FLAME - Flexibility in the Education Workspace

The structure of school leadership has remained essentially unchanged for decades, yet the density, complexity and high expectations of school leadership roles continue to escalate.

Many outstanding teachers and leaders are choosing not to put their hand up for executive leadership roles and an even smaller pool are willing to consider School Principal roles. Yes, people are responding to the advertisements for leadership positions in schools, but are we attracting the very best applicants? Are we selecting the best of the best?

If senior leadership roles in schools are not sufficiently attractive to aspiring leaders, then let us reflect on the challenges and come up with innovative solutions! There are no quick fixes, but we need an openness and willingness to challenge conventional norms.

Despite the fact that the Principal is usually the only person in direct contact with the Board, never underestimate the power of conversations to inspire the courage and willingness to share new, well-formed ideas in appropriate forums.

If we don’t begin to challenge leadership norms, the quality of education of future generations of young Australians will be affected.

There are very few examples of Co (Dual) executive leadership operating in Australian Schools and there are only a few examples globally and hence there is very little research in this area.

We are excited to be bringing you two examples at our next gathering of dual leadership to spark your imagination around what might be possible in your schools.

This is just the start of the conversation, as we seek to flourish in our roles. Within Christian Schools, we have an opportunity to begin to show the way.

This event will be held online using Zoom technology for the first hour.

After the online event, we encourage you to continue meeting together with other female leaders in your school or local area, and we will provide you with the materials to facilitate your discussions.

3:45pm to 5:15pm AEST: Scheduled event 

Check the additional program options and add-on events, below, as there may also be an in-person gathering for your State:

Recordings in 2024 - if you are not able to attend the event LIVE online, please still register for the event and you will receive a link to the recording after the event and the ongoing discussion questions.

Colleagues in WA, join us following the LIVE online event for afternoon tea with Jennifer Argue. It is a continuation of the event, so we will move into this session immediately following the LIVE online event, which concludes at 2:45pm AWST. The event will be held at 1 Padbury Tce in Midland in the SCEA Training Room.

Dietary requirements for all registrations for this afternoon tea must be sent to the WA office no later than 9am on the 6 May.

You will have an opportunity to select this add-on at registration.

Colleagues in SA, you are invited to join us at our Term 2, SA Flame Dinner. This dinner is an opportunity for women and men to meet face-to-face following this online event at 3:15pm ACST to discuss the issues raised during the online gathering.

Head over to the event page to learn more about the SA FLAME Dinner and secure your seat today!

There are two ways to register for this event.

You may wish to register and attend the event by yourself (individual registration), or you may wish to gather together with some colleagues and participate in the event as a group (group registration). All registrations for this event are available to staff from member and non-member schools.

Individual Registrations: $25 +GST for members   |   $35 +GST for non-members
Group Registrations: $50 +GST for member schools   |   $80 +GST for non-member schools (unlimited number of colleagues can attend).

How to register for a group and provide CPD for you and your colleagues:
You will need to appoint one person from your school as the contact person. This school contact will need to login to their CSA account and register for the event, selecting the group option. After the event, the school contact will need to provide the list of people who attended from your school, including their name and email address. This list will need to be sent to [email protected]. CPD will be attributed post-event to the attendees and certificates made available on their member dashboard. For more information about CPD, see the section below.

Presenter: Jennifer Argue

Jennifer has been an executive leader in the education sector since 1998. Presently an Executive Consultant with AVENIR Leadership Institute, she has served there since her retirement in Aug 2021 from the role of Executive Principal at Carey Baptist College College where she served in several Principal roles from 1998 as the school grew to a large multicampus College. Jen is passionate about creating cultures where people can flourish and find a community of connection and belonging. In the knowledge that organisational culture is powerfully influenced by leadership, she is committed to developing courageous and compassionate leaders who create and sustain flourishing communities. Jennifer has extensive experience on state and national boards and is regularly engaged as a coach and mentor to executive leaders. During her time as Principal, Jen had the opportunity to work in Co-Principal and co-executive roles, so she has much to contribute to our conversation.

Case Study: Co-Principalship

Lance Holt School - Fremantle WA.

 

This event is hosted by Jill Healey, Executive Officer, Leadership Development and Jess Kapitola, Social Media and Project Development

This event attracts CPD hours according to the following AITSL professional teacher and leadership standards:

6.1 - Identify and plan professional learning needs
6.3 - Engage with colleagues and improve leadership practice
7.4 - Engage with professional leadership networks and broader communities
» Leading teaching and learning
» Developing self and others 
» Engaging and working with leadership teams and the community

This event also attracts CPD hours according to the following Christian Distinctive professional standards:

6A - Engage in professional learning which aids in the development of a philosophy of Christian education based in biblical principals
7A - Knowledge about and engagement with the school, its Christian ethos and vision
7B - Contributes to the development of distinctive Christian practice in the school, profession and the wider community

Want to learn more about the CSA Christian Distinctive Focus areas? Click here.

Cancellation must be in writing to the organisers. Please note, no refunds will be issued after 3 days out from the event. Any cancellations made after this date will be charged the full registration fee. 'No Shows' to the event will be charged the full registration fee. 

The event program is subject to change without prior notice.

The FLAME network meets nationally on Zoom and locally at a State level to continue to inspire, support and challenge Christian women in leadership in Christian education. We are blessed to have so many talented and competent female leaders in Christian education, but we are still only tapping the surface of this potential. The purpose of FLAME is to inspire and encourage women to understand that students and teachers need them to step up by realising their strengths and capacities and responding to the call. 

FLAME is a network for women to support their journey into and through leadership at all levels within a school context, either at management or board level. Come and join a passionate group of women on Zoom to continue to inspire, support and challenge Christian women in leadership in Christian education. If you are a male leader, you are welcome to be one of our champions by attending yourself and/or encouraging a female leader on your board or school management team or an aspiring leader to connect into this network.

The FLAME network will enable strong connections between experienced and inexperienced leaders and help identify and encourage structures that support women in leadership.

“FLAME is more than networking and building relationships, it’s about developing capacity of female leaders and aspiring female leaders to lead with confidence and humility to be all that God has created them to be.” – Jill Healey, National FLAME Network Facilitator, Christian Schools Australia.