TAFE Gippsland and the East Gippsland Community Foundation have partnered to build leadership capacity for the youth in East Gippsland.
Pictured (L-R): Program collaborators Vanessa Marsh (TAFE Gippsland Head of Department Service Industries), Linda Austin (TAFE Gippsland Director Education Delivery), Michelle Dowsett (Executive Officer East Gippsland Community Foundation & TAFE Gippsland Board Director), Paulette Ware (TAFE Gippsland Commercial Business Partner Health, Community Services & Service Industries).
The 2023 Youth Leadership Series, targeted at new and emerging youth leaders in the 16–24-year age group, will provide young people with the opportunity to explore their leadership potential.
TAFE Gippsland Head of Department Service Industries Vanessa Marsh said the program will help forge pathways for the region’s future leaders.
“We’re excited to be a part of the innovative program and to be playing such a pivotal role in helping develop and grow Gippsland’s leaders of tomorrow.”
The program focuses on three aspects of leadership – ME, MY TEAM and MY COMMUNITY. Soft skills will be a focus within each of these themes including building personal attributes and enhancing technical skills to help achieve tasks. The learning journey will give each participant the skills and tools to contribute to their personal growth, to their role as a team member and ultimately as a successful leader in their local community.
East Gippsland Community Foundation Executive Officer, Michelle Dowsett, said “The program aims to provide young people in East Gippsland with the opportunity to explore and discover themselves and their leadership potential”.
The series will run from February to October 2023 and will include three face-to-face sessions in Bairnsdale, ten online workshops and a graduation ceremony in November.
Students who successfully complete the series will receive a Certificate for the Youth Leadership Series. Completion of the Youth Leadership Series will provide a pre-pathway platform to a Diploma of Leadership and Management.
A key priority of the selection criteria is that applicants will be sourced from across the East Gippsland region, with priority given to the fire-impacted communities of the 2019/2020 Black Summer Fires.
Expressions of interest are open from 14 November 2022 until late January 2023.
For more information about the series and to submit an expression of interest, please contact Tina Lewis (E: TLewis@tafegippsland.edu.au) or Jan-Maree Constantine (E: JConstantine@tafegippsland.edu.au) at TAFE Gippsland.