Grammar Gazette- Issue 1, 2023

LOUISE CAMPBELL (12O) AND ANNA MCAULEY (12R) HEAD GIRLS

FROM the HE A D GIRLS

EMBODY THE BLUE, BLAZE IT THROUGH

I n 1929, Acting Headmistress of Brisbane Girls Grammar School, Miss Lockington, commented in the School Magazine that, ‘the School is building up traditions we hope are worthy of those which have been handed down to us. This, however, can only continue while that spirit of unselfishness and cooperation exists among the members of the School.’ Miss Lockington was right. Traditions are a major reason why our School feels so special to us all. So far this year, we have had the privilege of leading the School through many annual traditions, including Foundation Day. Every birthday deserves a cake and on Foundation Day, Grammar girls celebrate our School with their House. The doors of Girls Grammar first opened on 15 March 1875 with about 50 students and Mrs Janet O’Connor as the first Lady Principal. The vision of the early men and women who worked to provide the young women of Brisbane with a first-class education deserves to be acknowledged, and it’s a tradition everyone in our community can appreciate.

Earlier in the year, we asked our fellow students: ‘what tradition or symbol do you associate with our School?’ They may have thought of the School badge, the royal blue, the blue tie and white blouse, or perhaps the item clutched in students' hands as they fly down to Roma Street running for their trains—yes, the Grammar hat. We made special mention of this because 2023 marks 100 years of the hat! In 1923, the School hat was introduced as the first official uniform item at Girls Grammar. Our first hat was a white straw Panama hat with a royal blue band and a badge on the front, and it is thought that it was introduced after seeing women in uniform during the First World War. As we acknowledged this milestone, we encouraged girls to imagine what life was like for a student at Girls Grammar in 1923 when insulin had just been discovered, the USSR was created, Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio was founded, and women were legally allowed to wear trousers in the United States. For some of us, our mothers, grandmothers, and even great-grandmothers have all worn a Grammar hat. What would they think of the School today? Would they appreciate the rituals we still choose to honour, and the new traditions we will pass on?

Our peers are already embracing both facets of the 2023 School motto— Embody the blue, blaze it through. ‘Embody the blue’ encourages us all to embrace our long Girls Grammar history and support every member of the sisterhood—but not in a passive way. This year, we encourage our Grammar sisters to ‘blaze it through’—we want the Grammar spirit to spread like wildfire. In support of this motto, in Term 1, we were thrilled to introduce a new initiative, which we are confident will bloom into a new Grammar tradition: the ‘True Blue’ badge. School spirit is created when you feel you belong to a community and this comes from participation. Miss Lockington understood this when she described the spirit of ‘unselfishness and cooperation’ in the School. By supporting three co‑curricular activities each Term, girls will be awarded a True Blue badge. We know that the energy each of us brings will help fan the flames of our School spirit, and we look forward to our final year as Grammar girls.

‘THE SCHOOL IS BUILDING UP TRADITIONS WE HOPE ARE WORTHY OF THOSE WHICH HAVE BEEN HANDED DOWN TO US. THIS, HOWEVER, CAN ONLY CONTINUE WHILE THAT SPIRIT OF UNSELFISHNESS AND COOPERATION EXISTS AMONG THE MEMBERS OF THE SCHOOL’ – MISS LOCKINGTON, 1929

ABOVE (L TO R) ANNA MCAULEY AND LOUISE CAMPBELL

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GAZETTE • ISSUE 1, 2023 ISSUE 1, 2023

BRISBANE GIRLS GRAMMAR SCHOOL