Brooke McAlwee - Sports Prefect

School life started for me at Outram school, where I stayed for the full 8 years of primary and intermediate. After living out of town my whole life in a small district area, the idea of going to high school in town was an exciting opportunity. After attending the St Hilda's Open night I was set on being a St Hilda's girl, and I can vividly remember the day I was offered a spot here. Walking through the arch on my first day and seeing everyone's smiling faces, I knew I had made the right choice.

In all areas of school life, St Hilda's has made every opportunity possible. From the vast range of subjects on offer, to all the different extracurricular activities that I could partake in. I have taken a variety of different subjects throughout my time at St Hilda's, which has allowed me to make some of my best memories. From the Year 10 Tautuku camp, economics farm day trip, cafe crawl for food nutrition, to the P.E camps. Abel Tasman would be one of my favourite trips, the warm weather, beautiful scenery and best people made the trip one to remember.

Sport has been a huge part of my life at St Hilda's, coming from a small district school, the opportunities on offer here seemed endless. I have played Netball, Hockey and Touch over my 5 years. I have experienced highs and lows in all sports, but some of my most proudest sporting memories at St Hilda's include coming 3rd at Touch Nationals in 2017, winning the SISS Touch Championship in 2021 and winning the Dunedin Schools Hockey Competition for the past 4 years. My success in hockey but particularly Touch, wouldn't have happened without the love that I have developed for these sports through the friendships made over my time here. The sporting future of St Hilda's is so exciting and I look forward to following it for many years to come.

Being given the opportunity to be one of the Sports Prefects in 2021 has allowed me to give back to school sport through service, an area that has given me so much over the past 5 years. The role has taught me a lot about myself and I believe it has been extremely influential in developing me into the leader I am today. 

This year Brooke and I have continued the focus of increasing the students' participation in whatever form of physical activity they are interested in. We did this by offering a range of activities from a weekly walking group, HIIT classes, lunchtime games and yoga. 

Going into the role I had a fair idea about the kind of service I would be doing for the Sports Department, however I didn't realise how much service I would do in other areas of school life with the wider prefect group. I have thoroughly enjoyed trying new things and doing tasks that were a little outside my comfort zone, and will cherish all of the memories created with this group of girls.

The most meaningful lesson that I have learnt over my time at St Hilda's is having life balance. Right from Year 9, I took every opportunity that was on offer, and it wasn't until I reached Year 13 that I truly learnt my lesson around why it's so important to have balance in your life. For so long I tried to do anything and everything and I soon realised that this wasn't going to be sustainable. I feel confident going into the next stage of my life, truly understanding the importance of balancing social life, friends, sport, academics and family.

With very little time left for me in the blue blazer, I'm leaving feeling excited for what's to come. I am hoping to do Nursing in Dunedin or Christchurch next year, with the aim of specializing in Paediatrics. No matter where I end up next year, I know that I will never forget the amazing memories and friendships I have made over the past 5 years, and I look forward to following the success of the school in the future.