"It is a great honour and a particular pleasure to return to Lauriston on this very special occasion; the induction of the school leaders for 2007.

It has now been four years since I graduated from Lauriston and these have been four very exciting and very eventful years. I can tell you that if I was appreciative of my School experience at the time, well that appreciation has only grown with the years. Apart from the knowledge that I acquired and the learning that took place during my years at Lauriston, there are three principles that above all endure in my mind: the important role that leaders play in a community, the invaluable and precious gift of opportunity, and the innate potential of education to empower the individual.

How then do we define what it means to be a successful leader? Is it by the example that you set? Is it by the ideas that you formulate and the changes that you enact? Is it by the popularity that you achieve? Well it is all of these things. But above all, the success of leaders must be measured by how far they are able to reach into a community to inspire people to become involved, and, ultimately, to make a difference.

So on those who have been privileged to be elected as leaders of the student body has been bestowed a tremendous honour. But more important than this honour is your responsibility to mobilise your abilities, your skills and your power to ensure the involvement and to harness the energy and the talent of each member of this community. For there is no doubt that there is far, far more that you can do together than ever could be achieved alone. It is often said that the wheel was the greatest invention of all time. Whoever invented the wheel was indeed smart. But the person who put 2, and then 3 and then 4 wheels together was a genius."

"Remember though that even the best attempts at leadership can sometimes go astray. I recall when I was in my second year of university and was invited to cox the Ormond College Girls’ VIII. There we were in full race mode, everyone involved and focussed, our energies harnessed to the maximum, and with myself, I thought, in full control. Well that was until we crossed paths with a Foot of the River crew, the identity of which I dare not disclose for fear of incurring the wrath of the LPA.  During the ensuing unexpected swim in the suboptimal conditions of the Yarra River in winter, I must confess that the irony of the situation was somewhat lost on me. But the message is enduring and universal – life has a habit of throwing in our path challenges in unexpected ways. At the very least, I learnt that the formidable passion together with the skills and the determination that Lauriston instils in us will forever stand us in good stead.      

Since leaving school, I have become acutely aware of the importance of opportunity. In the delicate balance that is life after school – where new friendships, parties and travel are often so rudely interrupted by the rigour of those gruelling 11am university starts – I can tell you that real opportunity can sometimes be scarce. Indeed never in your life will you be presented with as many opportunities, as easily accessible, as in these years at Lauriston. There is no doubt, however, that with this gift of opportunity there comes a personal responsibility.

We live today in an age of considerable inequality of opportunity. In my year as a prefect one of the most significant outcomes that my year level achieved was the connection that we established between Lauriston and the Lighthouse Foundation for young people without a home. Through fundraising and helping out at the Lighthouse homes I realised that the very survival of a community depends on the service of committed young people. This is a calling from which we cannot escape and which we cannot ignore. Indeed, each one of you, elected or not, has the innate capacity to make a difference, albeit in often small and simple ways. And after all, isn’t that what real leadership is about?  

In the timeless words of Robert Kennedy:

“Each time a man stands up for an ideal,

or acts to improve the lot of others,

or strikes out against injustice,

he sends forth a tiny ripple of hope,

and crossing each other from a million

different centres of energy and daring,

those ripples build a current that can

sweep down the mightiest walls of

oppression and resistance.”

And so let this be the challenge to each and everyone of you – to recognise need, to respond with vigour and to realise that when nothing is certain, everything is possible. As each of you embarks on your own personal journey, as you set about bridging the gap between your dreams and your reality, it should be with passion, perseverance and a common humanity, and with the realisation that if we see far, it is only because we stand on the shoulders of giants.

Your education is that giant. It is the instrument with which you will shape your lives and, ultimately, your world. An education that empowers you with knowledge, with opportunity and with a lifelong thirst for learning will truly be one of the most enriching achievements of your lives.

Throughout and beyond our years at Lauriston, our educational experience challenges and indeed demands us to question knowledge, as it is presented to us; to question justice, as it operates in our community; to question the conventions, by which we lead our lives.

As Socrates famously said, “The unexamined life is not a life worth living.” For it is only through questioning, that we will learn; it is only through exploring, that we will discover; and it is only through opening our eyes, and so importantly those of others, that we will see the light.

To all the captains and all the Year 11 students, I wish you an exciting, fulfilling and special year ahead. I am confident that, what at the outset may seem like a journey of one year will undoubtedly become the journey of a lifetime."

Sarah Kalus   

Office Bearers Induction Ceremony