YEARS

IN THE PRINCIPAL’S CHAIR

IN MAY, PRINCIPAL BELINDA PROVIS CELEBRATED HER 10-YEAR ANNIVERSARY AS ALL SAINTS’ COLLEGE PRINCIPAL. WITH RESEARCH¹ OUT OF THE US SUGGESTING THAT A PRINCIPAL’S LONG-TERM IMPACT ON A SCHOOL ONLY BEGINS TO BE FELT AFTER EIGHT TO 10 YEARS IN A ROLE, IT IS CLEAR THAT BELINDA’S VISION IS NOW WELL AND TRULY PERMEATING ALL ASPECTS OF COLLEGE LIFE, AND FOR THE BETTER. DIRECTOR OF MARKETING AND COMMUNITY RELATIONS BEN FITZPATRICK SAT DOWN WITH BELINDA TO REFLECT ON HER JOURNEY SO FAR.

WHAT INSPIRED YOU TO BECOME AN EDUCATOR, AND WHAT LED YOU TO PURSUE A CAREER AS A SCHOOL PRINCIPAL?

I have always loved writing and so, after secondary school, I studied Journalism and Literature at WAIT, as Curtin University was called back then. As my Arts degree was drawing to a close, my mother suggested do a teaching qualification as a ‘back-up’ for my future. I did so, somewhat reluctantly, and vividly recall my first day of teaching practicum – it was my 21st birthday –and discovering that I loved teaching!

English teaching is a wonderful way to engage young people in thoughtful discussion about all sorts of important things, not the least of which is the human condition.

I loved being in the classroom and so think of myself as an ‘accidental Principal’. I have never been particularly ambitious or strategic about my career. Rather, I just tended to ‘tonk along’, loving what was doing each step of the way; and then opportunities seemed to jump up and hit me in the face!

I feel blessed to have had the various roles with which I have been entrusted over the years. I have especially fond memories of the role held at Toomelah Aboriginal Mission in northern NSW, teaching English to Aboriginal women aged 17 to 72, and of course the two Principalships I have so enjoyed. Now, when I reflect on the honour and privilege it has been to have worked for the past 10 years with the fabulously dedicated team of ASC staff and to have walked alongside our terrific young people, I have an overwhelming sense of hope, amidst the various and seemingly never-ending cycles of trouble in the world, that we are truly in good hands.

At the end of the day, that’s teaching: it feels like touching the future.

I’ve stepped out of education on a couple of occasions – being the co-owner of both a huge truckport and restaurant in northern NSW, and a crazily busy Italian café at Hillarys Boat Harbour. Those two experiences taught me a lot, including how much love working in education!

HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOUR LEADERSHIP PHILOSOPHY?

To me, leadership is all about serving others. I don’t see that there’s any room for ego in leadership. Rather, it’s about humility, about providing values-driven service to a community.

Once a community is united in its values and aligned in its forward trajectory, the leader’s role is pretty much to get out of the way. I have told the Board on more than one occasion that, increasingly, I am measuring my success in terms of my growing redundancy! Our staff and our students are all very capable and I feel my role is to serve those who are experts in their field. That may be teachers in the classroom, Facilities staff charged with caring for our grounds and buildings, our Finance team with their oversight of the prudent stewardship of our finances, and so on.

This same philosophy applies to empowering our students – giving them agency as the truly capable young citizens they are learning to be.

At the end of the day, I believe when things are going well, leaders need to look out the window at all the people who are responsible for such success and be appreciative of that. Conversely, when things are not going so well, leaders need to look in the mirror to explore what they might have done differently to achieve a better outcome.

IT IS OFTEN SAID BEING A SCHOOL PRINCIPAL IS A 24-HOUR, 7 DAYS A WEEK JOB. WHAT DO YOU DO TO ESCAPE FROM THE ROLE AND ITS RESPONSIBILITIES?

I know (and I am sure my husband Mark would agree) that I am not very good at ‘cutting off’ – I do tend to take home with me each night the various puzzles and challenges of the role. Mark and I try to go for a long walk each evening with our dog which can be a good way to wind down after a busy day.

Also, I love writing and I love studying, and so I can lose track of time and cut off from the day somewhat, when engaged in either of those activities.

Mark and I (along with our fur babies!) enjoy travelling down south to our holiday home as often as we can. I am a country girl at heart, having spent the first 12 years of my life in Albany, and we love WA’s south-west coast. We enjoy being in the bush and it’s an added bonus when Natalia, my step-daughter, also joins us down there.

WHAT HAVE BEEN SOME OF YOUR PROUDEST MOMENTS AS A SCHOOL PRINCIPAL, AND WHY DO THEY STAND OUT FOR YOU?

The proudest moments in my 20 years of being a Principal across two school settings tend to revolve around one common theme: when I see our students and young alumni using their skills and talents to make a positive difference in the world. It is so heartening to see students living their values, having the empathetic lenses that allow them to see societal injustices and so on, and then having the courage to do something about that – the head, heart and hands approach.

I feel that is certainly a great measure of success for any school community – seeing its students and alumni living meaningful lives and lives committed to making a positive difference in the world.

I also feel proud that ASC has had the courage to define and adhere to our own unique beliefs about how best a school serves its students, recognising the whole person – academically, physically, socially and spiritually. I think we can all feel proud that the College is nationally recognised as a progressive and innovative school, willing to do things differently, when needed, in our unswerving focus on what is in the immediate and long-term best interests of our young people.

WHAT HAVE BEEN SOME OF THE TOUGHEST CHALLENGES YOU’VE FACED AS A SCHOOL PRINCIPAL, AND HOW DID YOU OVERCOME THEM?

There is no doubt for me that the toughest times in this role are when our community members are suffering –perhaps an illness or the loss of a loved one. At such times, we can all feel somewhat powerless to alleviate the suffering of that person or that family. I gain enormous strength and comfort from our community, and I believe and hope that the grieving family does also, as our community wraps itself around them.

Helping to navigate the College and community through the pandemic definitely had its challenging moments and I very much appreciated the support of our fabulous Leadership Team who were needing to meet daily, due to the volatility of the situation. The College’s staff were truly amazing throughout COVID-19, tireless in their efforts to see our community through it. I admired how our students embraced the notion of finding opportunity within challenge – such a great life skill, and one that brought us, as staff, joy on a daily basis. I also appreciated how many ASC parents were in touch with positive feedback about how we were managing the COVID-19 situation. While no one does their job in order to receive praise, we all appreciated hearing from our families and felt so buoyed and supported by them.

WHAT LIES AHEAD IN EDUCATION AND AT ASC?

It is an exciting time to be in education and I feel pleased, though never complacent, about the trajectory All Saints’ College is on and about our community’s willingness to embrace change. In Australia and across the world, we are starting to see significant shifts towards the reality that a quality education is so much more than a number, and I am very proud of the work our College staff have been doing in this regard – truly ‘first-movers’, as the University of Melbourne describes us! Our commitment to seeing the whole person, to be piloting the ground-breaking work of actively teaching, measuring and reporting on our young people’s capabilities, is one of the most significant shifts in education in the past century.

Also, while COVID-19 may have slowed down some of our plans to continue to develop the College’s facilities, we are now in a position to progress those plans. It has been pleasing to see our new Facilities Operations Centre underway and the expansion of the Junior School car park. We are also excited to be embarking upon the construction of a childcare centre which has been years in the researching and planning stage, and which will be embraced, I am sure, by College staff and the wider community.