Carlisle Cathedral provided a beautiful and fitting backdrop for our annual Presentation Evening, held last night to celebrate the exam achievements of last summer’s GCSE and A Level students. It was once again an incredibly special occasion for the students, parents and staff who were able to attend.
Mr O’Connor, our Deputy Headteacher warmly welcomed everyone and invited Ms Pigdon to start proceedings with the Headteacher’s speech. Ms Pigdon reflected on what has been and what is to come, and finished by encouraging all students to continue to be the best version of themselves and for them to remember a part of their legacy will forever linger in the corridors and classrooms of William Howard School.
Our guest speaker was Marnie Murdie, a former WHS student who left in 2018. Marnie is now a fully qualified Chartered Rural Surveyor with a strong passion for rural practice and the countryside. Knowing she did not wish to follow a traditional university route, she took the advice of the then Head of Sixth Form, Mr Bones, to “follow your heart”. Her resilience and determination in achieving her career goals were inspiring for all our students to hear.
Our former Year 11 students were congratulated by Director of Learning, Miss Mulholland, before being presented with their scallopian badges by Marnie. Three students were also honoured with special awards recognising the school’s core values: Emilia Atilinski received the award for outstanding Responsibility, Matthew Dawson for outstanding Respect, and Gemma Jones for outstanding Resilience.
Assistant Headteacher (Sixth Form), Miss Nicholls, then commended our ex-Year 13 students. It was wonderful to hear about the wide range of university places secured and the diverse career pathways the students are now embarking upon.
This year’s Croglin Trust Award was presented to Nicole Todhunter, while Andrew Kyle received the Sixth Form Role Model Award.
‘Be the Best You Can Be’ awards were presented by our Directors of Learning to exceptional students in Years 7 to 11. Congratulations to Isabella and Rory (Year 7); Caoimhe and Logan (Year 8); Rachel and Daniel (Year 9); Elliot and Aoife (Year 10); and Katie and Eduard (Year 11).
The evening concluded with Ms Pigdon paying tribute to Sarah Foster before presenting the very first Sarah Foster Award to Mia Presch in Year 8. The award honours the memory of Sarah, a much-loved former student and Head Girl in the form of a dragonfly symbolising the strength of character Sarah demonstrated everyday.
Mr O’Connor closed the ceremony by thanking the orchestra and choir for their exceptional performances throughout, before inviting parents to reflect on the important role they play when feeling such pride in their child this evening.
Thank you to Carlisle Cathedral for hosting our annual presentation evening.
