This week I have been informed that Yashita M (Year 11) participated in UNSW's Young Entrepreneurship Program’s (YEP) ‘Weekend of Entrepreneurship’ during the school holidays. She was one of 40 students selected to participate in interactive workshops with Australian start- up founders and created real- life solutions using the Stanford School's  ‘Design Thinking’ process and Brown University’s ‘See, Solve, Scale’ process. We are delighted to share that Yashita's team were selected as the overall winners for the competition. She will continue her work with UNSW later this year by participating in the Flagship Program, YEP 2.0. As the program expands Yashita may have the opportunity to work with alumni from Yale, Brown, Stanford, UCLA and UCSB. Congratulations Yashita on this outstanding achievement.   I have had news that Kavisha who graduated in 2023 is currently performing in 'Ride the Cyclone' at Eternity Playhouse in Darlinghurst. Ms Carroll attended the performance and was highly impressed with Kavisha's performance. It is terrific to see the achievements of our alumni and their enjoyment of post-school life pursuing their interests and passions. We are very proud!

Important Information: Safety in Thomas Street and in School Car Parks This is a friendly reminder that parents and carers are not permitted to drive into school car parks to drop off their children. This is because it poses a risk to the physical safety of our students. There is a drop off and pick up zone in Thomas Street which should be used. We have also had reports of double parking in the drop off and pick up zones and everyone is reminded that this is also a risk to students crossing the street. Thank you for considering this matter and caring for the safety of our students. Ms Gilmore Relieving Deputy Principal

DEPUTY PRINCIPALS' MESSAGe

Year 9 Exams Congratulations to all Year 9 students on completing your block of exams. Your hard work, preparation, and perseverance throughout this assessment period should be commended. We hope you take pride in your efforts and use this experience as an opportunity to reflect on your achievements and growth. Well done.  Harmony Day Poster Competition Congratulations to Hanna Lee Year 9 on being selected as a finalist in the 2026 NSW Harmony Day Poster Competition. The theme this year was “Everyone Belongs”. This is a wonderful achievement and a testament to their creativity, artistic skill, and thoughtful interpretation of the values of harmony, inclusion, and respect. Hannah’s dedication and effort should be celebrated, and we are incredibly proud of her success. Hannah and her family have been invited to NSW Parliament House on 23 June 2026 where hey will announce the State winner. We wish Hannah the best. 

Reconciliation Concert Hornsby On Friday 29th May, Ms Pozzolungo, Mrs Wallwork and Ms Rix accompanied Year 7 students to the Reconciliation Concert at Hornsby Library. This concert featured a performance by Gawura Cultural Immersions. It was a unique opportunity for the year 7 cohort to learn more about Australia’s history, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander culture and support National Reconciliation week.  Zone Cross Country Congratulations to all of our participants in the Zone Cross Country. Thank you to our dedicated PDHPE staff who attended and supported our students over the course of the day.  Wellbeing Survey 50 students from years 7 through to 12  participated in the Wellbeing Survey with Maria Casbolt on Thursday 28th May. This is a great opportunity to look at our Wellbeing initiatives, programs and procedures from a student point of view. Our next step is to survey parents and analyse this data to refine and make further improvements to our Wellbeing Program.   Parent teacher interviews Last Wednesday evening we welcomed our year 11 and 12 parents onsite to conduct our annual parent-teacher interviews. As always it was lovely to meet with the members of our school community, engage in conversations about a range of topics and give valuable feedback to parents regarding their children and their learning. Thank you to our teaching staff who so generously gave up their time during the night.  Year 8 and 10 Parent Teacher Interviews will be held on Wednesday 22nd July from 3.00 pm - 7.00 pm.  Year 7 and 9 Parent Teacher Interviews will be held on Wednesday 29th July from 3.00 pm to 7.00 pm. Information regarding making these booking will be sent out in Week 8 of this term. NSW Public School Surveys This term students in years 7-12 will have the opportunity to share their experiences at school, including their engagement in learning their wellbeing and their experiences of evidence-informed teaching. These insights will help us as a school to understand what is working well and where improvements can be made in alignment with the Our Plan for NSW Public Education, the School Excellence Framework and What Works Best.  Further information will be sent to parents via email regarding this in the coming week.  Ms Wallwork and Ms Pozzolungo - Deputy Principals

PYTHON WORKSHOP

On Monday, a group of UNSW students visited HGHS to run a Python workshop with our Computing Technology students. The workshop focused on recursion and debugging, giving students the opportunity to develop their programming skills through practical activities. The UNSW presenters were well organised and delivered engaging, high-quality material. Our students participated enthusiastically and learned a great deal from the experience. The event was very successful, and we hope to organise more opportunities like this in the future.

Year 12 Drama Workshop

Drama Alumni from the classes of 2023-2025 came to share their expertise and experiences with our current HSC Drama students on their monologues, scriptwriting and costume design.    We are so lucky to have a wealth of knowledge available to us with our past students. Congratulations to our current Drama class for their tremendous efforts as they steadily work towards their examinations. 

Zone Cross Country

Congratulations to the Hornsby Girls Zone Cross Country team, who on Monday were crowned Zone Champions for the second consecutive year. In a strong team performance, Hornsby Girls finished more than 100 points ahead of second-placed Cheltenham Girls High School. The result reflects the commitment, determination and teamwork shown by all students throughout the day. A special congratulations to the following athletes who achieved top 10 placings in their age groups: 12 Years Aarabhi Rao – 7th Kiyomi Perera – 9th Sunnie Su – 10th 13 Years Christine Ku – 9th 14 Years Charity Yan – 2nd Amber Lin – 3rd Ella Wang – 7th 15 Years Claire Yang – 4th Kelly Ha – 8th 16 Years Susanna Lau – 3rd Tara Gilkeson – 4th Audrey Strauss – 5th 17 Years Summer Choi – 2nd Angela Yang – 4th Catherine Yuan – 6th Elise Reynolds – 7th Catherine Baik – 9th 18 Years Zoey Jiang Sophie Wang – 7th Kate Jung – 10th Thank you to Ms Hoang and Ms Kohlhagen for accompanying the team and officiating on the day. We wish all students competing at the Sydney North Cross Country Championships on 12 June at Wyong Racecourse the very best of luck.

Jane Hall - PDHPE Coordinator

Year 7 Peer Support Update

Session 2: Strength and Positives Around Me In Session 2, Year 7 students explored strengths, gratitude, and positive connections. Using the official VIA Character Strengths list, students worked in pairs to identify their own strengths and qualities they admired in each other, encouraging discussions about self-awareness, friendships, and teamwork. Students then created origami hearts, writing a personal achievement or positive quality about themselves on one side, while their partner wrote a positive reflection on the other. The activity reminded students to recognise their own strengths and appreciate the positives in others. Thank you to our Year 10 Peer Support Leaders for leading such a positive and uplifting session.

Session 4: Gratitude and Kindness Every interaction we have has an impact on others. While we may not be friends with everyone, we can always choose to be kind and friendly — helping to create the positive school community we all want to belong to. In this week’s Year 7 Peer Support session, students explored gratitude and kindness through the reveal of their Secret Buddy activity. Students described positive qualities about their buddies while the group guessed who they were, encouraging appreciation and positive connections. Students also reflected on positive experiences from the past two weeks and shared examples of random acts of kindness. The session concluded with students collaboratively creating a Random Acts of Kindness Calendar, reminding everyone that kindness can be both random and intentional.

Success at the Ethics Olympiad

This year, students from our school achieved outstanding success in the Ethics Olympiad, demonstrating exceptional critical thinking, collaboration, and intellectual curiosity. Competing against schools from across the region, our students engaged thoughtfully with complex ethical issues and represented the school with distinction. Most notably, one of our teams was awarded the Silver Medal and has subsequently received an invitation to compete in the International Ethics Olympiad on 23rd July 2026 — an exceptional achievement that reflects both the calibre of our students and their commitment to respectful, reasoned discussion. Members of the teams were Cedar Gentle, Nimisha Kotoky Purkayastha, Nadithi Kaimal, Sanemi Mishra (Blue team) and Jemma Soukhavong, Rhea Pillai, Erina Hossan and Amy-Jane Trinh (Grey team). In addition Maya Otalora Caliman received an honourable mention in the’ Ethics case writing competition’ with her entry entitled, “Borders of Responsibility” which examined the responsibilities of governments to look after their own citizens which included an examination of the plight of refugees. The Ethics Olympiad is a unique academic competition that challenges students to analyse contemporary ethical dilemmas using philosophical reasoning. Unlike traditional debating competitions, participants are not assigned opposing viewpoints or judged on their ability to “defeat” another team. Instead, students work collaboratively to explore moral complexity, consider diverse perspectives, and develop thoughtful, evidence-based conclusions. Participants examine real-world case studies involving social, medical, technological, environmental and political issues, requiring them to think deeply about what people morally ought to do and why. Students are encouraged to construct logical arguments, evaluate competing viewpoints, and remain open to revising their thinking when presented with compelling reasons to do so — skills that are central to ethical philosophy and increasingly valuable in modern society. The competition format involves teams preparing ethical case studies in advance before participating in virtual round-robin heats. During these sessions, students present arguments, respond to questions from judges, and engage constructively with ideas presented by other teams. Importantly, success is measured not simply by persuasive speaking, but by clarity of reasoning, respectful dialogue, intellectual openness, and collaborative problem-solving. Our students impressed judges with their maturity, insight, and ability to engage thoughtfully with difficult ethical questions. Their success reflects the high level of academic engagement, empathy, and communication skills fostered within our school community. We congratulate all students involved in the Ethics Olympiad and wish our Silver Medal team every success as they prepare to represent the school at the International Ethics Olympiad.

Dr Turner & Dr Royce - Careers Advisors

Outstanding Result in the Australian Brain Bee Challenge

A group of Year 10 students took part in the Australian Brain Bee Challenge, a competition designed to help students learn about the brain, neuroscience research, careers in neuroscience, and common misconceptions about neurological and mental illnesses. Students prepared for the competition by studying online via Education Perfect before attempting Round 1.  After performing strongly in Round 1 Atrin Bagherian, Nandita Nair, Phoebe Wu, Isabella Zhang, Nova Liu and Maya Otalora Caliman had the opportunity to test their knowledge against others from across the state in the state final. The competition involved challenging questions on brain structure, function, neuroscience research and neurological conditions at UNSW. A special congratulations goes to Nova Liu, who achieved an outstanding result by placing 2nd in the state overall. This is a remarkable achievement in a highly competitive event. All students are to be congratulated for their effort, preparation and enthusiasm, and for representing the school with distinction in this prestigious competition.

Jon Re - Head Teacher Science

HGHS Jazz Band

From Friday 15th to Sunday 17th May, the HGHS Jazz Band had an unforgettable experience attending the annual Big Band Blast in Bathurst. This exciting event gathered talented young musicians from across Sydney for a weekend filled with performances, workshops, and invaluable learning opportunities. One of the highlights of the camp was a captivating performance by the Mosaic Jazz Collective, whose dynamic style and energy inspired our students. Following their set, the band was privileged to participate in a hands-on workshop led by the legendary jazz drummer John Morrison. Students had the opportunity to develop important jazz skills such as improvisation, jazz arranging, and sight reading, key techniques essential to mastering the genre. The HGHS Jazz Band also had the opportunity to perform in front of an audience composed of peers and educators from various schools, showcasing their hard work and musicianship. Their confident and spirited performance was met with enthusiastic applause, reflecting the dedication they put into their craft. We extend our heartfelt thanks to Ms Ridgway for her organisation of this event, ensuring everything ran smoothly and that our students had a rewarding experience. A big thank you also goes to Dr Tanya Selak and Ms McCarthy for their support and assistance throughout the weekend. Your contributions were invaluable.