From Zero to graduates: the power of intentional connection

When it comes to connection, intention is incredibly important. Particularly during pivotal moments in our lives, it can be the difference between an experience that simply happens and one that becomes truly meaningful. I've been fortunate to see this in action with the Class of 2026 as I've watched them go from Zero to graduates (or, in other words, Zero to 100).

Just shy of three years ago, we bussed the entire inaugural Zero cohort out to our Bulleen campus for Year 10 Connection Day. It was a day designed for a cohort of 300 students, who had been carefully placed into unfamiliar groups of 15 peers and encouraged to lean into moments of vulnerability, trust and open-mindedness, with intention.

Not too long after this experience, students participated in a series of Cultural Agility training workshops facilitated by Leann Wilson and Mal Meninga, through which First Nations learning protocols were gifted to our community. One gift of particular significance was the Moon de Gatta Yarning Protocols, which provided students (and their Mentors) with a vehicle for reflective discussion. Although we were unaware of it at the time, this new-found knowledge would give us much more than just a powerful tool for insightful conversations and reflections. It would strengthen our capacity for compassion, empathy and understanding of different perspectives, ultimately deepening our connection to one another.

'Yarning up' became a regular practice, from unpacking cultural learnings in classrooms to debriefing immersive experiences in Far North Queensland and rural Victoria. This made our final 'Yarn' together, back in our original Zero groups earlier this term, particularly special.

Being a fly on the wall during this final Yarn, I watched my Zero Group from two years prior set up our classroom in exactly the same way we had back then: tables pushed to the outskirts of the room and chairs congregated in the middle, so that each member could ‘see down the line’. I sat in awe as each class member shared the tangible things they had taken from our year together and how these skills had supported them through the experiences that followed in their schooling journey.

Perhaps the best part, though, was recognising that this connectedness wasn't just localised to our small group. It was abundantly evident throughout many of the Celebration Week activities experienced by the Class of 2026 as a collective.

From the Valedictory Dinner, where every seat was left empty as students took to the dance floor together to enjoy the cover band, to 'CareyOke' in the Quad, where each brave performer was cheered on from their first lyric to their last, to the speeches shared during House Celebrations and the final Torch Assembly, there was an underlying sense of genuine connectedness between students that is quite difficult to put into words.

As I reflect on the journey from Zero to graduates, I'm reminded that connection takes intention, a willingness to be vulnerable and a shared commitment to understanding and appreciating those around us. Watching the Class of 2026 bring this to life has been a wonderful reminder of just how powerful that can be.

Jack O’Shea
Acting Deputy Head of Senior School – Student Wellbeing