The Road April 2018

SEAN O’BEIRNE
As a Year 12 student, I am privileged to have the opportunity to be
Damascus College’s College Captain in 2018 and look forward to fulfilling
the position with my co-captain, Ellie. My name is Sean O’Beirne, and
after having attended Damascus College from Year 7, I am excited to
now take on a role beyond that of being a student and represent the
College in a formal capacity.
I come from a large family of eight children, of which I am the secondeldest.
I have lived in the Ballarat area my entire life and attended
Emmaus Catholic Primary school for the majority of my primary education
before coming to Damascus in 2013. In our first year, after intensely
battling it out for McAuley Year 7 SRC representative, Ellie was the one
to emerge with the badge and left me free to, instead, experience and
participate in a range of different extracurricular activities – an honour
for which I still thank her today. Debating, music ensembles, a school
production, as well as several student clubs and groups, have all been a
part of my time at Damascus and have allowed me to interact with and
get to know staff and students from many different areas and year levels
within the school. I have learnt much here, both inside and outside the
classroom, with some of my best memories of the school being simple
day-to-day interactions with the fantastic people I have had the pleasure
to meet over the years.
Outside of school, I occupy myself mainly with the piano – an instrument
I have been playing for the past 12 years or so. Apart from my individual
pursuits in examinations and competitions, this is an area in which I am
very happy to have performed with Ellie by accompanying her vocal
talent at several McAuley Day assemblies, and certainly hope to do so
again in 2018. I have also worked at the Forge Pizzeria in town since last
year, which is (apart from obviously providing some income) another great
opportunity to gain experience and mix with a different group of people
in the Ballarat community. Academically, I am generally quite interested in
my studies and enjoy learning both in areas within the school curriculum
and beyond – I am hence excited for my final year of secondary
schooling and enjoy all the subjects that I’ve chosen for Year 12.
In general, there are two fairly evident categories of students at this part
of our education: those who have a somewhat clear idea and plan for
the years following their graduation, and those who are still working it
out. I so happen to belong to the latter category, but hope to narrow
down the possibilities and work towards the former as we draw nearer
to the next stage in our lives. For the present time however, I am happy
to be attending Damascus College and to have the chance to represent
it, for I believe it sets itself apart by the interest it shows in all aspects of
a student’s development, rather than focussing on just one. As College
Captain, I hope to further develop my public speaking skills and show
pride in our College, as well as to set a positive example for the College’s
younger students. To all those students from Year 7 to 12, be sure to put
in the effort now that will make you proud of the end of your schooling,
and best of luck for 2018.
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