Engagement and the Adige: Grade 12 Verona Trip
10 October 2025
Each year, Grade 12 students embark upon an academically ambitious trip to Verona, Italy, where they consolidate key learnings from their IB course Theory of Knowledge (TOK), visit historic landmarks, discover that the Montagues and Capulets were real rival families, indulge in gelato along with other dolci, and make unforgettable senior class memories. With so much history, culture, and culinary delights, the city provides countless settings for rich conversations to take place. It is not hard to understand why we send our students there to begin the end of their Theory of Knowledge journeys each year.
Last week, I had the pleasure of accompanying the Grade 12 students on this trip. Among the rich and varied activities planned for our three-day stay was a rafting tour of the Adige river, an ancient waterway that snakes itself through the heart of the city, offering stunning views for intrepid paddlers. At one point during the journey, the guides had us link our rafts together in the middle of the river. Floating along in an amoeba-like formation, one could not help but feel a strong sense of togetherness. There we were, Grade 12 students and teachers all bobbing along in unison toward the same end point though we did not yet know where the river would take us.
When I think of the word engagement, I think of moments like this. We were, in that moment, inextricably bound to one another and to our mission. Once we were in those rafts, there really wasn’t any turning back. This is, in many ways, how I feel about my journey with colleagues and students – especially the Grade 12s – through to the end of each academic year. I may not always be with them in quiet moments of pre-exam angst or uni acceptance elation, but I feel in every way bound with them to the very end and I cannot wait to stand with them as they walk across the graduation stage. It is a privilege and honour to do so.
I am sure this will not be the last time I attend a Verona trip. And, I am certain I will be floating along with another Grade 12 group in the very same river one year hence. Of course, though the way may be known, the experience will be completely different, because we will be a completely different group. As the Greek philosopher Heraclitus once said, ‘no man ever steps in the same river twice,’ so it is with those of us who are blessed with the opportunity to accompany young people in their journeys of being and becoming even when the way is known and the end point somewhat foreseeable. My sincere thanks to Mr Cotterill for his world-class trip leadership, my colleagues who chaperoned, and most of all to our parents for entrusting us with those most precious to them each and every day.
In partnership,
Gabriel Di Mauro
Secondary Principal
Interim ex-officio Head of School