Two NSW Principals Off to Harvard

The two NSW recipients of the 2022 Harvard Principals Scholarships will undertake a professional education program at the Harvard Graduate School of Education that is specifically designed to strengthen the skills of educational leaders.

The winning NSW Principals are:

• Teachers Mutual Bank Principals Scholarship: Belinda Giudice, Prairiewood High School, NSW
• Public Education Foundation Principals Scholarship: Michael Sloan, Denison College of Secondary Education, Kelso High Campus, NSW.

Each Principals Scholarship is valued at approximately $16,000 and includes program tuition for one of two prestigious Harvard Graduate School of Education programs: Improving Schools: The Art of Leadership; or Leadership: An Evolving Vision.

At Prairiewood High School, Belinda Giudice and her staff have emerged from a difficult few years that included a number of student deaths and being part of the hard lockdown during the COVID pandemic to celebrate the school’s best HSC outcomes in its history.

Belinda has maintained a dedicated focus on leading learning as the school’s core business while wrapping wellbeing supports around the school to heal a significantly damaged school community.

Michael Sloan has similarly used a focus on staff and student wellbeing and data-informed practice at Denison College of Secondary Education, Kelso High Campus to create a culture of inclusion and connection where learning is valued.

Belinda Giudice says of her scholarship, “To be awarded a Harvard Principal’s Scholarship by a panel of peers in my seventh year of substantive Principalship across two school communities is deeply humbling, captivating and stimulating. I am the first in my family to complete year 12 and attend university, so to be selected to travel overseas to the world’s most prestigious university for on-campus learning is truly exciting. I acknowledge and thank the Teachers Mutual Bank for this scholarship.”

Michael Sloan commented, “It is a great honour just to be nominated for a scholarship of this magnitude, let alone to be one of two NSW principals to be awarded the scholarship. Harvard is one of the finest universities in the world, with an excellent Graduate School of Education. As a lifelong learner, it is an amazing opportunity to learn from and with international colleagues to improve my knowledge and practice. The prospect of visiting Boston and attending the program at Harvard is very exciting.”

The scholarships are funded by Teachers Mutual Bank (TMB) and Public Education Foundation.