Guest makes a Mark
Auchinleck YPI winners The Auchinleck Academy Youth Philanthropy Initiative winning team of 2015/ 2016 were invited to the end- of- year YPI festival in Perth last week. Pupils and teachers got to hear a mix of music, guest speakers and a showcase of winning entries from around Scotland. Pupils from schools around the country showcased their passion for the charities they nominated ad many of them had been affected by the issues they were presenting about. There was a common theme in the issues highlighted, which included mental health, LGBT, teenage suicide and motor neuron charities. The highlight of the day was meeting guest speaker Mark Beaumont, a roundtheworld cyclist, who spoke about setting personal goals and challenges and the ability to help others, a very inspirational talk. Duke of Edinburgh Award Twenty- two pupils completed their qualifying expedition for their silver DofE Award. The pupils hiked from Muirkirk to Sanquhar via Wanlockhead over three days and camped for two nights. The camping was wild and pupils had no access to toilets or running water. The pupils showed great spirit as they had to battle extreme temperatures and also fierce midges. The school is extremely proud of all the participants. Mary’s Meals A representative from Mary’s Meals collected 28 filled backpacks last Tuesday and they have now begun their journey to Malawi. This is in addition to the cash donation at Christmas that ensured 30 children will be fed and educated for a whole year. Summer holidays The school closes for the summer holidays on Thursday, June 30, at 1pm. It reopens for pupils on Wednesday, August 17.