Staff Profile

“Being a part of this community where teachers seek to enrich students’ lives not only through their academic endeavours but also focus on the wellbeing needs of the student means a lot to me as teacher at Sandringham College. I can also add that the support and drive to continue improving both the visual and performing arts at Sandringham College is something that I embrace with pride!”

Kylie Maltarollo is Sandringham College’s Domain Leader for Art, Design and Technology. Her philosophy of teaching focuses on the integration of all art forms within all school curriculum. She is also a successful Dancer, Dance Teacher, and Choreographer, having performed in Australia, Holland, Germany, Spain and Brazil; and an accomplished photographer and visual artist. 

What does being a part of the Sandringham College community mean to you?

Ever since I began my journey as a teacher at Sandringham College, I have always felt grateful and humbled to be part of a such a supportive community.  Building supportive relationships between students, staff and the wider community and embracing individuality is something that I have always valued as a person.  Being a part of this community where teachers seek to enrich students’ lives not only through their academic endeavours but also focus on the wellbeing needs of the student means a lot to me as teacher at Sandringham College.   I can also add that the support and drive to continue improving both the visual and performing arts at Sandringham College is something that I embrace with pride! 

What has been your career journey?

If someone had said to me when I was in year 10 at Kilbreda College many moons ago “you will be an art teacher at Sandringham College one day”, I would have laughed in their face.  At that age, my head was focused on one thing. I wanted to be a dancer! I wouldn’t say my secondary education was that eventful, only that I wasn’t really engaged at school, apart from my love of art. I never completed year 11 or 12, in fact at that time it wasn’t encouraged to complete your education if you were to become a dancer.  So, at the age of 16, I was lucky to be accepted at the Western Academy of Performing arts (WAAPA) to complete my dance training. I left my family and Kilbreda and moved to Perth to begin my training to be a professional dancer. I was in my element! 

I was very fortunate to become a professional dancer. I spent the next 15 years dancing in modern and ballet companies in Australia, Japan, Holland, Spain, Germany and Brazil.  After spending most of that time living in Europe and Brazil, I moved back to Australia.  It was this point that I began to reconsider my career.  It had also dawned on me that I hadn’t done year 12.  What was I to do? I felt that I needed to go back to university to prove to myself that I was capable of finishing my education.  So I enrolled in a post graduate in choreography at Melbourne University – VCE.  This led me to be an assistant choreographer for the opening and closing events at the 2006 Melbourne Commonwealth games.  This event also made me realise how much I enjoyed teaching people.  I began to re-think things again. I was also beginning to move away from my life as a dancer and choreographer and became eager to befriend some of my old passions again: art and photography. I went back to University again, this time to study fine arts. By the time I had finished that degree, I was at a cross roads. A part of myself wanted to continue living my life as an artist but I also had this new desire to teach children. In the end, I decided to enrol in a Masters of Teaching to become a secondary visual art teacher.   Half way through the degree, I received a phone call from Sandringham College inviting me to be the contemporary dance teacher for a new dance academy program.  How could I decline a great opportunity to teach students dance but still work on becoming an art teacher? My three years of experience working closely with those students in the dance studio will always be precious to me.

A few years later after finishing my teaching degree, I became a qualified visual art teacher! I had finally made it.  Whilst still working with the dance academy, I began my first 6 months of teaching at Sandringham College as  casual relief teacher.  At the half-way point in that year I was granted my first contract.  I have been an art, photography and dance teacher at Sandringham College for 4. 5 years. This year I was granted the position as a Domain leader of Art, Design and Technology. 

Since the very first day I chose to become a teacher, I have never looked back. It was the right decision for me.  I will always be an artist at heart (whether the dancer, painter or photographer) but I take pride that I can now be a part of a student’s own journey of growth, guiding them in the right direction and letting them know that through personal determination and a hardworking spirit you can get what your heart desires.