Meet the team

Tom Mitchell

Assistant Boarding Manager of Poorneet (Year 7) and Buarth Gurru (Year 8 Fellas7

I have 4 brothers and 1 sister 

I’m inspired by every student's resilience, as they are so far from their home and family. Despite that distance, they chose to build new friend ships, trust our staff, and adapt to new challenges with openness and bravery.

Lenore Neath

Volunteer for Year 7 Homework Club

I live with my husband Michael Daffern and our two adult sons,  Billy and Harvey. We live close by, in Richmond. Both Michael and Billy also volunteer at MITS!

I've always enjoyed volunteering with the Year 7 students.  It's wonderful to get to know them when they first arrive in Melbourne,  then see them grow and thrive throughout their MITS journey.  I find I learn so much from the students about their culture and history during homework club. It's a very rewarding experience,  and something I look forward to each week!

Adrienne Murray

I’ve been a volunteer at MITS for a good while now and moved through a variety of roles across different year groups. For the past couple of years I’ve done a morning school drop off from 371 and escorted students between Melbourne and Darwin or their community. 

My partner Lindsay and our son Riley are scientists and I’m a textile artist. They are concrete while I am abstract and it’s a wonderful combination. And then there is Moose, our 18 month-old golden retriever who keeps us on our toes and gives us much joy. 

I am continually inspired by the bravery of the students to be away from their families and communities. They weather hard times with strong hearts. I am also inspired by MITS as an organisation and a community. They hear concerns and ideas; work hard to always ‘do better’, and positively value all people. 

Meet some of the Teaching Team