Mr Scott Baker - Deputy Principal | Head of Senior School 

It was an enormous privilege to be part of the ‘Beyond the Gates’ evening on 14 June after many months of planning by our Community Engagement team. It brought together Tara alumnae, current Tara students, parents and staff in a celebration of living out Tara Values in demonstration of Tara being a ‘Christian learning community, characterised by excellence which encourages, equips and empowers girls to serve and thrive in a dynamic world’.

We were inspired by the achievements and stories of the Tara women on our panel, learning from the wisdom and insights of others who’ve trodden their own path as they moved into the world beyond School, beyond the gates. The valuable messages and pieces of advice poured in a steady flow from the stage, and I believe the adults in the room learnt just as much as the students. A consistent theme that came through was the enormous impact of the Tara Values and their education at Tara had on their approach to life. 

It was also an opportunity for students to meet and connect with Tara alumnae in the mentoring segment of the evening, building a community of Tara women and perhaps develop pathways for future endeavours and collaborations. I’m sure there were also some valuable connections made or reestablished between alumnae.

One goal of the evening was to support young people with planning for their future so they can make decisions in an informed and thoughtful manner. The timing of the event coincided with Year 10 working through the process of selecting HSC courses for Year 11 in 2025. Beyond the Gates is the final formal event in what has been nearly a year of students reflecting upon which careers or endeavours they might like to pursue when they leave secondary schooling. The first stage of this was Work Experience, the planning for which began in Term 3 last year when the girls were in Year 9. At the end of Term 1 this year all of Year 10 attended Work Experience which gave them a taste of the world of work and, for many, the types of careers they are considering for the future. 

Year 10 also had the opportunity to participate in the Morrisby careers test which provided feedback on aligning aptitude and interest with possible career pathways. This was supported by Careers advice presentations and literature from Tara’s Careers Adviser, Mr Berridge, and finally the Subject Selection Evening where Mr Bonson (Dean of Learning 11-12) and Heads of Department presented to the students in a ‘subject market’ for students to learn about the courses on offer at Tara. A resource sitting alongside all of this is the Tara Careers page in Canvas which has resources about and links to all things to do with careers, including regular careers related bulletins. 

While part of a wider program, the keystone event of ‘Beyond the Gates’ was no doubt an important part of students considering options and forming decisions about their future. It inspired all present to wonder what is possible through hard work, determination and resilience. 

Please read on about some of the alumnae who attended and supported Tara students. 

Mrs Adele Ramsay - Principal

Last Friday night, I had the privilege, alongside over 150 Tara girls and families, of attending the "Beyond the Gates" event. It was a truly exceptional and inspiring evening, featuring an incredible panel of Tara alumnae, expertly facilitated by Harnsle Joo (Class of 2012), an accomplished media professional.

Regardless of the future aspirations and career ideas for our girls, this event resonated deeply with all attendees, young and old, encouraging us to embody the Tara values of Affirmation, Service, Integrity, and Opportunity.

Allow me to share a few pearls of wisdom from our panellists:

Ruth Fagan (Class of 1975), Mayor of Cowra, emphasised the importance of 'putting your hand up, not out' to succeed in your career. Rather than solely chasing money or seeking handouts, Ruth encouraged the girls to say yes to opportunities, volunteer generously, and contribute to the community. Ruth explained that this approach not only helps others but also opens doors to greater career prospects.

Lydia Shelly (Class of 2002), President of the New South Wales Council of Civil Liberties, reminded us that life isn't always linear. She advised maintaining confidence, persistently moving forward despite obstacles, and aligning actions with personal convictions.

When asked to give one piece of advice to our Tara girls or their high school selves, each panellist offered insightful replies:

Morgan Nicholson (Class of 2016) stressed, “Always ask for help if you need it, whether it’s for your wellbeing, understanding something in class, or struggling with an assignment. You're only harming yourself by not reaching out for help.”

Jennifer Van Bruinessen (Class of 2008) encouraged, “Let them be the one to say no. Put yourself forward, always have a go, and don't count yourself out because you don’t think you match a job description. Let the company say no, if necessary, but don't sell yourself short.”

Wilma Leahy (Class of 2008) advised, “Don’t stress if you don’t get the marks you need when leaving school. It’s not over; there are always other avenues. Remain open minded.”

Ruth Fagan emphasised, “Be yourself, trust your gut, and believe in your abilities. Put your hand up, trust yourself, and try. Don’t be discouraged if you’re not first in line; your time will come.”

Lydia Shelly added, “It’s okay if you don’t know what to do with the rest of your life. The pressure to have it all figured out is immense, but discovering your passions is more important than adhering to a predefined path.”

I was also impressed that all panel members, regardless of their background and family circumstances, all echoed sentiments of gratitude and honour towards their parents for sending them to Tara and supporting them as best as they could in the situation they were in. Once again, this event exemplified the Tara values of Affirmation, Service, Integrity, and Opportunity. Let us be inspired to affirm one another, build each other up, and speak kindness. May we embrace selflessness and actively seek opportunities to contribute to our families, School, and community. Let integrity guide our actions, promoting honesty and authenticity in everything we do. And may we always remain open to opportunities—to care for others, to grow personally and academically, and to lead with purpose.  

As the feedback for ‘Beyond the Gates” was resoundingly positive, we look forward to offering more inspiring community events like this each year. 

Thank you for your unwavering support throughout Term Two. It has been a remarkably successful term filled with a myriad of events such as Tara’s Twilight, the Sheen Family Music Night, Mother’s Day celebrations, athletic carnivals, sporting achievements, and vibrant classroom learning experiences. We are excited to celebrate Tara’s 127th birthday in Term Three, and I also look forward to seeing many of our parents and community members at the Gala Ball in August.

Thank you to everyone who joined us at Beyond the Gates last Friday night. Our Senior School girls and their parents had the privilege of hearing from some remarkable Tara alumnae, who shared inspiring stories of their career journeys. They emphasised the importance of community involvement and giving back, while also highlighting that the path to success is not always easy and sometimes differs from initial expectations. We sincerely hope our Senior School girls were inspired by these amazing women.

A special thank you to our panel members: Harnsle Joo (2012), Morgan Nicholson (2016), Jennifer Van Bruinessen (2008), Wilma Leahy (2008), Lydia Shelly (2002), and Ruth Fagan (1975). We also extend our gratitude to the alumnae who generously participated in the mentoring portion of the evening.

We are deeply grateful for the time and contributions of our alumnae. 

We are excited to offer a special sponsorship package for our Tara families. For $1,000, your company can become an Associate Sponsor for Tara’s Gala Ball.

The Associate Sponsor package includes:

• One Gala Ball ticket
• Brand acknowledgment in the event program
• Brand acknowledgment on signage at the venue
• Audiovisual brand acknowledgment during the evening
• Acknowledgement in the fortnightly Tara News

Your support for this distinguished event would be immensely valuable, and we hope you will consider becoming a part of it. This year, our fundraising efforts are focused on acquiring a new Tara-branded bus, and every sponsor helps us reach this goal.

If you wish to become an Associate Sponsor, please contact Jodie Doyle at jdoyle@tara.nsw.edu.au

Thank you to all the dads who attended the Tara Dads Club Annual General Meeting last week. The evening concluded with the election of the following members to the Tara Dads Club Executive team:

President: Nick Ross
Vice President: James Raad
Treasurer: Vikas Garg
Secretary: Rocky Nematalla

Committee Members:

• Andre Antoun
• Kassam Hussein
• Elie Maroun
• Ryan Meads
• Pascal Mouawad
• Anupam Pahuja
• Thomas Perram
• Joe Sassine

Please join me in congratulating the new executive team. 

I also want to express my sincere gratitude to the outgoing President, Pascal Mouawad, and the entire TDC team. Your unwavering commitment and countless hours of hard work have not gone unnoticed. Thank you for your exceptional service to the School. 

Should you have any questions regarding this or any ideas to share please email the Community Engagement Manager, Jodie Doyle at community@tara.nsw.edu.au 

Registration is now open for Tara’s 2024 Gala Ball. This year the Gala Ball will be held at The Fullerton Hotel, Sydney on Saturday, 24 August, from 6.30pm to 11.30pm.

Register now for your chance to win a dazzling pair of 14K white gold diamond earrings, valued at $2,995, generously donated by Alexander Jewellers. All registered guests go in the draw, with the winner being announced on the night. 

Round up your friends for a night filled with laughter and connection within the Tara Community. It will be an evening of exquisite cuisine, fine wines, exciting auctions, and captivating entertainment. Take advantage of our early bird ticket offer available until Friday, 26 July. 

Registration via the link below 

BOOK NOW

The annual Back to Tara Day will be held this year on Sunday 4 August at Tara and all Tara Old Girls are invited to attend. This will be a wonderful way to reconnect with the School and your peers. For further information please contact taraoldgirls@tara.nsw.edu.au 

Elva L and Joanna X - Waugh House Team 

This term, Waugh had an epic service-learning day, where we cleaned up our School and Lake Parramatta Reserve. On Friday 31 May, all of Tara Junior School banded together to help clean our School. Cleaning up the School was a rewarding experience for all Tara girls.

Our theme for service-learning day was ‘Save The Planet’. We chose this theme because we believe that all generations should be able to live in a clean and hygienic environment. The work we did on our service-learning day takes us one step closer to creating the environment we want.

On the service-learning day Tara girls cleaned up our School and Parramatta reserve.  During the time that we had, we were able to successfully clean up our purple courtyard, playground, areas in Parramatta Lake and around the Chapel and Aquatic Centre. Overall, we made our School a much more pleasant, enjoyable and cleaner place to be in.

We hope that we can get the girls and their families act on protecting and cleaning up the world that we live in. We believe that through our acts of service, we will make a positive impact on the environment. 

Congratulations to Felicity in Year 3 for her remarkable achievements at the IPSHA and CIS Cross Country events! Felicity impressively finished 8th at IPSHA, securing her place to compete at CIS. Last week, she braved a challenging and muddy course at the Sydney International Equestrian Centre, finishing 32nd out of 110 competitors.

Outstanding work Felicity! We are incredibly proud of you!

The National Reconciliation Week theme for 2024, Now More Than Ever, is a reminder to all of us that no matter what, the fight for justice and the rights of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people will — and must — continue.

Every year at Tara, Reconciliation Week is a chance for the school to acknowledge the connections we share with the Burramattigal people of the Dharug nation. A place where we live and learn about the shared history we have as Australians.

A focus across the School in 2024 was social justice, caring for each other and caring for country, the environments we share.

Students have been involved in a range of learning experiences, discussions and presentations: with content ranging from historical injustices, traditional and contemporary cultural practices, to inquiries into the fundamental importance of the arts, to storytelling and lore.

Saturday Sport students also had the honour of participating in IPSHA’s first Indigenous Round. The round seeks to highlight the contributions of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island people make through Australia’s national community of sport:

• To be more inclusive by making connections with common pursuits between our cultures.
• To create a platform for dialogue, education, and reconciliation, helping break down stereotypes and build bridges of empathy and respect.

As an ongoing commitment, Tara and the IPSHA group will continue to build upon the initiative each year.

As a school we will have a continuing commitment to strengthening the relationships between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and non-Indigenous people. Our Reconciliation Action Plan is the foundation document for our School as an organisation.

Click here to read Tara's Reconciliation Action Plan 

We are offering Holiday Intensive Lessons during the two weeks of the holidays. We will have private lessons and group lessons available.

Please contact swimming@tara.nsw.edu.au or contact reception on 8838 2699 to book in. 

Dates: 
8th – 12th July & 
15th – 19th July

Please note: Our regular Learn to Swim lessons during the afternoon will continue through the holiday period.  

To help promote the importance of swimming over the winter months we are offering a 50% discount off the 2nd lesson you enrol in, during the months of June, July, and August. This special is for ALL levels except privates, semi-privates, and adults.  

Tips for Keeping warm after your Swimming Lesson:

1. Wear a swim Cap – This will help keep your hair dry and your head warm while swimming.
2. Warm clothes – Bring warm clothes to change into once dry. Also maybe a beanie to keep your head warm to change into once dry.
3. Ensure you have a nice dry towel to cover up straight after getting out of the pool.
4. Maybe wear a rashie, these are just not for sun protection but also can keep you warm in the pool.
5. Make sure you bring socks and shoes to keep your feet dry and warm when leaving the center.

Please review the Tara Aquatic Centre Terms and Conditions in the Aquatic Centre parent portal as they have been updated.  

We are accepting Active Kids and First Lap vouchers.

To use them in our program, please forward the details to swimming@tara.nsw.edu.au with your child’s details

Earlier this month, our amazing Year 8 girls attended the Inquisitive Minds Competition at Barker College and achieved the highest average score! Tara took home the trophy for the 2024 Year 8 Maths Champions for the Northern Sydney Region! 

They competed in challenging math problem solving tasks against Barker, Roseville, Monte, and Shore, and even teamed up with students from other schools!

A special shoutout to our top scorers Alice and Livia!

Congratulations to our outstanding Year 9 girls for emerging as the overall champions at the Year 9 Inquisitive Minds Talented Maths Workshop! 

Our students had a fantastic day tackling challenging maths problems and competing against other schools. The Tara girls excelled by winning the engineering challenge! Special congratulations to Nicole and Karina for being the top-scoring pair of the day! 

This is an incredible achievement, and we are immensely proud of each one of you!

It has been a delightful term at Tara as we welcomed French exchange students Héloïse, Marie, and Louise! Hosted by our own Tara girls Jemima, Carol, and Audrey, the French students have immersed themselves in the Australian lifestyle and formed lasting friendships!

During their stay, Héloïse, Marie, and Louise have had the opportunity to explore some of Sydney's most iconic landmarks. Highlights of their adventure included visits to Taronga Zoo, the Harbour Bridge, and the Sydney Opera House. They also enjoyed spending quality time cooking and picnicking together!

As their visit draws to a close, we hope their remaining weeks at Tara are just as unforgettable.

Exchange programs like this one are a testament to the fantastic opportunities available at Tara. They allow our students to travel, experience life as global citizens, and enhance their language proficiency skills. With our status as a candidate school for the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme, language learning is a cornerstone of our curriculum. Our comprehensive language program is something we take great pride in, and we are eagerly looking forward to upcoming exchange opportunities in France and Japan later this year and beyond.

To read more about Jemima, Carol, and Audrey’s time in France and learn about the many benefits of our exchange program, click the link below. 

Tara Students Embrace Global Experience in French Exchange Program

Ms Catherine Divitale - Assistant Head of English

In Week 7, Tara students celebrated all things English. The week was launched with a Staff versus Student debate. The topic was: That English should be a compulsory subject. Students were on the affirmative side (Zoe H, Suhanya J and Jemma S) and teachers (Mr Jenson Liu, Ms Angelique Ockert and Mr Steven Gibson) were on the negative side.

Thank you to our Principal Mrs Ramsay for adjudicating the debate. The teachers won the debate. Students also completed spelling bees and creative writing activities throughout the week during their English classes. This allowed them to showcase their talents in various areas and further develop their English skills.

Mackenzie T - Year 8 Student 

IDU day was a Year 8 exclusive event, where the girls of STEM Health presented their fitness apps, and the AGSAD (Ancient Greek Society and Drama) girls presented plays based on a modern event incorporating the techniques and conventions of Greek Drama.

My group’s play was a satyr based on the Russian Ukrainian War. My group and I worked hard to put together our script, and add our own little spin to it, with some helpful feedback from the teachers, Mrs Morgan and Mrs Tannock. It was a long process, but it was so much fun to get a laugh out of the audience and even have a laugh ourselves when performing.

ADD PHOTOS 

Skye A - Sport Prefect

Tara’s Athletics Carnival was held at Sydney Olympic Park recently, in which was a vibrant and exhilarating event that brought together girls in all grades to celebrate sportsmanship, teamwork and physical skill. The day was held with many activities from track and field, to show off the talents of girls in our School!  

The Junior Champion was Ashleigh F from Year 8 with the runner up from Year 7, Maya W! These girls competed exceptionally throughout the day. The Intermediate Athletics Champion was a tie between Veronica A and Leila O. The Senior Athletics Champion from Year 11 was Chelsea C with Jessica C from Year 12 as runner up. These girls are incredible and we commend them on their achievements.  

The Interform Relay was an exciting race and the crowd was wild! All the grades in the School wanted to win this race and it was a close one! Year 11 won, with Year 9 in second and Year 12 in third. 

As girls competed in different events throughout the day, their scores added up contributing to the year participation trophy. Between Year 11 and Year 12 it was extremely close, with Year 11 just scraping through in first place closely followed by Year 12. Third place was Year 10 with 672 points, with Year 7 coming in fourth place with 665 points and Year 8 and Year 9 coming in fifth and sixth place.  

Towards the end of the carnival the Tara girls competed in the Boarder’s vs Daygirl Relay! This event had the crowd cheering with excitement as it was extremely close. The daygirls just crept through winning the trophy! 

The overall Interhouse Athletics trophy had intense competition as the points were extremely close. Winning first place with 1648 points was Walker followed by Hake in a close second with 1634 points! Third place went to Waugh with 1594 points and placing in fourth was Crawford with 1590 points!  

Chelsea C achieved an excellent result in Senior High Jump smashing the record! The previous height was 1.55m and Chelsea reached 1.60m! This is an incredible achievement, and we are so proud of Chelsea for accomplishing this!  

Overall, the Tara Athletics Carnival was one to remember with girls showing off their talents, teamwork, school spirit and encouragement! The girls achieved excellent results and we thank everyone who was involved to make this day such a success! 

We are thrilled to congratulate Year 10 student Amy on her exceptional performance at the North West Equestrian Expo! 

Amy showcased her talent and determination across several events, earning an impressive collection of medals:

• Polocrosse Div 2 – 1st Place
• Showjumping (65-4 Div) – Reserve Champion (2nd Place)
• Team Penning Div 2 – 2nd Place
• Senior Girls Pentathlon – 3rd Place

We couldn't be prouder of Amy's dedication and success. Way to go Amy!

Congratulations to Year 11 student Chelsea who is representing Australia at the Women's U18 Southeast Asian Volleyball Championships!

Chelsea and the Australian team finished 4th at the 'Princess Cup', the Women's U18 Southeast Asian Volleyball Championships.

At the awards ceremony, Chelsea was named Best Middle Blocker of the tournament! Go Chelsea!! 

Huge congratulations to Catherine in Year 8 for her outstanding success in recent Fencing Championships!

Catherine competed in the 2024 Australian Fencing Circuit Youth Girl's Epee and brought home a Bronze medal, along with a team Gold Medal! 

Catherine also made us proud by representing Tara in various School Championships, securing multiple medals:

• State School Championships Under 16 – Bronze Medal
• State School Championships Under 14 – Bronze Medal
• School Roberta Cup Under 16 – Silver Medal

Congratulations Catherine!