Staff
Our teaching staff consist of two teachers (one of whom is the Nominated Supervisor) and two educators. They are supported by an Administration Manager, and a Grounds Keeper. Our teaching staff hold Early Childhood qualifications and participate in professional development each year. Each staff member holds a current First Aid and CPR qualification together with a Blue Card Positive Notice (Blue Card) for Child Related Employment.
Our Teachers’ roles and responsibilities are many and varied, utmost among them being to ensure the health, safety and wellbeing of the children in their care. In addition, our Teachers:
- implement the education curriculum
- maintain child developmental records
- supervise staff and children
- develop policies in conjunction with parents, the Committee and Lady Gowrie
- provide professional advice and feedback to the Committee, and
- complete regular professional development.
Elizabeth (Liz) Kerswell (Gold Group Teacher, Nominated Supervisor and Educational Leader) - Commencing in 2024
Liz Kerswell holds a Master of Education (Early Childhood Teaching), Bachelor of Music/Bachelor of Education (Secondary), and is currently studying her Certificate IV in Training and Assessment. Liz has worked with children for 16 years and has been a teacher for fifteen of those years. She was a primary music teacher from 2009-2014 and transitioned across to Early Childhood Teaching in 2015 and has been in the early years ever since. Liz also highly values the importance of relationships as the key to supporting children’s optimal development. She is inspired by attachment theory and neurodevelopmental approaches in supporting children’s emotional well-being and social development. Liz is passionate about the value of children’s play for play’s sake and has been developing a keen interest in “play work” exploring risky play, loose parts play, and the range of opportunities that present outdoors. She is also passionate about the “environment as third teacher” to create a safe, comfortable atmosphere with careful design of the environment to maximise children’s engagement and learning.
Liz has lived in the local area in Sandgate and Fitzgibbon since 2011 and loves this special part of the world. She has a five-year-old boy, husband, and fluffy grey cat, whom she adores spending her free time with. Together as a family they raising insects, fishkeeping, exploring the bush, playing Pokemon Go, playing Ninja Turtles, swimming at local pools, battling with action figures on the loungeroom floor, and going for scooter rides around the neighbourhood. Liz also enjoys doing boot camp gym and dance classes in her free time and one day, she’d love to get back to playing her musical instruments.
Sue Dundas (2023 Nominated Supervisor and Gold Group Teacher)
Ms Sue Dundas holds a Bachelor of Education, Diploma of Teaching (Preschool and Primary) and a Diploma of Early Childhood. Mrs Dundas is an experienced Early Childhood Teacher who has been living and working in Far North Queensland up until December 2021. Ms Sue’s family have lived in the area since 1985 and she has two adult daughters. Ms Sue enjoys Yoga and Pilates Classes and enjoys being part of the dedicated team at Bracken Ridge Kindergarten.
Under designations in the Education and Care Services National Law (Queensland) Act, Ms Sue may also be referred to as the Nominated Supervisor, Educational Leader, and the Responsible Person for the Kindergarten.
Our Nominated Supervisor/Educational Leader is the Responsible Person for the Kindergarten.
Leads policy development in conjunction with the Committee of Management and other stakeholders.
Leads the supervision of staff and professional development of staff.
Janet Smith (Green Group Teacher)
Mrs Janet Smith is our Green Group Kindergarten Teacher and holds a Bachelor of Education (Early Childhood).Her passion is early childhood and the importance of play in developing lifelong skills for learning. In her career she has been blessed to be a part of many beautiful communities, just like Bracken Ridge, these have brought life to her pedagogy and joy to teaching. Now that Mrs Smith has two children of her own, she has been able to witness the rewards first hand, observing them blossom during their years at community kindergarten and the benefits they have carried in the years beyond. In Mrs Smith's spare time, she loves to go camping, visit the beach and rainforest, play in the park, have barbecues in her backyard, and spend time with family and friends.
She believes it is an absolute pleasure to share the joy and wonder of childhood. Mrs Smith's career spans over 20 years, over a range of early childhood sectors from pre-kindergarten, kindergarten, preschool to grade 3. Mrs Smith believes her experience has made her appreciate how important a solid and positive grounding in the early years is, for setting children up for success as they move up to the early years of school and beyond. Another aspect of her profession she loves is children's literature, in particular reading and engaging in storytelling with children, this is such a pleasure to behold.
Our Educators
Our Educators provide invaluable support to our teachers. They assist in:
the implementation of the curriculum
the preparation and supervision of activities
fulfilling housekeeping duties related to the curriculum
sharing their observations of the children with our Teachers
adhering to Kindergarten policies and promoting the Kindergarten.
Patti Cole (2023 Gold Group Assistant Educator)
Mrs Patti Cole has been a part of the Bracken Ridge Kindergarten since 2002 but has been affiliated with the kindergarten for much longer with her son attending prior to her employment. Mrs Cole holds an Associate Diploma in Children Education and is a wealth of knowledge to our Kindergarten. Mrs Cole takes immense pride in helping sustain our environment and teaching our children about our indigenous cultures and history.
Mrs Cole loves the space at Kindy and has a passionate interest in the environment as a whole. She enjoys working with children around seeing our world as a unified place for us all to look after and live peacefully and is invested in learning more from our First Nations people. Mrs Cole gets great satisfaction from hearing our children's views and being able to encourage and support their ideas in their play and learning. She loves to see the joy in their eyes.
In her spare time Mrs Cole enjoys pilates, yoga, sewing, embroidery and crafting of any type. Mrs Cole and her husband have done a lot of travelling and long distance hiking. Mrs Cole looks forward to meeting and working with all the new Kindy children and families and you will find Mrs Cole here at the Kindergarten in our Gold Group.
Davina Kempnich (2023 Green Group Educator + 2024 Green and Gold Group Assistant Educator)
Miss Davina Kempnich is our Green Group Educator. Miss Davina holds a Bachelor of Educational Studies and a Diploma in Early Childhood Education and has worked in the Early childhood sector for over 8 years. Miss Davina is passionate about the education of young children and believes that learning through play is the cornerstone of early childhood development. Miss Davina believes it is important to work as a team and that parents are their child's first teachers. Miss Davina values parents' contributions and each child's learning and wellbeing, she keeps all lines of communication open so that both her and the parents can work together.
In her spare time Miss Davina enjoys listening to music, spending time with family and friends, going to the movies and reading.
Our Teachers’ roles and responsibilities are many and varied, utmost among them being to ensure the health, safety and wellbeing of the children in their care. In addition, our Teachers:
- implement the education curriculum
- maintain child developmental records
- supervise staff and children
- develop policies in conjunction with parents, the Committee and Lady Gowrie
- provide professional advice and feedback to the Committee, and
- complete regular professional development.
Elizabeth (Liz) Kerswell (Gold Group Teacher, Nominated Supervisor and Educational Leader) - Commencing in 2024
Liz Kerswell holds a Master of Education (Early Childhood Teaching), Bachelor of Music/Bachelor of Education (Secondary), and is currently studying her Certificate IV in Training and Assessment. Liz has worked with children for 16 years and has been a teacher for fifteen of those years. She was a primary music teacher from 2009-2014 and transitioned across to Early Childhood Teaching in 2015 and has been in the early years ever since. Liz also highly values the importance of relationships as the key to supporting children’s optimal development. She is inspired by attachment theory and neurodevelopmental approaches in supporting children’s emotional well-being and social development. Liz is passionate about the value of children’s play for play’s sake and has been developing a keen interest in “play work” exploring risky play, loose parts play, and the range of opportunities that present outdoors. She is also passionate about the “environment as third teacher” to create a safe, comfortable atmosphere with careful design of the environment to maximise children’s engagement and learning.
Liz has lived in the local area in Sandgate and Fitzgibbon since 2011 and loves this special part of the world. She has a five-year-old boy, husband, and fluffy grey cat, whom she adores spending her free time with. Together as a family they raising insects, fishkeeping, exploring the bush, playing Pokemon Go, playing Ninja Turtles, swimming at local pools, battling with action figures on the loungeroom floor, and going for scooter rides around the neighbourhood. Liz also enjoys doing boot camp gym and dance classes in her free time and one day, she’d love to get back to playing her musical instruments.
Sue Dundas (2023 Nominated Supervisor and Gold Group Teacher)
Ms Sue Dundas holds a Bachelor of Education, Diploma of Teaching (Preschool and Primary) and a Diploma of Early Childhood. Mrs Dundas is an experienced Early Childhood Teacher who has been living and working in Far North Queensland up until December 2021. Ms Sue’s family have lived in the area since 1985 and she has two adult daughters. Ms Sue enjoys Yoga and Pilates Classes and enjoys being part of the dedicated team at Bracken Ridge Kindergarten.
Under designations in the Education and Care Services National Law (Queensland) Act, Ms Sue may also be referred to as the Nominated Supervisor, Educational Leader, and the Responsible Person for the Kindergarten.
Our Nominated Supervisor/Educational Leader is the Responsible Person for the Kindergarten.
Leads policy development in conjunction with the Committee of Management and other stakeholders.
Leads the supervision of staff and professional development of staff.
Janet Smith (Green Group Teacher)
Mrs Janet Smith is our Green Group Kindergarten Teacher and holds a Bachelor of Education (Early Childhood).Her passion is early childhood and the importance of play in developing lifelong skills for learning. In her career she has been blessed to be a part of many beautiful communities, just like Bracken Ridge, these have brought life to her pedagogy and joy to teaching. Now that Mrs Smith has two children of her own, she has been able to witness the rewards first hand, observing them blossom during their years at community kindergarten and the benefits they have carried in the years beyond. In Mrs Smith's spare time, she loves to go camping, visit the beach and rainforest, play in the park, have barbecues in her backyard, and spend time with family and friends.
She believes it is an absolute pleasure to share the joy and wonder of childhood. Mrs Smith's career spans over 20 years, over a range of early childhood sectors from pre-kindergarten, kindergarten, preschool to grade 3. Mrs Smith believes her experience has made her appreciate how important a solid and positive grounding in the early years is, for setting children up for success as they move up to the early years of school and beyond. Another aspect of her profession she loves is children's literature, in particular reading and engaging in storytelling with children, this is such a pleasure to behold.
Our Educators
Our Educators provide invaluable support to our teachers. They assist in:
the implementation of the curriculum
the preparation and supervision of activities
fulfilling housekeeping duties related to the curriculum
sharing their observations of the children with our Teachers
adhering to Kindergarten policies and promoting the Kindergarten.
Patti Cole (2023 Gold Group Assistant Educator)
Mrs Patti Cole has been a part of the Bracken Ridge Kindergarten since 2002 but has been affiliated with the kindergarten for much longer with her son attending prior to her employment. Mrs Cole holds an Associate Diploma in Children Education and is a wealth of knowledge to our Kindergarten. Mrs Cole takes immense pride in helping sustain our environment and teaching our children about our indigenous cultures and history.
Mrs Cole loves the space at Kindy and has a passionate interest in the environment as a whole. She enjoys working with children around seeing our world as a unified place for us all to look after and live peacefully and is invested in learning more from our First Nations people. Mrs Cole gets great satisfaction from hearing our children's views and being able to encourage and support their ideas in their play and learning. She loves to see the joy in their eyes.
In her spare time Mrs Cole enjoys pilates, yoga, sewing, embroidery and crafting of any type. Mrs Cole and her husband have done a lot of travelling and long distance hiking. Mrs Cole looks forward to meeting and working with all the new Kindy children and families and you will find Mrs Cole here at the Kindergarten in our Gold Group.
Davina Kempnich (2023 Green Group Educator + 2024 Green and Gold Group Assistant Educator)
Miss Davina Kempnich is our Green Group Educator. Miss Davina holds a Bachelor of Educational Studies and a Diploma in Early Childhood Education and has worked in the Early childhood sector for over 8 years. Miss Davina is passionate about the education of young children and believes that learning through play is the cornerstone of early childhood development. Miss Davina believes it is important to work as a team and that parents are their child's first teachers. Miss Davina values parents' contributions and each child's learning and wellbeing, she keeps all lines of communication open so that both her and the parents can work together.
In her spare time Miss Davina enjoys listening to music, spending time with family and friends, going to the movies and reading.