Southern Vales Christian College

The Hon. R.L. BROKENSHIRE (16:29): I rise to express my gratitude and appreciation to the Southern Vales Christian College, both campuses (the one at Morphett Vale and also the one at Aldinga). Mr Acting President, you would recall that when Mr Stuart Leggett was member for Ashford he went on from this parliament to become a senior educator at the Aldinga campus.

In November last year I was again invited to the 2015 seniors presentation night, and for that I am grateful. It is very invigorating when you go to the presentation night to listen to a very committed and dedicated Ms Jenny Nelson, principal of the Southern Vales Christian College, and also Mr Les Kowald, and to see such committed teachers, educators and such enthusiastic and energetic young people, many of whom are about to complete their time at the Southern Vales Christian College and then go on to the next stage of their future.

It is great to have a choice in education, be it public or independent and, in my opinion, particularly when you have the choice of a Christian education. The Southern Vales Christian College stands out as one of those great colleges that is committed to an all-round education for young people. I also want to pay tribute to Pastor Martyn Manuel who is the head pastor at the Harvest Australia Church, which is on the adjoining campus to the Southern Vales Christian College, Morphett Vale campus. He is also the head of the board, and he should be proud of himself and his board for the work they are also doing. Martyn follows on from his father Pastor  Barry Manuel, who has worked tirelessly since the inception of the Southern Vales Christian College.

I have seen a lot of great opportunities for South Australia come out of that college. I have had one of the students become a trainee in my office and they were one of the better trainees we have had. They have gone on to bigger and better things as well. This college offers a very focused high-achieving academic year 12 SACE course, but it also offers excellent vocational education and training courses including what is very beneficial to the south, that is, educating young people in hospitality and tourism. It is also great to see that Ms Sandra Scott, executive officer for South Australia of the Christian Schools Australia, also supports this college.

Music and sport are also a focus of the college and, as I say, over the 20-plus years that I have been associated with the Southern Vales Christian College, I have seen some great work being done in that school. These students are all residents of the south. Some of them go interstate or even overseas to further enhance their life experiences and career, but many of them know the great opportunities in the southern region, and after finishing college and other education they have settled down to be great long-term contributors to the south.

As I said at the beginning, parents deserve an opportunity, as do students, for a choice of education. I believe we have a good balance in South Australia between public and private, and I see some excellent education opportunities occurring at both. On this occasion, I particularly want to say how great this college is and they should hold their head up very proudly indeed. The other thing they strongly teach these young people is how to integrate into the community, how to help each other in the community, and, of course, the Christian values that the college is founded on. That adds to auguring well for those students throughout their life.

I finish by saying that I have worked with a number of very committed and dedicated principals in this college. At the end of the day, in my opinion, the school is only as good as its senior leadership, and I commend Ms Jenny Nelson, a much-loved principal of those campuses, for the incredible work she does in leading what is an excellent education team for the Southern Vales Christian College.