There have been a number of changes to the staff team in readiness for 2022, and in addition to those communicated late last year, we have received confirmation of additional changes over the school holiday break.
The Student Support teams at Junior and Secondary Campuses will look quite different this year as we welcome new leaders, with Sarah Hillard commencing at the Junior Campus and Kelly Neumann at the Secondary Campus.
Within this team, Bron Bell has recently advised that after careful consideration, she has made the decision to depart from St John’s Grammar after eight wonderful years, in pursuit of new opportunities.
In addition, Karl Johncock and Sim Kaur have recently departed from the team, and so we welcome the following staff to new roles within Student Support across our campuses.
Todd Winsor has joined us from NSW, where he has been working as a School Learning Support Officer for the past 5 years. Todd is experienced in many aspects of personalised learning interventions in a 1:1 and classroom setting. He administers a range of standardised diagnostic assessments, formulates personal learning support plans and assists in the administration of the Learning Support Program. In addition, Todd will be studying on a part-time basis at Adelaide University.
Johanna (Jo) Rowe has worked in equivalent roles in Junior and Secondary settings in both public and private schools with a thorough understanding and track record in supporting students with an Autism Spectrum Diagnosis and many other learning needs. Some families may already know Jo as a current parent at the school.
Gabby Maxwell is in her 4th year of tertiary study (Bachelor of Secondary Education/ Health and Physical Education & Master’s in Special Education). During her senior years at Cabra, she volunteered in their St Mary’s unit for special education and she has been a netball and volleyball coach at Sacred Heart for the past 4 years. Gabby has also been working in hospitality and says that her organisation skills have allowed her to thrive in all areas of her work, study and personal life.
Olivia Watson will be joining us in the capacity of Student Counsellor. Olivia was our inaugural Year 12 School Captain, so this is a return of an Old Scholar. Olivia initially studied a Bachelor of Arts (Journalism) and worked in Journalism until she completed a Masters in Social Work. Since 2011, she has been working in this field with the last eight years at Novita in technical as well as leadership roles. Olivia will be a great addition to our team, working across both Campuses.
Stacie Ellinger is stepping into the role of Wellbeing Assistant. She is passionate about engaging with young people and communities to explore how trauma-informed approaches can help us create a more compassionate society. She holds a Bachelor of Arts (History and English Literature), a Graduate Certificate Counselling (Youth and Families), a Masters of International and Community Development and a Certificate IV in Training and Assessment. Stacie has over five years’ experience as a school chaplain and over 10 years in youth and community ministry. Stacie returned from overseas work in 2020 and settled in Belair.
Michael Adams will be working across Junior and Secondary Campuses in the new role of Sports Administrator. With an impressive history in coaching and sports administration roles, he will be a fantastic addition to our team. Michael has been the Operations Manager at Kelly Sports since 2018 and wants to make the transition into a school environment. He has a Bachelor of International Studies with honours and is looking forward to commencing his teaching qualifications on a part-time basis in the next year or two.
Carly Richards has joined our Science Department in the role of Laboratory Manager. Carly has a Diploma of Laboratory Technology and 8 years’ experience as a Laboratory Technician across several secondary schools. She has been a member of the Laboratory Managers Association of South Australia for several years. Carly has a keen interest in working with our Science team to provide high quality student practical experiences and has a strength in utilising PASCO Technology for practicals.
Wei Zhu has joined the Finance Team as our Finance Officer (Accounts Payable). Wei has a Bachelor of Finance and Masters of Professional Accounting and additionally is also an accredited English/Mandarin interpreter. Wei has several years experience in Accounts Payable with Stamford Hotels and Resorts and is already sinking his teeth into learning our systems and applying his skills with our finance team.
The Boarding House is open again from Term 1 and we have four wonderful staff joining Amanda Johns (our returning Boarding House Manager) in the role of International Living Precinct Supervisors:
Lena Clark will be adding to her current roles of accompanist and piano tutor at the school and will be joining the Boarding House Team. Lena has her own children at the school, and is keen to add to her experience working with our secondary students in the Boarding House environment. She will bring her strong musical and organisational experience to Boarding House.
Leanne Seymour will be returning to our Boarding House Team as well. Leanne has previously worked with our Boarding House students, and we are lucky enough to have her returning with the re-opening of the Boarding House. Leanne has a wealth of experience in Boarding having worked with St John’s Grammar and Seymour College over many years.
Shao Hua Tseng will be joining the Boarding House Team. He is a registered teacher who has spent his first full year teaching in 2021 as a primary and secondary Teacher at Quorn Area School and brings an understanding of the experience of being an international student to the role as well.
Eva Grasso will also be joining us as an International Living Precinct Supervisor. Eva is studying her final year Bachelor of Education/Bachelor of Health Sciences and will bring her interest in the outdoors and experience working with secondary students to our Boarding House.
We welcome Wendy Mitchard to the role of COVID Management Controller. Wendy will be staffing the School’s COVID Hotline, and working with our families in regard to coordinating the School’s response to any COVID-positive diagnoses and classroom contacts, including collecting contact-tracing information and providing further information in regard to the next steps to undertake. Wendy will also check-in periodically with families to perform welfare checks and answer any queries you may have.
Finally, we have 2 new Bus Drivers joining the team, Ziggy Zygocki and Wayne Priest. Some of you will be familiar with Ziggy’s smiling face as he has been providing transport services to our staff and students at times in 2021 and has several years’ experience in providing bus and taxi services to schools and private clients. Wayne is a local who has been working as a Bus Driver, including school bus runs for several schools, for the last 10+ years following his earlier career as a Sales Rep/Area Manager for several large companies.
Please welcome all the new staff to the team!
