QLD – eNews December 2025 - 3 December 2025

Welcome to Our Newest Members

Welcome to our newest members in the QLD Chapter who have joined since September 2025.

Cowan, Melanie	People and Culture Manager	St Hilda’s School, Southport
Forster, Sarah	Director of Development	Marist College Ashgrove
Goody, Tayla	Marketing and Digital Media Officer	Coomera Anglican College
Gouge, Michelle	Principal	Riverside Christian College
Jackman, Mary-Ellen	People and Culture Manager	St Andrews Lutheran College
Kamala, Samantha	Senior Copywriter	Digistorm Education/Veracross
Kitch, Jessica	People and Culture Manager	The Glennie School
Michael, Ashleigh	Risk and Compliance Advisor	Hillbrook Anglican School
Morse, Michelle	Human Resources Coordinator	Sheldon College
Muller, Beth	Advancement Coordinator	Brisbane Boys’ College
Naupa, Abbey	Administrative Assistant – Marketing & Communications	Anglican Church Grammar School (Churchie)
Naylor, Kieran	Senior People and Culture Adviser	St Peters Lutheran College, Indooroopilly
Pelizzari, Suzanne	Head of Marketing – Asia Pacific	Veracross
Pott, Rebecca	Head of Community Development	Coomera Anglican College
Richardson, Penny	Marketing and Events Specialist	Matthew Flinders Anglican College
Treloar, Jaimee	Admissions Assistant	Anglican Church Grammar School (Churchie)
van Heerden, Caitlin	Enrolment Administrator	Redlands College
Vilain, Ingrid	Brand Specialist	John Paul College, QLD
Warner, Virginia	Principal	St Hilda’s School, Southport
Zafiriadis, Carla	Past Pupils Engagement and Development Officer’	All Hallows’ School

Upcoming In-Person Events

QLD Chapter Christmas Gathering & Drinks

Join us for a relaxed and festive QLD Chapter Christmas Gathering as we celebrate another wonderful year of connection and collaboration.

Whether you’ve been part of the journey all year or are joining us for the first time, come and celebrate the close of another inspiring year before the Christmas season begins. We look forward to celebrating with you!

Event Details

Date: Thursday 11 December 2025
Time: 4:30 – 6:00pm
Venue: Bar Alto, Level 1, Brisbane Powerhouse, 119 Lamington St, New Farm QLD 4005
Cost: $50+gst for Members and $75+gst for Non-Members
Tickets include canapes and a welcome drink. Additional beverages available at bar prices

Learn More / Register Here

Advancement Practitioner Training 2026 – Melbourne

Join us for the 2026 Advancement Practitioner Training (APT) Program — an immersive hands-on program designed to empower and inspire those newer to the Advancement industry.

Event Details

Date: 16 March 2026 to 17 March 2026
Time: 8:30 am – 5:00pm
Venue: Cliftons Melbourne, Level 2, 440 Collins St, Melbourne VIC 3000

Learn More / Register Here

2026 Building Futures International Conference – Brisbane

This event is set to be the pinnacle gathering for our Educate+ community in 2026, and will be a powerful blend of inspiration, future-focused thinking, hands-on learning, and meaningful connection with Advancement professionals from across Australia, New Zealand and Asia.

Event Details

Date: 1 September 2026 to 4 September 2026
Venue: Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre, Grey St, South Brisbane QLD 4101

Learn More / Register Here

Educate Plus Building Futures International Conference, Brisbane 2026!

Step into a world alive with possibility at the Educate Plus Building Futures International Conference, Brisbane 2026!

Learn More / Register Here

Bathed in Queensland’s sunshine and framed by the winding Brisbane River, this premier event offers six dynamic streams—each crafted to inspire Advancement professionals, institutional leaders, and operations staff across Australia, New Zealand and Asia. With the Olympic city’s vibrancy, warmth and inspirational spirit as our backdrop, it’s the perfect place to look ahead and build what’s next.

We invite you to immerse yourself in bold ideas, fresh strategies, and practical solutions that are shaping the future of Advancement. Connect with experts, innovators and peers, and return home with new perspectives and powerful connections to drive impact in your own community.

This is more than a Conference—it’s a celebration of collaboration, learning, and shared ambition. Together, we’ll ignite new thinking, nurture professional growth, and set a course for brighter futures.

Member Rates – Full Registration:

Early Bird (to 31 March): AUD $1,480 +gst
Pre-Conference Workshops: AUD $400 + gst
10% Group Discount Available (3 or more)

Non-Member Rates – Full Registration:

Early Bird (to 31 March: AUD $1,920 +gst
- Pre-Conference Workshops: AUD $500 +gst
10% Group Discount Available (3 or more)


CLICK HERE to Apply for a Bursary	CLICK HERE to Apply for a Newcomer Scholarship	CLICK HERE to Apply for a New Leader Scholarship

We can’t wait to welcome you to Brisbane in September 2026 — let’s make this the best Educate Plus Conference ever!

Learn More / Register Here

Thank You to our International Conference Sponsors:


Platinum Sponsor	Excellence Awards Sponsor	Gold Sponsor

Gold Sponsor	Welcome Event Sponsor	Celebration Event Sponsor

Silver Sponsor	Silver Sponsor	City Sponsor

We’re dedicated to helping schools across Australia

At SchoolHouse, we’re dedicated to helping schools across Australia find the right educators, leaders and support staff who make a real difference in their communities. As teachers ourselves, we understand schools – their challenges, their culture, and the importance of finding people who truly fit.

Our mission is to make recruitment simpler, faster, and more effective for the education sector.

We’re proud to partner with Educate Plus, supporting schools in connecting with talented professionals who share their values and passion for education. We also love the opportunity to engage at chapter meetings and events, where we continue to build strong connections within this vibrant network of school leaders and professionals working together to strengthen education across the country.

If you have a need to find or replace staff and are looking to partner with SchoolHouse to find your next team member, we welcome connecting with you.

International Students: What Did 2024 Bring to the Sector and Where Are We Going?

With international education contributing $47.8 billion to Australia’s economy in FY 23–24, understanding these changes is crucial for strategic planning.

Queensland emerged as a national leader in 2024, capturing 33% of Australia’s international school student commencements, up from 31% in 2019. This growth occurred despite a paradoxical trend: while Education Queensland International (EQI) expanded aggressively, many CRICOS-registered non-state schools decreased their international Enrolments or deregistered entirely. Independent Schools Queensland data reveals 1,498 international students across 79 schools in 2024, representing 25% growth, with 85% attending independent schools.

The market share dynamics shifted dramatically between government and non-government sectors. Government educational institutions increased their market share from 64.27% in 2019 to 72.32% in 2024, while nongovernment educational institutions declined from 35.73% to 27.68%. This shift reflects divergent recovery strategies post-pandemic. Source market performance revealed unexpected patterns. China, traditionally the dominant market, has not returned to pre-pandemic commencement levels, validating the “China-plus” diversification model. Vietnam remains price-sensitive, with Sydney and Melbourne as major competitors. Queensland non-state schools increased Hong Kong Enrolments despite school closures there due to declining student populations. Japan emerged as Queensland’s strongest growth market, particularly in government schools.

Looking forward, several strategic considerations emerge.

First, the reduction in CRICOS-registered educational institutions creates both less competition and potential market gaps.
Second, education agent relationships are crucial— educational institutions that dramatically reduced international Enrolments risk permanent relationship damage.
Third, for Queensland to remain as a strong destination for international students, high-quality schools in the State need to maintain international operations.

The critical question facing educational institutions is whether strong domestic demand justifies avoiding “riskier” international Enrolments. International education requires long-term strategic commitment, not opportunistic participation. Educational institutions must decide whether they are genuinely committed to this sector or merely responding to short-term market conditions.

As we move beyond 2024, successful international education programs will require strategic patience, diversified source markets, strong agent relationships, and a commitment to quality. Queensland’s Leadership position offers opportunities, but only for educational institutions willing to play the long game in an increasingly competitive global education market.

Originally submitted for Face-to-Face Magazine 2025 by:

David Ferguson
Director, International & Accommodation Operations
John Paul College QLD

How to cut through the clutter and set the tone for a confident school year.

Author — Suzanne Pelizzari. Veracross Head of Marketing – Asia Pacific

Back-to-school season is equal parts excitement and information overload. For school marketers, it’s also the moment when communication habits — both good and bad — become instantly visible to families. A thoughtful, coordinated approach doesn’t just reduce inbox chaos; it builds confidence, strengthens community, and shapes the experiences families carry throughout the year.

One of the strongest starting points is a comprehensive communications audit. Map every channel your school uses (apps, email, text, social media, websites, portals) and identify the people or departments behind each message. This audit creates clarity, exposes duplication, and can even strengthen the case for additional staffing or technology. Tools like Digistorm Funnel, Digistorm Apps, and Digistorm Websites can streamline this process by centralising forms, notifications, and content into cleaner, more intuitive experiences for families.

Once your landscape is mapped, a master communications calendar becomes indispensable. Even a simple spreadsheet can become a command centre, helping teams schedule strategically, avoid overlap, and maintain consistency in voice and timing.

When it’s time to plan content, think in terms of two buckets. The first includes essential operational communications. Think transportation updates, health forms, schedules and reminders. These should be short, clear and easy to skim. The second bucket is where your school’s personality shines. Story-driven content like student features, classroom snapshots and mission-focused articles reinforce values and build emotional connection during a time when families are eager to feel part of the community.

Even the strongest content matters little if families feel overwhelmed by scattered messages. Many schools are moving away from fragmented email and text updates in favour of a single, centralised communication hub. By streamlining announcements, reminders, forms and updates through your school app, you give parents one reliable place to check, dramatically reducing confusion and improving consistency. Your app becomes the daily go-to, while your website remains the evergreen home for key information and your social media channels offer space for storytelling, culture- building and community engagement.

Ultimately, back-to-school communication is about more than distributing information. It’s about making families feel welcomed, supported, and confident … long before the first bell rings.

More practical tips on back-to-school communications were shared in a recent podcast episode with Aubrey Bursch, Founder and CEO of Easy School Marketing, and Ashley Santana, Veracross Content Marketing Manager. You can watch it here.

3 Key Takeaways for School Marketers

1. Audit before you act.
Identify every channel, owner, and audience to eliminate clutter and strengthen alignment.

2. Balance logistics with storytelling.
Pair essential updates with mission-driven stories that build culture and connection.

3. Match the channel to the message.
Use apps, websites, portals, and social media intentionally to reduce fatigue and boost clarity.

Thank You to Our Partners

Thank You …

We’d like to extend a huge ‘Thank You’ to our valuable Strategic and Chapter Partners, who support Educate Plus and the QLD Chapter in our activities and enable us to provide wonderful opportunities to our members and non-members. We ask that you please consider supporting them, so that in turn, they can continue to support us.

Thank You to our QLD Chapter Sponsor

Thank You to our QLD Chapter Professional Development Sponsors

Thank You to our Educate Plus Strategic Partners

Connect with Colleagues

Stay Connected…

Keep in contact with your fellow Advancement professionals to keep abreast of best practice, discover new approaches and technologies and gain valuable industry insights.

To keep you to up to date with what’s happening at Educate Plus and within your sector, please connect with us on our Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn pages.