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Industry and Education partnerships continue to grow!
The Principal of Broadford Secondary College, Mr. Jim Alsop [right] and Principal of Broadford Primary School, Mr. Tony Gooden [left], teamed up to host the Chief Strategy Officer for Transfield Services, Mr. Lee de Vryer [centre] as part of the national "Principal for Day" programme today in Broadford.
Lee de Vryer is the Chief Strategy Officer for Transfield Services [ASX:TSE] and has more than 15 years strategy and management experience and has worked across a number of industries including steel, resources and consulting.
Lee is responsible for the strategic development of Transfield Services, including mergers and acquisitions.
Previously, Lee was Executive Vice President, Strategy and Business Development for BHP/Bluescope Steel.
Mr. Andrew Hocking, Manager of Corporate Citizenship & Corporate Affairs for IBM Australia and New Zealand and chairperson of the Central Ranges LLEN said:
The Central Ranges LLEN has had an ongoing and very valuable partnership with Transfield Services, even being recognised by the Prime Minister's Community-Business Partnerships award in 2004. Since that time the partnership has stayed focused on finding ways to provide genuine mutual benefit for both the community and industry partners. Our new MoU with Transfield and the willingness of school and business leaders to build better links to support young people in our community is something our board values highly.
We congratulate all involved in taking the next steps to create new partnerships to support young people across our communities, Mr. Hocking said.
Premier John Brumby participated in this year’s State program, reflecting the new prominence of business-education partnerships at both state and national levels.
The leadership teams at both Broadford Secondary College and Broadford Primary School both said they were very pleased to have the opportunity to build a strong link with a senior executive of one of Australia's fastest growing and largest employers.
 As well as "shadowing" each Principal for half a day, Mr. de Vryer was able to view a series of activities also occurring in Broadford during Literacy and Numeracy week.
The Primary School and Secondary College also collaborated to establish a "community classroom" in a shop front in the town, running classes for the week and opening up a real classroom to the wider community.
Here, Broadford Secondary College teacher, Trish Bulluss, is outlining the programme to Mr. de Vryer and Broadford Primary School Principal, Mr. Tony Gooden.
The Principal for a Day is a unique program which builds relationships between government schools, business and the wider community.
The purpose of Principal For A Day is to promote business-education partnerships by:
- Enabling business/community leaders to experience first hand the issues facing schools, and to meet with students, staff and the wider school community.
- Matching business/community leaders with school principals for in-depth conversations around management and leadership.
- Developing ongoing relationships based on shared knowledge and mutual respect and understanding between business and public education.
By being a Principal for a Day, business and community leaders gain a firsthand behind-the-scenes view of a normal school day, including in-depth management discussions with the Principal, taking classes with students, talking with parents and staff, even doing canteen or yard duty!
The program, which is delivered by the ACER Leadership Centre in partnership with the Victorian Department of Education and Early Childhood Development, provides an opportunity to showcase the successes of state education, and opens doors for principals into business and community networks. For business and community leaders, the program provides insight into and better understanding of the young people who represent the future of Victoria.
“Relationships between business, education and the wider community are gaining prominence on the national agenda,” says ACER CEO Professor Geoff Masters, himself a repeat participant.
“The Principal for a Day program assists in building these relationships. The program provides a unique opportunity for leaders from the business and educational spheres to learn from each other and form long-lasting professional networks,” he says.
The Principal for a Day key event will be followed two weeks later by a Forum, to be held on 16 September, in which guest panelists will discuss the issues arising from the Principal for a Day program, around the theme “Leadership: Finding the common ground”.
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Posted by Bill Coppinger on 2 September 2008; 4:58:34 PM
from the Regional Economies dept.
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