Inspiring Women
Program
Our 2020 Honourees
Select a profile and discover more about our 2020 Inspiring Women honourees.
Dr Julia Rhyder (Beaumont, 1982)
Ph.D
Julia Rhyder completed a double degree in Arts and Theology with Honours at the University of Melbourne and Melbourne College of Divinity in 2012. This unique double degree enabled Julia to combine the study of anthropology of religion with training in ancient Hebrew and the methods of biblical exegesis. In 2013, Julia was accepted as a PhD student in Hebrew Bible at the University of Lausanne, Switzerland, with full-time funding from the Swiss National Science Foundation (the national funding agency of the Swiss Federal Government). Together with her husband Tim, Julia took the plunge and moved from Melbourne to Switzerland, where she undertook intensive training in French to join the Swiss workforce.
Julia’s doctoral research focused on the history of ancient Jewish religion, and in particular the progressive reduction in the number of sites of Jewish sacrifice in the second half of the first millennium BCE. This topic is crucial for understanding why Jerusalem was invested with such religious significance in ancient Judaism, and continues to be a site of extraordinary importance today. Julia’s PhD was assessed in 2018 by an international panel of researchers from Switzerland, Germany, Canada, and the United States. The dissertation was awarded the “Paul-Chapuis Secrétan” prize of the University of Lausanne – the highest possible award for non-professors at the university.
In 2019, Julia began a new research and teaching position at the University of Basel in the German-speaking part of Switzerland. Her present research explores the connection between Jewish festivals and war commemoration, with a particular focus on the origins of new festivals, such as Hanukkah, that were introduced during the Hellenistic period (late 4th–1st centuries BCE).
From July 2021, Julia will begin a new role as assistant professor of Hebrew Bible at the department of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations at Harvard University. Julia and her husband are excited to be starting another big adventure and look forward to settling in to a new life in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
Dr Julia Rhyder
(Beaumont, 1982)
Emma Race (1993)
BA
Emma Race believes women’s voices in sport, from broadcasting to boardrooms, are essential to create diverse and healthy communities. As a broadcaster, media producer and avid football fan, her passions intersected in 2016 to create the Outer Sanctum Podcast. Along with her two sisters and three friends, Emma and the Outer Sanctum launched a new style of Australian Rules Football commentary, looking at the game through the lens of feminism, human rights and inclusion. The Outer Sanctum was shortly plucked from the lounge room of Emma’s home and catapulted into a studio at the ABC.
The Outer Sanctum’s agitation for change and equality in football was welcomed by a community of football fans, while the industry recognised the Outer Sanctum with the Sport Australia Award for Best Depiction of Inclusive Sport and the AFL Media Award for Best Coverage of the AFLW (Australian Football League Women). In 2020, Emma was named in the top 50 most influential voices in AFL.
Emma has used her platform to create additional programs for women and girls in sport. She is the executive producer of the online AFLW TV show ALL IN and the pre-teen AFLW podcast Totally Normal For Girls while she continues to broadcast across multiple sports shows at the ABC.
Emma’s advocacy work was acknowledged by her appointment as the #1 Ticket Holder of the Hawthorn Football Club, her seat on the Board of the State Sports Centre Trust and her appointment as an Our Watch Media Fellow. Her leadership in sport was commended with her acceptance into the Australian Institute of Sport Executive Leadership Pathways program for 2020.
Emma is a thought leader whose creativity, passion for justice and belief in women and girls, has changed the football media landscape.
She lives on Wurundjeri Land with her husband and three daughters.
Emma Race
(1993)
Dr Evelyn Chan (2003)
MBBS, MPH, MsC, DCH, Dip Counsel
Evelyn is a Paediatrician who is passionate about transforming children’s healthcare through developing innovative solutions which are patient-centred, sustainable and equitable. She brings a unique composite approach to critical thinking, combining strategy with clinical medicine, public health, anthropology and counselling.
Evelyn started at CGGS in Year 5 and graduated Year 12 in 2003. With a love for science, art and communications, Evelyn embarked on a Bachelor of Medicine/Bachelor of Surgery at Monash University, which was completed with Honours in 2008. She then trained and worked in paediatrics across a wide range of metropolitan and regional/rural hospitals across Victoria.
Evelyn received a Rhodes Scholarship to study medical anthropology and public health at the University of Oxford in 2011. She focused her research on the effective translation and delivery of healthcare across cultures and geographies.
Evelyn worked at the Boston Consulting Group, specialising in public sector and healthcare strategy. During this time, she led the Young Leaders Program for at-risk teens and undertook pro-bono work for Jawun Indigenous Initiative.
Evelyn is now a ‘doctorpreneur’ as the CEO and co-founder of Smileyscope, which grew out of her own clinical experience. Smileyscope is a drug free solution that has transformed paediatric needle procedures through patient-centred VR (virtual reality) by keeping children calm and still through clinical procedures. This decreases patient pain and anxiety, making it quicker and safer for clinicians. Smileyscope has won numerous international awards in healthcare, design and innovation, including the renowned Webby Award, SXSW’s Impact Paediatric Health Award and Stanford’s Paediatric Devices Shark Tank. It is rapidly expanding into developing digital therapeutics for other paediatric and adult medical procedures.
In 2019, Evelyn won the Emerging Women in Leadership Award through the BioMelbourne Network, which aims at shining a light on women in the health industry.
Dr Evelyn Chan
(2003)
Frankie Layton (2006)
BA
Frankie graduated from CGGS in 2006 without a vocation in mind, only a dream to live a purposeful life and be an agent for change. To kindle her creative thinking, Frankie took a gap year, working on Super Yachts with very inspiring people who had taken unconventional paths to success. Speaking to them about her choices, they advised that the best way to make a change was not to depend on anyone else’s support to do it.
On returning to Melbourne, Frankie enrolled in an Arts degree, intent on getting through university and out into the world as fast as possible. After graduating, she travelled to Germany, where her first corporate job was in an International Advertising Agency. Over the next three years she progressed from intern, to account manager, to strategist. Frankie loved her work, but she still didn’t have a purpose. She returned to Melbourne, determined to dedicate time to finding it.
Over the next two years Frankie worked four days a week in advertising, but kept one day a week to work on her dream which took shape as her company, Dirt.
Dirt is an online household cleaning company whose mission is to create products that do less harm. They sell laundry detergent and soon will launch two other products in packaging, which can be reused multiple times, eliminating up to 90% waste from the laundry cycle.
Dirt is self-funded, following the advice that to create real change you need a sustainable resource. Having no major investors makes Dirt an exception to the rule of start-ups. It has meant the company has had to grow within its means, slowly with a lot of elbow grease. However, it has also allowed Frankie to do business her own way and make decisions for the long term.
Frankie now has a team of six and they calculate that every week, through their recycling system, they prevent 410kg of plastic from being manufactured.
This is Frankie’s greatest achievement to date.
Frankie Layton
(2003)
Dr Jackie Graham (Herington, 1989)
MBBS (Hons) FACEM
Jackie graduated from CGGS as Dux of School in 1989 and studied Medicine at Monash University, graduating with Honours in 1995. Jackie then began her medical career at Monash Medical Centre and completed her specialist training in Emergency Medicine in 2003. As a junior doctor, Jackie was President of the Hospital Medical Officers’ Association and the only female Team Manager in the Hospital Football League. Jackie spent one year of her training at Guy’s and St Thomas’ Hospital in London, where she received official recognition from Bill Clinton, President of the United States of America, for treating one of his security detail.
Jackie has now worked at Monash Medical Centre for almost 25 years. As a senior Emergency Physician in a large public hospital, Jackie leads a team of doctors to care for people when they are vulnerable and unwell. Jackie was the Director of Clinical Training for three years, supporting interns throughout the whole hospital. She gains fulfillment from, and really enjoys, the opportunity to teach and train the medical students and junior doctors in the Emergency Department.
Jackie is interested in improving the management of people who frequently present to Emergency Departments, to better identify and address their physical and mental health needs. In her current role, Jackie liaises with colleagues at Ambulance Victoria to advance the joint management of some of their most challenging patients.
Jackie and her family are members of the Ocean Grove Surf Living Saving Club, where they assist with fundraising and the summer Nippers program. Jackie has also been the Team Doctor for her son’s junior football team and the Team Manager for her two daughters’ netball teams.
Dr Jackie Graham
(Herington, 1989)
Sarah Boyd (1989)
BCom, DipML(Chinese), MA(DevSt), SpecCertPA, MPA
Sarah is a gender equality policy specialist, passionate about the potential of women’s leadership and feminist foreign policies to advance global development. Sarah has worked in international development, peace and security, and humanitarian affairs to advance women’s rights for over a decade with the Australian government, the United Nations and civil society organisations.
After graduating from CGGS in 1998, Sarah studied a Bachelor of Commerce (Economics) and Diploma of Modern Language (Chinese) at the University of Melbourne, graduating in 2002. She later earned a Masters in International Development (Gender and Peacebuilding) in 2007, which included Masters thesis fieldwork in Nepal and a Universitas21 Summer School at Lund University in Sweden on Climate Change and Global Health. Throughout her studies, Sarah worked as a policy officer in the Vice Chancellor’s Strategy Office at the University of Melbourne, as an intern at the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in Geneva, and independently travelled and volunteered in Nepal, Vietnam, China, Tibet and India.
After graduating from her Masters degree, Sarah joined the Australian Agency for International Development (AusAID) (later the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade) where she worked to advance international gender equality policy, women’s participation in peace processes, sexual and reproductive health and to eliminate violence against women.
From 2010 to 2011, Sarah was posted to Pakistan to manage Australia’s humanitarian response to the monsoon floods. In later deployments as part of the Australian Civilian Corps, Sarah worked on natural disaster preparedness in Timor Leste, and as a Gender, Peace and Security Adviser in Myanmar in 2016, to enhance women’s roles in the peace process. Sarah has also worked for Oxfam Australia as the Afghanistan and Pakistan Portfolio Manager, and with women’s rights organizations in Nepal and across South and South-East Asia. In 2015, Sarah started her own consultancy firm, The Gender Agency, to continue this work by providing advice on gender policy and strategy to governments, international organizations and the United Nations.
In 2018, Sarah was a Fulbright Scholar at the Harvard Kennedy School, and earned a Master of Public Administration. In 2019, she started a new role as Director of Global Policy and Advocacy with Data2X, to close gender data gaps in order to ensure the lives of women and girls are made visible in policy making and to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals.
Sarah Boyd
(1989)
Bronwyn Lincoln (Hodges, 1981)
BA, LLB
Bronwyn is a partner of law firm, Corrs Chambers Westgarth, and an internationally-recognised arbitration practitioner and international arbitrator. Amongst other roles, Bronwyn is one of Australia’s four designated conciliators for the World Bank and a panel arbitrator for a number of international arbitral institutions, including the Singapore International Arbitration Centre and the Asian International Arbitration Centre. She is also a director of the Australian Centre for International Commercial Arbitration and the Australian Disputes Centre and a member of the ICC Commission on Arbitration and ADR, based in Paris. In 2017 and 2020 Bronwyn was named as Lawyer of the Year – International Arbitration by Best Lawyers Australia and, in 2020, she was recognised as a Global Leader in Arbitration by Who’s Who Legal.
Bronwyn has pursued her career in parallel with her husband, Mark’s, professional career in engineering, consulting and legal and with Mark’s unfailing support and invaluable mentoring. They have three teenage children – Sam, studying aviation and piloting at Swinburne, Alexander (Year 11) and Charlotte (Year 9). Family is the most important of her achievements.
Bronwyn’s professional roles include developing and mentoring junior and senior lawyers, both within her law firm and from other organisations. In 2017, Bronwyn was recognised for her contribution in this area when she was chosen as the National Mentor of the Year in the Women in Law Awards. In 2019, Bronwyn was a finalist in these awards for her pro bono legal work.
In 2017, Bronwyn was invited to participate in an historical photograph of 21 female leaders in law, including the then Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Victoria and the Chief Justice of the High Court of Australia.
Bronwyn Lincoln
(Hodges, 1981)
Kate Sommerville (McCoy, 1988)
FAusIMM(CP)
Kate has worked in the mining industry for over 27 years, with a depth of experience in open cut and underground operations. She has been employed in a variety of technical, operational, management, contractor, consulting and corporate roles across a number of commodities.
Most recently, Kate was Vice President Mining for Gold Fields – which covered a range of functional and strategic oversight of assets in Ghana, South Africa, Australia, Peru and Chile. She has recently taken on the role of General Manager Legacy Assets based in Tucson, Arizona. In this role, Kate leads an integrated team that rehabilitates 24 closed mines across Canada and the USA. Kate loves the positive difference mining can make, especially in developing countries.
In 2011 Kate was awarded the Women in Resources Champion and inducted into the WA Hall of Fame for her work in championing women in mining. She has delivered motivational talks since 2004 and has been asked on many industry panels. Kate was the first Mine Manager for BHP Billiton Iron Ore.
Kate values continuous learning and being connected with industry professionals. She was elected as a Director for her professional industry organisation, the Australian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy (AusIMM). In 2013, she received Profession’s Australia Professional of the Year and in 2020 she received the AusIMM Institute Service Award.
In her downtime, Kate enjoys being chief bird photographer assistant and motorbike pillion. She loves exercise and competed in two 70.3 Triathlon World Championships and was proud that in one of them she didn’t come last. At school, Kate learnt Ballet, but these days prefers to sit with the audience and be a sponsor of the West Australian Ballet.
Kate Sommerville
(McCoy, 1988)
Linda Bull (1985)
The richness of Linda’s Tongan heritage has shaped her musical talent since birth. Traditional Tongan music and dance filled Linda’s childhood home, enhanced by her family’s ties to the close-knit Melbourne Tongan community.
From a young age, Linda was coached by her mother to harmonise her singing with the voice of her older sister, Vika, especially singing gospel songs which lent themselves to harmony perfectly. With their unmistakable sibling vocal talents, Linda began singing the lower part to complement, and to be complemented, by Vika singing the higher part.
After graduating from CGGS in 1985, Linda enrolled in university but left after two years to embark on a musical career with Vika. Together they formed a band, The Honeymooners. In 1988, Linda and Vika were invited as duo backing singers to join Joe Camilleri’s roots-rock band, The Black Sorrows. This was their big break into the stellar Australian music scene, winning multiple awards and touring Australia and Europe. So impressed was Camilleri by the Bull sisters’ individual talents, he gave each a spot in the limelight during live gigs to display their uniquely individual voices.
In 1994, Linda and Vika left The Black Sorrows to forge their own pathways and produced their award-winning debut album with Paul Kelly, to be followed by a further six albums of their own, all highlighting the sisters’ remarkable voices and the finest of Australia’s songwriters. Vika and Linda have sung on number one albums for Paul Kelly, Kasey Chambers and John Farnham. They have performed for global luminaries like the Dalai Lama, Nelson Mandela and the King of Tonga. They have been nominated for four ARIA awards, and in 2019 were inducted in the Music Victoria Hall of Fame.
While Linda has received wide acclaim as a backing singer, she is well-recognised as a solo artist too. In 2018. Linda’s show ‘Stardust’, featuring the songs of Willie Nelson, added to her legacy of bringing glorious pleasure to audiences with her distinctive versatile voice. In June 2020. Vika and Linda released their first career retrospective album “‘Akilotoa (Anthology 1994-2006)” which landed at number one on the national ARIA charts on the week of its release. ARIA CEO Dan Rosen said, “Congratulations to Vika and Linda Bull, who have been enduring and unique voices in Australian music for over 30 years. For a career that has covered so many styles, collaborations and albums, it seems long overdue for them to be rewarded with ARIA #1 Album.”
Paul Kelly describes Linda’s voice as “warm and mellow like honey…but can be tough and tender.”
Linda Bull
(1985)
Louise Brearley Messer AM (1957)
BDSc, LDS, MDSc, PhD, GradDipDiv, MA, FICD, FRACDS
Louise Brearley Messer is currently Emeritus Professor in the Melbourne Dental School, University of Melbourne. Her career has spanned several countries and research fields, publishing over 200 research papers and book chapters, and supervising the research of over 80 post-graduate students. She has also held academic positions at the University of Minnesota, USA, and the University of British Colombia, Canada. During her time at the University of Minnesota, she was the Director of the Post-Doctoral Research Training Program in Dental Caries for the National Institutes of Health.
Returning to the University of Melbourne in 1990, Louise was the Elsdon Storey Professor of Child Dental Health until 2008, and Director of Graduate Studies in the Dental School from 1996 to 2008. She has lectured in her specialty, paediatric dentistry, across the Asia-Pacific and Middle-East regions and USA. She has served on the editorial boards of a number of paediatric dentistry journals and also as a regular reviewer for international dental journals. Her research has investigated issues relating to dental growth and development, developmental anomalies, dental caries, tooth erosion and wear in children, long-term effects of fluoride and molar incisor hypomineralisation.
For her significant service to paediatric dentistry and to both the community and the dental profession, Louise was awarded the Australian Dental Association Victorian Branch Award for Distinguished Service in 2011, and in the following year she was awarded Member (AM) in the General Division of the Order of Australia. In retirement, Louise is heavily involved in her church, participating in a range of volunteer activities. She continues to value highly the School anthem – “what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” (Micah 6:8).
Louise Brearley Messer AM
(1957)
The Reverend Canon Doctor Raewynne J. Whiteley (1984)
BA(Hons), MA, BTh, BMin, PhD
Raewynne was among the first generation of women to be ordained priest in the Anglican Church of Australia. She has served parishes in Sydney and Newcastle in Australia, and New Jersey and Long Island (where she was Area Dean) in the United States, before moving to the United Kingdom to join the staff of the Diocese of Southwark, where she continues to be involved in parish ministry and preaching throughout the diocese. Raewynne also supported the Australian Consulate in New York in the wake of 9/11.
A passion for study led Raewynne to degrees in Psychology, Women’s Studies, and Theology, culminating in a PhD in Practical Theology in Homiletics (preaching). She served as convenor of the History Working Group of The North American Academy of Homiletics for over ten years, before handing over that role to a team of young scholars.
Raewynne has served as Canon Theologian and Examining Chaplain of the Episcopal Diocese of Long Island, and has been selected for a number of leadership development programs and fellowships within the church.
She has published two books, Get Up Off Your Knees: preaching the U2 Catalog and Steeped in the Holy: Preaching as a Spiritual Practice, together with numerous articles, academic papers and sermons.
Her love of teaching has led Raewynne to teach Homiletics, Theology, and Religion at Princeton Theological Seminary, Bay Path College, and George Mercer, Jr. Memorial School of Theology (alongside her parish ministry) and to become a certified ski instructor.
Throughout her ministry, Raewynne has focussed on fostering faith and leadership. This is expressed in ministry with children, involvement in university chaplaincy and her work in fostering vocations to ordained and lay ministry in Southwark, where she was recently asked to lead the strategic redevelopment of authorised lay ministry across the diocese.
The Reverend Canon Doctor Raewynne J. Whiteley
(1984)
Michelle Campbell (1987)
BA (Soc SC)
In her early adult years, Michelle Campbell worked in advertising and manufacturing and showed a knack for planning and stakeholder management. Concurrently, she undertook Army Reserve officer training part time, she then graduated with the sword of honour (dux).
Michelle had three children in her 20s and, returning from a four-year maternity break, she worked as a civilian program director with Department of Defence, Land Systems. Strategic, long-term program and portfolio management was her forte for 10 years. In the Army Reserve, she led a company of approximately 100 people, including support to the community in the 2003 bushfires.
Ambitious and wanting to progress her civilian career, she joined KPMGs management consulting practice as a Director in the Defence and National Security sector and led the Land Systems account for 12 years. During her time at KPMG, she continued her part-time Army Reserve career where she supported the 2009 bushfires, commanded a regiment of approximately 300 staff, and up to 2,000 trainees transited through the regiment on various courses. She was deployed to Afghanistan for eight months working for NATO where she was awarded the Article 5 NATO Meritorious Service Medal for “distinguished service exhibiting outstanding leadership and exceptional contribution”, becoming the 20th Australian to be awarded this medal. Michelle was also promoted to Colonel and served four years as deputy commander of a brigade of approximately 3,500 people across Australia.
Michelle is passionate about giving back to our community, with voluntary public appointments to support the military and veterans. These appointments included, Non-Executive Director, The Shrine of Remembrance Melbourne, Board of Trustees; Non-Executive Director, The Shrine of Remembrance Melbourne, Risk and Audit Committee; Non-Executive Director, State Executive of the Returned and Services League (Victoria) and Non-Executive Director, Air Combat Advisory Board (external member), Royal Australian Air Force. Michelle has also been a judge for multiple awards including, Prime Minister’s Veterans’ Employment Awards, Returned and Services League (Victoria) ANZAC Awards and
Victorian Premier’s Spirit of ANZAC Prize.
Hungry for a new civilian challenge, Michelle joined the Victorian Government as an Executive Director in December 2019 and was immediately ‘Called Out’ for Army Reserve service to support the 2019-2020 bushfires for two months.
Michelle says her adult children keep her grounded. “Their support over the years has enabled me to role model what it means to serve”.
Michelle Campbell
(1987)
Dr Lynette Noel Waite AO (McPherson, 1946)
Noel is a well-known identity in the fields of human resources and women’s affairs. She is Chairman of the Waite Group, a recruitment consultancy, Director of Waite Intersearch, immediate past Chairman of the Leukaemia Foundation of Victoria and past Director of the Public Transport Corporation and State Training Board. She was the first woman President of the Australian Institute of Management, where she is an Honorary Life Member and has the coveted Malcolm Moore Medal for Outstanding Service to Management. She founded the Women Chiefs of Enterprises International in Australia and was Chairman of the International Specialised Skills Institute and a past President of the Victorian Artists Society.
Noel is a qualified Artist and was a Fashion Illustrator for Myer for some years and later a partner of Fashion Art Studio.
When widowed in 1968, Noel entered the business world while continuing to design for corporate image for which she had been trained at Swinburne. She has continued to use her creativity to design and implement career development programs for managers and directors.
In 1993, she created the Top Steps career development program for middle to senior management and subsequently designed the Ultimate Step and Board Step for senior executive and board appointments. These programs operated throughout Australia. Also 1993, Noel was appointed an Officer of the Order of Australia for ‘service to business and management, particularly through advancing the development of women in management’.
Noel has extensive networks, having written and delivered many papers both in Australia and overseas and her book The Gold Within (Lothian Books) was released in April 2000.
She is listed in the International Who’s Who of Women and Who’s Who in Australia.
In the Year 2000, Noel was chosen to carry the Olympic Torch in the Sydney Olympics.
In 2018 Noel was given an Honorary Doctorate for Business at Swinburne Institute of Technology.
Dr Noel Waite AO
(McPherson, 1946)
Margaret Schofield OAM (1931)
BMus
Margaret Schofield was one of Australia’s leading pianists during a distinguished career spanning almost 60 years. She was a renowned soloist and accompanist and widely known for her commitment to the education of young people’s musical endeavours.
Margaret commenced her education at CGGS in 1923, three years after the school was founded. Her father, the Reverend James Schofield, Vicar of St Marks, was one of the School’s Founders and Chair of the first School Council. From the outset, the school motto, Utilis in Ministerium found its place in Margaret’s heart and mind. At the age of 10 she penned a poem A Marcian’s Ideal, reflecting her love of the school and promise to be :useful in service and helpful indeed”. These words echoed throughout Margaret’s entire life.
After leaving school in 1931, Margaret studied music at the University of Melbourne and in London, where she gave recitals for the BBC. In 1934, she wrote a song for a combined girls’ school choir on the occasion of Victoria’s centenary called, Land of Ours.
During the 1950s and 1960s, she toured Australia with acclaimed international musicians. In 1966, Margaret was appointed Chief Study Teacher at the University of Melbourne Conservatorium. She lectured in accompanying and piano at the Melba Conservatorium, examined for the Australian Music Examinations Board and adjudicated at many eisteddfods and competitions.
In 1988, Margaret was awarded the Order of Australia Medal for her services to music and the community.
In 1993, she gave a solo recital in Barbara Sutton Hall in memory of her late father, allocating all the proceeds to the encouragement of music excellence in the school.
In recognition of Margaret’s achievements as a musician and tangible support for educational opportunities, her family established a memorial scholarship open to students who have completed their VCE at government secondary schools. This scholarship provides assistance in funding for ongoing music study at a tertiary institution.
Until her late seventies, Margaret continued to teach and play piano.
Margaret Schofield OAM
(1931)
Roma Drummond OAM (Brunt, 1943)
Roma’s connection with CGGS commenced in 1933 as a young pupil, and now in 2020, her allegiance to, and involvement with her alma mater has never diminished. During Roma’s student years, she embraced the school’s motto and values deeply, these have guided her continually throughout her life.
Roma was valued by the school so much that she was employed by Headmistress at the time, Miss Louisa Taylor, as her part-time secretary and as a Speech and Drama teacher. During this time, Roma maintained links with the Past Students Association (OGA). Being a natural leader, she established a Dramatic Club and produced many successful plays which were performed in Camberwell Town Hall and Heidelberg Military Hospital, to outstanding reviews.
Roma’s innate gift to care for others so selflessly, became pre-eminent when she assumed the role of primary care giver to a close family member following their diagnosis with schizophrenia. Roma devoted herself unconditionally and her enduring dedication inspiring an internal pledge to share her experience and wisdom with families who were undergoing similar challenges.
On Australia Day 1994, Roma received the Medal of the Order of Australia, ‘In recognition of service to families caring for relatives with schizophrenia’.
In 1997, Roma was invited to join an advisory group for the Parents in Partnership project convened by Eastern Health, Melbourne. In participating, Roma collaborated with diverse medical and social welfare professionals, giving invaluable advice and feedback to improve support services for families in the area of mental health. Roma also became a member of the Victorian Schizophrenia Fellowship, representing them during the ABC’s broadcast of The Science Show in 1998 to communicate the nature of schizophrenia.
Roma is a foundation member of The Sapphire Circle, a group dedicated to old grammarians of CGGS who graduated 50 years ago or more.
In 2008, Roma was made a Life Governor of Camberwell Girls Grammar School.
Roma Drummond OAM
(Brunt, 1943)
Jenny Vadiveloo (Talbot, 1982)
B Ed
Jenny’s passion has always been sport. She feels fortunate to have had her sporting skills nurtured by the CGGS’s supportive Physical Education staff and the many opportunities the school afforded her before she graduated in 1982.
Jenny was a member of the Athletics Team, attended the annual Athletics Camps and before school training. Jenny was Lawrence House Sports Captain and was also awarded the title of Senior Sports Champion. She captained the School Athletics Teams in 1981 and 1982, leading the team to victory in the Interschool Competition in 1981 and coming second in 1982.
In Year 12, Jenny travelled to the USA to participate in an Athletics Development Tour. This opportunity exposed her international competitions at the University of Hawaii, Brigham Young University, Stanford University and University of California, Los Angeles.
After graduating, Jenny completed her Bachelor of Education at Victoria College. During that time, she undertook teaching practice rounds at St Michael’s Grammar School and was offered an ongoing position there as a Physical Education and History teacher. With St Michael’s encouragement, Jenny took leave for a term to represent Australia in High Jump at the 1986 Commonwealth Games in Edinburgh, Scotland. She did not medal, but gained invaluable experience. In 1989, Jenny returned to Europe for three weeks of competition to prepare for the 1990 Commonwealth Games in Auckland, New Zealand. At the 1990 Commonwealth Games, the top fourth, fifth and sixth competitors all jumped 1.88 metres, with Jenny taking out sixth place on a count back, much to her delight.
Jenny got married in 1991 at St Marks Church in Camberwell and Barbara Russell – Head of Music at CGGS at the time – organised the CGGS choir to sing at the wedding. Jenny and her husband have three adult daughters and teaches English and Physical Education part-time.
Jenny Vadiveloo
(Talbot, 1982)
Vika Bull (1983)
Vika’s innate gift for music was cultivated from early childhood; accredited to her rich maternal Tongan heritage. Her family enjoyed close ties with the Melbourne Tongan community and church where she and her younger sister, Linda, were taught traditional singing and dancing. It was Vika’s mother who recognised natural talents within her daughters to sing and it was she who coached Vika to sing intricate harmonies with Linda to suit their unique voices.
Vika thrived on singing and piano lessons and, from childhood, she wanted to become a professional singer. After leaving school, Vika began training as a legal secretary, but the call to live into her dream led her to seek opportunities to sing. In 1983, Vika was invited to become a backing singer in Melbourne band, Fear of Flying, and the following year she formed the Blue Tomatoes. This was the very beginning of her professional music career.
In 1987 Vika established a band, The Honeymooners, with Linda. She also released her first solo recording, My House.
Vika and Linda’s growing reputation as a distinctive yet versatile duo came to the attention of Joe Camilleri, whose band The Black Sorrows were already on the rise. An invitation to join them in 1988 marked Vika and Linda’s big break into the Australian music scene. After six successful years with the Black Sorrows, touring the world, winning awards and multiple chart successes, Vika and Linda went solo. They released their debut album in 1994, which went Top Ten and achieved platinum sales. Six albums followed, all showcasing the sisters’ remarkable voices as well as Australia’s finest songwriters, including Paul Kelly, Mark Seymour and Archie Roach. Vika and Linda have sung on number one albums for Paul Kelly, Kasey Chambers and John Farnham. They have performed for the Dalai Lama, Nelson Mandela and the King of Tonga. Vika and Linda have been nominated for four ARIA awards, and in 2019 were inducted in the Music Victoria Hall of Fame.
Vika’s solo career is highlighted by her leading role in At Last, The Etta James Story, which has toured Australia since 2013, the UK and New Zealand. In June 2020, Vika and Linda released their first career retrospective album “‘Akilotoa (Anthology 1994-2006)”, which landed at number one on the national ARIA charts on the week of its release. ARIA CEO Dan Rosen said, “Congratulations to Vika and Linda Bull, who have been enduring and unique voices in Australian music for over 30 years. For a career that has covered so many styles, collaborations and albums, it seems long overdue for them to be rewarded with ARIA #1 Album.”
Vika’s voice has been described as strong and dexterous and as intuitively melding with Linda’s. “It’s as if they can feel each other”, says Paul Kelly.
Vika Bull
(1983)
Wendy Rainbird (Westcott, 1959)
BA DipEd
Wendy spent twenty-five years teaching, initially at Secondary and Tertiary levels, and then for many years at Primary levels. Upon retirement from teaching, she was invited to join the Australian National Sustainability Initiative, conducting innumerable workshops and seminars.
This experience led Wendy to being appointed the Environment Advisor to the National Council of Women (NCW) ACT, the precursor to her nomination as the National Environment Advisor for NCW Australia.
Due to various international reports which Wendy communicated nationally, she was appointed Environment Advisor for the International Council of Women (ICW) at Izmir, Turkey in 2015.
In 2016, Wendy was a member of the ICW delegation to the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women in New York, where seventeen Sustainable Development Goals were discussed. She also participated in the ICW conference in Taipei, Taiwan.
In 2018, Wendy represented the ICW at the Food and Agricultural Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) Regional Conference for Asia and the Pacific (APRC) in Fiji and later she was re-elected Environment Advisor for ICW at Jogjakarta. Nationally, Wendy continued her role for the NCW Australia and ACT. Locally, she was involved in SEE Change (Society, Economy, Environment), and was at the initial Parliament of Youth for Sustainability, where students from all ACT schools were invited to present creative and feasible ideas for living more sustainably. Wendy continues to be involved in this inspiring work.
Wendy has volunteered for the past 30 years as ParkCare convenor for the ACT Farrer Ridge Nature Reserve, a community program for people interested in protecting the environment. In recognition for her long-standing involvement and commitment, Wendy was awarded the ACT Individual Landcare Award.
Each month since 2003, Wendy has monitored and reported on the Murrumbidgee River conditions for Waterwatch. Wendy has been the lead editor and author of two books including, “The World of Tidbinbilla” and “A Labour of Love: Celebrating Landcare in the ACT”.
In 2017, Wendy was a nominee for ACT Senior Australian of the Year.
Wendy Rainbird
(Westcott, 1959)
diamonds • embody the qualities of our honourees • rare and precious • a symbol of purity, clarity and wisdom • the toughest naturally occurring substance • a symbol of light and brilliance • embrace strength of character, ethics, and faithfulness to oneself and others
During 2020, the school launched this new program to honour the inspiring women of Camberwell Girls Grammar School.
This program provides an opportunity to acknowledge and celebrate the outstanding contribution made by women connected to CGGS since its inception.
These inspiring women will be honoured at a special ceremony and will serve as strong role models for current students. In addition, the recipients will have their profile hung in a prominent position in the school.
Key Considerations For Selection
Nominations can include former students, staff and parents and current staff and parents or, any other women from the wider school community. Posthumous nominations will be accepted.
Inspiring Women of Camberwell Girls Grammar School are exemplars in one or more of the following domains:
• The application of a love of learning with a commitment to attain prominence in her career through worthy accomplishments.
• The demonstration of strong and wise leadership resulting in a greater recognition of her profession, locally, nationally or internationally.
• A global mindset dedicated to fostering a more just and sustainable world, locally, nationally or internationally, either professionally or as a volunteer.
• The provision of consistent, dedicated and compassionate care for the wellbeing of others, either physical, emotional, psychological, social or spiritual.
• Sustained, significant and noteworthy contributions professionally, or as a volunteer, in one or more of the following areas: community involvement, cultural enterprises, sporting achievements, advocacy of women in leadership and other pursuits.
• The demonstration of unconditional commitment to using her skills and talents to give back to the community.
Selection Panel
All nominations will be considered by the Foundation and Community Subcommittee of Camberwell Girls Grammar School. The Subcommittee will make recommendations to the School Council for final approval.
The 2021 Inspiring Women honourees will be announced in March 2021.
How to Nominate an Honouree
Nominating someone for an award is very simple.
Before beginning you will need to gather some key information:
• The contact details of the person you are nominating (if alive)
• The contact details of a family member / friend (if posthumous nomination)
• A short bio of your nominee and a summary of why you are nominating this person
Further Information
Kate Daffy
Community Programs and Events Coordinator
E daffyk@cggs.vic.edu.au
T 03 9813 1166
Senior School & Admin
2 Torrington Street,
Canterbury, Victoria 3126
Phone +61 3 9813 1166
Fax +61 3 9882 9248
Junior School – Ormiston
4 Mont Albert Road,
Canterbury, Victoria 3126
Phone +61 3 9813 1965
Fax +61 3 9813 2530
“We acknowledge and pay respect to the Wurundjeri people as the traditional custodians of the land on which the school is situated”
Discover more at cggs.vic.edu.au