Dean of Students | Mr Damien Fall

This week, I would like to place some focus on the topic of values.

Put quite simply, values are those things that are most important to us. I often refer to Terrace as a values-based organisation; a place where our actions are heavily influenced by values such as respect, humility, commitment, honesty and courage. Our founder, Blessed Edmund Rice, championed these values in all he encountered. As part of their formation as Terrace Gentlemen, our students regularly hear messages about the importance of living our values. I frequently hear from parents that they are attracted to Terrace as a school for their sons because our values are strongly aligned to their own. Our commitment to parents is that we will maintain our standards and expectations in a manner that ensures we remain true to the values we share.

Human nature means that boys will sometimes make mistakes and let us down. At these times, it is important that home and school work together and respond in a way that helps our young men to learn, grow and become a better person. Making mistakes helps to form all us into the best person we can be, as mistakes allow for reflection. I have always felt blessed with knowing that parents are supportive of the school’s actions, even if it does mean that their sons need to be held to account or face consequences for poor decisions. Supportive parents are a wonderful gift to our College and I am grateful to work in an environment with such strong collaboration between home and school.

On the topic of values, I spoke with students at this week’s assembly about the importance of playing and spectating at sporting events in a spirit of humility and respect. It is a wonderful thing to be fiercely competitive and to play to win, but this should never be at the cost of lowering our standards. Similarly, the way we support as spectators needs to be a positive reflection of the school. As we head towards Rugby season and its associated emotions, we will continue to push the message about playing and supporting with the very best of sportsmanship.

Exams commence next week and I wish all students the best at this important time. Year 12 students commence exam block on Tuesday and Year 11 start on Wednesday. I have spoken with these students about expectations during this time, including the need to meet our usual standards regarding punctuality and personal presentation. This is a busy time and the coming weeks will be critical in determining the outcomes of all students. I trust that all students are working hard at home to produce their very best.