Dean's Report

Staff Dialogues

I was delighted that the first round of Staff Dialogues, held over the last fortnight, had excellent attendance and while each discussion varied according to the particular group all were very positive and focused. It is a great opportunity for staff to discuss relevant issues and I hope these dialogues will act as a forum for increased communication between staff and the MGSE Executive.

School Reference Group

I recently spent a day in Hobart as part of my role as Chair of the School Reference Group for the Contemporary School Leadership Roles project. This project is being conducted by the Melbourne Graduate School of Education and Price Waterhouse Coopers (PwC) for the Tasmanian Department of Education. Broadly speaking, the goal of the project is to clarify the roles of Tasmanian school leaders in improving student learning. To do this we will need to understand the functions of the school leadership teams and roles, to look at resourcing and support and the ways to reduce barriers to leadership.

Education Leaders Day and Literacy summit

Still on the theme of leadership, in late February I attended the Education Leaders' Day and Literacy summit in Adelaide, hosted by the South Australian Department of Education where I gave the keynote address on ‘How can you tell that you’re in an emerging school?’. The audience consisted of principals and regional and central office staff and the discussion on Twitter suggested that issues of leadership and empowerment certainly resonated with the audience.

Executive Director, Keryn Negri

Our new Executive Director, Keryn Negri starts at MGSE next Tuesday 12 March. Keryn has worked across a number of government departments and portfolios, driving complex legislative reform, implementing new policy initiatives and leading high performing teams. For the past six years Keryn has been the CEO of the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT). Please make her welcome as she settles into MGSE, as many of you will remember there is a lot to absorb in the first few months of a new position.

Jim