Two students swap jobs with their school principal for the day

LARISA Reyes and Shehnaya Feran now have a fresh appreciation of their principal after spending a day in his shoes.

Shenaya Foran and Lorisa Reyes shadowed principal Steve Walsh for a day.

LARISA Reyes and Shehnaya Feran now have a fresh appreciation of their principal after spending a day in his shoes.

The two Year 9 Our Lady of Mercy College students shadowed principal Stephen Walsh last Thursday as part of Student Principal for a Day, a national initiative of the Principals Australia Institute.

Throughout the day, Larisa and Shehnaya had to address students at assembly, talk to staff, attend meetings and do playground duty.News_Image_File: Shenaya Foran and Lorisa Reyes supervise other students.

Larisa said that although parts of the day were “quite nerve-wracking”, the experience helped with her leadership skills.

“We enjoyed having the roles reversed at the staff briefing,” Larisa said.

Shehnaya said the experience made the girls appreciate their principal more and realise how much work they did.

“I imagine it’s hard to find the right balance between being with the students and the teachers while also getting all the behind the scenes meetings and paperwork done too,” she said. News_Image_File: Students Shenaya Foran and Lorisa Reyes get stuck into some paperwork for principal Steve Walsh.

Mr Walsh likes the idea of students getting to see the college and its operations from his perspective.

“It was a really fun day for me, getting to share my experiences. We are always challenging our girls to be open to learning and this is a fun, non-traditional way of doing this,” Mr Walsh said.

It is the second year OLMC has been involved in Student Principal for the Day. Established in 1889, OLMC Parramatta is a leading independent Catholic girls’ school, which provides contemporary learning and academic excellence in the rich Mercy tradition.