Principal's Message
Vale Frank Rowland
We have taken the opportunity to honour Mr Frank Rowland in various ways this week, since we heard the news of his untimely passing. A clear, consistent and resounding theme in the stories shared is of a teacher, and a man, of immense heart and spirit, who had time for people. He never saw a need and disregarded it. If he noticed something he did his best to try and address it. He lent his skills and talents to various departments across the College, including set-building and design for our Performing Arts Program.
Student recollections have revolved around Mr Rowland’s kindness and generosity towards his students, and their enjoyment in his classes. There are a couple of quotes that sprang to mind that capture perfectly the impact Mr Rowland had on his students.
“Students don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.” – John C. Maxwell
“They may forget what you said, but they will never forget how you made them feel.”- Carl W. Buechner.
To his students, Mr Rowland was an exceptional teacher who has left a lasting impression on their minds and hearts.
Football and family were his passions. Not being a football fanatic myself, I did overhear many conversations involving a detailed analysis of the weekend’s games, and wonder how you could get so much out of one game. These conversations were rich, robust, passionate, often funny, and at times tinged with frustration. Mr Rowland had a gift of connecting with people over the seemingly ordinary and everyday events of life. It was our shared humanity that Mr Rowland recognised in everyone, and there were many on staff who counted him as a friend because of what he gave of himself in the relationships he formed. He will be deeply missed as a friend and colleague. Our staff group is in deep mourning over his loss.
There were many proud family moments that Frank shared with me. He delighted in his children and grandchildren, and our heartfelt condolences remain with Frank’s wife Laura, his three daughters, and his grandchildren.
We offer up this prayer of farewell for Frank Rowland.
Into your hands, God of Mercies, we commend our beloved teacher, dear friend and colleague, Frank, in the sure and certain hope that together with all who have died in Christ, he will rise with him on the last day. We give you thanks for the blessings which you have bestowed upon him in life: they are sure signs to us of your goodness and of our union with the saints in Christ.
Grant him eternal rest.
Amen
Keeping our Children Safe in the Online World
There has been a fair amount of commentary in the media, and online, about the new Netflix series, “Adolescence”. If you haven’t watched it, I would highly recommend it. It is eye-opening. I pride myself on keeping up-to-date with what is happening for our young people. I had no idea about the cryptic communication systems being used through apps such as Instagram!
Last year we hosted Justin Coulson for one of our parent education sessions. Justin added his commentary about the series. I have included it here for your reference. While the article does focus on boys, there are messages included for all of us. It is a jarring read. Below is an excerpt from the article highlighting the lessons we can take from this insightful series about our children and the online world.
“Adolescence” offers no simple solutions. It simply holds up a mirror to our collective failure and asks what kind of society permits its children to be corrupted in digital spaces until they either implode or explode.
Katie is dead. Jamie is shattered. And the machinery that created this tragedy continues to operate, indifferent to the human cost.
What can you do?
– Monitor your kids’ online activities
– Talk to them regularly (and listen twice as much)
– Minimise screen time and foster face to face relationships
– Spend more time together as a family
– Make sure they get enough sleep
– Know where your kids are
– Ensure they have access to great adults who care about them
– Tell them the three most important words they can hear: Not I love you… but the next three: no matter what. They need to know they’re worthy of your love. Always.
We take online safety seriously at the College. We have sophisticated filters in place, and we monitor student access to sites that set off alarm bells. Regular monthly reports go to the Wellbeing Team where issues are flagged so that House Leaders can monitor wellbeing and implement the appropriate supports as necessary. Our curriculum, especially through Pastoral Care and Digital Technologies, encourages students to consider their safety, and that of others, online.
The College filters inappropriate sites before they reach the laptop and guardians can do the same by applying the filtering on their home WiFi router. You may already have some filtering applied based on your internet plan. There are numerous articles and instructions on how to do this by searching the web or via an AI platform (recommended). In your search, include the name of your internet provider and the filtering application you have decided on, use the terms “DNS filter” and “home Wifi Router”. The filtering application will have a default database of sites it will block but you can add or remove sites manually. The filtering needs to be applied on the WiFi router due to restricted access to student laptops as they are managed by the College.
Don’t forget about our Online Safety Hub offered to families via our partnership with ySafe, which you can access from the SEQTA Engage Welcome page. Through the portal you can access information about the latest apps, as well as articles with useful advice for families.
If you are concerned about your child’s technology use, please contact their House Leader.
