Staff Spotlight

Brett Speed – Programmer

“For me, success is not about the wins and losses. It’s about helping these young fellas be the best versions of themselves on and off the field. ” —Ted Lasso (TV Show)

Welcome to Monterey Brett! What do you enjoy most about working at Monterey?

Thank you! It’s hard to pick a singular thing and while the staff team is amazing, I’d have to say having the ability to impact and play a role in the development and fostering of the amazing community at the Monterey Recreation Centre. Some of my favourite parts of the working day are walking past the Fern Café and seeing people spilling out of our programs to continue their conversations that started during their classes.

What is involved in being the Adult Programmer?

In short terms, I am responsible for developing and ensuring the delivery of the large variety of programs at Monterey Recreation Centre. My programming thesis is that all our programs at Monterey should be fun, inclusive, and provide lifelong learning opportunities! On a day-today basis, I supervise and work with all our amazing instructors, ensuring that our programs are running as smoothly as possible. The job consists of lots of communication, creativity and problem solving. It’s never a dull day at Monterey! What most people don’t know is that the programs you’re enjoying now were planned and developed at least 6 to 8 months ago! We’re always thinking at least 6 months ahead!

There is such a wide selection of courses at the Centre. Where do you find the instructors?

Through a variety of mediums! Many of our instructors are found through conventional hiring processes, others are found through doing research and looking for specialists in a particular field, others simply have walked into Monterey with an idea of a program that they’d like to deliver! We are always looking for new and exciting program ideas, so if you’re reading this and have something you’d like to deliver don’t hesitate to reach out!

What are the top three most popular courses?

I’d say at the Monterey Centre we really have 3 strong pillars that continue to be increasingly popular. These would be our Group Fitness, Art, and Yoga classes! Some specific examples of programs in these categories are our Essentrics Aging Backwards ™ classes, Pen and Ink, and Strength and Yoga!