THE GLENNIE SCHOOL STRATEGIC PLAN A NEW EDUCATIONAL ERA 2021-2026
FOUNDED 1908
“[Education] is one of the finest activities in which the Church can ever be engaged...
Religious influence is seen at its best when it is conveyed not merely through specific instructions on biblical subjects but when it pervades every moment of school life, both in and out of the classroom.”
– a report on “The Schools” in the Church of England Year Book – Diocese of Brisbane, 1935.
FOUNDED 1908
A message from the Principal and School Council
On behalf of our leadership team and the School Council, we have great pleasure in presenting our five-year strategic plan for the Glennie School.
ensures that our proven educational approach continues to pave the way for our graduates; as it has done for the past 110 years. The plan ensures that our education continues to be nurtured in the context of our Anglican Ethos . Our graduates understand the Christian way of living, the importance of giving back to our communities and strive for excellence in order to serve others for a greater good. While this strategy provides us with strong direction, we also recognise that implementing a plan is a dynamic process that needs to keep pace with an evolving world. As such, we will continually review, assess and improve on initiatives as the years progress; ensuring that at all times each action benefits our students. This five-year strategy is another step in the remarkable history of the Glennie School. It is a plan that seeks to bring together the hopes and aspirations of students, staff, parents and Alumni to realise future possibilities. We trust you will be as excited by the breadth of opportunities this strategic plan promises to deliver as we are, and look forward to working together to turn this vision into reality in the years to come.
This plan is the result of a thorough review of our operations combined with significant consultation with our community, current parents and Alumni. The strategy encapsulates the thinking of contemporary educational experts, the knowledge of the broader Glennie community, and the many lessons we have learnt from one of the most challenging years in education during 2020. The aim of this plan is to build on our strong educational platform and to guide our future growth and development as one of Australia’s most well respected, Anglican girls’ school. Importantly, it will introduce a contemporary perspective across all of our operations, enabling us to adapt, change and evolve in the years ahead while also reaffirming our heritage and proud tradition. The strategy focuses on a range of initiatives that will be implemented across four strategic areas: Educational Excellence, Character Development, Connected Community and Future Sustainability. To support the plan, we have introduced a set of Guiding Principles that underpins its implementation. While our values of Courage, Respect, Integrity and Compassion remain at the foundational heart of our school, the Guiding Principles will help lead the way in our realisation of this new and ambitious plan. Also inherent in the plan is the strengthening of four distinctives that truly make The Glennie School unique. The strategy strengthens our ability to deliver a uniquely personalised learning approach that enables our graduates to reach their full individual potential. It develops the professional skills of our staff who are experts in educating confident, empowered young women, and
Yours sincerely
Mary Anne Evans Principal
Paddy Nicholls Chair, School Council
Our Mission: To be All She Can Be ® . The Glennie School seeks to make an outstanding impact for the good of our society through the quality of its teaching, its renowned leadership in education, and by ensuring that every student reaches her full spiritual, physical and academic potential.
Guiding Principles While our core values remain at the heart of our school, our strategic direction is underpinned by a set of fresh principles that will help our school grow and prosper in the years to come.
steadfast in our approach to educating and empowering young women. The Glennie School aspires for its graduates to be: � Aspirational: We strive to reach our personal and spiritual best, to achieve great things in life, to serve others, and make a difference in the world around us. � Authentic: We are honest and upfront in our opinions. We have strong personal integrity so what we do and what we say are always consistent. We are true to ourselves. � Confident: We are self-assured about our future. We are independent, self-sufficient and well equipped with the skills needed to thrive in life. � Courageous: We have courage of conviction. We ask the hard questions, we advocate and act bravely in the face of adversity. We are fearless in the decisions we make and have the skills needed to face disappointment and challenging times with fortitude. � Empathetic – We listen, we deeply care and have compassion for others. We are aware of, understand, and are sensitive to others’ feelings and thoughts. We connect with people from all walks of life and seek to help those in need. � Optimistic: We are hopeful and positive about our future, believing in and understanding our unique capabilities. We are buoyed by our strong Christian faith. � Servant Leadership – We have an inherent desire to serve others, to create a more just and caring world, and to give back to our communities for a greater, common good. We always put others first.
� Lifetime love of learning and curiosity � Spiritual Awareness and Reflection � Pursuit of personal best � Global outlook and perspective � Stewardship and sustainability � Excellence in everything we do
The Glennie Distinctive Established in 1908, the Glennie School pioneered and is now recognised as one of Australia’s leading Anglican girls’ day and boarding schools. As we enter the next decade, Glennie will continue to be distinguished by four characteristics: � Anglican Ethos
� Personalised Learning � Unrivalled Experience � Connected Community
A Glennie Graduate Building and nurturing each student’s personal character, in addition to achieving academic excellence, will remain
1. Educational Excellence We foster a culture of educational excellence in our teaching and learning practices through the application of academic rigour, a focus on contemporary pedagogy, and by creating inspiring learning experiences. We will continue to cultivate a community of teachers with the diversity and breadth of experience required to instil academic curiosity and a passion for life-long learning in every student. Building on an already rich tradition, we will continue to deliver our unique ‘Teaching and Learning Framework’, to create personalised educational experiences that recognise and nurture each student’s unique capabilities.
Focus areas
Best practice, contemporary teaching practices: We will continue to review and refresh our learning practices and benchmark these against best-practice pedagogy approaches. The recruitment of teachers with a modern approach to traditional teaching practices will be an important part of this initiative, as will the continued introduction of modern and inspirational teaching delivery, and detailed annual reviews of teacher/student outcomes. We will adopt a more rigorous approach to teacher training and development, introduce higher performance benchmarks, and ensure greater collaboration among our educational teams. This will include the implementation of a K-12 Professional Learning Community creating a culture focused on continuous improvement, commitment to professionalism, and facilitates the implicit educational insight into every Glennie student. Leverage our online learning capability: We will actively utilise new technologies in innovative ways to improve educational and organisational practices. Our online Learning Hub will be enhanced with more curriculum content to support improved student/parent/teacher educational collaboration. The success of our online activities in 2020 will serve as an excellent blueprint to facilitate a more personalised learning experience for students, and improved communications and collaboration with parents. The Glennie Teaching and Learning Framework: We have a proven and well-developed approach to personalised and individualised learning. This framework will be more consistently embedded into our operations to provide every student with a personalised educational development plan that encompasses both the curriculum as well as other skills such as critical thinking, problem solving, communication, creativity and innovation. Optional tutorial services outside of school hours will be expanded to ensure scholars and those requiring additional support are provided with personalised support outside of the classroom if required.
Dedicated Educational Areas: We will dedicate areas of our campus to educational disciplines to create inspirational educational environments where students can immerse themselves in core disciplines. This will include the development of a new Sports and Fitness Academy. Partnerships with universities and large organisations to provide students with experiences and expertise in identified areas will form a critical part of the program. Learning and Teaching Innovation: Reimagining the learning vision of the school will occur through the targeted collection, analysis and evaluation of student data. A newly created leadership role, the Director of Teaching and Innovation, will inform more innovative teaching practices, increase the impact of learning, and improve student outcomes in the recognition that improvement is for all; every student is capable of continual growth. This will include an enhanced Feedback Framework to foster more frequent feedback between parents, teachers and our school, to continually improve our operations and educational services. Christian Enrichment: Religious and values education remain an important part of our curriculum and educational framework. At Glennie, we respect, explore and reflect on the Christian faith in our education to create spiritual awareness and growth. We encourage generosity of thought, we promote intellectual curiosity, and we respect diversity. Key Initiatives • E nhanced Glennie Teaching and Learning Framework with new performance benchmarks • E nhanced Professional Training and Development Plan for teachers • Improved Education Feedback Framework and Policy (including parents & students) • A new Sports and Fitness Academy • F lexible Tutorial Services (Years 7 to 12) • C ross campus engagement (Connecting our Prep to 12)
2. Character Development We recognise that every student has a range of unique abilities that require nurturing. In this fast-paced world, with new opportunities and challenges for young women, our philosophy is to develop each student’s personal character in order to prepare her for life. Educating the ‘whole girl’ is an important part of Glennie’s educational offering where we teach resilience, teamwork, leadership, spiritual awareness and courage. Programs that promote positive mental health, good physical health, as well as the social and emotional wellbeing of students remain paramount, as are courses that provide students with skills such as critical thinking, problem solving, innovation, and creativity.
Focus area
Co-Curricular and Extra-Curricular Activities: We will continue to educate the whole girl through extra-curricular activities such as dance, drama, arts, sports and language immersion programs. As leaders in educating young women, we know that these activities help build courage, resilience, critical thinking and confidence; characteristics required to be a lifelong learner and to thrive in a global world. Future and Life-Skills: Our Glennie Teaching and Learning Framework will be further enhanced to provide students with future skills, vocational training opportunities and development in emerging career areas. Effective communications, innovative problem solving and acquiring the ability to respectfully question are important life skills. The acquiring of these skills will be catalogued for each student, culminating in the presentation of an e-Portfolio (the Glennie Skills Passport) on completion of Year 12. This will complement existing programs such as ‘Our Life, the Universe and Everything’ – Thinking Science and Philosophical Inquiry. Spiritual Growth and Awareness: A deep awareness of one’s place in this world, complete acceptance of others, and personal spiritual growth will continue to be part of our school’s offering and Anglican ethos. We model a Christian world view and provide parents with the security that Glennie counts each person as having an inherent dignity. This will complement existing programs such as our Ethics, Philosophy and Religious programs. We will continue to provide opportunities for spiritual journeying including confirmation classes and regular worship in our Chapel services.
Student Wellbeing: An individual’s progress through all areas of Glennie school- life is monitored, with additional case management for those with particular needs. An extensive series of support networks, leadership opportunities and a student wellbeing curriculum guide will be refreshed as we enter a new era of learning at Glennie. The framework includes Chapel presentations, guest speakers, health education, Empowerment days, counselling and mental health awareness events.
Key Initiatives • E xpanded Immersion Programs: extended language opportunities (in addition to French) and service learning activities • Future Skills: Certified Course Program (Years 7 to12) • N ew Student Lead Conferences on Contemporary Issues (Years 7 to12) • New e-Portfolio and Glennie Skills Passport (Years 7 to12) • Refreshed Glennie Wellbeing Framework • Refreshed leadership and awards program (Years 7 to 12)
3. Connected Community Connecting with our community and serving others for a greater, common good continues to underpin our school philosophy. We will instil in the fabric of our school a passion to serve others, the will to act for neighbours, and the courage to work for justice and be accepting of all people in our society. Moving forward, we will develop a more dynamic outreach program to provide students, parents, and our Alumni with a life-long Glennie connection.
Focus areas
Student and Teacher Connections: We believe that communication, mentoring, and pastoral care are inherent hallmarks of the Glennie experience. Our teachers’ strong connection and caring relationship with our students – and their families – will remain at the forefront of our plan through formalised mentoring programs, continued pastoral care services, and by creating more opportunities for personalised student/ teacher discussions across Glennie in the future. More frequent teacher and parent forums and communication tools will also be introduced over time. Connecting with Alumni: Since our inception, Glennie has had a long list of community friends that help foster our continued success and support our students beyond school. We will continue to nurture this network to connect with different communities, share knowledge and inspire our students. This program will include more frequent information evenings on contemporary educational and societal issues, Year 12 Alumni mentoring, new student lead conferences, and continued fundraising through The Glennie School Foundation and Parents and Friends’ Association. Service Learning Programs: Spiritual reflection, awareness and service are an integral part of our ethos. Moving forward, we will strengthen this effort with a new, dedicated Anglican Service Learning Program for students from Kindergarten to Year 12. This will consist of a range of philanthropic activities to foster compassion, empathy, and caring. Co-ordinating efforts with our Anglican community network will be at the core of this program. Our school chapel will continue to play an important role in this programme. Services and opportunities for worship will be enhanced to better support our Christian community of parents, students and staff, Alumni.
Collaborative Culture: Fostering a culture of collaboration and belonging across the Glennie community will be an important foundation for our future growth. This will include encouraging and enhancing our valued K to 12 students, actively participating in local community activities and work experience opportunities, strengthening our Alumni connections, and maintaining an open dialogue with local community representatives. Strengthen partnerships: Partnerships with universities, large organisations and affiliated schools are an integral part of our ability to provide students with expanded opportunities. We will refresh and seek new partnership opportunities to ensure that we are fully realising their mutual benefit for all of our students.
Key Initiatives • Review of the Glennie Bursary Program • New Anglican Service Learning Program • Refreshed Alumni Events Program • Aligned approach to community care • Glennie Mentoring Program • Review of Strategic Partnerships
4. Sustainable Future As stewards of the Glennie School, we will ensure that our truly great educational opportunity continues to grow and prosper from one generation to the next. We will do this by introducing more sustainable and future focused business practices, and by creating a 21st-century environment that enables delivery of our strategic objectives. While we honour and respect our tradition and historic site, we also recognise that continued investment in contemporary practices and infrastructure is paramount to our future growth. This perspective will be embedded into our existing practices and operations as well as our curriculum over time.
Focus areas
Upgrade our existing site: We will invest in the refurbishment of our campus through the development of a 10-Year Infrastructure Master Plan, commencing in 2021 with the introduction of a Sport and Fitness Academy. We will invest in new, digital technologies to keep pace with change; improving the standards of educational delivery across our site within this Master Plan. Strengthen our governance: We must be diligent in the maintenance of our overall risk, business and financial management practices. These will be lifted to even higher standards of excellence, to continually meet Council expectations and performance metrics. This includes three-yearly Risk and Governance Audits conducted by an independent third party, stakeholder surveys and continued staff development. Sustainable practices: In light of current environmental challenges, we have an obligation to deploy a new, sustainable business practices policy that encompass activities in our community, in the classroom and across the school. This will include usage of paper, solar power and energy saving activities over time.
People focused approach – Staff Wellbeing: Fostering a team-based culture at Glennie will ensure that our operations remain contemporary, efficient, and are sustained over the longer term. This approach is critical for the future growth of our school and will be a priority for the leadership team.
Key Initiatives • Glennie Campus 10 Year Master Plan. • Employee Engagement Strategy • (Three Yearly) Benchmark Audit: Finance, Risk and Governance • Digital Evolution Investment Plan • Professional learning communities • Environmental Sustainability Plan
ALL SHE BE FOUNDED 1908
www.glennie.qld.edu.au . 246a Herries Street, Toowoomba QLD 4350 . enquiries@glennie.qld.edu.au
Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16Made with FlippingBook Digital Proposal Creator