Woodcrest State College Principal Penelope Couch is both a reflective and visible leader. She takes on board important feedback, supports those beneath her to excel and pushes new ideas and practices that require change. When internal school surveys showed staff wanted to engage in innovative teaching practices Penelope put in place more workshops and mentoring to facilitate this. Building upon an increase in staff confidence to implement new initiatives, Penelope gained support from the P&C to assist with resources required to support these extra-curricular activities, some of which take place outside learning hours.
“Opportunities for students to engage in a large range of activities has seen reduced student behaviour and an increase in student well-being and passion for their schooling. Staff morale has lifted, and staff are feeling appreciated and supported in all aspects of school life,” Head of Curriculum Petra Yager says. Penelope has also worked with eleven other principals to create a leadership coalition to highlight Greater Springfield as Learning City, which will see the inaugural ‘Greater Springfield Festival of Learning’ occur in October this year. She has completed a leadership course through the Queensland Education Leadership Institute (QELi) and gained a position on a principal’s study tour throughout the United States of America with the Queensland Association of State School Principals (QASSP). Through her leadership; the morale, culture and practice at her school has improved and she has made a difference to the wider community. Congratulations Penelope on your nomination.
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