMAT Medical AdmissionsEvening and a Scholarships Information Evening.I am available for appointments with students and their families. I welcome your enquiries and may be contacted on3248 9295 or by email: jcowen@somerville.qld.edu.au.In Queensland, the Queensland Tertiary Admissions Centre (QTAC) is the organising body that processesentrance into undergraduate university degrees and TAFE Diploma and Advanced Diplomas. While the majority ofschool students gain entrance via the OP system, there is an alternate pathway that allows school students to beOP-ineligible and gain a Selection Rank. This Rank allows students to apply for tertiary entry for Queenslandcourses. At Somerville House, these girls are doing the Somerlinks Program, run by Ms Jill Leahy.For 2012, a student completing a Certificate III while at school could expect to gain a Selection Rank of 68, which isroughly the equivalent of an OP 15 -16. A Certificate IV gave a Rank of 74, which was the equivalent of an OP 13.(These are subject to change.) A number of Queensland Universities offered courses where the OP cut-offs wereeasier than an OP16, including Australian Catholic University (ACU), Central Queensland University Brisbane(CQU), and Griffith University.A number of the 2012 Somerlinks girls applied through QTAC for tertiary entry this year into various TAFE andUniversity courses. It was very pleasing to see girls gaining direct University entry into a number of courses. Theseinclude the Bachelor of Education (Griffith University), Bachelor of Nursing (ACU), and the Bachelor of Media andCommunication (QUT). Other girls will undertake courses that have automatic entry to complete Diplomas inBusiness (SBIT) and Fashion (MSIT).For a number of students in Year 11 or 12, the Somerlinks Program may be a viable alternative. For moreinformation, please contact Ms Jill Leahy- email jleahy@somerville.qld.edu.au (phone 07 3248 9211) or me, MrsJan Cowen – email jcowen@somerville.qld.edu.au (phone 07 3248 9295).9
Page 3 and 4: Year 12 2012 resultsWe congratulate
Page 5 and 6: Junior School Support Group (JSSG)T
Page 7: All parents are encouraged to atten
Page 11 and 12: CO-CURRICULUMMr Allan LeggeCo-curri
Page 13 and 14: 2013 INSTRUMENTAL AND VOCAL MUSIC T
Page 15 and 16: SWIMMINGMs C Willims, Co-ordinatorP
Page 17 and 18: SWIMMING CLUBCONGRATULATIONS RIVER
Page 19 and 20: SOMERFARE TUCKSHOP SMART CHOICES ME
Page 21 and 22: Welcome to ParentsCocktail Function

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