Chief Executive’s Message

25 May 2016 /

It is hard to believe we are already part way through term 2. The year seems to be flying by. We had a busy 1st term with 7 programs running across the state. We ran our 1st program with Port Lincoln High School and I was fortunate enough to be there to see the students give their graduation speeches. They were a great group and you could certainly see that they had grown as individuals considerably throughout the course of the program.

We have completed our Organisation Report for 2015 which details all of our activities, achievements and student results for the year. You can view it here.

We recently employed Orio Denti to the position of Head of Training and Business Development. Orio was previously the Principal of Renmark High School. He brings a wealth of knowledge and experience from within the Education Department and he also has the added benefit of having trained our Personal Leadership Program whilst he was a Student Counsellor. Orio is currently developing a whole of school approach to compliment the introduction of an online program for teachers to help them understand what we are teaching their students.  We are also working with the Marshman Foundation to develop an online program for Year 10 that some students will find more suitable for them.

The National Young Leader’s Day was held in Adelaide during the 1st term and we assisted 130 of our graduates to attend this day. Students heard from inspirational leaders and speakers from around the nation who challenged them to continue on their leadership journey. The event also provided and opportunity for us to engage with many graduates and we even interviewed a number of students for a video project  on diversity granted to us by the Office for Youth. The video formed part of our National Youth Week activities with a screening and workshop held at Kapunda High during the week.

If you happened to walk around the CBD in March you may have come across our pavement decals at intersections promoting what we do. This was the result of receiving a Splash Adelaide grant from The Adelaide City Council. It was great to be able to share our cause with the community and bring awareness.

Our fundraising team have continued to work hard with the launch of the Stars 100 Club in February, this is a giving initiative to support 100 additional students through our program in 2017. You can read more about it in the Fundraising report in this issue.

Finally I am pleased to announce that our ninth annual Golf Day at Glenelg Golf Course held earlier this month raised a record income of over $80,000. This could not have been achieved if not for the support of the attendees, the organising committee and of course sponsors led by Presenting Partners Tanti Constructions and Gold Partners NAB, Serafino Wines, Hamilton Holden, Perks, PPI, Phil Hoffmann Travel, Nova Entertainment, Eureka Hotel Group, Brighton Foodland and SA Care. This event continues to impress guests and has acquired the reputation as one of the best golf days on the calendar raising in excess of $630,000 since its inception in 2008.

Our next fundraising activities include the Winter Feast on August 19th and the fantastic opportunity to win a brand new Ford Mustang 2 door fastback 5.0L V8 worth $60,985 in our lottery commencing June 1st. Tickets are $100 and with only 1500 in the draw the chances of winning are very good so I hope you all participate by buying a ticket… or two!

Peter

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