Ipswich Girls’ Grammar School has been one of Queensland’s highest-performing academic schools since 1892. The School prides itself on providing ALL girls with a broad, liberal education to inspire them to become confident, well-educated young women.

The academic honour boards that hang in the foyer of the Mervyn Patterson Assembly Hall register the names of hundreds of girls who have excelled academically. The School provides a range of Academic Excellence Programs designed to challenge girls who possess academic gifts and talents or an interest in further developing their intellectual habits of mind. These programs include: Advanced Studies, Integrated Studies, Extension Studies, Competition Studies, Literary Studies.

Opportunities

Academic Excellence programs are delivered in a variety of modes and require both independent and interdependent learning skills.

• Advanced Studies
• Integrated Studies
• Extension Studies
• Competition Studies
• Literacy Studies

Eligibility

Eligibility to participate in our Academic Excellence Programs will vary depending on the program of interest. Some programs require a pre-requisite subject, others require specific grades and some are available to students who have a specific interest, for example, Sustainability.

Ipswich Girls’ Grammar School is a member of the Queensland Girls’ Schools Secondary Sports Association (QGSSSA).  QGSSSA is Queensland’s premier sporting competition for girls. Our School competes against nine other high-performing schools in thirteen different sports: Basketball, Football, Touch Football, Cross Country, Hockey, Netball, Tennis, Volleyball, Rhythmic Gymnastics, Athletics, Badminton, Cricket and Swimming. Hundreds of our girls have represented our school at District, Regional, Queensland and Australian levels.

Opportunities

Emerging Athletes Development Program

Ipswich Girls’ Grammar School’s Emerging Athletes Development Program is designed to supplement the training programs of our highest performing athletes. The Program aims to equip girls with the skills and strategies to cope with the physical and mental demands of their chosen sport and is developed in consultation with individual athletes and their IGGS coach.

Football Excellence Program

Ipswich Girls’ Grammar School’s Football Excellence Program is designed to provide emerging, high performing IGGS footballers with opportunities to achieve their sporting and academic goals.

The Program is open to both day and boarding students. For boarders, arrangements are in place for transport to training and games, with a tutoring service available for these students, combined with flexible mealtimes to match their heavy training schedules.  Transport arrangements may be possible for day girls.

Eligibility

The Sports Excellence Programs are open to IGGS athletes, and also IJGS athletes (Year 6 only) between the ages of 10 to 18.

High performing athletes who participate in one or more of the following QGSSSA sports here at Ipswich Girls’ Grammar School can apply for entry to the Emerging Athletes Program.

• Basketball
• Cross Country
• Netball
• Football (Soccer)
• Cricket
• Athletics
• Tennis
• Swimming

Applicants for a Sports Excellence Program must submit a portfolio detailing their relevant achievements for review. Portfolios for the Emerging Athletes Program must include a reference from the student’s coach requesting inclusion in the Program, and those applying for the Football Excellence Program must include a copy of their offer from either the Western Pride Football Club or selection in Queensland Football’s QAS Girls Academy.

As part of the School’s commitment to personalised learning, our Emerging Artists Program is designed to provide our high performing artists with opportunities to achieve their personal artistic goals by partnering them with industry professionals. Offering students #MoreAtIGGS, our mission is to broaden skills and experiences through professional workshops, lectures and performance opportunities, providing students with an entrepreneurial eye into the Arts and Entertainment Industry.

The program provides students with a special skillset in the Arts, complete with rigorous lessons, tailored learning experiences and customised performance projects to embrace talents and empower students to excel.

Opportunities

Students can specialise in one of three strands:

• Performing Arts – Students engage with practitioners across the disciplines of Voice, Dance and Acting to develop their skills as triple-threat performers. Key projects will be led by student interest and industry trends.
• Visual Art and Design – In the Design strand, students will be exposed to a variety of forms including animation, street art, photography, fashion design, make-up, sculpture, large-scale mural, wearable art and others identified by student interest.
• Behind the Curtain – Focusing on providing students with experience in the processes involved in live production including backstage, lighting, sound, event management and setup.

Eligibility

The program is open to all high school students from Years 9 to 12 via audition, with special invitation extended to emerging Year 6 to 8 students (in 2022).

To be eligible for the program, students must satisfy the following criteria:

• Complete an expression of interest, available through the IGGS Arts Yammer
• Submit polished audition or application piece in discipline of choice to be considered by the Arts Panel including Head of the Arts, Director of Cocurricular Arts, and Head of Performing Arts (Junior School. This is to be elecgttronic.
• Respond to Selection Criteria and elaborate (if required) in the round two interview.
• Demonstrate capacity to manage both weekly sessions and school work demands.
• Availability to perform or exhibit and/or assist at the Arts Showcase
• Currently enrolled or in the process of being enrolled at IGGS/IJGS.
• Availability of position within the program.

Entrepreneurship is more than an academic discipline. It is a mindset; a framework for thinking and acting that can empower people to succeed. And, in today’s rapidly changing, highly complex world, the need for entrepreneurial thinkers at all levels of society has never been greater. Employers are, in turn, asking schools to instill an entrepreneurial mindset in students before they are actively applying for jobs.

In 2020, the School established an Incubator for Young Innovators and Entrepreneurs. The Incubator’s purpose is to inspire local and international students to become confident, well-educated young entrepreneurs to develop real startups that can foster positive change and happy, successful lives for individual and a range of communities. The Incubator strategically partners with mentors and organisations to provide a targeted E-STEAM curriculum in a fit-for-purpose learning environment.

Opportunities

In 2020, IGGS presented its first 12-week Student Entrepreneurship Program. Our Entrepreneur in Residence and IGGS Old Girl, Peta Ellis, has been building communities and delivering entrepreneurial programs for six years. Along with her partner companies, she is networked into a thriving ecosystem that grows innovative start-ups and produces a strong ecosystem of supporters.

Our students, like our entrepreneurs, deserve the very best we can deliver. This means partnering with some of Australia’s best content developers and facilitators to deliver tailored programs. Participants in the Student Entrepreneurship Program learned how to create a business from ideation through to a pitch and launch event held for our wider community.