Somerset College

Infobox Aust school private
name = Somerset College


motto = "Deo confidimus"
(Latin:"In God we trust")
established = 1983
type = Private/Independent
denomination = Non-Denominational
slogan = Deo Confidimus
key_people =
fees = $13,500+ (per annum, 1 child family)
city = Mudgeeraba, Gold Coast
state = QLD
country = Australia
enrolment = 1170
num_employ = 200+
colours = Blue, Green & White
homepage = [http://www.somerset.qld.edu.au www.somerset.qld.edu.au] |

Somerset College is a non-denominational Christian school located in Mudgeeraba, Gold Coast, Australia.

History

Somerset College was opened on 27 January 1983 with 158 pupils, ranging from Years 1 to 8. The first headmaster was Rod Wells. The current headmaster is Dr Barry J. Arnison who was appointed in 1986 and has announced his retirement for the end of the 2008 academic year. Mr Cecil Bassingthwaite has been chosen as successor to the current headmaster and will commence his duties in 2009. The current deputy head of the Senior School is Mrs Beverly Gallus, and the current head of the Junior School is Mrs Virginia Lamb. The first Year 12 students graduated in 1987.

The School's traditional colours are green and blue; based on the values possessed by the founding members of the School Board. Green pays homage to the School's farmland location. Blue relates to the ocean which lies in the vicinity of the College.

As of 2008 over 27, 000 students have attended the school in it's relatively short history.

School Structure

The school is divided into the Junior School (Preschool-Year 7) and the Senior School (Years 8-12). Both have their separate administration centres; however, Dr B J Arnison is headmaster of the entire school. The Junior School is 1-3), and Upper Primary (Years 4-7).

In Years 1 to 6, students in a class have the same teacher for all subjects except for Physical Education, Art, Music and Language classes, which are conducted by specialty teachers. Year 7 is seen as the transition year from Junior School to Senior School and, in preparation for the structure of Senior School, the students in this grade have each class with different teachers. They also have the Year 7 Dinner, similar to a ball, at the end of the year to celebrate their transition. In Senior School, the students then move around to different classrooms for their classes.

Students at Somerset College are separated into five competitive houses: Andrews (yellow), Franklin (purple), Laver (green), Starkey (red) and Veivers (blue). Each year, the school has three major inter-house sporting events: the Swimming Carnival, the Cross-Country Carnival and the Athletics Carnival. In addition, an inter-house chess competition and the inter-house LAN competition are held annually. The different sections of the school conduct their own carnivals: one for Preschool and the Lower Primary, one for the Upper Primary, and one for the Senior School.

Within the school, the student body is led by a series of student leaders and school captains from year to year. Students may also be awarded with half colour, full colour or school honours for extracurricular or non-academic based achievement. These awards are presented at various evenings, such as the school's annual Sports Awards Night or the annual Cultural Collages evening. Positions of leadership are awarded to selected senior pupils at the beginning of their final year. The entry level leadership position is that of House Captain, a role characterized by sporting involvement and team spirit; a female and male senior pupil is selected from each of the five houses. The Captain of Committees and Senior Advising Pupil Welfare are endowed with even greater responsibility and perform administrative and pastoral care functions, respectively, within the school. A female and male School Captain is selected each year and they serve as the school's representatives at formal events. The role of Chapel Sacristan is regarded as the most prestigious and coveted position available.

International Baccalaureate

Somerset College is one of three International Baccalaureate World Schools on the Gold Coast accredited to offer the IB Diploma Programme. It also offers the IB Middle Years Programme (MYP) and the IB Primary Years Programme (PYP), for which it received accreditation in 2006.

Event Highlights

Celebration Of Literature

Each year in mid-March, Somerset College hosts their annual "Celebration of Literature" week. The festival, which lasts for 5 days, features notable authors and poets from around Australia. Past authors include: Douglas Adams, Paul Jennings, Geoffrey McSkimming, Kate Forsyth, Andy Griffiths, Andrew Daddo and Terry Denton. Other schools also partake in the festival by enrolling their students for sessions conducted by various authors. Newly Crowned Australian Young Author of the Year 2008 Matthew Eddy, 20, was a graduate of the IB program at Somerset.

Other Event Highlights

In June 2006, Somerset College hosted the Asia-Pacific International Baccalaureate conference. The conference had a number of keynote speakers, all of whom were accomplished professionals in their field within Australia and Asia. Some included: Associate Professor Evian Gordon (CEO of the Brain Imaging Research Unit), Nick Earls, Peter Goldsworthy, Don Cameron (Neuroscientist at Flinders University) and many others.

Drama and Musicals

Somerset College has an extensive dramatic arts program. Each year the school begins with its House Plays evening. Following this, the school then begins preparations for the senior and junior school musicals. In Term 3, preparation is undertaken for the Senior, Intermediate and Junior entries in the Gold Coast Drama Festival. The Junior play is often directed by Year 11 pupils, the Intermediate play by Year 12 pupils and the Senior play by one of the senior school drama teachers. For many years, these performances have been rewarded with both acting and overall awards by the adjudicators of the festival.

Graduate Highlights

Somerset College also scores consistently high in the OP tertiary entrance rank system. In 2005, Somerset College received 10 OP 1s (the highest OP band available) -- in comparison, the Queensland state average was 2.7 OP 1s. Over the 1992-2005 period, Somerset College has averaged receiving 6.9 OP 1s each year. [cite web | last = Arnison | first = B J | title = 2005 Matriculation Results | url = http://www.somerset.qld.edu.au/curriculum/Results%202005.htm | accessdate = 2006-11-24 ]

In 2005, 90% of OP-eligible students at Somerset College gained an OP between 1 and 15. [cite web | url = http://www.qsa.qld.edu.au/yrs11_12/statistics/2005/QS3329A2005.PDF | title = State Distribution of OPs and FPs | accessdate = 2006-11-24 | format = PDF | publisher = Queensland Studies Authority]

Active Student Committees

Technical Services Committee

More commonly known as the Sound and Lighting Crew, this committee is responsible for the management of sound and lighting during all important events at Somerset College. Their duties include providing technical services for plays, musicals and during the Celebration of Literature. The students in this committee regularly maintain the technical systems of the Performing Arts Centre. Arguably the School's most valuable Committee, due to the many hours of volunteer work performed by its members. Recently awarded by the Gold Coast Mayoral Excellence Prize, the members of the crew continue to strive to serve the School and greater community.

Wordsmiths Committee, formerly Creative Writing Club

The Wordsmiths Committee's purpose as a committee is to assist with organization of Wordsmiths workshops and the Celebration of Literature. The main highlight of the Wordsmiths calendar is the annual Wordsmiths Retreat, where the group travels up to Mt Tambourine for a weekend of writing sessions with teachers from the English department, and performing of written pieces.

Astronomy Committee

The Astronomy Committee consists of a group of students, who conduct monthly trips to stargazing locations around the Gold Coast.

Environmental Committee

For several years this committee has been monitoring Somersets environmental state, and has been helping Somerset and the surrounding creek area to sustain stability by planting trees and reducing litter and pollution. Within 2006, the committee were responsible for the 'Save the Koala' appeal as well as their annual Plant A Tree event.

House Committees

These committees represent each house and organise decorations and support for competitors in sporting events such as the inter-house swimming, x-country, and athletics carnivals. They also organise special events held by each house: the Andrews Air-Guitar competition, the Franklin House 'Purple Faces' competition, the Laver House Jeans for Genes day fundraiser, the Starkey Fashion Parade and the Veivers House Milkshake stalls.

International Committee

This committee is run by both International and Australian born students. It aims to develop an international awareness amongst the school community. The committee is also responsible for special occasions such as Wish for Peace Day, Harmony Day, etc.

Inkspot Committee

Inkspot is Somerset College's newspaper. It is published once a term and written completely by those students involved with the committee.

Functions Committee

The Functions Committee consists of a group of students, who waiter in special annual events. Events include dinners such as 11/12 dinner, Cultural Collage, Sports Dinner, Valedictory Dinner and others.

cience Committee

This committee is run by students, a teacher, a committee leader and a secretary. The committee helps run science related events, such as science week. Along with this the committee continually assist the younger year levels of the school in science-related experiments from the field of chemistry right through to physics and geometry.

Sporting Traditions

Somerset College participates in the APS season in both summer and winter, allowing its students to experience a variety of sports. Such sports include rugby union, netball, soccer, cricket, volleyball and hockey. One alumnus of particular sporting fame is Andrew Stark, recently promoted to captain of Queensland's tennis team.

Also important to the Somerset lifestyle are the Development Sports. These sports give aspiring athletes a chance to develop their skills in their chosen fields, everything from distance running to sprint kayaking to martial arts, to motorsports.

Alumni

Academic

*Annaleise Rosemary Grummitt - Rhodes Scholar (2001). [http://www.usyd.edu.au/registrar/rhodes/previous.shtml "NSW Rhodes Scholars"] — University of Sydney list, (retrieved 16 April 2007)]

Entertainment

Conrad Coleby

Sophie Monk

Notes

References

*Somersetonian 2006
*Somersetonian 2005