This week marks my final week as Head Boy here at Sherfield. It has been an amazing journey getting to this point, and I have thoroughly enjoyed my Sherfield experience. Since Year 6, it has been a steady climb of joy for me.
I wanted to use this last Blog to talk about the past year. Coming back to school in September was a strange experience. I had some great friends in the year above, and so it felt wrong to not greet them on that first morning back. I was also apprehensive about the year to come, with exams looming in the distance like a storm cloud. The biggest challenge I faced in the first half term was applying to university. In many ways I am not a model student, and being prepared for uni application was one of these. Many of my friends had prepared personal statements over the summer, and although I had tried, inspiration was not coming to me. I was under even more pressure as the Oxford deadline crept closer and closer, which probably stifled my creativity even more. Fortunately, with only a few weeks to spare, I did have inspiration, and my application managed to go off in time. I'd chosen Biology because it balanced all of the things I liked in life: it was a science, it gave me the opportunity to work outdoors, it would let me help people as a job and it was an up and coming field. I also fell in love with the way life works, and how superbly adapted organisms could be.
It was a pleasant surprise to get my interview at Oxford; students in years past who had been far smarter than me hadn't managed to get one. Meeting the professors was as exciting as it was terrifying, and I learnt a lot from discussions with both the tutors and fellow interviewees. The bigger shock came when I actually managed to get in. Two lunchtimes in a row I had gone home to wait for the letter, and my teachers could tell I was very nervous. Nerves turned into joy, however, and my offer gave me the motivation needed to press on through exam prep.
Of course, it wouldn't be right to talk about the past year and not mention the International Evening. Planning and running the event alongside Shaan, Rana and Mrs Royyuru was one of the most difficult experiences I've had, but was also one of the most rewarding. I got to meet so many new people, learnt about other cultures and was proud to serve up a classic British pork pie at the meal. The evening was a great success, and I hope that in years to come it can be repeated and built upon. A challenge for the next prefect team!
As Head Boy, I've also been involved with activities across the school, from the Christmas Fair and Dash for Ash to assemblies and the shoebox appeal. It was great to be able to work with a whole range of students from all age groups. I was given further opportunity to work with some of the younger years when I acted as a teaching assistant for a few classes. I approached my teachers about the task as I wanted it to go on my university application, and I found myself enjoying it more than I expected.
My teachers have been an absolute blessing every step of the way this year, whether it was Miss Huyton and Mrs Cross prepping me for the Biology Olympiad, Mrs Nayar letting me use science resources to try out funky new experiments, or Mr Norris doing Maths with me every Saturday morning. Without their help, I wouldn't be where I am today. That just about sums up what it's been like in the past year for me, and so I pass on the torch.
Interviews for the new Head Boy and Head Girl took place Monday with Mr Fisher, Mademoiselle Monsauret. I am pleased to say that all of the candidates would do an amazing job if they got the role.
My first exam is only three weeks away, and so I will be completely absorbed for the next month. After that comes Prizegiving, where I hope to talk about the rest of my time here at Sherfield. In the summer, I will be learning to drive, and I'm hoping to spend some time travelling with a friend through the latter part of the season. With that to come, I bid farewell, and hope that I have left you with a good last impression that will last - and plenty to think about.
Thomas Jenkins
Head Boy