eNews Archive Issue 7 - 7 March 2024

According to Australia's online safety regulator, the Office of the eSafety Commissioner (2022), a staggering 75% of reports they receive regarding online harm are from women and girls. These reports detail abuse, doxing, stalking and intimidation as well as body shaming, prejudice, and hate. Globally, a shocking 85% of women have faced online abuse, and that figure is not declining (eSafety Commissioner, 2023). What makes these statistics even more distressing is the nature of the abuse itself — often sexist, racist, and violent. The reasons behind this gender-based targeting are intricate and complex, rooted in societal norms, power dynamics, and, frequently, a lack of digital literacy.

A particularly troubling trend that has emerged in recent times is the use of Deepfake technology to exploit and harm teen girls. A Deeptrace study revealed that an astounding 96% of deepfake images and videos generated using this type of technology are pornographic, with the majority created non-consensually, featuring imagery of girls and women. While generative AI brings numerous benefits, the dark side showcases significant and amplified harm, and disturbingly, even children as young as 11 are now using it as a tool for bullying, defamation, and intimidation. In August 2023, eSafety shared the first report of deep fakes being wielded by children against their peers and, in some cases, even teachers. This alarming misuse of technology is now resulting in criminal offences across the country known as Image-Based Abuse (IBA). IBA involves the sharing or threat to share intimate images or videos without consent, causing profound mental and emotional distress, as well as reputational damage to victims that can have lasting consequences.

Understanding the current state of the nation for girls and technology in 2023 is not just an awareness exercise—it is a call to action. Together, as parents and educators, we need to create a safe environment for all our students.

Source: International Coalition of Girls’ Schools E-Brief November, 2023.

Ros Curtis

One of the topics that I have touched on with many students lately is to stop and acknowledge the amazing things around them. It is so easy to go through a day without noticing the little things; such as the smell of rain, a beautiful flower, or their love for their family or their pet! When we take time out to notice and appreciate these things – smell the roses if you like – our world becomes a better place. If your daughter is ever struggling to find little things for which to be grateful, I suggest visiting this website for inspiration.

Find Joy In The Little Things For Your Mental Health – The Creator's Classroom (thecreatorsclassroom.com)

Robert A. Emmons in his book Thanks! How practicing Gratitude Can Make You Happier (2007), defines gratitude as ‘the acknowledgment of goodness in one’s life … and recognising that the source(s) of this goodness lie at least partially outside the self’. It is well documented that a person’s sense of wellbeing can be closely linked to their sense of gratitude and even more so if a person takes time out every day to write just one or two things for which they are grateful. It is therefore worth encouraging our daughters to take notice of the world around them and frequently reflect.

I would like to share with you a beautiful piece of writing by John O’Donohoe that I have found to be particularly inspirational:

True beauty is from elsewhere, a pure gift.

It cannot be programmed nor its arrival foreseen.

Beauty is playful like dancing sunlight.

Without intending it,

We find ourselves coming alive

With a sense of celebration and delight

…..a new door opens and the heart

recognises the silent majesty of the ordinary.

The things we never notice, like health,

friends and love,

Emerge from their subdued presence

and stand out in their true radiance

as gifts we could never have earned or achieved.

Beauty cannot be forced.

……

When beauty touches our lives, the moment becomes luminous.

These grace moments are gifts that surprise us.

Nikki Townsend

About Mother Emma

– Thanks to our Archivist, Mary Surtees

Sister Emma became the Mother Superior of the Society of the Sacred Advent [SSA] in 1906, when the founder of the order, Mother Caroline Amy returned to England. The SSA was in its infancy. For the following 33 years, Mother Emma would lead the SSA as its influence expanded to include all of Queensland.

From various reports of the time, children loved Mother Emma and Mother Emma loved children. She was calm, gentle, serene and most sincere. However, underpinning all these qualities were strength, determination and courage to accept new challenges. She oversaw the establishment of schools during the First World War and the Great Depression.

Rev’d Jazz Dow

Much consideration goes into outfit planning before the evening begins. Once they are all dressed up in their finery, they head over to the terraces making the most of the beautiful city backdrop to take many photos. Once they have had their fill of photos, they head inside for the formal part of the evening. After a welcome and opening prayer from the boarder reps and an address from one of the senior members of staff, dinner is served. The chefs take care in preparing a scrumptious main meal and dessert for all the guests to enjoy. At the completion of the meal, a farewell prayer is said and the girls head back to dorms to swap photos and excitedly ring their parents to tell them all about their evening.

Formal dinners are held once a year for each year level. Speaking to one of our outgoing seniors, formal dinners are one of the events she most looks forward to each year and she says, it is great fun to plan an outfit and get dressed up, have a delicious meal, and enjoy some laughs with her mates.

Angela Crowe

1. The Australian Tertiary Admissions Rank (ATAR) pathway will provide students with an ATAR to seek entrance to tertiary study in Australian Universities. Students selecting this pathway must select five General subjects (six subjects may be studied upon recommendation or application). All students must select at least one subject from the English discipline. The calculation of an ATAR will be based on a student’s best five General subject results. Results in General subjects also contribute to the award of a QCE.
2. The Portfolio Pathway gives students qualifications that allow access to work, apprenticeship and study options. Students selecting this pathway are not eligible for an ATAR and will instead receive an equivalent rank that can be used for admission to university. All students must select three General subjects, including one subject from the English discipline. Students selecting the Portfolio pathway will be eligible for a QCE.

Both Kelly and I are looking forward to working with the Year 10 girls throughout this year to help them plan for Years 11 and 12.

Year 11 Academic Progress Meetings

Next term, I will be meeting with all Year 11 students to discuss their academic progress to date. Students will be able to book in times and parents are welcome to attend. In Term 4, all ATAR-eligible students will receive an ATAR indication based on their Unit 1 and 2 results. In calculating these, we do not use the many ATAR calculation sites that are available online. We use an external organisation who provide estimations based on collected data from the current Year 11 cohort. It is important to be aware that ATAR calculation sites are NOT official nor is their accuracy guaranteed. Students are not recommended to use these sites as a means of determining subject selections.

Caitlin McCluskey

“The most important advice I received was from my grandma, which was that great things never come from comfort zones. You have to be uncomfortable sometimes if you want to achieve great things.” – Zara Maddern, ’23.

A reminder to students that they must bring wired headphones and a fully charged laptop to school every day of NAPLAN.

Medical Information on Parent Lounge

This is just a gentle reminder for new parents who are filling in medical information about their daughters on Parent Lounge. If any medical diagnoses or conditions have academic implications for your daughter (i.e. require special provisions for assessments or the development of a learning plan), could you please also send this information through to our Learning Enhancement Department?

The best people to contact in the Secondary School are:

• Ms Margot Johnston (Head of Learning Enhancement – mjohnston@stmargarets.qld.edu.au)
• Mr Jonathan Cox (Learning Enhancement Case Manager – jcox@stmargarets.qld.edu.au).

Chris Dunn

Understanding the deep connection between inclusivity and empowerment is pivotal to championing the individual and shared goals of girls. As one of our six core values, inclusivity and the quest for female empowerment is central to our vision at St Margaret’s.

But where do girls find the confidence to strive for goals that historically might have been elusive or still seem out of reach?

While the connection between increased confidence amongst students and the girls’ school environment is overwhelmingly supported, there are still challenges. The difficulty of inspiring confidence in adolescent girls is exacerbated by not only the challenges of growing up but the social media landscape that shapes cultural norms and values – values that are often oppositional to fostering self-esteem and inspiring confidence. To address these challenges, the pastoral care team works closely to create experiences that focus on the power of inclusivity in fostering compassionate and kind young women. Key areas we focus on to foster confidence include building resilience, celebrating success, sharing empowered narratives, and offering leadership opportunities. While these strategies are central to creating an empowering environment here, there are also practical tips that can assist to support empowering teenage girls at home.

The University of Queensland highlights a range of researched key strategies parents can implement at home to help empower teenagers, including:

• encourage informed decision-making
• listen when they voice their opinions
• support team activities
• praise effort, not outcome
• demonstrate positive self-talk

While this is not an exhaustive list, these suggestions speak to the importance of encouraging independence and respectful autonomy in the quest for the empowerment of young women.

As always, the pastoral care team are here to support your daughters. I look forward to sharing Open Day with our current and future families this Saturday.

Source: University of Queensland – How to build self-confidence in a teenager, 2023

Amanda Jansen

The team came third in Aggregate Cup and the elite relay, Springfield Cup was won by the school for the fourth year in a row. The teams in this race are the best from each school and the results are always so close. Congratulations to Arabella Biggs, Eddie Juniper, Ivy Love and Liberty Harris who each gave their personal best to bring the cup home. Congratulations to the 8 years age group who achieved first place, the 11-year and 12-year groups who came second. Thank you to the coaches and Morgan Rowe in helping the team achieve these results.

The achievement of impressive sporting results often raises the question, “why do some people achieve and not others?” Much research has focused on natural talent versus hard work with hard work coming out on top. However, it is not just any type of hard work. It is about more than just getting the work done; it is about trying to get better at it. Hard work is about seeing every task as an opportunity to improve and build on feedback from others, such as teachers and coaches. Dedicated work and feedback are paths to better results. Here are some tips for students to take on that journey:

• Approach each sporting practice and school task with the goal of getting much better at it.
• As you do the task, focus on what’s happening and why you’re doing it the way you are.
• After the task, ask your teacher/coach for feedback. Make changes in your work as necessary. Practise the changes.
• Think about your future - the jobs you wish to do and the life you want to lead.
• Do these things all the time, not just now and then.

I encourage you to talk to your child about these tips and we look forward to the next Andrews Cup competitions, Touch Football and Tennis.

Angela Drysdale

Tailored testing allows a wider range of student abilities to be assessed and measures student achievement more precisely. A student’s overall NAPLAN result is based on both the number and complexity of questions they answer correctly. All Year 3 students will continue to complete the writing assessment on paper.

Our students have been working at school to prepare for the tests. If you’d like to view the platform or see some of the types of questions and tools available in the online NAPLAN assessments, they can be viewed here at the public demonstration site.

We wish our Years 3 and 5 students well next week for this testing.

Kate Frewin

Circular Drive Stage

9:30am             Sculthorpe String Quartet                                

9:45am             Amati Strings                           

10:00am           Stradivari Strings                                              

10:15am           Chamber Strings                      

10:30am           Chorale                                                           

10:40am           Volare                         

10:50am           Encorah                                              

11:45am           Exultate

11:55am           Music Ext Perf

12:00pm           Highly Strung                                       

12:10pm           Rock Band (Mon)                                             

12:20pm           Rock Band (Tues)

Eton Hall

9:30am             Chaseley Concert Band                                                

9:45am             Sister Helen Wind Symphony                                       

10:00am           Jackson Wind Ensemble                                   

10:20am           Elayne Jones Percussion Ensemble                                            

10:35am           Stage Band                                                       

11:45am           Speech & Drama Presentation                                      

12:10pm           Serenata                                                          

12:20pm           Belle Voce       

Toorak Courtyard

11:00am           Flute Ensemble                                                            

11:10am           Clarinet Ensemble       

11:20am           Saxophone Ensemble                           

11:30am           Brass Ensemble

Primary Atrium

11:15am           Beath String Quartet

Music Support Group

The next Music Support Group meeting will be held on Tuesday 16 April 2024 at 5:00pm in the Circular Drive Classroom 01 (in front of the Arts Centre Foyer). We encourage parents from both primary and secondary schools to become involved.

Brad King

The theme from our swim camp was "If you have a lane, you have a chance" and with camp special guest, Micheal Bohl's words of wisdom on controlling controllables, our swimmers felt confident and prepared.

We started the night strongly with three wins in the first six Medley Relays…we were off and racing. A special mention must be given to the 12-year Medley relay team of Charlotte, Allegra, Ada and Minti who broke the QGSSSA Record. Congratulations girls!

One of the highlights of the night was seeing one of our captains step up and arguably produce two of the best swims of her career. Stella swam a well-timed race in the 100 Open Breaststroke, coming from behind and winning a tight race over top level competition.

The age divisions of the 50 freestyle also became a parade of wins with the Maggies girls finishing top two in twelve of the next twenty races. Special mentions must go to Ada who broke the 12-year A Division Record and to Tia who broke the 14-year D Division Record. Well done to both girls!

As the night progressed, we were settling into second position behind St Peter's and opening a small, but solid gap on Brisbane State High School. The girls started to lift in the 100 Freestyle section of the program with wins to Ada, Clementine and older sister Cosette making it a family affair with a super impressive display of power swimming by the Cooke siblings. A special mention is given to Chloe N who achieved a very close second place finish which rounded out a great finish to the individual events.

Last year our depth was found out in the Freestyle relays, this year our target was to be more competitive. And competitive we were! St Margaret's won three relays, including the 13-year A Team, as well as the 14-year A and B teams. We also achieved another five top four finishes.

Once the cheering was finished after the Brockway relays were concluded, it was time to wait for the results and presentation of the Pennants.

St Margaret’s Age Group Results:

QGSSSA Aggregate Trophy:

• St Margaret’s also finished 2^nd overall in the percentage cup.

  A special congratulations to the girls who swam to a podium finish in their individual races:

  1^st Place

• Clem C, Stella S and Ada S, Cosette C, Chloe N, Mena B, Gloria F, Ruby G, Tia K, Indigo K.

  2^nd Place

• Charlotte B, Cosette C, Bless D, Gloria F, Allegra H, Phoebe J, Charlotte M, Charlotte R, Chloe N.

  3^rd Place

• Charlotte B, Mena B, Gloria F, Allegra H, Ruby K.

  Relay 1^st Place

• Charlotte R, Allegra H, Ada S, Minti B, Indigo K, Chloe D, Elkie W, Freya J, Charlotte B, Phoebe J, Chloe N, Amelia Q, Lily K, Gloria F, Charlotte M, Charlotte R, Mena B, Tia K, Adelaide B, Clem C, Bronte W, Ruby C, Alira G, Erin B [1 Gold each]

  Our overall placings for the meet were as follows:

• 19x 1^st
• 15x 2^nd
• 7x 3rd

A fantastic 41 TOP three finishes from 77 events!

Congratulations team!

I would like to take the time to thank the following people, for without their help and support, none of the results above could or would have occurred. Firstly, to Mr Lloyd Knight and all the support staff within the Sports and Activities Office, thank you so much. Mr Josh Partridge and all the Strength and Conditioning staff that worked with a wide range of abilities and ages over the season. To the Parent Support Group, led by our President Andy Lincoln, thanks for another year of effort and support for the team. To my coaching team, Pedro, Ms Renata Hasell, Ms Ciara Cescotto, and Greta thank you for your expertise, belief and unwavering commitment toward our team. This season would not have been possible without you.

Finally, I would like to thank our wider community, the parents, the teachers and all the student supporter who gave their support. Your noise made the night a special one.

Many thanks,

Matt Brown

Head of Swimming

Sporting Achievement

It’s with great pleasure that we can recognise the outstanding sport performances and representation of St Margaret’s students at a national and international level. I would like to highlight and congratulate the follow student on her recent achievements:

Congratulations to Ava Mulholland (Year 12) who has been selected within the Rowing Queensland Pathway Girl’s Team. The pathway team will contest the interstate regatta at the upcoming Australian Rowing Championships and we wish Ava all the very best of luck!

We would like to continue to recognise the outstanding achievements and representation of students participating a national level, outside of the school sport pathway. I look forward to continuing to hear from our community regarding such outstanding achievement. Please email me at lknight@stmargarets.qld.edu.au.

Latest Sport News and Information

For the latest sport news and information please check out the following Secondary School Sport POD Pages:

• Basketball (Autumn Sport) - (The POD - Secondary Basketball (stmargarets.qld.edu.au)
• Soccer (Autumn Sport) - (The POD - Secondary Football (stmargarets.qld.edu.au)
• Touch Football (Autumn Sport) - (The POD - Secondary Touch Football (stmargarets.qld.edu.au)
• Swimming - The POD - Secondary Swimming (stmargarets.qld.edu.au)
• Cross Country - The POD - Secondary Cross Country (stmargarets.qld.edu.au)
• Artistic Gymnastic – The POD - Secondary Artistic Gymnastics (stmargarets.qld.edu.au)
• Cricket - The POD - Secondary Cricket (stmargarets.qld.edu.au)
• AFL (Yr 10,11&12)) - The POD - Secondary AFL (stmargarets.qld.edu.au)
• Club Water Polo - The POD - Club Water Polo (stmargarets.qld.edu.au)
• Club Netball - The POD - Club Netball (stmargarets.qld.edu.au)

Lloyd Knight

Inspired by Jacqueline Scotcher and the artist’s Wayfaring series, Leewana’s artwork explores themes of identity, a sense of place, and belonging. Through her unique landscape portrayal, Leewana captures the essence of her journey, signified by dotted white and black lines that symbolize her path. The work's vibrant bursts of red, pink and purple, in contrast with a series of gold outlines, not only heighten the work’s visual appeal but also serve as a representation of her identity. These bold lines of gold trace her journey from home to school and vice versa, whilst also emphasizing the movement within her piece along with its texture.

Awarded by the Visual Art Captains of 2024 – Sara Jo, Amy and Amelia

Like all milestones, St Margaret’s wants to make its mark - by moving the overall fundraising needle to the million-dollar mark! It’s a bold target, so we are calling in the cavalry. We have raised more than $700,000, in nine years, so our goal is to raise close to $300,000 this year to reach our target.

To achieve this, we are calling for the involvement not only of students to cut their hair and donate, but also any other family members and alumni who’d like to #rockthechop – whether they live locally or outside of Brisbane.

If you are an Old Girl or past or current parent and would like to help us reach our target, we are asking you to register your interest so we can keep you up to date with the 2024 event. And some of you might need to start growing your mane now!

Can’t get to Brisbane? You can still be involved wherever you are by joining the fundraising page and getting your local hairdresser or a trusted friend to lop off your ponytail or consider holding your own event in a regional area or international city!

We’d love to connect our boarding families keen to be involved from afar – perhaps to even host a morning tea on the day.  

If you are interested in becoming involved, we have set up an Expression of Interest form where you can indicate what type of involvement you are interested in, and if you are in another town, we could connect you with other’s keen to be involved.

Click here to record your interest.

Note, the actual donation page will be open soon. The EOI form will help us keep you in touch with all things Ponytail Project, including letting you know when you can jump on and sign up to either cut your hair or donate.

If you have any enquiries, please email Wendy Johnston, Director of Marketing and Communications, on wjohnston@stmargarets.qld.edu.au or call (07) 3862 0837.

It is a fantastic opportunity to promote your business to the entire school community which includes current parents, students, staff, prospective parents and students as well as Old Girls through communication channels including eNews and St Margaret's social media channels and/or through signage and activations at the event.

If you would like to discuss ways in which you can partner with the MAYO Arts Festival, please contact Pru Reed on 07 3862 0828 or email preed@stmargarets.qld.edu.au. 

We have fun-filled and exciting activities planned for our Easter School Holiday Program. Further details of the program can be found here (PDF 263.1KB). Boys and girls, siblings, friends and family welcome!

Please refer to the attached Information Guide for full booking terms and conditions. We are unable to accept bookings via email or text message. The OSHC registration and Debitsuccess form must be completed, signed and sent back to us to finalise your booking. Please read the information guide carefully as some information has changed. OSHC Registration and Debitsuccess can be completed via the My Family Lounge.

PLEASE COMPLETE YOUR VACATION CARE BOOKING FORM VIA THE MY FAMILY LOUNGE APP

We are very excited to inform you that St Margaret’s OSHC has subscribed to a fantastic online Booking and Waitlist management program called QK Enrol. This program will give you access to manage your own account information, where you will have the ability to make bookings requests and allows you to complete and submit an online enrolment form for your child. You can do this and much, much more all within a parent portal called ’My Family Lounge’.

How do I log in?

Please navigate to the link below and either sign in with your existing My Family Lounge account or Register for an account if you do not already have one. Please note all families who have previously submitted an enrolment form will have an account already set up; all you will need to do is click ‘forgotten password’ and use the email address you used to receive this form.

https://www.qkenhanced.com.au/Account/Embeddable/?databaseId=9385

When making a Vacation Care booking please select Casual bookings, not Permanent.

What is the cost?*

Early Bird Fees: $63 per day

Early Bird Bookings close: 8 March 2024

Fees: $68 per day*

Bookings close: 18 March 2024

*Incursions and excursions incur additional costs. These are compulsory for all students and therefore you are able to claim CCS.

What are the hours of operation?

The service is open from 7:00am until 6:00pm.

How can I obtain more information?

If you would like further information regarding our OSHC Program or if you would like to make a booking, feel free to contact me on 0423 547 653 or email: oshc@stmargarets.qld.edu.au.

Palu Ingram

Event Details

Date:               Tuesday 19 March 2024
Time:              6.45am arrival for 7.00am - 8.45am
Location:        Arts Centre Foyer, St Margaret's Anglican Girls' School, 11 Petrie Street, Ascot
Format:          Sit down breakfast  

Tickets:           $85 Adult, $40 Student (Years 10-12/Tertiary)
Corporate tables: $850 (10 seats), includes company logo displayed on table and acknowledgement during event.

To purchase tickets or a corporate table:Please click Here

Thank you to our series sponsors, Major Sponsor: Pitcher Partners and Supporting Sponsors: Wolff Coffee Roasters, Downer, Clear Insurance, Move Recruitment Solutions and O'Reilly Shaw Lawyers.

Aspiring Young Women’s Network Breakfast

Tickets are closing soon for the first Aspiring Young Women's Network breakfast for 2024 with guest speaker Jimena Kotsomitis (’01).

Parents are welcome to attend these events with their daughters.

The Aspiring Young Women’s Network Breakfast (AYWN) Series provides an opportunity for secondary school students, from Years 9-12, to hear firsthand from alumni who have recently transitioned to university or their chosen career.

The journey of St Margaret’s alumni Jimena Alejandra Kotsomitis (‘01) from lawyer to creator of a lifestyle brand tells a story of perseverance, planning and pivoting.

After graduating from St Margaret’s, Jimena studied a dual degree of law/creative industries at QUT, then followed her dream to move to New York on turning 21. There she studied for and passed the NY Bar Exam and practised law in Manhattan as NBC’s in-house intellectual property associate. She returned home after three years, and big changes were afoot.

In 2016, she founded the label Jimena Alejandra in Brisbane. This contemporary jewellery and lifestyle brand is known for unique, handmade pieces that balance classic and maximalist codes. As founder and designer, Jimena’s goal is to evoke joy and optimism through colourful designs that champion the use of semi-precious gemstones.

Today, this former lawyer, now mother and entrepreneur, is passionate about inspiring and empowering young girls to take risks and to follow their dreams no matter how far-fetched they might seem.

Event Details

Date:               Thursday 14 March 2024
Time:              6.45am arrival for 7.00am - 8.10am
Location:        Arts Centre Foyer, St Margaret's Anglican Girls' School, 11 Petrie Street, Ascot
Format:          Sit down breakfast  

Tickets:           $38 Adult/Student (Years 10-12/Tertiary), includes continental style breakfast.

To purchase tickets:Click Here

We thank our series sponsors: Pitcher Partners and the St Margaret’s Old Girls’ Association

P&F Fathers’ Dinner – Event wrap up

We thank our community for supporting the 2024 Fathers’ Dinner at the Howard Smith Wharves last Friday. Guest speaker, Steven Bradbury, kept the crowd entertained and a great night was had by our community.

Together with the support of our sponsors and donors the P&F raised over $30,000 which will support the school with upcoming projects designed to enrich the student experience. We thank our wonderful sponsors and prize donors; our fundraising efforts would not be possible without them. 

We sincerely thank our 2024 Fathers' Dinner Supporting Sponsors: Morgans and James Stewart, an Ambassador for Australians for Mental Health, and Maggies Supporters: Oscar Hunt and Belbaker Bus Charter. If you were unable to connect with our sponsors on the night, and would like an introduction, please contact the Development and Community Office or visit their websites for more information.

We also thank the businesses and people within our community who kindly donated prizes to the raffle and auction: Norman Hotel, Golf Central, Oscar Hunt, Penfolds, Deep Grey Photography, Merthyr Village New Farm, New Farm Seafood, Avid Sports, Keiser Ascot, P&F Association, River to Bay, Merthyr Village, Deep Grey, Go Boat Australia, Sign Artist, City Cave Clayfield, Fonzie Abbott, Function Well, Harrisons, New Farm Seafood, Grandad Jacks Distillery, Carrick Family, Fraser Family, McDonnell Family, Slogrove Family, Campbell Family, Bothwell Family, Copley Family, Sweeney Family, Fullerton Family, Hutchins Family, Crompton Family, and the Clarke Family.

To view photos from the event, please click here.

Georgia Mitchell