By MARC MCGOWAN
SASSAFRAS’S little school that could is gearing up to celebrate its 120th anniversary in November.
Sassafras Primary School, the educational home for 60 students this year, has come a long way since classes were held in an old shelter shed for the first two years of its existence.
The students are broken into three composite classes – prep and grades one and two, grades three and four, and grades five and six.
The current Mt Dandenong Tourist Road location has been in operation since 1915 after relocating from the original Mechanics Hall.
Principal Cathy Jones, who teaches alongside three other full-timers and two part-time specialists, said it was a privilege to be involved at a school with such a rich history.
“The community up in the hills is just fantastic and it’s great when people drop in with stories to tell or to drop off memorabilia,” Mrs Jones said.
“There is definitely a tight bond at the school and everybody works together to get the best out of everybody, especially the kids.
“It’s fantastic that way.”
Mrs Jones has been involved in a variety of schools and said what made Sassafras Primary School different was the ability to intimately know all the students.
She said the school’s motto was ’Nurturing Excellence’.
“There was a school review when I came here and we went through and looked at our values again and our motto and said, ‘is that what we really believe in?’ and we do,” Mrs Jones said.
“We revisited it to make sure it’s still current… and parents really believed in it and students as well.
“I like to say we’ve had success for every child, because we cater for all our kids.
“Every child is very special and we do the best for every child who comes through our door.”
Mrs Jones said parental involvement and support and “outstanding” teachers were what made the school special.
One former parent, Rowan Smith, wrote a book The Heart of the Hills to mark Sassafras Primary School’s centenary and is updating it with stories from the past 20 years and earlier.
Mrs Jones invited people previously associated with the school to come forward with their stories and memories.
The reunion will be held on Sunday 16 November from 10am to 2pm.
“We’d just like to invite everybody to come to our celebrations, because we know this school is special to a lot of people,” Mrs Jones said.
“We’re asking people to send their addresses and the addresses we have we will try and send invites to.”
The 120th celebrations are also set to be promoted outside the school, in the community and on the school’s website www.sassafrasps.vic.edu.au.
