2019 NGS Super Scholarship Awards - Meet the Winners

NGS Super is delighted to announce the winners of the 2019 NGS Super Scholarship awards.

This year’s winning applications will see six recipients embark on a range of professional development courses focused on enriching student wellbeing, upskilling in vital areas of learning, innovating student workspaces and forging connections with overseas schools.

The awards, now in their ninth year, recognise the staff of non-government schools who are actively working on their career development, while also contributing to their direct communities and the wider education sector.

The six winners of NGS Super’s $5,000 scholarships are:

Yvonne Terweeme, Management, Bethany Catholic Primary School (NSW)

Yvonne is a teacher at Bethany Catholic Primary school and wants to develop her knowledge and skills to better serve the indigenous and wider community. Yvonne will use her award winnings to undertake a Stronger Smarter Leadership Program, where she will increase her leadership capabilities and work towards her goal of incorporating Indigenous language into the programs and culture of her school. Yvonne has initiated contact with the CEDP indigenous unit Jarara to plan and implement ways that her community can support a remote indigenous school in Wilcannia NSW.

Keith Halpin, Teacher, Ambrose Treacy College (EREA) (QLD)

As a teacher in the Edmund Rice Network, Keith is passionate about teaching through a lens of compassion and justice for all, creating a hope-filled future for students. Keith will use his scholarship winnings to develop an ‘immersion program’, aiming to foster connections between teachers and students to encourage greater self-awareness. The program will support students to push boundaries, challenge themselves, and reapply learnings into their own lives.

Adem Aydogan, Teacher, Amity College (NSW)

Adem has a keen interest in humanitarian work and STEM and has found a way to combine the two. He will use his scholarship to travel to Papua New Guinea with his students to run a series of robotics workshops at a school he has an established relationship with. While students work together with their global peers, Adem will upskill local teachers in using robotics kits and teaching strategies and plans to donate a robotics kit to the school. Adem hopes this will set a precedent for future work.

Vicky Jones, Teacher, Kings Baptist Grammar School (SA)

Vicky runs and coordinates pastoral programs at King’s Baptist Grammar School. She has a keen interest in student wellbeing programs and hopes to see students develop their confidence .Vicky travelled to Tasmania to assist with the development of Oasis, a guided resource for secondary students that addresses the subject of identity, taking the participants on a journey of unpacking what identity is, how it is formed and how it affects students physical and emotional wellbeing. Vicky plans to share her award winnings to create two new resources to support Oasis, across primary and senior schools.

Andrew McMillan, Teacher, Frensham (NSW)

As a STEM coordinator and Design Technology teacher at Frensham, Andrew is committed to getting more girls interested in STEM based subjects, to broaden their prospective career opportunities. Andrew will use his scholarship award winnings to travel to Adelaide to be a guest judge at The Subs in School Technology Challenge, a program run by Re-Engineering Australia, where he will have the opportunity to immerse himself in all aspects of the challenge and deepen his knowledge of underwater robotics.

Carla Gagliano, Teacher, Masada College (NSW)

Carla is passionate about best practice pedagogy to ensure that all her students have authentic and engaging experiences. Carla will use her scholarship award winnings to undertake two online courses which will explore the power of playful learning for junior students and the benefits of a maker-centred classroom. Once she has completed these courses, Carla will begin developing a dedicated maker space at Masada College, and plans to connect with other schools in her community so they can share learnings and experience the space firsthand.

The Judges’ Choice award winner, Yvonne Terweeme, said it was a dream come true to win the scholarship.

“Instilling High-Expectations Relationships will be vital to improving educational outcomes for school children, particularly for indigenous students.

“The Stronger Smarter Leadership course will equip me with valuable tools that I can pass on to my students as well as my colleagues and the wider community to ensure that everyone is able to get involved, unlock their confidence and work towards being their best selves."