James Cai started at GVGS in 2012 as a Year 5 student. His parents were both born in China, and the family relocated to the 糖心传媒 in the mid 1990鈥檚. 鈥淚 think moving to Shepparton was partly motivated by them wanting to send my brother and I to GVGS,鈥� he says. 鈥淭hey moved here about 20 years ago and heard about this new private school.鈥�
James has a perfect attendance record for the whole eight years he has been at GVGS, having incredibly never missed a single day of school, and credits his parents for instilling in him a strong work ethic in order to reach this achievement. 鈥淢y dad had an accident when he was younger and missed almost an entire year of schooling because of it,鈥� James says. 鈥淪o my parents have always told me about the importance of attending school and making the most of every opportunity.鈥� It wasn鈥檛 just James鈥� parents that drove home the importance of attending school every day, though, as his older brother Jacob (Class of 2016) had a commendable attendance rate as well. 鈥淢y parents used my brother as an example all the time,鈥� he says. 鈥淚f Jacob didn鈥檛 miss a day of school then neither did I.鈥�
Born and raised in Shepparton, James has intentions to relocate to Geelong in 2020 and commence studying optometry at Deakin University. 鈥淚 did consider having a gap year and taking some time for myself,鈥� he says, 鈥渂ut I鈥檝e decided to just head straight down to uni…I think it鈥檒l be a good opportunity to move away from home and get to know myself better.鈥� James says that the opportunities that were available to him during his schooling have played a big role when it came to deciding to relocate for university. 鈥淭he school camps were one of my favourite things over the years,鈥� he says. 鈥淭he Year 9 Urban Experience was great, and it definitely influenced my decision to move down there to study鈥t was good to experience the inner-city life and a totally different lifestyle.鈥�
James also speaks highly of his teachers and the direction they have provided him, which has led to his decision to continue on with his studies. 鈥淭he staff are the best thing about this school,鈥� he says. 鈥淭hey push me, but at the same time they鈥檝e been really patient with me as well.鈥� James notes that although strong academic results are important, his family have always wanted him to be a well-rounded person. 鈥淢y family recognises the importance of doing well and not just in terms of getting high results, but the work ethic that you develop during that time,鈥� he says.
Reflecting on his time at GVGS, James says that 2019 has been a standout year for him. 鈥淵ear 12 has definitely been the best year of school for me because I really started getting to know people so well and got involved in a lot of extracurricular activities,鈥� he says. 鈥淢usic is something I really enjoy and I鈥檝e been playing the piano more recently鈥鈥檝e been involved with the Environmental and Sustainability Group too.鈥� He also says he owes a lot to the strong school culture at GVGS of achieving and doing well in everything you pursue. 鈥淎 lot of students have parents who come from working class backgrounds and recognise the importance of a good education so we can achieve our long term goals,鈥� he says. 鈥淚 think it鈥檚 very important to be surrounded by people who are on the same page as you.鈥�
Year 12 Coordinator, Mrs Pohlner says James demonstrated a particularly positive approach to all aspects of school. 鈥淛ames is a respectful young man who has applied himself to his studies with consistency, not only in Year 12 but throughout his enrolment at the school since Year 5.聽 James has ensured that he has supported the school and its programmes through active participation in the annual House Carnivals, numerous academic competitions and this year, the philanthropic efforts of the Year 12 Leavers鈥� Fund.鈥�