BoS Annual Report - Cranbrook School

1. Messages from key School bodies
1.1 Report from the
President of the School
Council
2012 was a year of inflection in
Cranbrook’s long and distinguished
history. It was a year to appreciate the
past and look forward with optimism
and excitement to the future.
The first major transition occurred on
May 27th with the opening of the new
Junior School at Dangar. This event was
a landmark in the history of the School
and will contribute to the superior
education to which the School aspires. It
has been a visionary project that is now
complete thanks to the dedication of a
group of Councillors and staff, as well as
those who have assisted financially with
the project. The boys have settled into
their new School with enthusiasm.
The new K to 2 Early Learning Centre
has been named the Maxwell Building
in honour of Mr Michael Maxwell, an
alumnus of the School, a benefactor
of the project, and a former Vice-
President and Honorary Treasurer of
the School Council. In recognition
of his contribution to the conception
and execution of the project, the new
Year 3 to 6 facility was named the
Madin Building, in honour of former
Headmaster, Mr Jeremy Madin.
The second major transition for 2012
occurred with the handing over of the
Headmaster baton from Mr Madin to
Mr Sampson.
Late in June, the School said a fond
farewell to Mr and Mrs Madin after
more than a decade of dedicated service
to Cranbrook. With his unbounded
energy; unfailing optimism; generosity
of spirit; and support for Cranbrook’s
educational ethos, Mr Madin has built
on the legacy of previous Headmasters.
In recognition of that generosity of
spirit, the School community provided
the financial support to construct the
Madin School in the remote village of
Kalchitt in Nepal.
On July 1st, Mr Nicholas Sampson
became Cranbrook’s eighth Headmaster.
Mr Sampson’s Induction service as
Headmaster was held on July 22nd,
ninety four years to the day after
Cranbrook School was opened by its
founding fathers. It was an auspicious
occasion.
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Council selected Mr Sampson confident
in his ability to lead the School to
even greater achievement. Cranbrook
is indeed fortunate to be led by a
Headmaster of international standing,
his having previously been Master at
Marlborough College and Principal
at Geelong Grammar School. Mr
Sampson is having a profound influence
on the school, infusing Cranbrook’s
commitment to academic excellence
with new vigour. He recognises that rigor
in the spirit of inquiry provides the key
to unlocking doors to future aspiration.
He is committed to ensuring that as
Cranbrook approaches its centenary year
it will be recognised as one of the best
schools in the world. He has the will,
determination and support of Council
to realise this ambition. This will ensure
that, consistent with Cranbrook’s
mission, the full potential of every boy at
Cranbrook is realised.
1.2 Report from the Chair of
the Student Representative
Council (SRC)
In 2012, the Cranbrook Student
Representative Council (SRC), a group
of dedicated students elected by their
peers, continued the strong work of
previous years as it addressed the critical
issues facing Cranbrook. The SRC meets
weekly and provides the School both
input and feedback on the development
of the School.
This year, the SRC Executive team
consisted of Adam Karras as Chairman,
James Ross as Secretary and Will Isles
as Treasurer, and they worked closely
with both the school executive and the
students to achieve a greater outcome for
the benefit of Cranbrook.
The first big project in which the
2012 SRC was heavily involved was
the roll-out of laptops to boys in the
senior years. The School IT committee
regularly consulted with the SRC on
the technical parameters of the laptops,
and whether boys would be allowed to
access social media from their laptops.
The committee praised the SRC for the
foresight in what boys should be able
to do on their laptops, and this showed
the quality of the SRC in advocating for
boys on the issue of technology.
The instalment of the first of many
bubblers in the Carter forecourt was
a result of the SRC fulfilling their
commitment to the student body for
fresh drinking water throughout the
campus. The promise to provide better
food for after-school activities was
met with the installation of a healthy
food vending machine, and both the
machine and the bubbler are testament
to the work contributed by the SRC
throughout the year.
Meeting the new Headmaster, Mr.
Sampson, when he first visited the
School in July 2011 allowed the SRC to
present their aims for the development
of the student body, and their plans for
the future. While the Headmaster was
impressed with the quality of the boys
and their plans for the improvement
of the school and the boys, the SRC
were equally thrilled to be able to meet
with the new leader of the school. Both
hope to continue the excellent working
relationship they have in the coming
years.
A continual concern for the SRC is
the schools’ environmental impact and
the ways of managing the recycling
reprogram at Cranbrook. A constant
awareness of the School’s effect on the
local environment has driven the SRC to
seek better ways to dispose of the school’s
waste and facilitate more energy saving
programs. They hope to improve on this
in the next year in consultation with the
School.
The day-to-day activities of the SRC,
where each member is required to
canvas the thoughts of his House
peers, continues to provide excellent
ideas which they can build on with
the School. Better facilities, greater
awareness of environmental problems,
as well as bigger picture items like the
laptop roll-out and the use of more
technology, all show the part the SRC is
playing in the School. A regular part of
life of the SRC is the charity work they
conduct each term that allows them to
contribute to the community outside of
the School. The SRC Plain Clothes Day
each term raises $150000 a year that
is divided amongst World Vision and
Cancer Research. The SRC will continue
to do this as it gives them a small way of
helping those outside of the School.
The SRC Executive would like to
thank all the members of the 2012
Student Representative Council for