What a privilege….
Catholic Education in the Riverland region of South Australia has a rich history and wide-reaching footprint lasting more than 100 years. The four long standing Catholic primary schools are located as follows: St Albert’s School, Loxton, Our Lady of the River, Berri, St Joseph’s School, Barmera and St Joseph’s School, Renmark.
In 2020, Catholic Education South Australia furthered their commitment to the Riverland community, committing the establishment of a Catholic Secondary school complete the option of an Early Years to Year 12 Catholic Education pathway for families.
St Francis of Assisi College welcomed families at the beginning of 2022, with the transition of years 7 and 8 from primary schools across the Riverland, with completion of the planned growth reaching year 12 in 2026.
The opportunity and privilege to become Foundation Principal at St Francis of Assisi College has been a wonderful opportunity to work with an outstanding team of educators to provide an outstanding education for adolescents in the Riverland.
The five years prior to taking on the role as Foundation Principal were spent in private consultancy, specializing in the portfolio of leadership, team, and culture development. This work included a focus in the education sector, supporting school improvement in individual schools and school sectors. Importantly, I also spent time as a consultant partnering with a variety of organisations across Australia, including local government, private industry, the not-for profit sector, and the defense forces. Working across a variety of sectors has been invaluable in gaining experiences I have been able to now apply to education.
Spanning more than twenty years, I have been fortunate to be part of Catholic school communities in the Eyre Peninsula, Mid-North, Southeast and Riverland regions of South Australia. This unique variety of experiences teaching and leading across all year levels from Early Years to Year 12 in regional communities, has provided the perfect foundation to now have a positive impact in supporting the establishment of the St Francis of Assisi College community.