From the Principal

Hello, and welcome to the first edition of the Jacaranda Post for 2025, our designated year of Respect at Pymble. As always, we hope you and your loved ones are safe and well, wherever you are reading this message.

In the last edition of this newsletter, you may recall a reference to our College-wide focus on the five Pymble values and their corresponding behaviour statements:

Care – I am kind to myself and others.
Courage – I am open to new experiences to learn and grow.
Integrity – I do the right thing, even when no one is watching.
Respect – I value diversity, my worth and the worth of others.
Responsibility – I take ownership of my actions.

These behaviour statements are the result of wide consultation with our community and reflect the standards we expect to meet and receive as we learn, work, play and socialise, both here at Pymble and beyond. Each year we will focus on one of the values, unpacking behavioural meanings and expectations term by term.

In 2025, we are focusing on Respect in relation to:
Manners and Courtesy – Term 1
Diversity and Inclusion – Term 2
Effective Communication – Term 3
Our Pymble Environment – Term 4

It has been a source of great pride to see students and staff really lean into this work to celebrate and build on the values-based mindset that is a hallmark of our community. This includes our former Principal, Mrs Gillian Moore AO, who was guest speaker at one of our first combined assemblies of this year.

Mrs Moore reflected on the process of crystallising our five values with the help of the College Council and several staff members during her time as Principal, while graciously acknowledging that these values were always evident in Pymble girls.

“These values were already in the school, they were not imposed on the College, they were traits of character that we saw in the very best of our students,” Mrs Moore said.

Recently we took the time to document our values, their behaviour statements and a series of newly designed icons that we will use, going forward, to articulate and celebrate exemplars of Care, Courage, Integrity, Respect and Responsibility among our community. It is a pleasure to share this document with you now, ahead of our Term 2 launch, as we know our alumni are incredibly passionate about these values and the ongoing role we all play in upholding the reputation of the College through our words and actions.

Our values in action at the Gala Ball

Our values certainly came to the fore at our second Pymble Foundation Gala Ball, which was held on Saturday 5 April at Doltone House Hyde Park, Sydney.

We had set an ambitious fundraising goal for this event to extend our current Bursary Program for young, female refugees who have sought safety in Australia due to civil conflict or war in their home countries. This program began in 2023, with the arrival of a Year 11 student whose family was forced to flee Ukraine when their city was attacked. In 2024, we welcomed an additional three students from Afghanistan into Year 7, and our inaugural Bursary student from Ukraine graduated with her HSC cohort at the end of the year.

We were absolutely thrilled to reach our target of $1,200,000 on the night, which means the Foundation can continue to fund our three students from Afghanistan through to graduation and support two more students who have been displaced from their homelands as a result of similar adversity or hardship.

Our community has nothing but admiration and respect for our Bursary scholars, who add such richness to our lives. In a recent conversation with Bahesta, and Malalai, two of the three students from Afghanistan who are now in Year 8, the girls spoke so beautifully about what the gift of a Pymble education means to them:

Baheshta: “I think the three of us, we are the most lucky children, to come to Australia and study in the best school in Sydney.”

Malalai: “When someone at Pymble smiles to you, it feels like they’re opening a door for you.”

Actually, we are the luckiest school in Sydney to learn and work side-by-side with these compassionate and influential young women. We are so proud of who they are and how they are embracing their Pymble education to make a positive impact on the world around them.

To those who supported the Foundation Gala Ball as sponsors, donors, bidders, performers and guests, thank you from the bottom of our hearts for this life-changing gift.

Should you be interested in supporting our refugee program, our Director of Philanthropy, Ms Sara Jones, would be delighted to speak with you. She can be contacted on sara.jones@pymblelc.nsw.edu.au or +61 2 9855 7423.

Signing off until next time, with deep gratitude and much respect.