John Birse

I have been actively involved in School Council Governance as a School Councillor and by encouraging student participation throughout the Maroondah Region in the Federally funded PEP program in 1985. I was also on the Executive of the Victorian State Schools Organisation and met regularly with the Education Minister Joan Kirner. As project leader of the Schools Administrative Computing Unit I had the challenge of putting the first computerised accounting systems into Primary, Secondary and Technical Schools throughout Victoria and I attended many Principal, Administration Officer and School Council meetings to assist in the transition from manual to computerised systems. I was also involved in supervising and contributing to the Finance and Budget Planning Manual distributed to schools in 1987 Because of my accounting background and work with school operations I have a solid appreciation of the financial operations of a school including payroll. I also have worked with teachers and school councils on the need for proper financial governance and the importance of ownership of budgetary responsibilities. I believe my experience in operations at a school, local government and private enterprise level is is extensive and invaluable .