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House of Assembly - Fifty-Second Parliament, First Session (52-1)
2011-02-10 Daily Xml
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PRIMARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS

Mrs GERAGHTY (Torrens) (15:57): Today I wish to speak about the achievements of two highly-committed educators who, sadly for me and my electorate, have moved on—not retired but moved to other schools, so I want to make some comments about them.

Sharon Broadbent, who was the former principal of Northfield Primary School and is now the principal of Burnside Primary School; and Angela Falkenberg, principal of Hampstead Primary School and is now the principal of Lake Windemere CPC-7 school. Both of these two wonderful women are dedicated, hardworking individuals who are committed to the education and development of our youth.

On Australia Day this year Sharon Broadbent was awarded the Public Service Medal, an honour which was truly well deserved. Sharon commenced her appointment as principal of Northfield in 2002 at a time when the school was considered by some dysfunctional, with a disconnect between the school and its community. This happens in a number of schools but, referring to Northfield, we had problems with unruly students, which is disruptive in the classroom.

Through Sharon's leadership and with the support of her fantastic staff—and they are absolutely fantastic—and committed parents, the school has been completely transformed. In 2003 and 2004, Northfield Primary School's reception class won the national maths challenge award. In 2006, the reception, year 3 and the year 6/7 classes were state winners of the national maths challenge. The reception and the year 6/7 classes went on to be national winners of the national maths challenge that year.

The school continues to maintain high educational standards due to Sharon's focus on literacy and numeracy development. Northfield Primary School, as a category 2 school, has outperformed many category 7 schools. The school has a rich cultural diversity—and I have spoken of that in the house on a number of occasions—which includes both staff and students from some 42 different nationalities including our Aboriginal community, Vietnamese, Arabic, African, Indian and French communities, as well as numerous other backgrounds.

In 2008, Northfield Primary School was formally recognised as a Save The Children Alliance United Nations Global Peace School, and it was awarded the United Nations flag and a certificate in recognition of its achievements, and I think that is truly a fantastic achievement. Sharon has also been the driving force in the growth of the student voice. As an example, in 2009, students from the school were invited to speak at the European Union World Education Forum in Italy, which was incredibly exciting.

Angela Falkenberg commenced at Hampstead Primary School in 2005 and she, too, was a driving force. With the support of the school's governing council, she saw the establishment of a preschool on the Hampstead primary site, and she was completely dedicated in driving that. Angela also worked tirelessly to have the school win a Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden school grant, which has allowed the school to establish a kitchen and garden complete with chooks—sadly, some of which were pinched one night, but have now been replaced.

Hampstead Primary School is an ideal location for the Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden Program as the school works proactively to support the needs of students and families, especially those that experience poverty, unemployment and those with the challenge of settling into a new country, or, sadly, experiencing a family crisis such as domestic violence. I know our new principal will continue to drive the school and the students so that they achieve to their best potential. Through Angela's tutelage, the school has undertaken many other programs such as a walking group and volunteer community mentoring program.

As the member for Torrens, I have been extremely privileged to work with these two wonderful women. I have had firsthand experience of the tremendous contribution that they have made, both for the care and education of our young kids, and I want to congratulate both of them on the excellent work that they have done, and wish them extremely well in their new school environment. I know that those schools will value their input. I certainly look forward to working with the new principals of both those schools, and I think our students have been exceptionally lucky to have these two fine women in their place.

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