Presidents Report 2009

VCTA members, life members, friends and staff

It gives me great pleasure to present the President’s Report on the affairs of the VCTA for the year 2009. It is also with a great deal of humility and appreciation that I present this report for though I stand before you as the Association’s President and as the representative of the VCTA Board and members, the true accolades for the on going success of the Association lie not in our hands but in others – more about this later.

Financial

The past financial year has been one of, if not, the most financially successful ones in recent times for the Association. In spite of the global financial crisis and economic uncertainty there has been a significant turnaround in the financial status of the Association.

Other highlights of the Association year I will mention under specific headings.

VCTA member services

Your Board and its immediate predecessor have made some brave decisions about the direction of VCTA over the past 12 months.

The immediate past Board, having decided from member feedback, made the decision to have the 2009 Comview Conference move to a new venue after having the LaTrobe University venue for the Conference for all but two of its years since inception in the late 1970’s. The move of venue and associated timing and program changes were not without inherent risks but our members and supporters relished the change and vindicated the Board decision and the hard work of the VCTA staff and conference section conveners lead by Leonie Swarbrick and Kristi Sheldon with a first rate and strongly supported conference at Victoria University in the City.

The Board elected at the AGM this time last year considered at its July meeting yet another risk-taking venture. Our flagship Professional Journal – Compak – has moved through the Gestetner era and Off Set printing through on-site collation in a loose-leaf format supported by a huge binder, to the glossy bound journal format and the question was asked as to whether the Board would support the technological jump to an on-line version. The Board unanimously answered in the affirmative and a Working Party was set up to provide the most appropriate format, content and timing. History will show our indebtedness to the members of that Working Party directed by past president Jules Aldous and the VCTA staff lead by Leonie and assisted by VCTA Communications Manager Ingrid Ciotti who implemented their recommendations. The prototype for the new format was launched at Comview in November in readiness for going ‘life’at the commencement of the 2010 year.

Associated with the move to Compak on-line was the revamping of the VCTA website, a decision made by the previous Board but put into action through many hours of work, lead in house by Ingrid and the team.

Aligned with these revamped member services has been the continued review and refinement of the VCTA professional learning program assisting teachers with not only the ‘tried and true’ but also the ‘new’ such as Web 2.0 training and assistance with newly accredited VCE courses. Leonie is to be commended on her constant search for excellence in training and has gathered a fine range of practitioners to deliver the elements of this vision.

National Curriculum Services (NCS)

Perhaps too often these days we take our National Curriculum Services division for granted because it is just ‘there’ and continues each year to not only sustain curriculum projects, activities and conferences but seek out and successfully contract for new ones. Not only does Christine Reid hold the Executive Director’s role for VCTA as a whole but also the same responsibility for NCS – a feat never to be underestimated and one which we all should be constantly appreciative of. To highlight the main 2009 initiatives of this division:

The completion of the contract for What Works contract with over 955 learning activities undertaken across Australia involving 19000 educators
New project for What Works negotiated with a special emphasis on developing school community partnerships this project will continue until 2013
Over 60 school reviews completed for DEECD and VRQA. New contract signed with both organisations for 2010 and 2011
Continued contract with DEEWR for the organisation for National Schools Constitutional Convention contract for three years
Tender submitted to DEECD for provision of curriculum units for the Bastow Institute of Leadership, NCS contracted to write four units all delivered late 2009
Tender developed and contract signed with Australian Association for Research in Education for a conference in November 2010
NCS website developed with a sophisticated conference system attached.

Nationally

VCTA continues to provide the secretariat for Business Educators Australasia (BEA) including organisation of the CPA Australia Plan Your Own Enterprise competition. A significant feature of the BEA work in 2009 (and on-going into the next few years) has been the consultation with ACARA re the Australian Curriculum. Our members can remain confident that VCTA as an affiliate member of BEA and though the unseen leadership of BEA through Christine as Executive Officer, Gary Taylor as President and Jules Aldous as Treasurer, the voice of commerce educators for a fair and comprehensive place in the National Curriculum is assured. At each Board meeting, a standing agenda item is the BEA report and so Board members are kept well informed of the activities of BEA.

Publications

VCTA has been in the publishing business for many years now, albeit it for some time through the auspices of Macmillan Edcuation Australia carrying the VCTA brand. This is significant in itself. However in 2009 VCTA commissioned two new publications for VCTA - Making and Breaking the Law and a new edition of Money, Markets and Citizenship. The former has been the benchmark for VCE Legal StudiesUnits 3 and 4 texts for many years now, authored by our very own past President Jules Aldous. Jules has decided to stand aside from the principle authorship of this publication. However she has not only guided the new authorship team in the new edition but also, in a significant generous gesture, handed over her copyright to VCTA.

Strategic direction

The 2009-10 Board commenced its tenure with a personal and individual assessment of the 2007-10 VCTA Strategy Plan. As a result by the end of 2009 the Board had a strong framework developed for the Strategy Plan for 2011-17, work on which will continue through the 2010 year and I am confident that at this AGM next year I will be able to report to members the completion of a most comprehensive and visionary VCTA Strategy Plan. I commend all members of the outgoing Board for their significant work in this direction.

Board changes

Leanne Newson who has been a Board member for many years, holding the position of Vice President on the Executive in recent years, has decided to stand down from the incoming Board and so not seek re-election. I wish to acknowledge the thanks of the VCTA to Leanne who has provided excellent service including membership of various working parties/sub committees, wise council and knowledgeable curriculum perspectives whilst on the Board. Leanne will continue to assist VCTA at Comview and PD days and with Compak contributions.

Thank you and conclusion

The past year has been a significant one in VCTA’s 56 year history and, as President it has been a humbling experience to have been part of it. The true accolades for the on going success of the VCTA lies not in my hands, nor in the hands of Board members – though the Board is indeed to be commended for the legal governance, policy direction and professional leadership it has selflessly given – and I do most sincerely thank them for all of this. I express my sincere thanks to the members of the Executive Management Group who have collectively provided much guidance and support to me during the past year.

The thanks of myself and the Board and the real accolades, however, should go to those who then implement Board directions, who advise the Board on appropriate course of action, who request of the Board support for well researched initiatives and who provide the Board with strategic, business and financial advice. I speak of the VCTA staff and in particular the superb, and should I add, modest, leadership of Christine Reid.

So thank you to Christine for her overall leadership of the VCTA and NCS and all staff in the VCTA office and others who work with VCTA and NCS locally and nationally, and those who are employed as consultants, writers, editors, reviewers, presenters and so forth.

In addition,our thanks to Leonie Swarbrick as Executive Officer of VCTA and those who work with her; to Kristi Sheldon at NCS Conference Management Services and those who work with her, to Ingrid Ciotti, Communications Manager and highly talented web/technology genius and those who work with her, to Kathleen May, our accountant who has turned around our financial reporting mechanisms, to the VCTA office staff both full and part time – our thanks.

Finally, my thanks to all of the visible commerce/business teachers who continue to find time to support VCTA in so many ways and to our sponsors/partners, members and supporters who continue to provide financial and professional support. The VCTA is, undoubtedly, the premier subject association in Australasia and I am proud to have served these past 12 months as its President.

Tony Kuc, President 2009-10