Year in Review 2019 Catholic Diocese of Sandhurst 37 NEW EDUCATION LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR Cathy Jenkins is a self-confessed music lover who enjoys good food and cooking; she is also the newest member of the Catholic Education Sandhurst leadership team! Cathy brings considerable skills in systemic leadership to the role of Assistant to the Director: Leadership Development, which she commenced at the beginning of this term. Until recently, Cathy was the head of the Archbishop’s Office for Evangelisation (Archdiocese of Melbourne) where she coordinated the work of the Plenary Council; in addition she was recently appointed as a member of the writing group for the Missionary and Evangelisation theme, one of six themes emerging from the process. The eldest of four children, she grew up in the Eastern suburbs of Melbourne, Blackburn to be precise. Cathy attended local Catholic Schools of the area before gaining an Arts Degree at Melbourne University, majoring in History and English. A Diploma of Education followed and she began teaching, initially in the secondary sector and has, over the years, worked in both primary and secondary contexts. Over the next decade, she completed a Bachelor of Theology at the Melbourne College of Divinity and a Masters of Education in Leadership and Administration at Australian Catholic University. An avid writer, Cathy spent more than 15 years in the religious publishing industry after she began contributing to a Catholic magazine for RE teachers, Mosaic. During this time, she contributed significantly to the development of religious publishing in Australia. Her achievements include the publication of two collections of prayers by Michael Leunig – the well-known Age cartoonist and the revised edition of the Australian Hymn Book. During her career, Cathy spent time in the Catholic Education Office in Melbourne and was Deputy Principal of Genazzano FCJ College in Kew for almost 13 years, both roles provided great insight into leadership development in education. As part of her previous role, Cathy Jenkins has taken on the important role in Melbourne of coordinating the process for animating the Plenary Council in parishes and schools, the first one held in Australia since 1937. This role has required a substantial amount of leadership, organisation skills and integrity…just some of the qualities that Cathy has in spades. As she settles into the Sandhurst Diocese, Cathy has been familiarising herself with the countryside, travelling around the Diocese meeting with principals and staff groups, as she looks to create opportunities for leaders to flourish in Catholic Education. However, this is not her first time in the diocese as she has visited several times in her role with the plenary Council to speak with principals, parishes and Catholic Education Office staff. In the coming weeks, months and years Cathy will work towards growing the leadership capacity in Catholic Education Sandhurst. LEADERSHIP & STRUCTURE
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