128 years ago last Thursday, late in the afternoon, a distinguished group of leaders from state, church and community, including Lord Jersey, the Governor of New South Wales, gathered on the shores of Botany Bay to open The Scots College and welcome its three staff and thirty-five boys. Among the speakers was the Moderator of the Presbyterian Church in New South Wales, the Right Reverend Dr James Smith White. A leader and scholar of substance, Dr White ended his stirring address about the purpose of this new school by talking about its teachers:

‘The Principal and teachers are Australians who have won the highest honours in the University of Sydney, have had long experience in teaching Australians, and to whom teaching is a work of faith, a labour of love, and a patience of hope. May their most sanguine hopes be fulfilled in the success of The Scots College; and what greater success can be desired than that its alumni realise the aspirations of its motto: “Utinam patribus nostris digni simus”.’

Teaching and schools have changed a lot since 1893. Yet those who teach and lead the College well over a century later follow the same sense of vocation Dr White evoked of the founders. They are men and women of character who teach not just knowledge and skills, but character and values, not chiefly in what and how they teach, but in the overflow of who they are. 

The Scots College Research Office exists to inspire our staff to continue to pursue expertise in their calling of developing the brave hearts and bold minds of every Scots boy.

We began our year doing just this with our annual Staff Culture Day on Friday 22 January. Picking up our College value of ‘Leadership Through Teams in a spirit of service, compassion, humour and community’, staff engaged in a range of experiences to help them reflect on their own character and how to best develop it in the boys. 

We heard inspiring stories from those who’ve put leadership and service into action, including a grandmother who has fostered 75 children over the last 45 years, and the Captain of the Wallaroos, our own staff member Ms Grace Hamilton. We welcomed representatives from over a dozen charity partners, including Jericho Road (the Presbyterian Church’s mercy ministries), the Salvation Army, Bushcare, and more, to talk with staff about what compassion and service looks like and how they might engage their boys. And staff competed in the world-first blended XVenture Mind Games, tackling physical and online challenges across our campus. 

We will take these experiences as inspiration for our work across the year of embedding character formation further into our teaching and learning, and our culture as a staff team. Dr White would expect nothing less.

Dr Hugh Chilton
Director of Research and Professional Learning