Helen has 37 years of experience working with students and parents. Her career in boarding commenced in 1985 when Helen moved to Narrogin to work at the then Narrogin Hostel (Narrogin Residential College) quickly becoming the Senior Supervisor. The Hostel had 250 teenage boarders from outlying rural communities who attended Narrogin Senior High School.
Helen moved back to Perth in late 2006 to establish City Beach Residential College (CBRC), for the then Country High School Hostels Authority. CBRC is a boarding facility to house Gifted and Talented High School Students from rural communities. CBRC opened in January 2007 with 17 students. Helen liaised with the staff from Gifted and Talented so became very familiar with the selection process and enrolment requirements for entry into GAT schools.
The criteria allocation for students to board at CBRC was selection into a Gifted and Talented Program and coming from a rural community. John Curtin students have always been the majority of the student body.
Helen managed the college until 2015 when she took long service leave and decided to retire. This lasted only a couple of months. A week after celebrating her retirement, Helen started at John Curtin as the Enrolment Officer.
Helens experience and knowledge of the Gifted and Talented Programs and processes as well as her connections at John Curtin made through shared caring for the boarders gave her a solid grounding for her start at John Curtin.
She has retained her association with City Beach Residential College as a member of the then College Board of Management, currently known as the LINC Committee as established by the Department of Education.
Helen is the first point of contact for parents when making decisions about their child’s future schooling. She believes it is important to help with this decision by ensuring they are aware of all the possibilities on offer and what the process entails. Helen guides parents and students through the lead up to the first day of school.