2020 Scholars Assembly

In February, the School invited the Overall Position (OP) 1 to 4 recipients of the Class of 2019 to celebrate their distinguished academic achievements at the annual Scholars Assembly. The last group of Year 12 students to undertake the Queensland Core Skills test under the OP system, Somerville House students performed extraordinarily well, with 10.1% of the cohort receiving an OP 1 result and 41.4% between a 1 to 5. 

Addressing the current student body at the special assembly, Principal, Mrs Kim Kiepe said that their results evoked feelings of pride at Somerville House. 

“As academic and corporate staff we feel great pride in the accomplishments of our students – it is a delight to educate Somerville girls and to celebrate their achievements today at our Scholars Assembly,” Mrs Kiepe said. 

“Speaking on behalf of our teachers, I know that they are architects for learning. This can be seen in the quality of the conversations, the language we use and the messages we convey, which are all critical to the process in which young women develop views of the world and themselves,” she said. 

“The persistence and diligence that is necessary for high academic performance is valued at Somerville House and today we celebrate with thirty-three young women who have indeed distinguished themselves, as they have achieved a very high academic standard.”

Dean of Academic Programs, Mrs Wendy Jurss said Somerville House students once again consistently outperformed the state in their results with 93.9% of students receiving between an OP 1 to 15.

“The QCS test heavily influences OP results and the strength of the 2019 cohorts results definitely showed this, with almost three quarters of the cohort achieving an A or a B result,” Mrs Jurss said. 

“Additionally, 100% of all Year 12 students achieved their Queensland Certificate of Education (QCE),” she said. 

“99% of the Class of 2019 received first round offers of tertiary places.”

The School invited scholar Grace Beattie to speak on behalf of the 2019 cohort and offer insights into her final year at Somerville House. Addressing the current cohort of students, Grace confirmed the importance of remaining focussed on the light at the end of the tunnel.

“For those of you in Year 11 or 12, stressing for an answer to the question ‘what do you want to be when you grow up’, it’s okay if you still have a shortlist of options or if nothing takes your fancy at all,” Grace said. 

“The important thing is to keep your marks up, to keep all your options open and to try and develop skills in as many areas as possible,” she said. 

“Don’t feel guilty for taking a break from your desk to play sport, make a fun snack, nap, stretch or catch up with friends. Smashing out all day study marathons without breaks never works. Stay balanced and remember that it is alright to take your foot off the pedal short term by having a little time to yourself in order to avoid long term burnout.” 

Having had a very different senior year experience, our 2020 Year 12 cohort has made the School community proud by displaying great resilience and adaptability in the face of the disruptive circumstances caused by COVID-19. Instead of an OP, they will receive an ATAR (Australian Tertiary Admission Rank), bringing Queensland in-line with other Australian states and territories.