2025 was another year of global challenges. Changes in leadership around the world have often heralded inappropriate decisions regarding the purpose of education and reflection on who our ‘masters’ are or should be. At a national level, education continues to be a political football that divides states and territories, sectors and communities. To this end, the strategic decision for ACEL to be more vociferous regarding our role as professionals in this discussion has been welcomed by many at ACEL, and we are excited about the efforts to come that will enable us to play an increased role in education decisions across the country.
I know every educator has the learning and well-being of every child at heart. Properly trained educators are key to our nation's future. As mentioned previously, it is both an honour and a huge challenge to try and reflect the educational needs of young people (and adults). One way to do this is active involvement in a professional association like ACEL. This year, we said goodbye to ACEL CEO Dr Barbara Watterston after years of wonderful service and welcomed new CEO Lisa Newland. Lisa comes with extensive experience in leadership and creating highly functioning organisations. Some may not know that I sit on the Audit and Risk Committee for ACEL, and I know the future for the organisation looks bright. Engagement and activities, increasingly bespoke, are effective and well-received.
This year the Victorian Branch hosted events relating to AI in education, middle level leadership, principalship, teacher sustainability and multiple awards events.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank the ACEL Vic Branch for their hard work and support. Vic Branch members all hold senior positions in a range of organisations, and their contributions above and beyond their day jobs are significant. They are volunteers committed to the advancement of our profession, often at the end of a really long day.
Thank you to the following:
Kara Baxter, Hayley Dureau, Charlotte Forwood, David Gurr, Fiona Hutton, Steven Kolber, Fiona Longmuir, Cameron Paterson, Ashley Pratt, Melissa Riley and Lauren Sayer. Part way through the year we farewelled Melissa Riley as she took up a senior role interstate.
I would also like to thank those panel members and speakers who contributed to our events, including our Awards Ceremony. In the webinar Utilising AI & Emerging Technologies to Enhance Learner Agency we heard from Pip Cleaves (Associate Principal, Global Village Learning VIC), Matthew Esterman (Founder, The Next Word, NSW) and Summer Howarth (Director, The Eventful Learning Co, SA). The session was ably led by Lauren Sayer. ‘Leading Regenerative Learning’ was presented by Dr Richard Owens (Woodleigh School). Thank you to all members who attended events.
Again, I congratulate our 2025 Victorian ACEL Award winners
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ACEL VIC Hedley Beare Educator of the Year Award: Richard Owens
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Media Award: Adriano Di Prato and Phil Cummins
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Brian Caldwell Research Award: Glenn Savage
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President’s Award: Fazal Rizvi
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Debbie Loco Award: Pip Cleaves
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Fellowships: Colin Dobson, Steve Cook, Aisha Kristiansen, Ellen Heyting, Donnie Adams, Bernadette Donnelly, Kerry Elliott
Next year will be another exciting one for ACEL Victoria as we continue to acknowledge excellence and hopefully provide food for thought. Our 2026 event calendar is well underway, and we will continue to bring you the latest thinking on leadership, AI in education, new curriculum frameworks and issues relating to education more broadly. We are always keen to hear from members about topics that may be of interest, so please do not hesitate to reach out with ideas – romea@smbg.vic.edu.au.
Our first event in 2026 will be on February 16 with Prof. Alex J Bowers, Professor of Education Leadership at Columbia University where he will present on:
Leading with Evidence in Schools: Bridging Research, Data, and Practice for Continuous Improvement
How can education leaders and researchers effectively use data and evidence to drive meaningful improvement in PK-12 schools? In this interactive workshop, participants (P-12 school and system leaders) will explore strategies for strengthening evidence-based improvement cycles that bring school system data closer to stakeholder evidence-based improvement goals
REGISTER NOW
I wish all in the ACEL community a safe and celebratory break to recharge the batteries that fuel the knowledge, love and joy we bring to our places of work every day.
Have a great break everyone!
Warmest wishes from all on the ACEL Victoria Branch