Newsletter Term 1 #7 9 March 2018 St Andrew’s COLLEGE Nec Aspera Terrent To the Andrean Community Winning is fun... Sure. But winning is not the point. Wanting to win is the point. Not giving up is the point. Never letting up is the point. Never being satisfied with what you've done is the point. Pat Summitt As I write this newsletter I am in the Highlander, looking over that most beautiful of school sights, Lower Field, emerald green after the blessing of lots of soaking rain in Grahamstown, with the early preparations underway for a feast of weekend cricket against Grey. It is a beautiful late summer morning, and as I savour my pot of tea, the wonderful cricket-y scene below is betrayed by the slight fatigue evident in the leaves, the slight nip in the air, and the pale blue of an increasingly distant sky. These are all signs that soon the seasons will have turned. The posts will be up, and the voices of Andreans everywhere will be echoing across Grahamstown as the Blues run out to represent us all in another display of great rugby. We look forward to another cracker of a winter sports season, not just in rugby, and not just at top-team levels. St Andrew’s College Nec Aspera Terrent 9 March 2018 Across every age group and team we expect our boys again to be playing with that characteristic College grit and extraordinary commitment, carrying the ethos of nec aspera terrent in their hearts wherever they go. And although winning is always great and we never intend to lose, winning is not everything. I hate losing and I try never to do it, but there are obviously times when a team learns more from a loss in a good game than it ever would learn from a win in a bad one. Sport is not about “College” either. For the purpose of sport is not as a marketing tool or an act of inter-institutional one-upmanship. It is about our boys, individually, and in the teams that they become. It is about each boy finding his own unique giftedness and giving it his all that he may flourish and, above all, have fun. History will show that 2017 was a remarkable year for College rugby. With an 88% win rate, an unbeaten run in the Eastern Cape and top 10 in SA, 9 Craven Week and 2 Academy Week selections, and multiple post-school contract or varsity selections, there is no doubt that it produced some positive statistics. Sometimes schools get a bit carried away with all of that stuff - the numbers, the rankings, and the hype feed an insatiable addiction to success, where we judge our worth on the external measures rather than the internal joys of having given it all for College. We chase success for the sake of success, at great cost to the boys involved and the joy of the game. It is an unsustainable race to nowhere, motivated by factors other than sport. For me, the best statistic of the 2017 starting line-up was the fact that every boy in that team joined College at Grade Eight level (many from Prep), none were head-hunted for sport, and none were recipients of sports bursaries or incentives to play. They played for their College with passion and courage because they were College boys, and that’s what College boys do, whether they are playing for the 1st XV or for the Sloths. Alan Thompson [email protected] St Andrew’s College Nec Aspera Terrent 9 March 2018 ACADEMICS SIMS Parent Portal During 2018 the school has been implementing http://www.sacschool.com/parents/parent-portal/ a new school administration system, SIMS. This includes a new parent portal, SIMS Parent, What can you do through SIMS Parent? which has both a web and mobile app interface for parents. Your child’s end-of-term reports will – Access and update your contact details, so be issued through SIMS Parent, and as a parent we always have the most up-to-date you therefore need to enrol into SIMS Parent to information in case of emergency download reports. – Access your child’s school reports. Historical reports will be loaded in due course. – Receive notifications to remind you about important information and key dates for your diary – View information such as timetable, attendance and achievements – Access the school term dates and contact details at the click of a button – If you have more than one child at school, On Friday 9 March you will receive an email you’ll have access to information for all your to your parent email address on record with children, from the same interface. a link to enrol into SIMS Parent. If you have already enrolled as a Prep parent in 2017, you will already have access to SIMS Parent. For a full description of the process, along with Roy Hobson troubleshooting steps, please visit our website: Head: ICT St Andrew’s College Nec Aspera Terrent 9 March 2018 CAREERS DAY There was a real smorgasbord of career options Those who do not necessarily want to go to available at the DSG Careers Day on Wednesday. university were spoiled for choice with information Offering the academic route to school leavers, about design, fashion, film and television, and Rhodes University was very well represented with those wanting a gap year had the opportunity to a wide variety of faculties offering information on find out more about options overseas. Commerce, Computer Science, Education, Law, Science and Journalism, to name just a few. Careers Day, which was started by LO teacher Universities from far and wide – Stellenbosch, Anne Preston a number of years ago, has shown Pretoria, the Free State and Port Elizabeth – were exponential growth over the years and offers a also on the campus. In terms of post-graduate unique opportunity for young people, who are careers, the boys and girls could hear about often undecided about their career options, a engineering, physiotherapy, medicine and sports relaxed, non-demanding way to perhaps get some management. direction. St Andrew’s College Nec Aspera Terrent 9 March 2018 St Andrew’s College Nec Aspera Terrent 9 March 2018 Memorial Service Dear Family & Friends, As most of you know, Felicity Cotton, in answer to prayer, passed away peacefully on January 19th 2018. Her family will be holding a small Memorial Service in her honour at St Andrew’s Chapel on Friday, 23rd March at 2:30pm. Please feel welcome to attend the service and join the family for tea afterwards at the Highlander. Kind Regards, The Cotton Family Sincere and grateful thanks to the numerous members of our Andrean community who donated to St Andrew’s College and St Andrew’s Prep in 2017. Support in the form of gifts, time and service contribute to the sustainability of our wonderful schools, thereby enabling the current and future generations of boys to enjoy this unique learning experience. To view the extent of the philanthropic generosity expressed in 2017, please view our 2017 Donor Report HERE. St Andrew’s College Nec Aspera Terrent 9 March 2018 #AcademicExcellence update Phase 3 is the final stage of the #AcademicExcellence project and began in February 2018.The renovation of 12 classrooms in the Norton Block is in full swing and completion is expected in November. The internal passage on all three storeys will be incorporated into the classrooms, which will be acces- sible via the new façade. All classrooms will be technology enabled and furnished with ergonomic and flexible fittings, allowing for multiple teaching configurations. We look forward to completing Phase 3 at the end of 2018 and reaching our campaign target of R50M. For regular progress updates, follow the #AcademicExcellence Facebook page here: https://www. facebook.com/AcademicExcellence-Appeal-at-St-Andrews-Grahamstown-925045507554055/ and the website here: http://www.standrewsacademicexcellence.co.za/only-r5m-to-go.htm Pupils receiving their certificates for rowing (top) and swimming from Mr Thompson during assembly. St Andrew’s College Nec Aspera Terrent 9 March 2018 DRAMA PRODUCTION: METAMORPHOSES ‘Myths are the earliest forms of science… It has been said that the myth is a public dream, dreams are private myths. Un- fortunately we give our mythic side scant attention these days. As a result, a great deal escapes us and we no longer understand our actions.’ DSG and St An- drew’s College are proud to pre- sent Mary Zimmerman’s award winning play, Metamorphoses. Inspired by Ovid’s epic poem of the same name, Metamorpho- ses explores what it means to be human: to love, to lose and to long for. Presented as ten short stories, Metamorphoses is an exciting retelling of ancient Greek myths in a modern way. With action- packed sea battles (be prepared to get wet), charmingly funny characters as well as beautiful costumes and scenery, this is sure to be a production you do not want to miss! Date: 12 - 16 March Time: 19h00 Venue: DSG Fountain Cost: R 65 Tickets bookings can be made on the DSG and SAC websites from 1 March. St Andrew’s College Nec Aspera Terrent 9 March 2018 A Sacred Venue for a Sacred Event There are very few events as precious as those where fledgling young musicians try out their new- found skills in front of an audience. Serendipity resulted in Wednesday’s Senior Open Concert taking place in a venue well-suited to surrounding the performers and audience in a loving and com- passionate ambience. The DSG Chapel rang with the sincere and earnest attempts to “speak the language of music” to a willing and supportive au- dience.