Principal’s Message

o the treasured Loreto Normanhurst students of 2021, T When our whole school community returned onsite after many months apart in lockdown in late October 2021, the joy in the air was palpable. I’m sure you will fondly remember entering our gates past ‘Welcome Back’ signs, crowding together swapping stories, decorating the quad with colourful chalk drawings and writing messages of gratitude on the backs of miniature Loreto girls placed around school grounds. In these messages, with openness and hope you expressed your thanks for your friends, families, teachers and communities. Indeed, your gratitude, your felicity and your strong sense of connectedness and communitybuilding have characterised 2021 for our School. As you explore this 2021 Yearbook, I hope you will be reminded of the energy and togetherness we experienced at big events like our Music Festival or Year 12 Graduation, as well as in moments of mindfulness and concentration like our midday gong or an afternoon Integrated Learning lesson in the GBC. 2021 was the Year of Felicity for Australian Loreto schools after all, and this was a Mary Ward value we certainly lived out daily at Normo.

I was most proud that our collective sense of felicity extended beyond times of celebration

and endured during times of challenge. Learning remotely for four months is no mean feat, and this extended uncertainty was managed with grace, grit and independence by all students from Years 5 to 12. We were able to rally together behind initiatives like the LN Community Olympics, find moments of peace during our IN-SPIRO Pop-Up Wellbeing Day, and try out new ways of working such as Asynchronous Learning. In a school year like no other, you should be incredibly proud of all you have achieved in each stream of our FACE Curriculum. From virtual Seeking Truth Seminars to Friday morning Communion, our Ignatian spirituality and justicedriven faith were sources of strength and shared purpose. Incredible student work was produced in both home and school learning environments, including Upcycle design projects from materials found around the house and a diverse range of outstanding Year 12 major works displayed at our HSC Showcase. We gathered in community in celebration, worship and in support of important causes such as climate justice, the eradication of Female Genital Mutilation at Loreto Day or ‘Healing Country’ during NAIDOC Week. As always, our extra-curricular emphasis was on teamwork and dedication, be it in our first Ethics Olympiad competition or at the Northwest Equestrian Expo. I hope you will enjoy this memento of the year that was in 2021 – the energetic moments and the stillness, the independent and collaborative learning, the special events and the day-to-day felicity. Just as you gave thanks for your friends, families and school community when we returned to onsite learning, now I take the opportunity to thank each of you for the unique contribution you have made to our community. Thank you for your optimism and leadership, and for making 2021 a special year for Loreto Normanhurst.

With blessings,

Ms Marina Ugonotti PRINCIPAL