School of Education Dean's Seminar Series - Partnerships

The education sector is in transformation, the last few years have been challenging, to state the obvious. Early childhood settings and schools are facing unprecedented challenges. Similarly, within the university early childhood and initial teacher education programs have also faced challenges – we too have been required to ‘pivot’ in multiple ways.

We are all responding to such things as teacher shortages, educational standards, and the well-being of children, young people, families, preservice teachers, and educators. There are many great examples of active partnerships between universities and educational stakeholders. As educators, we share a commitment to the field of education.

In this seminar we ask a panel of education leaders, how do we partner for impact? Do we now have a new opportunity to work together in new ways? How can this time of uncertainty lead to stronger partnerships to build educators for a future of change? How can we work together to transform education through education partnerships? What can we achieve when we collaborate?

Together, can we identify and co-design solutions to what are truly ‘wicked problems’ in education, such as attracting new educators to the profession or lifting academic achievement? Is post-pandemic necessity the mother of the invention where we might consider stronger more productive and collaborative partnerships? As stakeholders who are ‘in it together’ what can we do to transform education?

Seminar Format

The second seminar, Partnerships, will feature an opening address from the Dean of the School of Education, Professor Joanna Barbousas, followed by an expert panel, discussant notes and Q&A time.

The Panel

Colin Burke (Principal, Elevation College), Peter Bush (Principal, Kalianna School, Bendigo), Barbara O’Brien (Executive Principal, Greater Shepparton College), Andrew Robertson (Principal, Charles La Trobe College), Belinda Schultz (Shine Bright EYM) and Anthony Stockwell (College Principal, Hazel Glen College).

Discussant: Professor Jo Lampert (Associate Dean, Partnerships in the School of Education and Professor of Social Inclusion and Teacher Education.)

Panelist Profiles

Colin Burke is the foundation Principal of Elevation Secondary College, a new Victorian government secondary school situated in Craigieburn in Melbourne’s north. Prior to opening Elevation Secondary College, Colin was Senior Campus Principal at Mill Park Secondary College, responsible for the leadership and management of a campus of nearly 1000 students. Prior to this he has been an Assistant Principal and Leading Teacher, performing a range of leadership roles for fifteen years. Colin is a passionate advocate for public education and regularly runs leadership development workshops for aspiring teacher leaders and new teachers. Colin is passionate about providing the community with a school that matches their high aspirations in education. In 2022, Elevation Secondary College was named the winner of the AFR Best Places to Work in the Government, Education and Non-Profit category.

Peter Bush is Principal of Kalianna School. Kalianna School is a specialist school situated in Bendigo North catering for students aged 5 to 18 years (Prep to Year 12). The school was established in 1963. His vision of the school is to ensure students, when leaving the school, are active and productive members of society and have a desire to continue learning. Since his appointment the school has become a regional resource for other schools and special needs providers in the wider Bendigo region.

Barbara O’Brien is Executive Principal of Greater Shepparton Secondary College. Barbara O’Brien is a highly experienced educator well known in the Goulburn Valley. A former principal of Wilmot Rd and Grahamvale Primary Schools, Ms O’Brien served as a regional leader of a network of local schools before being named the inaugural principal of Benalla P-12 College following its merger. At an Executive Principal level, she worked in school improvement across the region and more recently, as the Senior Education Improvement Leader at Greater Shepparton Secondary College, before her appointment to Executive Principal, in 2021.

Andrew Robertson is principal of Charles La Trobe P-12 College. Andrew joined the Department of Education & Training in 2009 from New Zealand and began as one of the first Executive Principals appointed in Victoria. He was at Chaffey Secondary College in Mildura, before transferring to the Executive Principal role at Gisborne Secondary College. In 2018 he was appointed to the position of Executive Principal – Differentiated School Support Initiative in the Loddon Area, Bendigo. During that time, he worked with leadership teams across six schools on School Improvement and Strategy. Andrew is currently the Principal of Charles La Trobe P – 12 College, a school merged from a Heidelberg regeneration project in 2011 and established in partnership with La Trobe University.

Belinda Schultz leads the Early Years team in her role as Early Years Manager at Shine Bright Early Years Management. Shine Bright EYM is a not-for-profit community-based organisation that operates with the needs of children and families as its highest priority, currently managing 30 kindergartens in both large and small rural towns across Central Victoria. Belinda has many years’ experience teaching in the early years across kindergarten and junior primary settings and has been part of the Shine Bright EYM office team since 2008.

Antony Stockwell has been the principal of Hazel Glen College since 2019 and held the College Deputy role since 2014. He has been fortunate to experience principal roles in the Catholic, Private and State systems which provides him with a strong vision for education. During his time at Hazel Glen College the school has grown from 114 students to over 3000, and from 14 staff to over 350. Anthony is responsible for leading the development, documentation, and implementation of the College, curriculum, staffing, and building program and believes nothing is more important than community connections and staff culture.

Discussant Profile

Professor Jo Lampert is Associate Dean, Partnerships in the School of Education and Professor of Social Inclusion and Teacher Education. Jo has a long history of leading innovative teacher education programs for hard-to-staff schools, most recently as Director of La Trobe’s Nexus program. She also leads one of the School of Education’s Education Discipline Studies Areas (EdSAs), the other two being the Learning Sciences and Impactful Pedagogies.