It has truly been an honour to serve as School Captain this year. My journey in student leadership began in Year 7 when I was elected into the SRC. Now, in my last year of schooling, I can certainly say I have learnt a great deal about being a leader. Leadership requires empathy, decisiveness, confidence and most of all resilience. Guiding the Prefect Body in 2020 has presented many challenges. Luckily, this unprecedented situation was made easier with the help of my fellow Captain, Tom Nieser, and Senior Prefect, Loklan Duong. Together, we considered issues, designed tasks, delegated roles and organised for the planning of events and meetings alike.
My role as Captain was to oversee the planning and execution of events, facilitate ideas introduced by my fellow Prefects, as well as address critical issues facing our student body such as mental health awareness and positive school culture. As a result of the COVID-19 situation we weren’t able to accomplish all the goals we set out to achieve. However, we were able to show strength as a team by empowering and encouraging our cohort in these tough times.
Initially, the Prefect Body set out to improve school culture by highlighting the positive values of our school. Together, the Prefect Body developed the Bushy Boys Culture Initiative (BRO’S project) with the aim of developing a relationship between the Prefect Body and junior years. The BRO’S project focused on highlighting the core values, traditions and experiences of seniors into a program that would allow junior students to transition into opportunities within the wider community. I had a major role in developing this project which consisted of planning the layout of the program, creating the components, and guiding the teams associated with each year group.
The Prefect Body of 2020 strived to uphold the goodwill and reputation of the school. An early event which I, myself, had a major role in organising was “Two in a roll day”. This day highlighted a prominent food staple within our school, the “Two in a roll”, with the focus on helping the Australian community bounce back from the devastating Bushfires through raising money. Other events such as Men’s Mental Health Day and the Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women focused on addressing key issues facing youth in our community.
As we are now nearing the end of our tenure as Prefects, the Prefect Body now has the focus on developing the newly elected Prefect Body, passing down our experiences while working as a team. Captaincy during 2020 has invited me to develop resolutions to a wide range of problems. The actions of the current Prefect Body, and Year 12 cohort, have inspired me remarkably. I am, and always will be, devoted to uplifting and respecting my role as School Captain, and I look forward to continuing my contribution to the school and community in the future.