Pressing for Progress at Pymble

Friday 9 March, 2018

Celebrations for International Women’s Day 2018 and the #PressForProgress theme continued all week at Pymble.

Students from Kindergarten to Year 12 participated in a range of on- and off-campus activities designed to acknowledge and celebrate the strengths of the girls and women they are and those that they know.

On campus, students heard from guest speakers, including Ms Natalie Isaacs, the founder and CEO of 1 Million Women. Ms Isaac’s focus was on the empowerment of young women as leaders in a future focused on sustainability and environmental care.

Pymble also welcomed back former Head Prefect, Nikki Raftopulos (2012) who inspired the girls with insights into her time at Pymble and her extensive studies in Medical Sciences and Medicine. She was joined by English teacher Ms Colby Grace who spoke passionately about ‘finding your voice’.

Other on-campus activities included a mufti day fundraiser for the Hornsby Ku-ring-gai Women’s Shelter, an IWD poster designing competition, an ‘open mic’ lunchtime session, a paper doll chain recognising the extraordinary female figures in students’ lives, and the creation of a video of interviews with Kindergarten to Year 12 students about the #PressForProgress theme and what it means to be a girl.

Several of our student leaders in Years 10 and 12 attended the United Nations International Women’s Day Breakfast at the Sydney International Convention Centre, where they heard panellists, including author and journalist Tracey Spicer and UN Women representatives, Smriti Aryal and Hiba Qasas, discuss the powerful message of ‘Leave no woman behind’.

In addition, students from Years 7 to 12 attended an IWD celebration hosted by Ku-ring-gai Council, where they participated in a panel discussing the advancement of young women, followed by a networking lunch to share ideas and identify potential opportunities for collaboration with other schools.