THE OGS

The OG’s Jen Petrie

In my two and a bit years of being at Avondale, four words come to mind to describe Jenifer Petrie’s vibe: calm, orderly, sophisticated and composed. If you are a student, you may have seen her around, in Café Rejuve, her office (located in College hall), or just walking around campus – which would have been a result of a meeting she was either going to or leaving from. On a sunny Thursday afternoon during the January break, I was able to catch her in a quiet moment between meetings to ask her a few questions, get to know her a little more, and get her opinions on a few controversial topics voiced by students.

CAN YOU TELL US A LITTLE BIT ABOUT

YOURSELF? Ok, so my name is Jenifer Petrie; I am married to Kevin Petrie and have two children. One of them is married, is a registered nurse, and is starting their life in Coffs Harbour. I also have a daughter –Dana, a teacher at Ipswich Adventist School in Brisbane. Both children came through Avondale College and loved their experience. It is where they found their vocational calling and cemented themselves spiritually. They both had great Avondale experiences.

WHAT ARE SOME OF YOUR PASSIONS/ HOBBIES AND

INTERESTS? I am passionate about the hospitality area, getting people together. I love the food, having people around the table and providing a wonderful dining experience. I love going out walking with my dogs, sunset strolls along the beach, knitting, interior design and reading when I can get the chance.

DO YOU HAVE A FAVOURITE SPOT? I tend

to try places like Trinity Point or Newcastle because it reminds me of the Melbourne vibe. Before coming here, we lived in Melbourne for six years, and I just loved the food and café culture. I find that Newcastle is my Melbourne fix in terms of the food and the cafes.

WHAT IS YOUR POSITION HERE AT

AVONDALE? My position is Director of Student Life Services. It is a department set up to support and enrich the students by providing a range of nonacademic services and amenities. So for us, that looks like three threads that come out of student life services. These strands are called ‘life after five’, which incorporates social life, sporting life, and another little pocket called ‘learn to thrive’. This consists of counselling, equity, tutors and our new student mentors program. The entire concept around this is to connect the students to the Avondale community, which leads to connecting to the Avondale experience. While we recognise that academics are essential, we also realise that it is important to have a life outside of that. We feed into these social hubs that we have created, for example, College hall and the study area outside of the bookstore (which isn’t quite finished – but are working towards it). We are working to develop these student hub spaces, and we encourage students to get together, meet and connect. We wanted to achieve a multi-purpose space to help facilitate that community.

WHAT WERE SOME OF YOUR PREVIOUS

POSITIONS? I initially came to College in 2014 as the girl’s dean, I then came back in 2016 to do that same position, and then in 2017 to be the director of student life services. But before Avondale, I was in the public university sector, working in accommodation and student life, which I was a part of for 17 years. I find that this role is familiar territory.

WHAT DID YOU ENJOY MOST WHILE WORKING AS THE GIRL’S DEAN? I loved

working as the girl’s dean for Ella Boyd; I enjoyed being witness to the student’s transformation. Seeing someone coming in as shy, reserved and not too sure what they are capable of, then seeing them blossom and finding platforms where their voice will be

heard, developed, and they can use that. The next thing you know, they are up the front and leading out – using their talents. Helping the girl’s and their transformation process come through and then going out and making a difference in their world I found special. Another thing that I particularly enjoyed was sharing the joys of those who had their significant other pop the question, or for those sharing that they got a job, I thought it was really lovely to be a part of that.

WHILE BEING AT AVONDALE, WHAT HAVE BEEN SOME OF YOUR FAVOURITE

MEMORIES? Recently, in this particular role, it’s things like graduation, it may seem a bit odd, but just sharing in the joy with students when they get their certificates and get through. For some students, I have been privy to their stories and their struggles, and I feel like that silent proud parent going you did it, you got through – so those moments stick firmly in my head. Other memories would be just seeing people being transformed through the spiritual programs, in particular, Festival of Faith. Seeing them decide they want to commit their life to God, using their talents and abilities, seeing them step and make that commitment brings me a lot of joy.

HAVE YOU SEEN A CHANGE IN THE COMMUNITY BETWEEN GENDERS SINCE OPEN DORMS HAVE BEEN

CANCELLED? I found this an interesting question; from my perspective, I would say no. The purpose of open dorms was to create an alternative meeting place for residential students. So I guess with that now being cancelled, girls can still bring their girlfriends into Ella Boyd, and the Boys can bring their guy friends into Watson (now it has since changed with the COVID restrictions), so that aspect hasn’t changed. When I look at Avondale with what we have to offer and create spaces to connect, we have quite a few of these spaces outside the res halls. For example, in Watson Hall, the foyer is a public space, so guys and girls can still meet there and hang out. We have beautiful spaces around campus, and we are developing these student hubs now. We have ‘Snack Shack’ that opens right through till midnight, and I see the Auditorium as a connection point. From my perspective, I feel they are not disadvantaged because there are so many other options.

WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON SPLITTING THE DORM AND FOOD FEES FOR ‘ON CAMPUS’ STUDENTS? IS THIS SOMETHING THAT STUDENTS CAN EXPECT

SOON? One of our visions, as part of the overall arch of Student Life Services, is to provide accommodation options that meet the student’s needs. We very much advocated strongly to create independent living options for students, so think of the student cottages, Ella house, and Watson house. Another thing that we realised is important if you want to attract students to live on campus, you need to provide accommodation options. I have been advocating very strongly for that very question behind the scenes to split the accommodation from the meal package, not forcing everyone through the same accommodation package. With our recent renovations in the Ella Boyd kitchens, I feel like it’s a step in the right direction to get that setup. In my response to your question on whether I think it’s something that students can expect shortly, I am hopeful.

FINALLY, WHAT WOULD BE SOME TIPS/TRICKS THAT YOU WOULD GIVE STUDENTS TO ENSURE THEY HAVE THE ‘ULTIMATE AVONDALE

XP’? In our last interviews for student leadership in 2021, one of the questions I asked the students was “, we talk about this Avondale experience, what is it, what does it feel like and what it means to you?” What came out of that very clearly was the sense of belonging and connectedness, and I thought that was incredible. To get the ultimate experience, I think, is to come and live on campus, even if it is just for one semester because there is so much happening there. I would also say to get involved! I know for many people, and even I would have found it hard to do that. Back to my younger self, I would be way too shy and embarrassed because I didn’t have the confidence to get up there in things like singing or playing a little piano. College has a lot of opportunities to get involved through sport, spiritual programs and even with your friends exploring new places like New Castle or Sydney Central, going to Catho’s or even just the 2 am Macca runs. So yeah, I would say if you can live on campus and get involved as much as possible. Make the most of it because your years here will go incredibly quickly and embrace the good stuff while it’s here.