THE GRAMMAR WORD 6 November 2014 - Excellence - Leadership - Integrity - Community - From The Headmaster/CEO TRACK & FIELD SUCCESS Congratulations to all involved in last week’s GPS Track & Field Championships. Our younger athletes performed admirably in the years 5 to 7 event and our years 8 to 12 team were superb, finishing second behind Nudgee College. The statistics speak for themselves. 1984 was our first victory in track and field and we have now won the GPS competition on 19 occasions. Since 1981, IGS has missed out on a top-three finish on only one occasion. That is an extraordinary record. Even more important is our reputation for the manner in which our athletes on the track and our supporters in the stands conduct themselves. Last week was certainly no exception. There are so many lessons to be learned from sport. Arguably Australia’s most famous sportsman is a cricketer. Any batsman with a test average over 50 is regarded as a great player. Going into his final test innings in 1948, Sir Donald Bradman needed to score only a few runs to finish with a test average of 100. Incredibly he was bowled for a duck. In a way it added to the legend; his final test average was 99.94. The extent of his influence is evidenced by the mailing address in each state for the Australian Broadcasting Commission (ABC) being PO Box 9994. What it also shows is that irrespective of talent you can never predict the final result in any sporting contest. We have had so much success in track and field in recent years that the track really is our ‘home ground’. In 2006 a research scientist from Harvard University studied 5,000 English Premier League football games and found a significant ‘home ground advantage’. The crowd becomes an extra player. One of the real highlights of the carnival was at the conclusion of the presentations. Under Mr Grieve’s guidance our team went over to the Nudgee team to applaud the deserving victors. The return acknowledgment from the Nudgee supporters in the stands illustrated the sportsmanship and class of both schools. Congratulations again to all involved. Yours sincerely Mr Robert Henderson Headmaster/CEO Academics SCIENCE EXPERIENCE The ConocoPhillips Science Experience is a four-day program of workshops, tours, lectures and social activities held at Griffith, QUT Gardens Point and UQ St Lucia in January 2015. Students will visit all three universities and enjoy activities in forensics, physics, biology, mathematics, chemistry and engineering. Visit www.scienceexperience.com.au. STEMCELLS@UQ There are still a few places left for Year 9 and 10 students who want to participate in the StemCells@UQ program at St Lucia on 27 November. The day will feature the new documentary ‘Stem Cells Revolutions’, the opportunity to ask questions and an - Excellence - Leadership - Integrity - Community - interactive tour of the stem cell laboratories at the Australian Institute of Bioengineering and Nanotechnology. Interested students should see me in room S1. TRANSITIONAL RESEARCH CONFERENCE Niel Hamman, Hayden Randall, Sebastian McCullough and Andrew Whittering attended a forum focussing on early career medical research moderated by recent Australian of the Year Professor Ian Fraser at the Translation Research Conference last Friday. Thanks to Dr Browne for accompanying the students on their visit. Mr John Martin Head of Science [email protected] Sports & Activities TRACK & FIELD Congratulations to the entire track and field community on another successful year. This year’s squad worked very hard to maintain the historically high standards now expected of Ipswich Grammar School, securing second place at the GPS Track & Field Championships in October. The team amassed 437 points with a typically consistent approach to all events. Athletes placed in the top five in 51 of the 69 events. This was a wonderful achievement given the large number of season ending injuries sustained throughout the year. IGS recorded nine first places, 12 seconds, 16 thirds, eight fourths and six fifths on the way to 44 personal bests. Events were won by Tiaan Tauakipulu, Callum Hicks, Frank Kuresa, Joseph Deng, Mitchell Michael and Liam Johnston. Thank you to the small, dedicated group of coaches who deserve all the credit for the fine achievements of this year’s team. The support and school spirit on display was another significant factor in the team’s performance. Thanks also to the seniors who gave five years of dedicated service to Ipswich Grammar School. Captains Mitchell Michael and Liam Johnston led by example, and Manager Glenn Beazley put in plenty of work behind the scenes. INTERHOUSE CARNIVAL This year’s Interhouse Track & Field Carnival was a well contested and attended event. Large numbers of students participated in multiple events. Congratulations to Hawthorne on their historic win. The following boys were named age champions: Jack Webber, Calum Livingstone, Adam Kovacevic, Jordan Lennon, Joseph Deng and Mitchell Michael. DISTRICTS, REGIONALS & STATE TITLES The representative season again saw large numbers of Ipswich Grammar School students perform very well. Seventy IGS athletes dominated the districts and as a result 45 were nominated to compete at the Metropolitan West titles. Two IGS athletes were successful and secured a position in the regional team. Elliot Housden, Frank Kuresa and Joseph Deng won gold at the state titles, while Jarrad Darrach and Liam Johnston finished with bronze. KNOCKOUTS Ipswich Grammar School entered three teams at the annual Schools Knockout competition. The Junior Knockouts gained great experience and placed fifth. The Senior Knockouts were very strong and finished a credible third. Congratulations to the Intermediate Knockouts, who won the state title. The team will now compete at the Schools Knockout National Final against the best schools from across the country. If successful there, the team and coaches will travel to the world titles. Mr Nigel Greive Director of Sports & Activities [email protected] - Excellence - Leadership - Integrity - Community - 2015 CSTP Scholarship Exam - Locked Bag 6000, North Ipswich QLD 4305 - www.ipswichgrammar.com - (07) 3813 9600 - CRICOS # 00499A The annual Co-operative Scholarship Testing Program (CSTP) examination will be held at Ipswich Grammar School on Saturday, 28 February 2015. Please note, this will be the only scholarship testing held in 2015. If you live a long distance from the school some country centres are available for students who wish to sit the exam. Scholarships will be awarded to students who obtain outstanding results in the exam. Scholarships cover varying amounts depending on results. Bursaries may also be awarded to the families of students who show they have reached required standard and whose parents would like them to attend Ipswich Grammar School but can demonstrate limited financial means. Students going into Year 7 in 2016 will sit for Level 1, and students going into Year 11 in 2016 will sit for Level 3. Applications for the Co-operative Scholarship Testing Program are to be lodged online through the Ipswich Grammar School website at: www.ipswichgrammar.com i Enrolments i Scholarships i Links: Co-operative Scholarship Testing Program Important dates, details and costs are as follows: Online registration facility closes: Registration fee: Overseas registration fee: Candidate results available to parents: * All costs include GST Monday, 9 February 2015 at midnight AEST $120* $270* Monday, 13 April 2015 For more information please contact: Enrolments & Marketing Office Ipswich Grammar School P: 07 3813 9604 E: [email protected] - Excellence - Leadership - Integrity - Community - IGS P&F AGM 26th Nov 6:30pm - Mark your calendars Parents Supporting Sons, Parents Leading By Example, Parents Engaged with School Plato once said “Of all the animals, the boy is the most unmanageable”. An interesting observation which feeds into the roles we have as parents, teachers and mentors to the men of grammar. Whilst taming boys would be a mistake providing encouragement, guidance and support as they grow into manhood is the domain of parents, carers and educators. A great opportunity to share in your son’s journey is by being part of one of the support groups within the school. Support groups are associated with many of the GPS sports and have more intensive periods of involvement for 8 to 10 weeks or can cover activities which are spread across the school year. The umbrella to all these groups is the P&F .The P&F provides a different avenue for parents to be involved in their son’s education and school life. The P&F forms a vital part of the IGS Community with major aims and objectives:     To provide guidelines, support and promote support groups which come under the umbrella of the P&F; To promote the interests and spread knowledge of the aims of Ipswich Grammar School; To foster and promote the interests of students at the school. To represent the viewpoint of Parents’ and Friends’ with respect to the School’s aims and activities. Education does not stop and start at the school gates and the P&F is a vital bridge which links the school community providing the relationship between school and home, parents and sons and parents and staff. The P&F is keen to expand upon its educational, consultative and fundraising objectives. As well as supporting your sons schooling, it is also an excellent mechanism for meeting and engaging with our families at IGS. Parents and friends are invited to come along and see what the P&F if about at the AGM being held on Wednesday the 26th Nov commencing at 0630pm in the Staff Room. Not sure about filling a role and the prerequisites, details are can be found on the web at http://www.ipswichgrammar.com/web/community/pandf/ or speak with a current office bearer. Positions which are elected each year are President, Vice-President, Secretary and Treasurer. If you wish to nominate for a position please fill in details below and email to the current Secretary , Lesley Barthelme at [email protected] _________________________________________________________________________________ I ____________________________ wish to nominate for the position of: (Insert Name) President / Vice President/Secretary/Treasurer (Please Circle positions you wish to stand for) Nomination accepted by: ____________________ (Name) Date: ______________ Signature ______________________