• You are here: Home
• State News
• ACT

Welcome

ACT State Project Officer Cay Merritt has worked with young people and community agencies in a range of education and mental health settings, including roles as a secondary teacher, support worker, and trainer. Cay is currently an advocate and project manager for an overseas orphanage. Cay is passionate about empowering people to reach their true potential and has a strong commitment to working with school communities to maximise their outcomes of the Mind Matter initiative. 

MindMatters ACT

As well as the MindMatters professional development workshops, State Project Officers will work with schools to facilitate:

• opportunities to develop an understanding of the relevant territory and national frameworks for mental health and wellbeing
• assistance for schools using Every chance to learn, the P–10 Curriculum Framework for embedding mental health and wellbeing across the whole school
• opportunities for whole school staff development
• support for school leaders through Staff Matters and the Principals Australia resource, Learn:Lead:Succeed, which supports the building of leadership in Australian schools
• links with national education and health initiatives such as the National Safe Schools Framework.

Professional development

On 29–30 April, Lucy Astle (headspace) and Megan Skillicorn (Lifeline) were both present at the Focus Module: Students Experiencing High Support Needs in Mental Health, to speak about their services. Participant comments about the workshop included the following.
 

'Working amongst other school professionals was very helpful. We were able to acknowledge each other's roles and values. Many valuable resources were provided.'

'I'm new in this position and still grappling with many of the issues presented to me by students. I found this focus module highly relevant in building my understanding of my role.'

Details of forthcoming professional development activities can be found on the Professional Development Calendar.