John Stone, Principal, Princes Hill Secondary College
John Stone is a man of many skills & interests, initially trained as a Chemical Engineer; he travelled extensively throughout the Americas & Asia before entering the teaching profession and rapidly reaching Principal level. For the past seven years he has been Principal at Princes Hill Secondary College.
Interspersed with all this is a love of the outback, bushwalking and climbing hills of various sizes – hence the brief travelogue he included with his talk today.
Almost 100 years old, Princes Hill Secondary College has survived and thrived after a serious fire in the 1960’s. Now a top achieving non-selective school with an enrolment of 830 students, it serves the Carlton & broader community as a Top Performing Victorian School.
There is a strong Arts culture; more than 30% of the students play one or more musical instruments.
Students are encouraged to take an interest in community affairs and community service. It was the first secondary school to have their students participate as blood donors for Red Cross.
OXFAM is also heavily supported by the school.
Participation in community affairs and awareness of issues such as Gay & Lesbian Rights, the Long March and similar matters are supported and encouraged.
All students are required to participate in Wilderness Experiences at various levels depending on their physical abilities.
An excellent variety of volunteer work based overseas trips are conducted by the school to PNG & Vietnam.
Cultural trips undertaken by students & staff include Russia, France, Italy, China & New York.
Experiencing this enthusiasm that John has for his school and students gave us all a great insight into this excellent educational facility in our area.