Scholarship success

Five education students who won scholarships to complete their practicum teacher training in Far North Queensland have gone on to gain employment in the Cairns Diocese.

The five Brisbane Campus students spent six weeks in Far North Queensland earlier this year after each winning a Cairns Catholic Education Scholarship offered by the Cairns Catholic Education Service (CES).

The scholarships assisted students Emily Jinks, Adam Halliday, Lara Gill, Leah Bool and Grace Stephens with accommodation, transportation, food allowance and ongoing support throughout their placements. All five have now been offered teaching roles within the Cairns Diocese next year.

“They all went through the normal interview process and were successful,” Director Leadership and Professional Learning at CES Vicki Bell said.“It’s good because they’ve already been here, they already know what it means to be a teacher in the Diocese of Cairns and all of them have been at least partially through our induction process.”

“So in the end, what it means is that when they arrive they’re not trying to find their feet. They will be able to walk into the schools and get started teaching immediately.”

Student Emily Jinks completed her practicum teaching training at St Thomas’ Mareeba and said winning the scholarship had opened new doors for her.

“While I would have looked for teaching opportunities in Cairns and the region after graduation, I never thought about going there to do my prac before the opportunity for a scholarship came up,” she said.

“We could do rural prac, but it always had to be on our own accord and at our own expense. So when the scholarship came up it was a fantastic opportunity.

“I absolutely loved my time there,” Emily said.

“It was an amazing opportunity to be able to do something like this with the support of Cairns Catholic Education. I would highly recommend doing prac in the far north to other ACU students.”

CES will again be offering five scholarships for ACU education students next year, including a mix of primary and secondary school placements.

The CES will also be managing a scholarship on behalf of the Cairns Diocese, who will sponsor one student from the Bachelor of Early Childhood program to undertake a placement in Outside School Hours Care and kindergarten programs within the diocese.