Back to school for two stand-out principals

<div class&equals;"edu-highlight-panels&lowbar;&lowbar;panel edu-highlight-panels&lowbar;&lowbar;variation edu-highlight-news">&NewLine;<div class&equals;"edu-highlight-panels&lowbar;&lowbar;content">&NewLine;<div class&equals;"lead">&NewLine;<h2>Two NSW principals have won the opportunity to learn from the best after being selected for this year’s prestigious Public Education Foundation Harvard Scholarships&period;<&sol;h2>&NewLine;<&sol;div>&NewLine;<&sol;div>&NewLine;<&sol;div>&NewLine;<div class&equals;"edu-block">&NewLine;<p>Ann Caro from Lithgow High School and Jesmond Zammit from Gorokan Public School will travel to the Harvard Graduate School of Education in the United States to undertake a professional education program tailor-made for principals to further strengthen their leadership&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>Ann Caro was recognised for her career-long commitment to working in areas of high disadvantage and improving outcomes for students in these settings&comma; as demonstrated by the establishment of a wellbeing centre at Lithgow High School last year&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>The centre hosts providers of onsite mental health and other social support for students&comma; and has so far delivered more than 800 sessions&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<blockquote>&NewLine;<p>&OpenCurlyDoubleQuote;I am proud of our coordinated approach to ensuring opportunities for everyone&comma;” said Ann&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<&sol;blockquote>&NewLine;<p>&OpenCurlyDoubleQuote;My strategy is based on the belief schools must ameliorate disadvantage by providing students with resources that advantaged students have due to cultural&comma; social and economic capital&period;”<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>At Gorokan Public School&comma; the introduction of an explicit and systematic approach towards professional learning for teachers over the past few years has focused on providing educational equity in a complex and challenging social context&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<blockquote>&NewLine;<p>&OpenCurlyDoubleQuote;The challenge for me as the principal is to ensure staff have the skills&comma; knowledge&comma; resources and resilience in order to best support and engage their students to maximise their learning potential and wellbeing&comma;” Jesmond said&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<&sol;blockquote>&NewLine;<p>&OpenCurlyDoubleQuote;The school has also dedicated a major part of its school plan to support student wellbeing and works closely with external agencies to address the ongoing needs of students and their families&period;”<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>NSW Department of Education Secretary Mark Scott said it was wonderful to see two outstanding NSW public school principals recognised by this prestigious award&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<blockquote>&NewLine;<p>&OpenCurlyDoubleQuote;Being a school leader is a challenging&comma; testing and demanding role&comma; but there is no more important work in our society as the decisions of our principals affect thousands of young people’s lives&comma;” he said&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<&sol;blockquote>&NewLine;<p>&OpenCurlyDoubleQuote;This award not only recognises the work Ann and Jesmond have already done&comma; but opens the door for them to build on&comma; and share more widely&comma; their leadership insights&period;”<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>Each Principals Scholarship is valued at approximately &dollar;16&comma;000 and includes program tuition for one of two Harvard Graduate School of Education programs&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>The Harvard Club of Australia Education Scholarships were established by the Public Education Foundation in 2013 offering principals around Australia the opportunity to &OpenCurlyQuote;reflect&comma; focus and recharge’ through professional leadership programs&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<&sol;div>&NewLine;

Explore our latest issue...
NSW Department of Education

This story was written by the NSW Department of Education. School News shares it with permission.

Recent Posts

Schools tune in: How music is connecting kids to country

The Indigenous Literacy Foundation (ILF) has announced that in 2025 Busking for Change is being…

1 week ago

Some students learning English can take at least 6 years to catch up to their peers. How can we support them better?

About one quarter of Australian school students are learning English as an additional language or…

1 week ago

The power of outdoor learning on emotional wellbeing

Spending time in green spaces reduces cortisol levels, lowers heart rate, and positively impacts mood…

1 week ago

Schools play a vital role in combating youth loneliness and suicide risk

Social isolation, loneliness, bullying, and family breakdowns are now key causes of distress among young…

1 week ago

Are your students avoiding the school washroom?

Busy, high-use areas, washrooms can use some extra attention to make sure students feel comfortable…

1 week ago

Are you teaching out of field? Your input is needed

A study investigating the realities of out-of-field teachers is seeking participants for groundbreaking research.

2 weeks ago

This website uses cookies.