Today is World Teachers’ Day, which is a fitting day to thank our teaching staff for everything they do in the life of our school; their efforts extend beyond the classroom in many ways.

It was wonderful to begin the term by announcing that three members of our teaching staff have officially been appointed to leadership roles in the school.

Dr Rhiannon Giles has been confirmed as our Head of Middle School, while Mrs Jessica Foster and Mrs Emma Wiggins will step into the Head of Drama and Head of Mathematics positions, respectively.

In considering the right people to fill these positions, we interviewed excellent educators and leaders from all over the country—only to find that the best candidates were already in our classrooms.

Dr Rhiannon Giles is the epitome of a Wilderness leader, with a deep understanding of our values, many years of experience as a teacher of science and mathematics and a leader in pastoral care. Now, she will continue to lead and advocate for students within the Head of Middle School role, which she has held in an acting capacity throughout the year. Her expertise, care for the students and vision for the School are precisely what is required to guide our Middle School girls through their school years and prepare them for the future.

Mrs Jessica Foster began teaching at Wilderness in 2019 and she has proven her capability after acting in the role of Head of Drama from Term 2 this year—displaying her passion for the department’s curriculum and productions, while encouraging our students to use Drama as a tool to engage with meaningful topics and share powerful messages through a creative lens.

Mrs Emma Wiggins has been part of the Wilderness community since 2021 when she joined us as a teacher of Mathematics. She brought with her previous experience as a Head of Mathematics, and we see her as the right candidate to step into this role within our school in this foundational subject area after holding it in an acting capacity throughout the year.

At the same time, we are always eager to welcome new faces and embrace the best candidates from beyond our school gates. Some of you may have already met our new Director of Sport and Recreation, Ms Ashleigh Young, at the Middle and Senior School Athletics Carnival last week—which was only her second day on the job!

Ms Young is an experienced sports administrator and coach. She has extensive experience working with sports including soccer, futsal and AFL and we look forward to seeing the influence of this experience within our Sport programs.

As we celebrate new staff members and new roles, this is also a time when we farewell our Year 12 girls. Today is a special day, the last that the Year 12s attend before their final exams and their adventures into life beyond their secondary schooling. The day began with the Walk of Honour and will conclude with tonight’s Valedictory Dinner held at the Adelaide Festival Theatre. Although there are exams and events in the coming weeks, as they celebrate the conclusion of their school journey this evening, we know that the 2022 cohort will leave feeling grateful for the teachers who have walked beside them throughout their time in the Wilderness.