Scotch College

A fitting farewell

The Gordon Donaldson Scholarship Fund will recognise the outgoing Principal’s magnificent contribution to our School.

Words: Dr Alan Watkinson

The retirement of Dr Gordon Donaldson AM as Principal of Scotch after 25 years is a milestone in the history of the School. Others will pay a more formal tribute to the remarkable achievements of Dr and Mrs Donaldson, but the opportunity now arises for all members of the Scotch Family to help recognise what our Principal has done for our School.

At a recent meeting, the School Council resolved to celebrate and commemorate the quarter of a century of outstanding service to the School by creating the Gordon Donaldson Scholarship Fund. This Fund will be open to contributions from any person who feels an engagement with the School, and who wishes to help recognise the Principal’s role in establishing Scotch as the leading School of choice for independent boys’ education in Victoria, and to a large extent across Australia.

The Fund will be established to offer scholarships to boys of merit and worth in the broadest sense who otherwise, for financial or other reasons, would be unable to attend the College. The intention is to select the first Gordon Donaldson Scholar to commence in Year 7 in 2009, and then to select one additional scholar every year for as long as the School is operating. In six years, therefore, there will be a Gordon Donaldson Scholar at every year level in the Senior School.

There can be no more fitting tribute to Dr Donaldson’s vision of boys’ education and his commitment to the enhancement of our School than by attracting the best and most diverse students, regardless of financial background. The scholarship fund will create the mechanism which will allow his vision to take one step further towards reality.

The scholarships will be awarded at the discretion of the incumbent Principal, who will also be guided and advised by the School Council. Recipients will be Australian citizens but may come from any background. They will need to meet the same criteria of excellence and worth as any other scholarship holder, but the underpinning need will be financial.

This is a significant undertaking, and will require the support of the entire Scotch Family to reach the necessary target of $2.4 million. Already more than $800,000 has been pledged towards this exciting project, with the pledges to be paid over a period of up to five years. The pledges now also attract a full tax deduction under the recent federal legislation. Funds raised will all be placed in the Gordon Donaldson Scholarship Fund, to be held within the Scotch College Foundation Funds, and managed by the School Investment Committee. Investment and scholarship allocation policies within the School guarantee that the Fund will grow in keeping with inflation, in order to ensure the perpetual nature of the scholarships.

It is rare for the School to issue such a call for action, but for 25 years there has been no cause like this one. Already all members of the School Council and the Foundation Board have pledged their individual financial support for the fund. The Council of the Old Scotch Collegians’ Association has also pledged support from the association as a whole. It is time now for all members of the Scotch Family who value the School and the contribution of Dr Donaldson over a quarter of a century to pledge their support as well.

The Chairman of the School Council is writing to all parents, Old Boys, recent past parents and staff to seek their personal support for this unique undertaking.

Every individual can help to make a difference to the lives of Scotch Collegians by investing in this fund for the future boys of Scotch. Please contact the Development Office on 9810 4300 to find our how you can help, or respond to the appeal from our Chairman, Mr David Crawford.

It is time for all the Scotch Family to show its appreciation for a job not just well done, but for a passion and a commitment which have taken Scotch College to its present success and reputation. GS