Class of 2009 receive their Certificates
Posted on Sunday 20 December 2009
Outstanding students in outstanding College
Click here for photographs of the special awards and speeches; click here for individual certificate presentations.
19 year old Joanna Dixon was named as the Dell Student of the Year at Farnborough Sixth Form College’s Annual Awards Evening on Thursday evening and was presented with Dell Corporation’s top of the range Adamo Laptop. Over 1000 parents and students packed the Dame Kelly Holmes Sports Centre when the College’s class of 2009 celebrated their examination successes.
Principal guest was Peter Lauener, Chief Executive of the newly created Young People’s Learning Agency which has responsibility for funding and planning, with Local Authorities, all post-16 education in the country. Mr Lauener said he was delighted to have been invited to the College: “This is one of the best sixth form colleges in the country and it is an honour to be with you this evening,” he told the audience.
Mr Lauener added, “It is quite simply an outstanding college and as someone with responsibility for learning across the country, I would be delighted if there were many more places like Farnborough. It has a track record which goes back many years; it has stood the test of time”.
For Principal Dr John Guy, it was his last awards evening before his retirement in the summer. He told the students, “Your results this year were excellent – I am very proud of all you have achieved.”
Mr Lauener presented certificates to 400 students and a number of special awards to students with particularly outstanding achievements.
Dell Student of the Year, Joanna Dixon, overcame considerable health problems during her sixth form studies which meant that she had to spread her studies over three years. In reading the citation, Dr Guy told Jo, “Your hope and optimism were an inspiration to us all and you achieved not only four grade A passes at A level but also a place at Bristol University to study Law – there is no more fitting winner of the DELL Student of the Year Award.”
Speaking afterwards, Jo said, “I still can’t believe I have won this amazing award – Farnborough Sixth Form College really gave me enormous support and I am particularly indebted to my tutor, Margaret Taylor, who was just amazing.”
“I am so happy,” said Jo, “and so shocked to have won the DELL Award!”
Speaking on behalf of all the students, former Student President Theo McCusker, now at Sidney Sussex College in Cambridge, told the audience, “We came to the College as schoolchildren and we have left as adults – it is a very special experience being at Farnborough and on behalf of us all I want to thank the staff, and especially John Guy, for enabling all this to happen.”
Award winners:
Outstanding Academic Achievement: Reece Straker, Maria Burova, Christine Leung, Dean Palmer, Sophie Dundovic, James Etherington, Jessica Stewart.
Outstanding Personal Achievement: Tom Ervin-Dowle, Swechha Gurung, Jack Martin, Jamie Frost, Brian Money, Stuart Rowland, Abhijit Chandgadkar.
Outstanding Contribution to College Life: Nick Elsey, Sarah Brown, Lucy Orgill, Vicky Tay, Theo McCusker.
Outstanding Contribution and Academic Achievement: Alex Lau, Adele Appleton.
Sportsman and Sportswoman of the Year: Andrew Willis, Katie Wright
University College for Creative Arts Award: Lydia Simpson.
University of Winchester Awards: Nicola Cattini, Alex Teo, Tom Lewin, Simon Clough.
Mike Ritchie Award for Sport: Marc Fox, Lizzie Fearnley, Jenny Wing.
Durham University Book Prize: Sarah Reeve
Justin Scregg Memorial Award for Drama: Rosie Reynolds.
Alistair Panter Memorial Award for Personal Achievement: Alison Hare
N J Clarke Award for Accounting and Business: Rebecca Page.
Dell Student of the Year Award: Joanna Dixon.