Catholic Education Wilcannia-Forbes and Alphacrucis College partner for Teaching School Hub, Forbes

The initiative is a partnership between Catholic Education Wilcannia-Forbes and Alphacrucis College, which will give Catholic School support staff, high school leavers and interested members of the community the opportunity to work part-time in a school support role while they complete a teaching degree.

Deputy Director of Catholic Education, Mary-Ellen Dempsey said the strategy aimed to address the challenges of staff shortages currently affecting western NSW Catholic schools by providing highly trained, workplace-ready graduates for the future.

READ ALSO:

"We are confident that by training people from our communities, their lifelong ambitions will be to remain in those communities, continuing to enjoy the wonderful lifestyle that regional communities have to offer," she said.

"We are also acutely aware that the experience undergraduate teachers gain in schools is invaluable. We believe the role of a student-teacher will benefit everyone, the experienced teachers they work with, our students and the community as a whole.

The Teaching Schools Model flips the conventional model of teacher training, by bringing fully accredited higher education onsite to Wilcannia-Forbes Catholic schools.

Students will be employed in Catholic Education Wilcannia-Forbes schools as part-time support staff providing them with in-the-classroom experience and invaluable support from teaching staff during their study.

"Their work will be a tremendous support to hard-working professionals both in the learning spaces and in terms of preparation, resourcing and organisation. We are very excited about the possibilities," Ms Dempsey said.

Catholic Education Wilcannia-Forbes' recruitment and liaison coordinator Carmen Walsh recruitment had begun for a Catholic Education Wilcannia-Forbes teaching school manager for the hub, which will be based in Forbes.

Responsibilities will include establishing, coordinating, monitoring and evaluating the quality and continuous improvement of the Catholic Education Wilcannia-Forbes Teaching Schools program.

The successful candidate will also be responsible for the strategic leadership of the partnership between Alphacrucis College and the Catholic Education Wilcannia-Forbes Teaching Schools Hub, and provide ongoing support to trainees throughout their study.

"Specifically the role focuses on proactively supporting trainees who are enrolled in our Catholic Education Wilcannia-Forbes Teaching Schools Program," Ms Walsh said.

The Diocese of Wilcannia-Forbes is geographically large and diverse and includes eighteen schools in an area occupying half of NSW.

To find out more about the developing Catholic Education Wilcannia-Forbes Teaching School Hub, contact Carmen Walsh at recruitment@wf.catholic.edu .