Scots Dance annual concert • Friday 15 November, 5.30pm, Chapel Hall. All welcome.

Infants Production • Tuesday 19 November, 11am

Infants Production • Wednesday 20 November, 6pm. Bookings here.

2025 New Boarders for a Night • Wednesday 20 November, 4pm

Year 7 2025 Transition Day #2 • Thursday 21 November

Year 8-11 2025 New Students Orientation Session • Thursday 21 November, 8.45am-11.15am

Pupil Free Day and Boarder exeat Weekend • Friday 22 November

Great Victorian Bike Ride departs • Saturday 23 November to Wednesday 27 November

Boarders return • Sunday 24 November from 3pm

Junior School Public Speaking Finals • Tuesday 26 November, JET, 6.30pm

K-2 Swimming Carnival • Thursday 28 November

ASC under-17 Basketball Championships • Sunday 1 December to Saturday 7 December

Healthy Harold Visit, Junior School • Tuesday 3 December

Year 6 Graduation • Thursday 5 December, 6pm, Dining Hall, Book Here

Carols @ Scots • Friday 6 December, Quad, 6pm.

Senior School Final Assembly • Tuesday 10 December, 9am, Chapel Hall

Junior School Final Assembly • Tuesday 10 December, 1.30pm, Chapel Hall

2025 Meet the Junior School Teacher and new student orientation morning Years 1-6 • Wednesday 11 December

Speech Day • Wednesday 11 December, 1pm

Term 4 concludes • Wednesday 11 December

Year 7 and Year 12 Boarders return • Wednesday 29 January, from 1pm

Boarding Families Years 7 and Year 12 Afternoon Tea • Wednesday 29 January, 2.30pm-3.30pm, Boarding Quad

Year 7 and Year 12 commence • Thursday 30 January

Year 8-11 Boarders arrive • Thursday 30 January from 1pm

New Student Years 8-11 orientation • Thursday 30 January, 1.30-3.30pm

Senior School New Parent Information Session and Afternoon Tea • Thursday 30 January 2.30-3.30pm, Chapel Hall

Boarding families Years 8-12 afternoon team • Thursday 30 January, 3.30-4.30pm, Boarding Quad

Years 1-11 commence • Friday 31 January 

New families morning tea • Friday 31 January 9-10am, Quad

Kindergarten commences • Monday 3 February

New Kindergarten families morning tea • Monday 3 February, 9-10am, Indoor Sports Centre foyer

Welcome to 2025 Scots Community Breakfast • Tuesday 4 February, 7.30-8.30am

It has been a massive month, with so much happening and many significant milestones reached. 

Year 12 HSC
The HSC has been successfully completed by our Year 12 students. The general feedback from students has been that they felt very well prepared for their exams, the exams were better than they were expecting and unlike in past years, there were no big surprises in any of the exams. This was a big relief for the students!

This group of young adults have demonstrated exemplary behaviour throughout their final year and they continued this throughout the HSC exam period, where their attitude and behaviour was exceptional. We have been so incredibly proud of our Year 12 Graduates, as they have been outstanding ambassadors for Scots.

The HSC results will be released on Wednesday 18 December and we eagerly await hearing of our students’ many successes. 

Many of our students have already received early entry into a range of courses from Actuarial Studies, Arts, Economics, Law, Health Science, Business, Agriculture, Aerospace Engineering, Pharmacy, Media & Communication and Biotechnology. We are already so proud of their achievements. 

My understanding is that, as we only have 48 students completing their HSC, we will be ineligible to be ranked in any of the league tables, as schools need to have more than 50 students to appear in the school rankings.

Year 12 Graduation
On Saturday 9 November, our Year 12 students celebrated their graduation at the Albury Entertainment Centre with families, friends and staff. Everyone enjoyed a lovely evening of celebration. Although this was a very joyous celebration, it was difficult to say a final farewell to the wonderful group of young people who have been shining examples of the type of graduate produced at Scots.

New Junior School
It is so exciting to realise the dream of building a new Junior School after so many years of planning and discussion. This dream came one step closer to reality on Friday 25 October, when we held our Break Ground event. The event was well attended by parents, alumni, staff, our Years 3 to 6 students, members of our Foundation and the local media. It was a momentous day in the history of Scots and an important step forward in the future of our Junior School. When the Junior School is completed, it will be one of the most beautiful and best learning environments in the country and a building of which we can all be incredibly proud.

This Break Ground event was followed by our Giving Day, which was very ably led by Scots Foundation Chair Geoff Wright. We had an incredibly successful Giving Day, raising more than $202,000, which far exceeded our expectations. We were astounded by the incredible generosity of our parents, alumni and broader community. Coupled with the money donated at the Scots Fair, we have raised more than $225,000 this year, which is a significant contribution to the building of the new Junior School. Thank you so much to everyone who donated to our new Junior School - future generations of students are indebted to you.

Road Safety
Over the past month, there have been some horrific car accidents in schools where children and adults have been killed. Can I please ask all parents to drive with particular care around the School? It has been brought to my attention that some drivers are doing u-turns on Young Street in front of the School. Please do not do this as none of us would want an accident or a fatality, especially because of reckless driving. It may take more time to drive around the block, but this choice will keep everyone safe.

School Fees
The Scots School Albury Audit and Finance Committee has been working diligently and with great care and consideration to prepare our budget for 2025. The budget balances the need to ensure that we are financially sustainable in an economic environment of increasing costs whilst taking into consideration affordability for families.

The 2025 fee schedule will be released next week and reflects an attempt to balance increasing costs and affordability.

Transition Days
We are moving into that time of the year where, as we farewell our Year 12 students, we start to welcome our new starters in both Kindergarten and Year 7. We already have held very successful transition days for both Kindergarten and Year 7, with the last few transition days happening over the next few weeks. Last Friday we had a lovely breakfast for our Year 7 students and their parents and there was a fantastic buzz around the place. I really enjoyed meeting both existing and new students and their families. Our new student leaders did an amazing job helping with the Year 7 Transition Day.

Our student numbers for next year are looking great. We have 38 students enrolled for Kindergarten and 80 students enrolled for Year 7 (including 12 new Year 7 Boarders). Demand is at an all-time high, with some year-groups and girls boarding full. There are certainly exciting times ahead in 2025.

Year 10 Boys in Leadership seminar
One of the things which has become apparent to me over the past few years in the schools I have been leading is the reluctance of many boys to become involved in leadership and community-based activities as they progress through Senior School. This is not just a Scots issue, but one I have observed across multiple schools. 

In an attempt to engage with our Year 10 boys, yesterday we organised a leadership seminar with a variety of male school and community leaders. The day was very productive and we gained valuable insights into the boys' thinking and motivation. We will continue to work closely with our Year 10 boys to foster improved engagement, positivity and involvement in school activities and leadership opportunities. We are also reviewing our processes for electing leaders, based on the student feedback.

Last few weeks
Hold on to your hats as we only have 17 more days of school remaining for the year! It only feels like yesterday that we commenced 2024 and now the countdown is on. The last few weeks are action-packed as we celebrate what has been a remarkable and incredibly happy year. I look forward to seeing you all at many of our end of year celebrations.

Our infants have been very busy preparing for their production. Many thanks to our parent volunteers who are assisting with costumes, hair, make-up etc in preparation for the night. We look forward to seeing you all there on Wednesday 20 November.

Students have been busy working on their speeches for the Public Speaking Competition. They are all to be congratulated on their efforts – it is never easy to speak in front of your peers.

Our Year 6 students had a very enjoyable day in the Senior School at their Transition Day for Year 7 2025. They were engaged in core subjects as well as scavenger hunts and giant games. It is hard to believe that the end of the school year is only four weeks away. Plans are well underway for our Carols evening and many fun end-of-year activities.

It has been a busy, bittersweet time in the Senior School. The class of 2024 completed their HSC examinations. It was a smooth process and the students appeared to be focussed and engaged throughout the period. On Saturday night we celebrated the outgoing year level with the Graduation Ball. It was a wonderful evening where students were able to reconnect and enjoy the new-found freedom that came with the end of HSC examinations.

One of my favorite parts of the evening was when we asked the students who have been at Scots since Kindergarten to cut the graduation cake. This year we had six amazing young people who shared this honour: Audrey Joss, Daniel Steer, William Maguire, William Rogers, Damon Wright and Daisy Turner. Congratulations to all of our graduates and their families on the successful completion of their secondary schooling. 

Last Friday we welcomed our 2025 Year 7 cohort to the first of our transition days. Stage 4 Co-ordinator Shonetell Toohey did a magnificent job at showing the students some of the things they can expect during secondary school here at Scots. The day started with a family breakfast. It was such a lovely event and it was great to see our 2025 Year 7 families meeting each other. The day ran smoothly due to the amazing work of our 2025 Prefects. These leaders were exemplary; they led with passion, purpose and a great sense of fun! I think the energy of the new Year 7s wore them out. I even had one of the Prefects say to me at lunch: ‘this is exhausting, I don’t know how you do this every day’! We are looking forward to the next transition day and our Boarder for a Night, where we welcome not only our new Year 7s, but also new students in Years 8-11.

Our Year 10 students have completed their examinations this week. It was a great exercise at managing some stress and the balance required during an exam period. By all accounts, our Year 10s handled themselves well. We also are taking the opportunity to take the Year 10 boys out for half a day, for a special leadership session. We have started a working group that is focussed on building boys in leadership here at Scots. Our first step is to get an understanding from our students about barriers they feel stop them from being leaders. We are running sessions where students have the opportunity to hear different personal stories of leadership from local community leaders. We will encourage our young men to consider how they could be leaders and how leadership can come in many different forms. 

We still have many events coming up this term, including Year 9 exams, The Great Victorian Bike Ride, ASC basketball championships in Queensland, Year 10 mock interviews, Carols and of course our final assemblies and Speech Day. A busy and exciting time still to come!

Giving Day was a day of generosity and community spirit that raised more than $202,000 for the construction of our new Junior School. 

Giving Day, on Friday 25 October, drew donations from many members of our wonderful community, including current families, alumni, parents and grandparents of alumni and staff. 

Every donation raised on the day was matched by our generous matching donors, many of whom have been long time supporters of the School.

Thanks to matching donors Geoff Wright and family, Jan and Adrian Kay, John and Carolyn Butko, Andre and Olivia Ellis, Dean and Robyn Pendlebury, Ron and Jenny Bailey, Hamish Gidley-Baird, James and Victoria Tonkin, Andrea and David Dunstan, Emma and Murray Scholz and Prepare to Sell.

Thanks, also, to the many volunteers who manned the phones seeking pledges, and to everyone who donated to make the Junior School a reality.

It truly was a day where the focus was firmly on the Junior School.

We started off with a staff breakfast, where Junior School staff could meet our 2025 Head of Junior School Chris Todd. Then Chris had a chance to meet a group of Junior School parents before attending the official Break Ground ceremony to witness the turning of the first sod on the site of the new build.

While volunteers were calling for donations throughout the day, others were busy getting ready for the evening Foundation fundraiser event, Canapes for Classrooms, at Din Dins.

It was a chance for those, who had worked so hard to make Giving Day a reality, to kick up their heels on the dance floor and celebrate the magnificent total.

Many raised a glass to the $202,000 result - and then danced into the night.

It is with great sadness that we share the news of the passing of our former Principal, Alistair Todd.

Mr Todd was the second principal of Scots, from 1978 to 1998. His unwavering dedication and passion for co-education underpinned the success of the amalgamation of Albury Grammar School and Woodstock Presbyterian Girls’ School in 1972. 

Together with his late wife Joy, Mr Todd worked to “build” the school equally for all students and, at his leaving in 1998, was satisfied that every aspect of education at Scots was well-represented by both boys and girls. The School acknowledged his amazing contribution by naming the Alistair Todd Chapel Hall in his honour. 

Our thoughts and prayers are with Mr Todd’s family and loved ones. Rest in peace, Mr Todd. You will be greatly missed.

We are proud to present the 2024 Infants Production Set a Place in Space. 

As part of the IB Programme unit ‘Who are We,’ the students explored how each of us has unique tastes and preferences, with Year 2 students collaborating on the script writing process showcasing their knowledge and ideas. 

The Kindergarten, Year 1 and Year 2 students have worked hard over the course of the term learning to ‘act’ and to remember their lines and stage directions. They also learned songs and dance choreography. We're incredibly proud of their hard work, creativity, and courage.

Tickets available at https://events.humanitix.com/2024-scots-infants-production

Our Year Parents play a crucial role in fostering a strong, positive connection between the School and our broader community. They help create a welcoming environment, build relationships and enhance the Family-School partnership that makes Scots such a special place. 

We are now seeking passionate and engaged parents to nominate for Year Parent roles in 2025.

Key responsibilities include: 

• Welcoming New Families: Be the friendly face new families can turn to, providing them with a point of contact and helping them feel at home in the Scots community. 
• Organising Year-Level Social Activities: Plan and facilitate social events that bring families together throughout the year. 
• Facilitating Feedback: Gather input from the year-level community and share it with the school through regular Year Parent meetings. 
• Supporting Major School Events: Act as the point of contact for your year level during key events like the start of year Welcome events, Open Day, and Fair (biennial)

If you're interested in contributing please contact us at marketing@scotsalbury.nsw.edu.au by Friday 29 November 2024. 

We look forward to welcoming new Year Parents to help shape the vibrant Scots community in 2025!

James Morris, Year 11, had never been overseas but his tour with Gondwana Voices through the UK, France and Spain last month has been the highlight of his year - and possibly his life so far! 

It was his second year of performing with Gondwana Voices, Australia’s national children’s choir for singers aged 13 to 17, but his first major tour with the group. 

Starting in London, the group performed at multiple venues, including London’s Barbican Hall and Westminster Abbey, where they played to a select audience and then were treated to a private tour. 

The tour continued with a performance in La Madeleine in Paris and then on to Spain. 

They performed with Spinifex Gum alongside Marliya, Farnham Youth Choir and the Royal Scottish National Orchestra Youth Chorus, as well as two prestigious Spanish choirs. 

“I’m really privileged to have been invited on the tour. I’ve never been overseas but it was a very positive first time experience,” James said. 

“It was simply incredible. We played in some amazing venues like the Basilica Montserrat, one of the most important religious buildings in Monsterrat, La Madeleine in France, which was a huge space, beautiful and super-old; and the Australian Embassy in Paris.” 

In order to sing collaboratively with Marliya, the Gondwana Voices group had to learn words of the Yindjibarndi language and meanings of the songs they sang. 

“Marliya is a really powerful choir. They are so talented and have powerful music which is a voice on indigenous issues in Australia. They tour in Australia a lot and were on their own London tour, so it made sense for us to collaborate with them.” 

In Spain, Gondwana Voices sang with a Spanish choir, Leioa Kantika Korala, to perform the World Premiere of a song written specifically for the Australian group’s tour by singer/songwriter Lisa Young. 

“Pre-tour, they sent us all the music we were to perform and it was the first time we’d gone on tour and not had rehearsals before we left. But we did have rehearsals in London before our very first performance and it was amazing how easily it all came together. 

“Every opportunity I had to sing with Gondwana improved my ability to sing in a choir, which is very different from singing on your own. The tour was great - not only to improve my singing, but in several places we were billeted by local families so it was a cultural experience as well.” 

It’s an exciting time for James to be involved in Gondwana Voices - the group will record its first album in more than a decade in April next year.

Scots hockey star Jenna Dickins (Year 8) had an outstanding, accolade-filled 2024 season for Scots and the ACT state team, winning the Hockey Albury Wodonga Most Valuable Player award in the Under-14s, a berth in the ACT under-14 State team for Nationals and subsequently selection in the ACT under-15 talent squad. 

Dickins played Left Half for the Scots under-14, under-16 and Division 3 women’s team in the local competition as well as for the ACT team when it travelled to Perth for the under-14 Nationals in the school holidays. 

The position allows her to showcase her aggressive, fearless style and execute her secret weapon - a big, long hit that spearheads her team into attack. 

And, while selection into the ACT under-15 talent squad was a rewarding moment, she is now focussed on the real task at hand - making the under-16 State team for nationals 2025 as a bottom-age player. 

The young hockey star is under no illusions that she has all to play for despite her stellar season. It's rare for players to make the team for Nationals when they are bottom-age players - often having to concede to stronger, more experienced top-age players but she has worked hard so far and has no intentions of easing up on her busy schedule. 

Jenna trains twice a week in Canberra, on Mondays and Wednesdays, requiring a complex car pooling arrangement involving Jenna’s parents and grandparents and that of a fellow Hockey Albury Wodonga player, who juggle the driving duties week about. 

She plays for the Scots under-16s on Friday nights, the Under-14s on Saturday morning and Div 3 women’s on Saturday afternoon. 

Selection in the Under-15 talent squad means more than recognition. It also means she is now under tutelage of German Olympic hockey player Emma Davidsmeyer, who is in Australia playing for the Canberra Chill. Davidsmeyer was in the German team that was knocked out in the quarter-finals of the Paris Olympics by Argentina. 

The elite coaching will help finetune her execution of the overhead, a skill she needs to perfect to be in the running for an under-16s berth at Nationals. The overhead is a great way to turn a defensive situation into an attacking opportunity and requires precision and strength. Jenna has both but wants to develop their consistency.

She’s come a long way since she started playing hockey as a little tyke for no other reason than her brother didn’t play it all!

On Sunday 24 November 25 students and six parents will depart Wodonga on the annual Great Victorian Bike Ride led by Ms Mackinlay and Mr Hanna.

This year's riders have been training all term in preparation for the event which finishes in Mansfield. On completion, the team will have ridden a total of 311km, averaging 77km daily.

Will, Ollie (Year 7) and Eddie (Year 8) were inspired by older siblings who have completed the ride with Scots in the past. This is Eddie's second year riding.

Good luck to the crew; they've worked hard and shown great determination and commitment in preparation for the big ride.

Cricket

Darcy Baird (Year 6) represented Scots in the CIS NSW under-12 cricket team which competed in the NSW PSSA cricket championships in Armidale recently. The team came second in the final, going down to MacKillop on the final day of competition.

Darcy, along with schoolmate Fergus Glass, also has been selected for the CAW Murray under-13 cricket team to play in the upcoming NSW Youth Cricket Championship in Dubbo in late December.

Darcy has been named captain of the side. 

Equestrian

Izzy Ingle (Year 5) and her pocket rocket pony, Whitford Park Southern Cross, combined to take home the Level 1 Dressage Reserve Champion sash at the Inter-Schools Horse Extravaganza held in Tamworth last weekend.

The event, for primary and secondary students, attracted more than 600 horses for competition across a range of disciplines. Izzy entered several disciplines but her best result came in the dressage. 

She picked up a second and third in the Preliminary K-6 dressage competition, scoring a whopping 76.67% in the 1.3 test; then her combined scores were enough to secure the reserve champion title.

Performing Arts

Matilda Player, Year 11, won a Georgy Award for Best Performance in a Junior Production for her portrayal of Katherine Black in our Showcase Production ‘Freaky Friday’ earlier this year.
Receiving the award over the weekend at the 51st Annual Georgy Awards, Matilda also was invited to perform at the award night, singing ‘After All of This and Everything’ – a ‘Freaky Friday’ number.

It has been a busy start to Term 4, with our Year 5 and 6 Hoop Time Team and Year 3 and 4 Todd Woodbridge Cup Team representing Scots at regional finals. We were very proud of these students and their achievements!

Hoop Time Regional Finals - Basketball

Our Year 5 and 6 team recently competed at Werribee in the Regional Finals, facing off against some tough competition from across regional Victoria. They showed incredible grit and determination, winning three games and narrowly losing two. Their resilience and teamwork paid off as they secured an impressive third-place finish. While they just missed out on progressing to the state finals, the experience was invaluable, and we couldn’t have been prouder of their hard work and sportsmanship. 

Well done: Tait Bartlett, James Grylewics, Eliza Hyde, Isolde James, Jack Kettlewell, Sophie Kilgour, Conan Maloney and Flo Harrison. 

Todd Woodbridge Cup Regional Final – Tennis 

Our Year 3 and 4 team recently competed in the Todd Woodbridge Cup regional finals in Wagga Wagga, facing teams from Albury and across southwest NSW, including Yass, Griffith and Wagga. This was a fantastic opportunity for our students to showcase their tennis skills and compete with schools from the region. Our team advanced to the finals, battling for a spot in the state competition in Sydney. In a close match, they narrowly missed out, with a 6-2 loss to Mater Dei Primary. We were incredibly proud of their outstanding sportsmanship and skill throughout the tournament! 

Well done: Austin McGaffin, Ardan Magaharan, Beau Sawyer, Paddy Mason, Lilly Baird, Beau Deverell, Jane Newton, Eloise Rogers and Annabelle Staughton.

Tri Tag Rugby Gala Day 

On Wednesday 30 October, we had three teams represent Scots at the Tri Tag Rugby Gala Day. This was an opportunity for many of our students to try something new. Tri Tag Rugby is a new game that has been developed to introduce players to Rugby Union. All students had an absolute blast on the day and our Year 5 and 6 team was the overall winner for its division.

Scots will host the Healthy Harold van in the Junior School from 3-6 December 2024. All students Kinder to Year 6 will attend.

It’s been a busy start to the term in the library.

Tony Armstrong visit: It was very exciting to have media personality Tony Armstrong here at the beginning of term. He talked about his life and career, read his gorgeous book George the Wizard to our Infants, took questions from our students and then signed copies of his book.
Tony was captivating and he also was very generous with his time, visiting our Year 6 cohort on the way out because he played AFL at Collingwood with Mr Lynch!
Tony’s visit also gained us a credit with Larrikin House, through which I purchased a collection of Michael Morpurgo books – great for all readers but especially boys from 9-12 years old.
Halloween: Our Junior School students have been learning about the history of Halloween. We created a creepy Halloween display above the fireplace and made monsters to cover the circulation desk.
Remembrance Day: Our Year 5 and 6 students have been learning about the significance of Remembrance Day and why we observe it each year. We created a small memorial of books and poppies on the entry wall.
Chess tournament: The first school-wide chess tournament is up and running. Chess captain, Oliver Baitch has been instrumental in organising and overseeing this event which has had 20 students from Years 5-12 competing in a knockout draw. Winners announced next newsletter!