President’s Welcome

Dear WA Chapter Members,

What a whirlwind start to the year it’s been! As we navigate through the start of the calendar year, I find myself reflecting on the wonderful moments that have already filled our calendars. With the Easter break just behind us, it was a good reminder to pause, breathe and focus on our own professional learning to set ourselves up for a successful remainder of the year.

Fresh from Brisbane, where I attended the Educate Plus Board meeting and Advancement Practitioner Training, I am energised by the connections made and the invaluable knowledge shared among peers from across Australia, New Zealand and Asia. The camaraderie, support and extra-special vibe at Educate Plus events are truly inspiring.

We kicked off the year with a vibrant Welcome Sundowner, welcoming both familiar faces and new members alike. The atmosphere was electric, fostering meaningful connections and setting the tone for what promises to be an exciting year ahead. Plus, who could forget the impromptu video shoot, capturing the spirit of WA to promote our upcoming International Conference? Thank you to all who participated in the video. If you haven’t yet seen it, be sure to check it out here. Spoiler alert: there might have been a cameo that’s best left unmentioned!

Our recent breakfast PD session, “Unleashing the power of video in school marketing”, was a hit among members. It’s fantastic to see our community engaging in professional development opportunities, even amidst busy schedules. A special thanks to Steven Wellbeloved for hosting us at St. Mark’s Anglican School.

If you haven’t done so already, mark your calendars for 10-13 September as we host the International Conference right here in Perth! This is a golden opportunity for us to immerse ourselves in a world-class event without the burden of extensive travel expenses. There are bursaries available, ensuring that all members have the chance to participate, so I encourage you to investigate if you are having challenges in attending, in particular for our regional members.

In this newsletter, you’ll find a thought-provoking piece on the “Importance of help-seeking and giving environments.” This serves as a segue into our new People and Culture stream at Educate Plus and sets the stage for discussions at the upcoming conference. Spread the word to your Business Management and HR colleagues, as this stream offers valuable insights for those in their roles, but also how they can support and work with us in educational Advancement.

Stay tuned for a plethora of upcoming events, including our upcoming webinars and professional learning opportunities, in particular our Special Interest Groups (SIGs) in Term 2. These SIGs provide the perfect opportunity to network and exchange ideas. And remember, don’t shy away from attending SIGs outside your immediate area—they offer a broader perspective that can enrich your professional journey.

Let’s rally the troops, Perth! Together, we’ll make a splash at the International Conference that’ll have everyone talking.

Kind regards,

Laura

Laura Kendall
WA Chapter President, Educate Plus

Director of Community and Sustainability
Guildford Grammar School

New Member Welcome

We can’t wait to meet you!

We extend a very warm welcome to our latest Members, who have recently joined us this quarter (see below). We are thrilled to have you as part of our WA Chapter community!

The next ‘New Member Meet-Up’ webinar will be held in June, with a date to be published shortly. 

The ‘New Member Meet-Up’ webinars are a wonderful, informal way catch up with other new Members online, and to hear more about the benefits of being a Member and what is available to you on our website. 

Welcome to our newest members:

See You in Perth!

The Early Bird discount, which offers unparalleled savings of $265 off the standard individual rate, has been extended until Friday 31 May 2024!

Who’s Going So Far?

Calling all WA Schools, Colleges and Tertiary Institutions … As the host State of potentially the most impressive Educate Plus Conference yet, we encourage you to register today and get ready to embark on a transformative journey at the Educate Plus Empowering Sucess International Conference, Perth, 2024. 

With strong registrations to date, the Perth Conference is truly becoming the place to be! With well on our way to 400 registrations already, previous attendance records quite possibly could be broken! Don’t miss out! Is your institution on the list of current registrations? To view the list of registered institutions, with most sending multiple delegates, CLICK HERE.

Have you seen the International Conference Program yet?

All Streams Covered, and a New Stream for 2024! This Program really does contain something for everyone! In addition to the traditional streams of Admissions, Alumni & Community Relations, Marketing & Communications and Fundraising, the quality and depth of the Leadership stream and the newly introduced People & Culture stream is quite phenomenal and we are so excited about it. I strongly encourage you to invite your Heads, Business Managers and HR staff to attend this Conference with you and your Advancement team, as the content will be of unprecedented value to a vast number of staff in your organisation and will showcase the very best our industry has to offer.

View the Program:

• To view the PDF version of the Program, with Speakers, CLICK HERE

View the Social Program:

• To view the WEBSITE version of the Social Program, CLICK HERE

Nominate for the Excellence Awards 

Nominations for the 2024 Educate Plus Excellence Awards, partnered by Global Philanthropic, are NOW OPEN! 

Our WA Chapter is filled with expertise, innovation, and excellent delivery of inspiring projects, and we can’t wait to celebrate you, your teams and your organisations, at the International Conference in Perth!

We are delighted to invite submissions for the highly anticipated 2024 Excellence Awards. These prestigious Awards showcase our industry and are your opportunity to share your talents or the achievements of others, with delegates across Australia, New Zealand and Asia.

We especially encourage you to nominate yourself or your colleagues for the newest Awards:

• Impact on a Shoestring (Across all Categories) 
• Team Award 
• Suppliers Award 

To find out more and to nominate for the Excellence Awards, CLICK HERE

Register

Event Details (Early Bird Extended to Friday 31 May 2024)
Date: Tuesday 10 September – Friday 13 September, 2024
Place: Crown Perth Convention Centre, Great Eastern Highway, Burswood, WA

To Register:

More Info / Register | International Conference

Have you seen the International Conference Promotional Video Yet?

For easy access to the International Conference Website pages, click on the icons below:

Website	Program	Awards
EDx	Social	Speakers
Fees & Payments	Support Package	Accommodation

Thank You to our International Conference Partners

EXCELLENCE AWARDS PARTNER	GOLD PARTNER

WELCOME EVENT PARTNER	CONFERENCE CELEBRATION PARTNER

SILVER PARTNER – FUNDRAISING	SILVER PARTNER – MARKETING & COMMUNICATIONS	SILVER PARTNER – ALUMNI & COMMUNITY RELATIONS

SILVER PARTNER – LEADERSHIP

PHOTOBOOTH PARTNER	COFFEE STATION PARTNER	DESTINATION PARTNER

Upcoming Events and Save the Dates

Save the Dates! Below are some of the upcoming events that we’re in the midst of planning for you!

Further details about each of these events will be made available shortly.

But for now … make sure to put these dates in your Diary. 

Upcoming In-Person Events

• WA Chapter | Marketing SIG (Save the Date 7 May)
• WA Chapter | Fundraising & Alumni SIG (Save the Date 8 May)
• WA Chapter | Tertiary SIG (Save the Date 15 May)

Upcoming Webinars

• WEBINAR | People & Culture (Save the Date 1 May)
• WEBINAR | Excellence Series (Save the Date 21 May)
• WEBINAR | Marketing & Communications (Save the Date 5 June)

We can’t wait to see you there!

Post Event Wrap

Unleashing the Power of Video in School Marketing

This breakfast PD session was well received with two dozen school Advancement professionals coming together at St Mark’s Anglican Community School on 12 March to hear how they could bring their school marketing to life through video.  

Paul Dean from Monday Media discussed the value of high, medium and low-cost videos to evoke emotional responses in prospective parents, ultimately enhancing acquisition. His examples of videos for websites and social media demonstrated different styles and how they reflected the ethos and selling points for each school. 

The data is clear that videos have much greater engagement than still images, so this is a tool all schools should be using.

Introducing …

Each eNews, we introduce you to some of our wonderful Chapter Members, through a Question & Answer type interview article. 

Therefore, in the hotseat this edition, is Steven Wellbeloved [Chapter Treasurer], Community Engagement Manager, St Mark’s Anglican Community School

What is the length of time you’ve been in Educational Advancement (& prior industry if applicable)?

14 years (seven in South Africa in an independent boys’ school and seven in Australia). Five years in major events and promotions prior to starting in education.

What is the achievement / accomplishment you are most proud of?

Successfully coordinating (from concept to management and reporting) a seven-week Japanese tour in 2017 comprising 70 students and 10 staff – during this time our choir performed in 25 venues across 25 different cities and entertained more than 50,000 people!

What is your greatest moment of learning or a challenge that you’ve overcome?

Learning how education works in a new country after laying the foundation of my career in education in South Africa.

Do you have any tips or words of advice for new members to Educate Plus and/or those new to Advancement?

Advancement in schools is a generalist role and there is no task that can’t be considered your job.

Once you stop having fun, it’s time to find another job or industry.

What do you find most valuable in being a member of Educate Plus?

The networking and cameraderie!

Thank you Steven! It’s been wonderful getting to know you!

The Importance of Help-Seeking and Giving Environments

Article provided by Dr Richard Goater, Director of Staff Development and Human Resources, Hale School

One of the greatest challenges for HR professionals in schools is to maintain a positive influence on the organisational culture and values. Staff are frequently comatose by compliance and the daily churn of work, so understandably they have little receptivity for any new messages or agendas. Anything we provide needs to be in small-sized chunks and to be relevant and “sticky”, so it maintains impact with the least cost to them.

I recently came across a useful cultural piece by University of Pennsylvania academic, Adam Grant that may have some purpose for HR professionals, staff and potentially students. It’s a simple sound bite of an idea around three types of people in organisations and, importantly, an underlying concept that needs to be in place for one of those types to flourish.

Adam’s hypothesis, which he sets out in his seminal publication, Give and Take, is that success for and in organisations is increasingly dependent upon how we interact with others and that most people operate as either ‘takers’, ‘matchers’ or ‘givers’. Whereas takers strive to get as much as possible from others, and matchers aim to trade evenly, givers are the rare breed of people who contribute to others without expecting anything in return.

The propensity of these different styles in organisations has a significant impact on culture and collective success. While some givers do get burnt out, Adam found that most of them achieve extraordinary things within a diversity of different industries.

So how do we enthuse and support the givers? Interestingly, the answer lies in creating environments and cultures in which others feel safe to ask for help. Help seeking can be a risky business as it demonstrates a vulnerability and openness that could be abused. Theoretically, the more people seek help, the more others can give. So, I hope we can support the givers and the help seekers by encouraging those environments that matter to each.

Dr Richard Goater is the Director of Staff Development and Human Resources at Hale School. Dr Goater has worked in a wide range of roles in education over his 30-plus year career, originally as a teacher before moving into pastoral care roles, then senior administration. He completed his PhD in leadership dynamics, teams, and culture in 2020 and is passionate about supporting others to extend their leadership potential so that they can better facilitate and sustain the needs of their teams and organisations.

Richard will be a panellist at the People and Culture stream discussion on performance management plans at the upcoming Educate Plus international conference.

Thought Leadership – Dr Phillip Heath AM Writes …

Aspiration and Sacrifice or Privilege and Elitism

Article written by Phillip Heath AM, Head of Barker College, NSW  

The emerging reality of the public commentary in Australian education demonstrates a shift in the mindset – our schools are caricatured as bastions of privilege rather than as symbols of aspiration and sacrifice. This article examines the impact of the mindset and considers how we might influence the future narrative. We must find a coherent answer to the question “what’s the good of independent education in Australia?” The current trajectory in independent schools has the risk of foundering on the hostile reefs of political commentary. Our answer to what’s the good of independent schooling will set a course for the coming decades of educational policy, development and philanthropy in education.

Principle 1: Independent education is portrayed in the public discourse not as evidence of aspiration but as a bastion of privilege.

Principle 2: Despite attempts made by the Gonski Review into School Funding, the failure to implement the reforms has created a resource gap in Australian education and it is perceived to be widening.

Principle 3: Our schools are regarded as some of the wealthiest schools in the land. Barker College, for example, notwithstanding our debt from capital works, is seen as a case in point. Nearby schools are struggling to hire staff and find resources for classrooms. The completion of our magnificent award-winning Rosewood Centre and more recently, the Senior School Hub and the lodging of an expansive SSDA, makes it hard to argue otherwise. With a student enrolment of 2800, our comparative income is also high.

Principle 4: Expressions of social justice through Indigenous Education and, more recently, Humanitarian Education initiatives are important but may not be sufficient to demonstrate an answer to “what’s the good of Barker” nor to negate the three principles listed above.

Principle 5: Public funding of independent schools remains a complex political issue, particularly in the light of the seemingly entrenched social disadvantage. Higher fee schools that receive around 10% of income from public funding (such as Barker) are characterised as symbols of privilege. It will be almost impossible to cut through this perception.

Principle 6: The charitable status of independent schools is under threat in the UK, where there is virtually no government funding.

A way forward:

1. Use public funding while it survives to demonstrate commitment to social impact economics – the hour is coming when this funding will be under threat.
2. Demonstrate public good by
   • Sharing facilities
   • Providing assisted places for disadvantaged students
   • Educating students for social conscience
   • Reducing social and cultural impact of our schools
   • Demonstrate social conscience in sustainable practices
3. Managing the message by
   • Avoiding excessive demonstrations of wealth and privilege
   • Celebrating causes that create social impact, reduce disadvantage and enable change
4. Reduce the division between government and non-government education
5. Resist the success narrative in independent education, particularly in League Tables, Trophies and competitions.
6. Explore ways in which the educational advantages enabled in some of our schools can be shared with other schools
7. Explore a new narrative or new metaphor for independent education, not be arguing that the points made against us but by setting a new story about our public good.

Phillip Heath AM
Head of Barker College, NSW

Phillip Heath achieved a First Class Honours degree in Reformation History and taught at Trinity Grammar School Sydney and King’s School Ely (UK), before becoming Deputy Head of The William Clarke College in Kellyville, and then Headmaster of St Andrew’s Cathedral School, Sydney, where he formed the Gawura Campus for indigenous inner city children.  Author of “Trinity, the Daring of Your Name”, and numerous journal articles, Mr Heath became fifth Principal of Radford College ACT in 2009 and the school received the Order of Australia Association (ACT) Award for Community Service twice under his leadership. He was made a Fellow of the ACT Branch ACEL in 2011, in 2018 was awarded as a Member in the general division of the Order of Australia for his service to education and his commitment to creating greater opportunities for Indigenous students and was awarded the Australian Principal of the Year at the 2023 Australian Education Awards.

Mr Heath was appointed as the Head of Barker College in 2014, and in 2016 it was announced that the School would transition to be fully coeducational by 2022. In 2016 Mr Heath formed the Darkinjung Barker Campus for Indigenous children on the Central Coast of New South Wales and in 2020 the Ngarralingayil Barker Campus for Indigenous children in the Hunter Region of New South Wales. In 2021, following the signing of an MOU with the Yothu Yindi Foundation, Dhupuma Barker commenced as a school for Indigenous children On Country in North East Arnhem Land.

Mr Heath has served on the NSW Board of Studies representing the Independent Sector (2000-2009) and is also a past National Chair of the Association of Heads of Independent Schools of Australia (2013-2015). He is currently working on an unpublished manuscript titled “One Life at a Time”, exploring his journey and work to create greater educational opportunities for Australia’s First Nations people.

Thank You to our Valued Partners

Thank You …

We’d like to extend a huge ‘Thank You’ to our valuable Strategic and Chapter Partners and Sponsors, who support Educate Plus and the WA 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 WA Chapter Partners

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.

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