From the Second Master
EXEAT RETURN TIME: BOARDERS
Dear parents,
Thank you for your support in completing the upcoming Exeat Arrangements form.
Parents are reminded that pupils may return to boarding houses no earlier than 18:00 on Sunday and by 21:15 at the latest.
With best wishes for an enjoyable weekend,
Iain Smith
Events
What's On
Parents are very welcome to join us for College events. Those events taking place over the coming weeks are highlighted in this section, with full schedules and booking links below.
Charity Run and Bake Sale
Please do join us at the finish line of the charity run this Friday 27th September at 11:45 on Meads in aid of Young Lives vs Cancer.
Tea and coffee will be available for parents, as well as a cake sale. Any donations for the cake sale would be much appreciated, and you can register your baked goods here. The fundraising page can also be found here.
College Life
First years take on the Crystal Challenge
On Saturday 21st September, first year pupils took a break from their usual routine after three weeks of boarding life. In place of morning hours, they completed a competitive team building activity – The Crystal Challenge – on Meads.
They worked in mixed-house teams to conquer a range of challenges requiring ingenuity, communication and teamwork, with one group emerging the winner by lunchtime.
Afternoon extra-curricular activities ran as usual before they came back together on Meads in the evening for a BBQ and house-based activities.
Needless to say, the occasion was enjoyed by all!
Staff
Introducing our new Director of Studies
We have recently welcomed Mr Andrew Reeve to the Academic Senior Leadership Team as the school's new Director of Studies.
Before Winchester, Andrew led a small, combined prep and senior school in Hampshire. Prior to this he was Deputy Head Academic at Gordon’s School for six years, which is a day and boarding school in Surrey.
You can read more about Andrew via the link below.
ACAdemic
Yale's Director of international Admissions visits Winchester
Last Thursday, Mr Keith Light, Director of International Admissions at Yale, delivered an engaging presentation to a full audience in Musa.
In his talk, Mr Light provided an overview of Yale and its admissions process, while also sharing valuable insights into applying to international universities, drawing from his extensive experience at various institutions.
We are excited to welcome several other representative from US university admissions teams later this year during their visit to the UK.
Music - Trips
Beethoven at the Royal Albert Hall
On Saturday, JP and MP travelled to London for the Music Award holders’ trip where they visited the Royal Albert Hall for a Beethoven concert that included performances of the 5th Piano Concerto and the 9th Symphony.
Another treat for the pupils was the performance of the soprano soloist, Claire Rutter, one of the College's visiting music teachers.
Seeing the concert was another reminder of where music can take you, and an insight into the life that Claire and many of our visiting music teachers lead outside of the school.
Academic
The Royal Economic Society's Young Economist of the Year 2024
In July, VIBk1 pupils Sampanna (H) and Henry (E) entered the Royal Economic Society’s Young Economist of the Year 2024 competition with a friend from another school.
They created a short, documentary-style video addressing the question ‘What long term changes to the labour market might be expected post pandemic?’, and received a commendation, placing them in the top 25 amongst 2,700 entries.
Their video argued for the adoption of flexible labour markets and work schedules, and included individual explainers, detailed research, and an interview (in Hindi) with an Uber Eats driver.
Congratulations to the entire team!
Academic - College
John Locke Institute 2024 Global Essay Prize
Recently, College pupil, Sam, entered the John Locke Institute 2024 Global Essay Prize.
The essay was in response to the question: "Has music ever significantly shaped the course of history?"
Sam's essay focused on the Beatles and contended that the song Tomorrow Never Knows played a pivotal role in the rise of psychedelic drug use among the American population.
The essay is an extrodinary fusion of science and the humanities and earned Sam a place on the shortlist.
At the weekened, he attended the Awards Ceremony and Gala dinner, celebrating his achievement as a finalist.
Academic
British Physics Olympiad
Recently, Harvard and Alex (both X), Josiah (F), Balint (I), Yasser (F), Vincent (H), Inigo (A), and Felix (H) took part in the 2024 British Physics Olympiad (BPhO) Computational Challenge.
The Challenge comprised of nine tasks of increasing complexity, relating to mathematical models of projectile motion, implemented in computer code. This was set as a project from April until August that could be attempted individually or in pairs. Previous challenges were on Atmospheric Physics (2022) and Solar System Orbits (2023).
The results have been revealed, and Harvard and Alex's team earned a gold medal, placing in the top five out of 171 entrants.
Josiah, Balint, Yasser, and the team of Vincent and Inigo also won Gold, with Felix bringing home a silver medal as well.
To achieve a Gold, all tasks needed to be completed to a high standard, involving significant use of coding. The Challenge is somewhat unique in that students have a free choice of computing tools, and have to submit their solutions in the form of a two minute YouTube video.
The overall standard of the 171 entries this year was very high, with many projects incorporating extension activities such as the creation of websites, mobile phone apps, scientific papers and more.
Congratulations to all participants!
Music
House Singing Competition
On Sunday the 6th of October, the College will host it's annual House Singing Competition. It will be held in New Hall at 18.30.
Parents are warmly invited to join and watch the competition in person. Tickets can be booked via the link below.
Please note, this event is only open to parents and bookings are limited to 3 tickets per family.
For those unable to attend, the competition will also be livestreamed. You can access the stream via the link below.
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