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House of Assembly - Fifty-First Parliament, Second Session (51-2)
2007-11-13 Daily Xml
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DERNANCOURT PRIMARY SCHOOL

Mrs GERAGHTY (Torrens) (15:32): Last week, I attended the Dernancourt Junior Primary School's and the Dernancourt Primary School's 40th year celebration. To celebrate the 40 years of education at the schools, they conducted an art show displaying the fabulous artistic talents of students. It was marvellous to see the strong support given to the occasion by parents and friends, with several hundred people attending the early-evening event. It was also wonderful to be there to celebrate the school's 40-year contribution to making sure that our children—the children who will be adults of the future—are given a well-rounded education, good values and wonderful memories of friendships made at Dernancourt.

My relationship with the school began in 1994 when I was elected as the member for Torrens. My first encounter was with Helen Hoffman, who was then the principal of the junior primary school. As a newly elected member, I was somewhat daunted—I guess is the word to use—about this meeting but, over the years, Helen and I have had many discussions. I have to thank her for making me think about many issues relating to the way we support children and how we provide that support. As I said, she certainly has made me think about those things.

I have seen many changes at these schools, particularly with the closure of the Holden Hill Primary School in late 1994 and the need for the Dernancourt schools to provide additional space for about 100 students, and the changes that occurred with the classrooms and the library in both the primary and junior primary schools. It was a challenge, but it was certainly a challenge well met. These schools have a reputation for getting things done, and this reputation has drawn creative and enterprising people to the schools, people who can think of ways to fundraise, to provide activities and to enhance the school environment in the best interests of the children. The opportunities provided for the students have come about because of the hard-working commitment of those people associated with the schools.

One of the fundraising initiatives several years ago was the delivery of telephone books to raise money. In those days, parents and teachers had to sleep at the school overnight to ensure that the telephone books were not stolen, as they were responsible for them. Now, of course, like many other schools, they have sausage sizzles, working bees and all those things that make schools a great place for children and create a wonderful school family.

In 2006, two new principals came to the Dernancourt schools: Christine Ferguson (the junior primary school principal) and Kathy Terrell (the primary school principal). They have both shown clearly their very strong commitment to making the school environment an exciting place for children to learn and to develop good values. Without the support of the parents association, the school councils and the enthusiastic friends of the school, the children who enrolled initially in 1996, those since then and those who will come in the future would not have had the exciting activities and opportunities or the wonderful environment that is there at the schools for them to enjoy today.

The schools have a great history, and I am sure they will have a wonderful future because they have striven to achieve the best for their students and have always sought to send them to the next level of their education with sound skills and values that will stand them in good stead in the future. I have to say that this is certainly something to be extremely proud of.

Special mention must be made of the Dernancourt schools' artist in residence, Catherine Puckeridge, who did a wonderful job in bringing out the artistic talents of all the school students. Some really wonderful works of art were presented by them, and I think they will be something to be treasured in the future. Each class had a theme, and obviously the students were extremely enthusiastic about their work. The paintings were for sale, and the money raised from the sale will, of course, be well spent within the school community for the benefit of the children.

The art show, which was held for the first time, will no doubt become a tradition at Dernancourt. It showed the great spirit of getting on and making things happen, and that has certainly become part of the culture of the Dernancourt schools. I congratulate everyone involved in the art show, and I thank all the parents and friends of the school who came along that evening and made our 40th celebration something to be really proud of.

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