Dear Parents,

Arts Week came to a fitting conclusion on Friday night with the Senior School's ensembles and bands presenting an hour and half of outstanding music at the Senior School Concert. It was a week full of Arts endeavour with our Inspirations Art Show in the Gallery on Wednesday night as the pivot point bringing boys and their work from across Pre-Primary - Year 12 together in one great display of talent. It was a delight to have Professor Ted Snell who is the Director of the Cultural Precinct at UWA, and also an OSC, declare the exhibition open. Professor Snell delivered a significant message about the Arts and decision making: despite all of the coaching, teaching, directing and development, the ultimate decision for what happens on stage or in a piece of work be it colour, line, pattern, shape, volume, accent, movement, is ultimately made by the artist. Decision making and the accountability for our actions - the arts develops this attribute in spades. Inspirations will remain up in the Gallery beneath the JS MS Library until the end of term.

Our Athletics season came to an end last Friday, once again with impressive results and performances. Our Years 5 and 6 team won the JPSSA Shield for the third time in four years whilst our PSA team finished 3^rd, literally a split second or 1.5 points from 2^nd place. My congratulations and thanks to the coaches, many of whom are parents, who join us and prepare our boys for a short but intensive Athletics season each year. Thank you.

Of the dozens of stories that emerge from a season such as this there was one story, recounted by a parent, which struck with me because it gets to the core of what we are trying to do as a school: develop decent young men and prepare them for life. Two boys were vying for selection for one spot in their 400m event. They were separated after trials by 0.02 of a second. The human eye would struggle to see this degree of difference at the finish line, in terms of distance it is probably the length of the human nose. The selectors had to make a call and they informed the boy who missed out. His immediate response was to say to the coaches, "I think you've made the right decision" and raced over to the selected runner to let him know, congratulated him, shook his hand, wished him the best for the race and then cheered from the sidelines. As a Year 12 he missed out on representing his school in his final year, but there was not an ounce of disappointment, just genuine pleasure that his friend had made it. Whether you call that great sportsmanship, selflessness, generosity of spirt or altruism, this was a wonderful illustration of it. For me this is one of the most admired attributes in a person: the ability and the unhesitating willingness to put others before oneself.

This year marks the College's 120^th anniversary. To coincide with this, the College's Apparel committee has been working with staff, parent groups, students and the sports clothing company Champion to develop the next generation of sporting uniforms for the College. After two and half years of consultation we are finally very close to a reveal. One of the key drivers for this process was the endeavour to align all of our sporting uniforms up behind the same set of identity criteria and styling. With most sports requiring different uniform elements, getting our identity aspect consistent was important. From Spring Term the College's 1^st teams will turn out in the new uniform with the new uniforms across all sports and year levels rolled out over the next three years.

This is the last Thistle for this term. Thank you for all of your support: from the sidelines, attending assemblies, carnivals, concerts, art shows, packing his lunch and helping him stay organized. It is a team effort. Next term commences with one of the great iconic events of the College, March Out, on October 13. I hope to see many of you there.

Mr Richard Ledger
Acting Headmaster

120^th Year Whole School Photograph

The process of returns and ordering is now complete with the mounted photographs arriving on campus last Friday. If you have ordered a mounted copy of the photograph you should have received an email notification and pick up instructions.

If you missed the opportunity but would still like to order a mounted copy of the photograph they are available by special order. However, each copy will incur an additional courier fee for delivery to the school. The mounted photograph costs $129.50 and courier fee is $15.00. No further returns of the laminated photograph will now be accepted. Please email Fern.Purio@scotch.wa.edu.au if you wish to special order a mounted copy of the photograph.

There are several boys who have yet to pick up their laminated photograph from Main Reception. One more email notification will be sent out to remind the boys or parents to pick up the photograph before the end of term. Boarders can request that the photograph (laminated or mounted) be held for them until travel time at the end of term.