Meet a Staff Member

10 minutes with…. 

Nathan Kennedy  

Title: 

Learning Leader – Health and Physical Education, VET & VCE VM

How long have you been at Marian: 

I am currently in my 6th year at Marian.

1.      Tell us a little about your life outside of teaching/working? Eg. Family, hobbies. Passions 

Outside of work, I have a fiancé and a big groodle named Wally. Wally is the world’s best boy, even though he drives us both crazy! I have a twin brother and an older sister, along with two nephews and nieces. 

As well as that I love my sports. I play football locally and try to stay active whenever possible. I am a big Essendon and Arsenal fan and try to watch them whenever I can.

Something that others may not know is that I am also a movie nut. I want to watch every movie in the IMDB top 250!

2.      How did you end up teaching/ working at Marian College?

When I was at Uni I did a placement at an all-girls school. I was sent to St. Columba’s College in Essendon and my mentor teacher was actually an ex-Marian staff member. I really enjoyed my time there and he spoke very highly of Marian College. When the Marian job opportunity then came up, I jumped at it.

3.      What do you like most about teaching/working at Marian College?

The relationships that I have developed with the students. It is great to get to know students through camps, excursions, and sports days, and in my role, I am fortunate enough to get to have those experiences with students. For example, I taught the current group of Year 12’s in my first year of teaching, when they were in Year 7. Watching their Marian journey has been special.

4.      What are the biggest challenges facing teachers today?

The workload is definitely a challenge for teachers today, especially for graduate teachers. Administrative work is increasing and as teachers know, sometimes it would be nice to have an extra hour in the day!

5.      What are the biggest challenges facing teenage girls today?

In my opinion it would be social media and mental health. Post COVID, many students are still trying to find their way after two disrupted years, and trying to re-adjust to life and its demands is not always easy.

6.      Favourite food & drink?

Food: Chicken Parma

Drink: Unpopular opinion, but I’m going to say Pepsi max!

7.      Favourite holiday destination?

It would need to be Queenstown, New Zealand. The town was like nowhere I have ever seen before. My fiancé and I also went snowboarding at the Remarkables when we were there, and it was such a fun experience.

8.      Favourite TV show & Movie?

TV Show: Peaky Blinders or The Office (US)

Movie: Interstellar

9.      If you weren’t a teacher, what would you be?

A Chicken Parma connoisseur, or a physiotherapist

10.  Which 5 people in history would you like to invite to a dinner party?

Ryan Reynolds, Ryan Gosling, Zach Merrett, David Ha and Miley Cyrus