Dempsey's Digest

ITEC 

What a thrill it was to have a crew of 42 represent MECS at the recent International Transforming Education Conference, in Perth. Joining with over 1000 educators from around the world and across the country was a wonderful experience. The MECS crew, of course had no problem immersing themselves in the experience and have come back passionate and enthused for their craft, of teaching, leading or, in the case of our Board members, governing. 

The keynote speakers were all outstanding and took us way beyond our comfort zones to challenge us in our hope for a new day. From helping us to navigate and even embrace disruption, to encouraging us to think outside of the box in regards to play, to allowing us to explore what flourishing might look like in our school, to bringing us deeper into an awareness of the stories that shape us, and a love for the story that we hold to, every moment was something to embrace and remember. 

One of the special touches of the conference was the digital storyteller that captured the keynote speakers. Here’s an example of David Smith’s opening keynote, (David is an academic and educator from The Kuyers Centre, embedded in Calvin College in Grand Rapids, USA). 

I am confident that the ITEC experience will be impacting MECS for years to come. Watch this space to see what emerges! 

Back to school, Talking about AI 

It was great for our staff to be all together again on Friday 19 July as we gathered to worship in song and to hear from a speaker (fresh from ITEC), Mr Paul Matthews. Paul is an educator at a Christian school in Tasmania and has also launched his own business in Artificial Intelligence, My Teacher Aide, which helps teacher navigate AI creatively and carefully. 

Paul gave us some great tips in making the most out of AI platforms, using correct prompting techniques and he shared his theological framework for engaging and working with AI. It was great to welcome Paul, to our community. 

Rob Lichtendonk announced

The announcement of Rob Lichtendonk being appointed to the Business Manager role, commencing in January 2025, was received with great joy and excitement. In case you missed it, here is the announcement that was shared with our community:

It is with great pleasure that the Board announces the appointment of Mr Rob Lichtendonk as the Business Manager for MECS. 

The Board was delighted to receive a large number of quality applicants for the role, which made the process a welcome challenge. After a rigorous interview phase, which included a panel of the Board, external Consultants and our Principal, and with much prayer and consideration, the decision was made to appoint Rob. 

Rob has an impressive background in both finance and management in the banking sector. Rob has led effective teams, managed large scale projects and has worked with leaders in the industry to develop and implement services. His successful career, coupled with his deep love and passion for Christian education makes him a very worthy and capable appointment. 

Rob will commence the Business Manager role January 2025. In the meantime, Bryan Lewis has agreed to continue with us as our Consultant Business Manager to ensure a smooth transition into the new year. We are very grateful for Bryan’s expertise and his willingness to support us during this time. 

As you may be aware, Rob has served as a valued member of the Board. When Rob began to consider applying for the Business Manager Role, he immediately took a leave of absence from the Board and was removed from all Board discussions from that time onward. Since the appointment was made, Rob has officially stepped off the Board however, the Board has asked Rob to remain as a member on the Finance committee. We believe this will assist a smooth transition for when Rob takes up the role in 2025. We applaud Rob for his integrity in relation to this. We also thank Rob for his years of faithful service to the Board. 

The Board took the opportunity to re-think and re-establish some key components of the role after the resignation of the Administration Manager (Gerry Beimers) at the beginning of Term 2. Although the Business Manager role is a Board appointment, it will now report directly to the Principal. 

Please pray for Rob and his wife Jemma as he prepares to take on this role, from the beginning of next year. 

We continue to be grateful for the Lord’s provision to this community. 

Yours sincerely, 

Sue Goudswaard 

Board Chair 

Indonesia Trip takes off! 

If you’d come to MECS car park at 2.30am on Saturday morning, in the cold of the morning you would have observed a bunch of buzzing teenagers, eager staff, nervous but excited parents and our faithful Property Manager who was ready to drive this crew to the airport for their early morning flight to Bali! What a joy to be able to wave off our second Indonesian Cultural Trip participants and wish them well. From latest reports, they are having a great time and engaging beautifully in the opportunities to enhance their language skills through relationships with Indonesian people. Please pray for our students who are on the trip (Nate A, Eli R, Finley M, Kevin B, Sophie A, Ella D, Ashlee L, Olivia O, Esther T, Lily B, Emily P, Josiah M, Lovelia M and Zev M. Please also pray for our staff; Daniel (Pak) Bradbury, Duc Tran, Sue de Pyle, and Lo-Arna Riches. The team is due back on 8 August. 

Old & New Faces at MECS! 

Look out for our Consultant Business Manager at MECS, Mr Bryan Lewis who is with us in the lead up to Rob Lichtendonk starting next year. Also, Craig Goldsmith has joined us again, to assist in supporting the finance team. It’s great to have Craig around, again. Last term we welcomed Linda Southey to the team as our Attendance Officer and last week we were pleased to welcome Amanda Colverson and Ady Sliwka Arena to our Well Being team. As well, Gill Birkett has taken over as the Kindergarten Director from Wendy Mason this term.

The term ahead is packed full of exciting opportunities for our students. We look forward to a great term together as we partner in the privilege of Christian education!