A Uniting Church coeducational independent day and boarding school on Kaurna Country, Adelaide, South Australia
Early Learning to Year 12
Term 4 is always an important term for Round Square and although it may seem that things are winding up for the year, this is the time when our new Round Square Board is formed for 2019 and we begin our planning activities for the next year. We have had a number of new students join the Board and I am hoping to still hear from any enthusiastic Year 6 and 7 students who are ready to participate and share their ideas.
It is very exciting to have such a great group of dedicated students who not only have creative ideas, but are very eager to continue to promote the IDEALS of Round Square in the Westminster community. If you missed the emails and daily notices asking for new members for 2019, it is not too late, simply contact me via email if you are keen to be part of this dynamic group! I should also mention that voting is currently underway for our new Chairperson and this will be announced in our next eNews.
Over the year I have regularly mentioned information about RSIS projects or Round Square Big Build opportunities. These are an amazing way for our older students to work closely with a community overseas and give their time to help make a true difference in the lives of those less fortunate. Below is some information about the projects and the benefits these can have for our students. It may be something our students want to consider at the end of Year 12, as part of their GAP year, or simply before the demands of university commence. Adults are also more than welcome to apply!
Please note, students must be 16 at the time of the project in order to participate.
The information below is taken from the Round Square website www.roundsquare.org. Students and adults apply directly on this website for both the project and any bursaries available.
Round Square Big Build projects are opportunities for students and adults from Round Square schools to come together from across the globe and to take part in something amazing.
Round Square have been running International Service Projects (RSIS) since 1953, when a group of schools with links to Kurt Hahn formed a working party to help rebuild destroyed infrastructure after a massive earthquake on the Ionian Islands.
Since then, Round Square Schools have worked on projects in Ladakh, Kenya, Romania, Guatemala and Cambodia helping communities in need and allowing young people from around the globe to grow and develop important life-long skills.
Each year Round Square host two unique service projects for 50 students from Round Square Schools. The projects take place every year in July and December and run (on average) for two weeks.
Students work together with a rural community in need to build a vital piece of infrastructure. In the past this has been classrooms, accommodation for teachers, bridges, and clean water systems.
Participation in a Round Square Big Build Project is a great way for young adults to learn about global citizenship, community engagement, develop a deeper understanding of the world’s problems and experience a new culture. Packed with challenging adventure and cultural awareness opportunities, the project programs are designed to ensure that students have an exciting, experiential and holistic learning experience that is second-to-none.
Participants take it in turns to be Student Leaders during the project, taking responsibility for the organisation of the day, briefing their peers, giving an overview of safety and risk management, and organising a student rota to help with different chores at camp. Students are given feedback by their peers and the adult leaders, and will all receive a personal report after the trip.
Please apply directly on the Round Square website. Adults can register on the website to access this information. Students can use the following:
Username: Students
Password: DiscoverMore
Please contact me via Email if you have any problems accessing this or if you wish to discuss the programs further.
Some of you may already be aware that in Week 8 of this term our Year 10s are involved in a full day Service Learning activity organised by Round Square. This year we have a number of activities available to our students and they are currently responding to us with their preferences. Our ‘Spirit of Service’ Day will take place on Monday 3 December and involve approximately 140 Year 10 students and 14 staff. It is an incredible opportunity for our students to give back to a variety of local charities and organisations, and genuinely have the chance to donate their time to the local community.
I look forward to being able to post some more information about this Service Day very soon. I would like to sincerely thank all of the individuals and organisations who have offered to have some of our students work with them for the day. It is much appreciated!
I receive a number of emails each week asking about Exchanges and have always found our Westminster community to be very supportive of our Exchange program, which is wonderful. We continuously have a number of students who would love to come to beautiful Adelaide and I am always keen to hear from families who would like to be involved, even if just for the hosting part. Please find information below regarding our exchange/hosting opportunities for 2019.
Keep in mind though that any exchange to the USA requires a bit of extra organisation with regards to visas so can be a 3-6 month process, that requires you to go to Melbourne for an interview (unless you have a US or Canadian passport).
One female age 15-16 (to be hosted only at this stage) at Fountain Valley School, Colorado, would like to come to Australia around June/July for approximately six weeks. Fountain Valley will be ready to host a Westminster student in early 2020.
Several students, both males and females, have expressed an interest to come to Westminster next year, ages 15-17 (hosting only or reciprocal exchange). More information will be available early next year once final applications come in at Belgrano School.
Several students from St Constantine’s in Arusha have expressed an interest to come to Westminster next year, ages 15-16. No dates have been given at this point but it is likely they would like to come in their summer holidays, around July/August (hosting only or reciprocal exchange).
A male and female student (Year 10 in 2019) from Strathcona-Tweedsmuir School in Calgary, have expressed their interest in coming to Westminster next year around July/August. An opportunity would be available for our students to go to Canada at some stage next year.
Please find below a list of student conference opportunities available through Round Square for 2019. These are open to all students of Westminster. Some of these require immediate attention, especially those earlier in the year so please email me as soon as possible if you are keen to be involved!
Most have a limit of four to five students, and usually a minimum of three students must be involved for it to be financially viable for us to participate as a school.
This could be the great opportunity you have been looking for to develop not only your leadership skills, but your overall global understanding and knowledge of Round Square.
Anyone interested in finding out more information about conferences, or any other Round Square initiative should contact me via Email if in the Senior School, or contact Mr Chris Haines via Email if you are in the Preparatory School.
Julia Chukwuani
Round Square and Exchanges Coordinator