Sada-e-Watan
Sydney ™
sadaewatan@gmail.com
Principal Ali Roude welcomes Hon.Barry O'Farrell The Premier of New South Wales at the Rissalah College Lakemba Sydney
His Excellency Minister Burke
His Excellency Premier O‘Farrell
Distinguished Guests,
Ladies and Gentleman,
Students
It is a great pleasure and honour to be here today with you all to participate in the opening ceremony of Rissalah College School. I thank you for being here to share this important moment with us. It is an occasion of great significance in many ways. It is significant because of the cooperation of many individuals and government bodies who have made the establishment of the school and construction of this complex possible.
Hon.Barry O'Farrell The Premier of NSW
The government, at all levels -- national, state and local -- have made important contributions, both financial and practical. Their Excellency’s Minister Burke and Premier O’Farrell along with their constituents have provided encouragement throughout the process for which I am very grateful. The support provided to an independent school is a visible demonstration of the government’s commitment to private initiatives and a testament to its openness and flexibility at both state and federal levels.
Federal Minister Hon.Tony Burke
Special mention should be made of the role the Federal Government has played with its contribution through the Building Education Revolution for the expeditious issuing of funds for the construction of our new school.
But the significance of this occasion extends beyond the establishment and opening of the school. The aspirations of the core beliefs we have here at Rissalah College for what this school will achieve for its faculty and staff and above all for its students and their parents in the years ahead is perhaps the most important dimension.
I am sure that all of you here today will agree that we live in a time of rapid change -- change that is often not predictable, and not always positive. The best way to manage change, whether positive or negative is to anticipate it and prepare for it. There is no greater form of preparation for change than education. I also think that there is no better investment that the individual, parents, and the nation can make than an investment in education for our children.
Education comes in many forms, and has been used for many purposes. An education for success in the modern world must be enabling and it must be outward looking. It must not only teach the time tested.
skills of reading, writing, and mathematics, which of course remain important. It must also teach students to be honest, law abiding respectful citizens that are confident to enter society with all the necessary skills to succeed in whatever field they choose.
Students today can be taught to foster the concept of making solid informed decisions and applying that judgment to everyday situations. Allowing one to apply the skills of inquisitiveness, critical thinking and problem solving is the true test of being able to engage with what one does not know in making these informed judgments. The most difficult step is then to learn to place such judgments in an ethical framework. Therein lies the formation of the kind of social consciousness that our world so desperately longs for.
To that end, we at Rissalah College will engage the community, working in harmony and partnership with parents, government and private institutions in our program of delivering activities so as to produce students who embody these values of our society.
In closing I extend my congratulations and best wishes to everyone associated with the school. It is my sincere hope that it will be an important part of this community for a long time into the future.
Thank You.
