General News
19 March, 2026
Captains making a difference
MORTLAKE College has welcomed Isabella Pickford and Sarah Russell as its 2026 school captains.
The duo was elected as school captains following an extensive process designed to ensure strong representation for the student body.
Isabella said she had enjoyed various leadership opportunities throughout her time at Mortlake College and welcomed the opportunity to lead as captain.
“I’ve had leadership roles in the past and I’ve been a house captain in junior grade, and the opportunity just came up and I jumped at it,” she said.
“The teachers were really supportive.
“I love it so far and I love having responsibilities.
“We get to have a bit of control in putting our mark on the school. We run assemblies, and we run events such as Relay for Life.
“You get to be the face of the school so you can make an impact even just smiling and saying hi to people in the hallway.”
Sarah said her parents and teachers had encouraged her o be a school captain, with the result being all the more exciting as she and Isabella are good friends.
“I haven’t really had many leadership roles, but I was bus captain,” she said.
“I’d been recommended by lots and lots of teachers.
“They said I should just jump in and have a go.
“Mum and dad said maybe I should have a go too.
“When I saw Isabella was doing it too, I thought maybe we should jump in and have a go – it’s really nice that we both got the role together.”
Isabella said her goal was to push student voices along.
“You can’t have school without students so allowing students to lead and create their own opportunities and have a voice in the classroom makes it an enjoyable place to be,” she said.
“Some schools lose a lot of students when they get to higher grades but we seem to gain more.
“We get a lot of students come from other schools to join us.
“We want to be a school that is welcoming, where people can have really close relationships – where everyone knows everyone.
“I think that’s just something that comes with a small school but it helps to build confidence and self-esteem.”
Sarah said she believed student voice was important in cultivating the best education possible.
“It is good to support all students if anyone has ideas,” she said.
“We’ve had ideas that haven’t gone through, but everyone has an opportunity to share their own ideas.
“Students are the face of their own schools so to have the opportunity to have their own ideas makes them want to come to school.
“It makes you motivated have a lot more fun and helps everyone get along.”
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