FROM THE STUDY

Our students are the life of our school; as both the main characters and the authors of our story, they are our cultural storytellers. Earlier this term we shared a video with our community, What does it mean to be a Ruyton girl? The story, told from the heart, is the story of who we are in 2023. They tell us that Ruyton girls are proud, confident in being who they are as individuals. Goal driven, they are motivated by those around them to pursue positive actions. Knowing they have a community that backs them, Ruyton girls feel empowered as girls and young women. They feel they have a place in this school, and they treasure happiness. Ruyton girls know that this community believes in them, both individually and collectively. And they believe in Ruyton.

Mahatma Gandhi believed that the culture of a nation resides in the hearts and souls of its people. Likewise, the culture of Ruyton is found in the hearts and souls of our community; our students, staff, families and Old Ruytonians. Our culture is not a fixed quality nor is it predestined; it is our interconnectedness, our lived story, that continues to grow and evolve with us towards a shared common goal; to inspire girls to be bold and to educate girls to lead lives of impact and purpose.

In his book the Culture Code, author Daniel Coyle identified three key behaviours at the centre of a great culture; building safety, sharing driver vulnerability, and establishing purpose. He also identified a cohesive group culture as the key in enabling teams to create performance far beyond the sum of individual capabilities. It is this quality that has inspired so many memorable Ruyton moments. From academic endeavours to the sporting field and the stage, we have seen our students inspire and motivate each other to achieve their best; to go beyond.

As leaders, the Classes of 2022 and 2023 set themselves the goal to reignite student engagement after the pandemic interruption. Recognising that they were now the only students who had lived our Senior School life prior to lockdowns, they embraced the responsibility to ensure it continued. While it is widely recognised that life at Ruyton has been a fully engaged pursuit, with high levels of student participation across all academic, cocurricular and citizenship pursuits, our leaders saw beyond this. Brene Brown, researcher and storyteller, believes you must walk though vulnerability to get to courage. It is this quality that our leaders have demonstrated and articulated often, reminding students that when we participate fully, test ourselves and step out of our comfort zone we find our passions and purpose, connect deeply with others, and ultimately, unlock our true potential. As a community we are committed to preparing girls for a lifetime of learning, leadership and engagement, a mission that is clearly understood and lived by our students.

Every community has central gathering places of significant importance. At Ruyton our theatre and library are the heart and soul of our school, places where the Ruyton community comes together to celebrate, learn, grow and support each other. The redevelopment of these facilities through the Dream Now project is well underway, due for completion mid-2024. As we celebrate 145 years of Ruyton and 30 years of the Coordinate Program it seems only fitting that we are creating the next chapter of the Ruyton story through our facilities and strategic planning focus; a rich and exciting story where our girls continue to take the lead role.

Linda Douglas Principal