PRINCIPAL PROFILE
Name
Michael James Lee
Current School
St Mary MacKillop College, Canberra
Previous Position
Principal, Hennessy Catholic College, Young
My big picture for the school is
A Christ-centred Catholic school successfully meeting the challenge of being authentically welcoming of diversity and inclusion. MacKillop prioritises equity of access and aspires to fully engage with the community of Canberra, Australia, and the world.
The Joy of Principalship is
The respect and trust given to me by my school community.
Favourite book
Fiction: The Langton Quartet by Martin Boyd
Non-fiction: No Ordinary Time by Doris Kearns Goodwin
Favorite food
A hot Four N Twenty pie at the MCG (with sauce).
Interests and hobbies
Reading American Presidential history, travel, cooking, following Essendon in the AFL.
Favourite Wellbeing Strategy
Autumn lunch in the back garden with a Coonawarra red and a good friend/getting a load of washing done before school – good to achieve something in a day!
Advice for a Beginning Principal
Be available and present to students and their parents and carers – remember that schools exist for students, not adults, but the most important people in schools are teachers. Don’t shrink from the difficult conversations. Have high expectations of self and others. Don’t worry about the money.
Favourite Leadership Quote
“The presidency is like a soft leather glove. It fits the hand in it at the time. Every now and then, a president’s hand stretches the glove and it is forever enlarged; Washington did this, Lincoln did this too, and FDR stretched it in a way that those who followed him have struggled to wear the glove with any comfort.”
- George F Will
What title would you give to your TED Talk or Book
Victory is arbitrary; faith and courage are believed, felt, and witnessed.
OR Social conservatism – the enemy of Catholic Education.