Principals Network Awards

On Wednesday 14 November Theo Leondis (Classroom Teacher) and Jenny Curtis (Parent and Community Member)
were award winners at the Principals Network Awards, held at St George Girls High School. These awards recognise individuals, schools and/or groups of schools (communities of schools) that have made a significant contribution to the achievement of the corporate goals of the department and to the promotion of public education in NSW. Each school is invited to nominate two recipients across five categories: Early Career Teacher, Classroom Teacher, School Executive Role, School Administration & Support Staff, Parent or Community Member. Theo and Jenny are both worthy recipients for the contributions they have made to the Fort Street HS community over a number of years – congratulations to you both.

Theo Leondis (Classroom Teacher)

Theo Leondis has been a classroom teacher of Science at Fort Street High School for over 20 years. During this time he has demonstrated superior knowledge of his subject area as well as a capacity to engage and inspire students in learning both in the classroom and in co-curricular activities. Regularly tutoring at lunch, Theo’s influence in titration has seen large numbers of students participating in different competitions. In 2018 under his guidance Fort Street High School teams achieve 1st, 2nd and 3rd places in the highly contested annual University of Sydney’s Titration Competition. He is now mentoring new teachers to ensure the program continues and thrives.

Theo’s impact on the wellbeing of the Fort Street High School community, particularly staff is significant. He is always the first person to volunteer to organise and cater for school events that celebrate achievement and help establish a sense of belonging at the Fort. He has developed and led teams of staff and students to support him, keeping the organisation of these events running effectively.

This award recognises Theo’s passion for the education of every student that walks into his classroom and his selfless and tireless contributions to the social environment of the school. Theo’s contribution to public education has been immense and we congratulate him on receiving this well-deserved recognition.

Jenny Curtis (Parent or Community Member)

Jenny Curtis has been a Fort Street parent since 2013 and has had two children attend the school. In that time, she has been actively engaged in the school community in many ways.

Most significantly, Jenny was one of the driving forces behind FortFest (biannual fete and P&C fundraiser) in 2014, 2016 and 2018. These events were highly successful, not only in terms of the money raised, but also in bringing students, parents and staff together in a celebration of our school community.

In 2017, Jenny also identified a need for the school to better cater to the needs of Year 7 parents. She proposed a Year 7 parent forum, where parents could meet each other, share their experiences of Fort Street so far, and ask questions of wellbeing and executive staff. Jenny volunteered her professional facilitation skills to run these evenings, which were greatly appreciated by all who attended. The program was expanded in 2018, with Jenny again facilitating the evenings, and has now become an integral part of the school’s Year 7 transition program.
Jenny has also been a member of school council, a parent representative on merit selection interview panels, has represented the school in meetings with the High Performance Unit, and been a member of many other school and P&C committees.

This award is in recognition of Jenny’s tireless dedication to and support of the school over many years, and to the significant positive difference she has made to the school community in that time.

Rebecca Cameron
Deputy Principal – Years 8 & 12