Wellbeing Growth AND

Respecful Relationships

Our School is developing and evolving a comprehensive, wholeschool approach to Respectful Relationships education, embedding a culture of respect and inclusivity across the entire school community. GGS is a partner school for the Victorian Government’s Respectful Relationships initiative, which was developed from a recommendation of the Victorian Royal Commission into Family Violence. The School augments the Government’s Resilience, Rights and Respectful Relationships teaching materials with external experts, such as Bravehearts and Elephant Ed. Respectful Relationships is integrated into the School’s wellbeing curriculum and is taught at Corio through the Navigate and Pathways programmes.

The School has established a cross-campus Respectful Relationships team, led by our Director of Student Engagement and Experience, Rhiannon McGee, and our Head of Student Psychological Services, Justine Tonner-Joyce. The team has audited the School’s policies and practices, and is developing a strategic plan to ensure that there is an emphasis on implementing a whole-school approach to Respectful Relationships. “We have a comprehensive curriculum across Corio and Timbertop, and we’re taking a proactive approach to progressing and evolving that,” Rhiannon explained. “It really is about enabling a cohesive, coeducational culture by promoting healthy, respectful relationships and inclusivity, and addressing the causes of gender-based violence. Some of it is pretty tough stuff, but we’re not backing away from those conversations.”

Rhiannon said that the School’s approach utilises external experts to provide depth and variety to the way consent, Respectful Relationships and sexuality education is taught. Experts include Bravehearts, Man Cave, Flourish Girl and Elephant Ed, as well as sessions with former police officer Brent Sanders and lawyers Emily Scarlett

(Manifold, He’00) and Ben Tallboys about consent and the law. The School facilitated two professional learning sessions for staff in 2022 and, as a Respectful Relationships partner school, is engaging with independent, Catholic and government schools across the Barwon region to contribute to a community of practice. This includes trialling new programmes and projects, such as the Man Box study conducted by Jesuit Social Services. “Ultimately, we are equipping our students to go out and contribute to the betterment of society by promoting respect and inclusivity,” Rhiannon said.

Our School continues to grow and evolve our approach to student wellbeing in response to contemporary research and practice. We have been committed to a whole-school approach to Positive Education for over a decade now, which is deeply embedded in everything that we do as a school and community. We introduced the GGS Student Wellbeing Model in 2021, incorporating Positive Education with an interconnected network of people, programmes and policies that support emotional and physical wellbeing. The model amplifies the proactive Positive Education approach to social emotional learning, resilience education and character strengths to equip students with positive mental health strategies that build their capacity to cope with the stresses of everyday life.

Research indicates that wellbeing and learning have a reciprocal and interconnected relationship. Wellbeing positively influences student learning outcomes, and success in learning enhances student wellbeing. At Corio, the framework for student wellbeing is the Navigate programme for Middle School students and the Pathways programme for Senior School students. The Navigate programme aims to support students as they traverse the Middle School years; focusing on learning skills, personal wellbeing and what it means to belong to a community. The Pathways programme supports students as they navigate purposeful choices through the Senior School years and beyond. Students participate in a range of group learning experiences that focus on skills for learning, personal wellbeing, service, and the transition to life beyond school.

Pos Ed - Belonging

During second semester, our Positive Education curriculum investigated the topic of belonging; what it means to belong and why belonging is important. Humans are a communal species. Our ingenuity and our ability to survive on this planet all rely on the fact that we can live and work collectively. Human history shows great population booms and advancement in technology and science coinciding with movement into more centralised locations; when communities of people come together to learn and to work, we are in fact greater than the sum of our parts.

Consider some of the most extreme punishments for people who have behaved in an anti-social way. These punishments tend to involve removing these people from society, isolating them, and depriving them of contact with other humans. This extends from solitary confinement in a prison, to sending a child to ‘time out’, or removing them from the classroom.

It hardly needs to be said, but loneliness and social isolation cause profound distress. Feeling lonely causes your cortisol, a stress hormone, to skyrocket. Research by neuroscientist John Cacioppo has shown that feeling acutely lonely is as stressful as experiencing a physical attack – that loneliness can alter psychological processes that influence physiological functioning, diminish sleep quality, and increase morbidity and mortality. Similarly, research presented at the 125th Annual Convention of the American Psychological Association in 2017 suggested that social isolation could be a greater health hazard than obesity.

As people, we are in an ongoing search for our tribe, and looking to shore up our place in our tribe. Even a momentary emotional connection has a positive impact on our physical health, as well as our psychological wellbeing and resilience. In particular, young people are more resilient when they have a good network of social support –it doesn’t have to be a parent but having reliable adults in the life of a child helps build a capacity for resilience.

Of course, we can’t be genuinely connected to everyone – you may have heard of Dunbar’s number. Robin Dunbar is a British anthropologist who specialises in primate behaviour. He has found, through his research into social networks and brain size of primates, that 150 is about the limit of a functioning social network. He has explained it informally as “the number of people you would not feel embarrassed about joining uninvited for a drink if you happened to bump into them in a bar”. There is evidence for this, from factories and offices to 11th century villages and Christmas card lists. If the number of people connected exceeds 150, the network is not likely to last long or feel particularly coherent.

Thus, belonging to smaller communities within our broader GGS community becomes important for our wellbeing. Our School has many ways that we create a sense of belonging – even something as simple as wearing a school uniform helps people feel connected and part of something greater than oneself. Being part of a House, Unit or class group is an important element of belonging at our School – activities which promote this feeling will be beneficial for students as they reconnect with their peers and staff. This might look like a Unit outing or treat, a class display around values or strengths (eg. “our class enjoys…” or “we are using our gratitude by…”), or a House assembly which promotes connection and sharing. Connecting with our community through events such as Family Day and our whole school Athletics Carnival, or being part of activities, hobbies and clubs, all help foster a sense of belonging.

For staff, prioritising a morning tea or lunch together, chatting after an assembly or catching up after a hike can potentially drop in our priority list when the busyness of the Term sets in – and yet it is these relationships which help us maintain balance and feel connected. When we invite members of our community to find ways to build on their sense of belonging, we can help to support the wellbeing of our community.

Cat Lamb Positive Education Collaborator

Members of the Geelong Grammar School community have faced significant challenges from the hurt of the past. In recent years, the School has been working to provide an authentic response to survivors of sexual abuse.

Principal, Rebecca Cody, has observed: “I have met with survivors and I am deeply sorry for their pain and suffering: to be sorry though, is not enough; complying with new legislation is not enough – we need to set an example and lead. We need to move forward by recognising the devastating impacts and effects of childhood sexual abuse and by never losing sight of the learnings from them”.

Ms Cody said: “Whilst we cannot undo the failures of the past, together we can acknowledge the harm, recognise the pain caused and together, we can support and enable a culture which fortifies against such devastating harms and places child safety at its core. Together, we can make a positive difference towards shaping a better world”.

For survivors, for victims of trauma, for those struggling in challenging times – there are options for reaching out and finding support.

You are not alone – you are a valued member of the Geelong Grammar School community – we are thinking of you, and we care.

Survivor Liaison Coordinator

Renee Handsaker provides outreach and support for survivors of child sexual abuse at the School. Renee can be contacted by phone on 0432 707 355 or by email: renee@sustainingconversations.com

Independent Counsellor

The School continues to provide the services of an independent counsellor, Pauline Ryan. This service is available to those in our community wishing to access counselling or support regarding abuse. Pauline can be contacted directly during business hours by calling 1800 799 139.

For further updates and links to services please visit the Healing and Hope webpage by searching Healing and Hope Geelong Grammar School, or by visiting https://www.ggs.vic.edu.au/School/ Our-School/healing-and-hope and annually renew a commitment to student safeguarding. At Corio on Friday 9 September, students from across our campuses joined together alongside a white balloon painted on Perry Oval. The gathering provided the inaugural opportunity for the School to declare our Acknowledgement of Historical Harm. This poignant Acknowledgment was crafted, with deep gratitude, through collaboration with survivors, supported by the Recognition Committee and Survivor Engagement Committee and endorsed by our School Council. In addition, some of our students shared their messages of safety as voices for the future.

Acknowledgment Of Historical Harm

Healing and Hope is a unique initiative which has been established to endeavour to relieve the suffering and to provide practical comfort, assistance and support to survivors of child sexual abuse and victims of trauma within our Geelong Grammar School community, both past and present. It champions a fair and humane response to all individuals. Guidance, including direct input from survivors, their families and from many within the School community, has inspired and informed this new entity.

Healing and Hope launched its website in late 2022. You can find links on both the Geelong Grammar School and Old Geelong Grammarians websites, or you can visit www.healingandhope.org.au to find out more about the initiative – what it can offer you, and what you might be able to contribute in support of survivors, victims of trauma and their families.

The Healing and Hope Board of Directors was also established in 2022. Directors include current parent Philip Crutchfield KC (Chair of Healing and Hope, School Council 2017-2021), Sarah Benson (Je’91), the School’s Principal, Rebecca Cody, past parent and former OGG President, Ian Coltman (A’77), Chair of the Recognition Committee and former OGG President, Peter Chomley (Ge’63), past parent Kathleen Maltzahn, past parent and Chair of the Survivor Engagement Committee, Dr Susan Nicolson (School Council 2013-), and past staff member, Fr Jeff O’Hare (Cu’79).

Healing and Hope held a concurrent White Balloon Day event on Friday 9 September. Held in the Ernest Clarke Pavilion at Corio and attended by a small group of staff and survivors, it was a meaningful and significant gathering. Healing and Hope then held its inaugural therapeutic Retreat Day for mothers of survivors on Tuesday 15 November. It was well attended and a positive experience for all. Further therapeutic Retreat Days are planned for family members in the coming year.

Philip Crutchfield KC, Chair of Healing and Hope, reflected that “the courage of survivors and their families in their engagement with Healing and Hope is inspiring”. “To now be in a position where we can support and be inclusive of survivors and their families with the hope that in some small way, we can contribute to their healing is a privilege for the Board and staff of Healing and Hope,” Philip said. “We look forward to further engagement and meaningful connections throughout 2023.”

Healing and Hope employs two casual staff members, project manager Tanya Bishop (Hegarty, A’79, GGS Staff 1997-2000) and relationship manager Kate Parsons (GGS Staff 1988-2020), to respond and engage with survivors and their families directly and to facilitate counselling and link those in need with support services. Planned activities include wellbeing education and programmes, including awareness training, healing retreats, art therapy, facilitated conversations and seminars.

Healing and Hope has a home on a bend of the Barwon River at Stonehaven – a peninsula with trees to provide shelter, with a natural escarpment to offer protection, and of course water that nourishes the land – the grasses, the birds, the wildlife. Stonehaven is a place to nourish the soul. The property was transferred into the School’s name in 1975 and has been quietly waiting for discovery, for a special purpose, to welcome and heal, to connect with those who will cherish this place as one of hope – symbolising renewal and redemption. School Council dedicated this land for the purposes of Healing and Hope following an offer made to the Recognition Committee, who have long championed Stonehaven as an active symbol of real and genuine recognition.

You Are Not Alone.

You are a valued member of the Geelong Grammar School community and Healing and Hope will walk beside you. Healing and Hope can provide and facilitate support and encourages those who may not have reached out before, or those who know someone in need, to contact Healing and Hope directly on its dedicated mobile phone number: 0438 561 747 (call or text) or email: contact@healingandhope.org.au