Our Contributors

Dan Brown

Dan Brown has been working at Pymble for more than six years. A teacher in the Junior School for four years, he has applied his passion for technology and creative thinking in many areas, including co-coordinating STEM initiatives, running a Junior School Robotics program and being involved in many extension opportunities across a range of key learning areas. Dan is now a Digital Learning Leader from Kindergarten to Year 12. Fascinated and in many cases excited by the direction and change the future is bringing, he endeavours to inspire the next generation of problem-solvers and provide them with the agile thinking skills, community-minded approach and positivity they will need to be the creators and innovators of the future.

Dan Brown DIGITAL LEARNING LEADER

Zoë CallisterHakewill

After graduating from Pymble Ladies’ College in 2013, Zoë studied at the University of Sydney where she completed a Bachelor of Medical Science, a Master of International Public Health and a Master of Health Law. She is in her third year of Psychology at Macquarie University, where she also works in the Cognitive Science Department as a Research Officer under the supervision of Dr Bianca De Wit. Their team is currently investigating brain health in athletes competing in highcontact sports and employing the principles of neuroscience and neurophysiology to develop an objective measure for brain health through mobile electroencephalogram (EEG) technology. Zoë is passionate about employing biotechnology to improve future health outcomes and strives to promote STEM pathways to young women and is looking to continue her tertiary studies through a PhD. Zoë Callister-Hakewill RESEARCH OFFICER, COGNITIVE SCIENCE AND PSYCHOLOGY, MACQUARIE UNIVERSITY / PYMBLE EX-STUDENT

Stuart Clark

Stuart Clark is the Director of Experiential Learning at Pymble Ladies’ College. Stuart has worked at Pymble since 2013 in a number of roles in the Pymble Cocurricular program. He holds Master’s degrees in both Teaching and Adult Education, Diplomas in Outdoor Recreation and Work Health and Safety, and Certificate IVs in Vocational Education and Training and Emergency Medical Response. Prior to joining the team at Pymble, Stuart ran his own emergency response consultancy and training business and worked in Outdoor Education, which saw him working for many school Outdoor and Experiential Learning programs. Stuart’s passions at work involve bringing exciting and challenging programs to life for students and observing the resulting personal growth. He is passionate about reconnecting students to the wilderness – developing a sense of stewardship for our natural world is key in this pursuit. Stuart Clark DIRECTOR OF EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING

Katrina Cluff

Katrina Cluff started her teaching career at Pymble in 2008, teaching Elective Dance and Drama and the Co-curricular Dance Program. She has continued to apply her passion for Dance to develop programs that suit the students of the College. She has choreographed several musicals, HSC Dance pieces and is also a marker for Dance in the HSC. She is incredibly proud of all of the achievements of the RAD Ballet, Eisteddfod and HSC Dance students; a highlight was achieving first, third and fourth positions in the State in 2018 and attaining more than 60 nominations for Callback. Katrina has been honoured to receive two different Professional Learning Grants at the College, which allowed her to visit Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre (2010) for a teacher intensive, and to Copenhagen and Denmark in 2014 to present at an International Dance Conference. In 2019 Katrina completed her Master of Education (Educational Psychology). Katrina Cluff HEAD OF DANCE

Bianca de Wit

Dr Bianca de Wit is a pioneering academic who is using commercial and portable technology in education and research. While she underpins her teaching principles with practical research skills obtained from her background in Psychology (Erasmus University Rotterdam in the Netherlands) and her PhD in Cognitive Science (Macquarie University), it has ultimately been her specialisation in integrating mobile neurogaming technology into undergraduate cognitive neuroscience curricula that has made her a multiaward-winning educator. Internationally recognised as an innovative learning and teaching strategist, she has also been invited to the University of Washington in St Louis (WUSTL) and the University of Exeter to replicate her cuttingedge cognitive neuroscience labs. In addition to managing her responsibilities as Director of Undergraduate Studies at Macquarie University, Bianca continues to apply her expertise in investigating the brain processes that underpin the ability to read words as well as using mobile neurogaming technology to study brain health in female sports players. Dr Bianca de Wit LECTURER AND DIRECTOR OF UNDERGRADUATE STUDIES, COGNITIVE SCIENCE, MACQUARIE UNIVERSITY

Alexandra Ibbotson

Lexi Ibbotson graduated from Pymble Ladies’ College in 2012 and, since that time, has worked at the College’s Out of School Hours Care Centre (OSHC). She has completed her formal qualifications with a Certificate IV and Diploma in School Aged Education and Care. Lexi is inspired by the creativity within children and their ability to make anything from virtually anything. She also loves working with educators from different areas of the College including current students who assist in OSHC, former students now studying at university who work in OSHC, classroom teachers and College leaders. She spends as much time as possible with her family and in the outdoors, such as at the beach.

Alexandra Ibbotson OSHC ASSISTANT CO-ORDINATOR / EDUCATIONAL LEADER / PYMBLE EX-STUDENT

Katie Jackson

Katie Jackson is a passionate Mathematics teacher and has a deep-seated belief that all students can learn and understand maths. She began her teaching career at Campbelltown Performing Arts High School where she held the position of Year Advisor for Year 7 and this is where she learned about the social and emotional hardships encountered by many students in this area. After working in a number of schools, Katie has been teaching at Pymble for the last two years. Katie has a strong desire to understand cognitive science and the emerging area of neuroscience, and in using these frameworks to understand the way we learn. She is never satisfied with her lessons and is always trying to find better ways to teach Mathematics to enhance her students’ understanding. She uses her research to help her students achieve to the highest level. Katie has a strong interest in using technology to enhance learning in the classroom and has presented on ‘Flipped Learning’ and STEM in mathematics at educational conferences.

Katie Jackson MATHEMATICS TEACHER / PYMBLE EX-STUDENT

Sarah Loch

Dr Sarah Loch is the Director of Research and Development at Pymble and a member of the History, Society and Ethics faculty, where she teaches History. She has been teaching English and History and working in pastoral care leadership in K to 12 schools for more than 20 years. She currently teaches Year 10 Big History and loves helping her students with their research and academic writing. Sarah has also taught Drama and Literacy at primary school level and Undergraduate and Postgraduate in teacher education at university. Prior to working at Pymble, Sarah was a member of the School of Education team at the University of Technology Sydney, where she remains an Industry Associate for the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Sarah is committed to enhancing diverse and impactful educational practices by supporting teachers to engage in, conduct and communicate their own research.

Dr Sarah Loch DIRECTOR OF RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT

Bryan Morrison

Bryan Morrison has been teaching Mathematics since 2004 when he commenced at Pymble Ladies’ College. Prior to his teaching career, Bryan held many interesting jobs including in retail, a courier driver, a linesman and a chainman in the State Rail Authority and a customer engineer in the photocopier division of Canon Australia. Bryan has also coached his son’s soccer team, taught Sunday School at St Andrew’s St Ives and cleaned and serviced swimming pools locally. Bryan believes maths is important because it is fundamental to many situations in life and is a different way of thinking and problem solving. His goal as a teacher is to dispel any dislike of Mathematics by demonstrating the practical aspects of the subject. Bryan’s other responsibilities at the College have included being a Middle School Connect teacher, assisting with Homework Help in the Library for many years, and leading as an Officer of Cadets in the Pymble Ladies’ College Cadet Unit. Bryan Morrison MATHEMATICS TEACHER

Kristie Spence

Dr Kristie Spence is the Head of Learning Area – Science. Her love of Science goes back as far as she can remember. It was a rare occasion when Kristie wasn’t pondering a question about how the world worked. After achieving Undergraduate and Honours degrees in Physics and Chemistry, Kristie’s passion for knowledge was not yet satisfied, so she set out to undertake her Doctorate at the University of Oxford where she successfully combined her passion for both Physics and Chemistry in the development of solid-state lasers and their applications. Kristie progressed to Post-Doctoral research at University College London examining the use of light to diagnose and treat cancer. Since 2007, Kristie has taught Chemistry and Physics where she is driven to pass on her passion for Science to the next generation. Her career highlights include enhancing the engagement of girls in STEM, in both her own Physics classroom and in initiatives such as the STEM Games and the Pymble Robotics Program. Kristie continues to devise.

Dr Kristie Spence HEAD OF LEARNING AREA – SCIENCE

Fi Stevenson

Fi Stevenson brings a K to 6 teaching background to her leadership role as Pymble’s Out of School Hours Care Co-ordinator. With her passion for providing opportunities for children in the out of school hours environment ignited, she moved out of the classroom to embrace the Out of School Hours Care (OSHC) sector full time. Fi has now been co-ordinating OSHC centres for 30 years. She believes unstructured play is necessary for the growth of creativity, academic achievement and healthy wellbeing in children. Fi enjoys undertaking her own creative projects through DIY building projects, watching live music and swimming. Fi Stevenson OSHC CO-ORDINATOR

Ryan Stewart

Ryan Stewart commenced teaching History and Modern History at Pymble in 2015. He specialises in Ancient History and the study of historiography. His PhD research is in the area of memories of contact between settler-colonists and First Nations peoples on the Australian frontier. He is passionate about connecting students to the study of History to ensure they become active and informed Australian and global citizens. His goal as a teacher is to always engage students through dynamic teaching and the building of meaningful rapport with students. His other responsibilities at Pymble Ladies’ College have included the role of Student Coordinator and he is currently the Thomas House Leader.

Ryan Stewart HISTORY TEACHER