WestMAC is proud of the consistent efforts of staff who continue to raise the bar and stay motivated to achieve professional development milestones. It is just as much a success for the College as it is for staff when goals are achieved. On this occasion, we are pleased to acknowledge and congratulate our Junior School Teacher, Tracy Robertson on attaining national certification as a Lead Teacher.

Being certified as a Lead Teacher is no easy feat, in fact it is the highest professional accolade for teachers in Queensland and indeed, being a nationally recognised certification process, in Australia. HALT (Highly Accomplished and Lead Teacher) certification demonstrates leadership and commitment to excellence in teaching. When asked about how she felt about receiving her accreditation, Tracy humbly replied, “Completing the process was a team effort. It involved a lot of people sacrificing their time to support me by attending professional development sessions, filling in surveys or writing referee statements. Simple words of encouragement, when I needed them most, helped me progress successfully through the challenging steps towards accreditation.”

Tracy Robertson has been teaching for 28 years and an admirable 18 of those years has been spent teaching students at WestMAC.

What are the next steps for you having received your HALT certification?

“I will continue to develop my work here at WestMAC – continue to run professional development for colleagues, implement best practice and improve student outcomes by implementing what I’ve learned.”

What do you love about working at WestMAC?

“What I love about working at WestMAC is the supportive community culture. Everyone looks after each other. When I come to work every day, I don’t feel like it’s ‘work’ – I feel like I’m part of a family who celebrate each other’s successes and are there for support when you need it – everyone has your back.”

What is the best part of your teaching day?

“It’s the students – they are the highlight of my day. There’s never a dull moment – always something new. It’s those ‘Aha! Moments’ when they realise that they’ve learned something new. It’s seeing their faces light up with excitement.”

What is the nicest thing a student has ever done for you in class?

“Let me show you…” Tracy walks to her desk and pulls outs a few heart-warming mementos from past students in the form of framed appreciation quotes, best teacher paper weight, all with the unique imprints of students she had taught.

“Receiving these from my students at the end of the year really make me feel like I’ve made a difference in their lives - and I can see too that parents know that I actually love what I do”.