NEWS OF OLD FINTONIANS

When Jennifer Mathews (’77) took up the opportunity to learn Indonesian in Year 9 when it was first introduced to the Fintona curriculum, little did she know that this would plant the seed for her lifelong love of international relations in Asia and a diplomatic career.

Jennifer, who is currently National President, Australia Indonesia Business Council (AIBC), studied a Bachelor of Laws and Arts majoring in Indonesian studies at the University of Melbourne after finishing Year 12 at Fintona.

With numerous leadership roles within the Commonwealth and State Governments, Jennifer’s career has included two postings in Indonesia as First Secretary at the Australian Embassy and then as Investment and Trade Commissioner for the WA Government. Jennifer has also held the role of Director General of the WA Department of Local Government and Communities, Deputy Legal Advisor for the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade in Canberra, and State Manager of the Australian Trade and Investment Commission in Perth. For a period of time, she also worked as a solicitor in Jakarta at the law firm Makarim & Taira, specialising in commercial joint ventures.

Skilled in international trade and investment, economic and social policy development, as well as leadership and strategy, Jennifer says that all her roles have required her to adapt to new environments and leadership challenges, including advising Federal and State Ministers across a range of diverse portfolios — from local government and regional development to women’s interests and multicultural affairs.

For Jennifer there have been many career highlights, but a standout was staying at the Grand Palace in Bangkok during the visit to Thailand of the former Governor General Sir Ninian Stephen, as part of her first diplomatic posting to Thailand.

In addition to her current role as National President at AIBC, Jennifer also serves as Deputy Chair on the national board of Economic Development Australia (EDA) and is an active member of Chief Executive Women.

Congratulations to Old Fintonians, Sally Eastoe (Randall ‘75), Liz Cramer (Howell ‘70), Sam Wilson (Rogers ‘84), and Sally Syme (‘74) who represented Fintona at this year’s Women’s Inter School Golf Challenge Cup at Yarra Yarra Golf Club. Twenty nine alumni teams competed with Genazzano winning the 2023 Cup.

Outside work, Jennifer loves to spend time with her family (husband John, and children Stephanie and Richard), travelling and playing tennis. She still keeps in touch with ten of her close school friends and attends the WA OFA reunion each year. When reflecting on her time at Fintona she says that she really valued Fintona’s small size as she knew so many students across other year levels. ‘As a female student in the 70s our teachers drilled it into us that as young women we could have any career we wanted and to make the most of opportunities that came our way,’ said Jennifer.

Please save the date for the OFA Golf Day to be held on Monday 13 November at Sorrento Golf Club for golfers of all abilities. If you would like further information or you haven’t played in the event before, please email Sally Eastoe at sally@eastoes.com.

L — R: Sally Eastoe, Liz Cramer, Sam Wilson, Sally Syme

Congratulations to Zoe Schwerkolt (’16) who played football in the ANZAC Cup in France this year.

Zoe was a member of the Australian Spirit Women’s AFL team which was coached by Justin Clarke, an ex-AFL Brisbane Lions player and Rhodes Scholar. The team won the match against the French Gauloises 38 to 27.

Zoe’s passion for football started at Fintona when she played in the GSV competition, and at the ANZAC Cup she was honoured to receive the award for best on ground.

The ANZAC Cup is held on ANZAC Day Eve in the village of Villers-Bretonneux and honours the 1918 Australian-led counterattack that reclaimed the village from enemy forces during WWI. Over 2,000 Australian soldiers lost their lives in this battle and their bravery has never been forgotten by locals.

‘It was incredibly meaningful to commemorate ANZAC Day in VillersBretonneux where Australia holds such a special place in the hearts of the locals,’ said Zoe. ‘There were Australian flags flying in shop windows, pictures of kangaroos decorating the streets, roads named after Australian cities, and of course it’s something else, to be able to play such an Aussie thing as Australian rules football on the opposite side of the world.’

Zoe and her teammates were hosted by local families in Villers-Bretonneux and Zoe said that she put the French she learnt at Fintona to good use as there were only a few members of her team who could speak French. In addition to playing football, Zoe was interviewed on French radio about the match and the significance of the day to Australians.

Currently living in the UK and studying a Masters in Maths and Computer Science at Oxford University, after completing her course later this year, Zoe is planning to remain in the UK in the short term to pursue a career in technology.

Old Fintonian, Mackayla Hanney (’10) is running a new ‘Future CEO Program’ as part of her role as Executive General Manager at Kinetic which is the largest bus operator in Australia and New Zealand. The leadership program is designed to equip women with skills required to move into senior roles and seeks to address structural and cultural barriers that exist in its own business, the industry and broader corporate community.

‘So far there are three females in the fulltime program who are all provided with mentors and hands-on learning experiences and exposure to mass transportation operational areas,’ said Mackayla.

‘When I left Fintona and then graduated from law school at Melbourne University, I never thought I would end up working in this industry, but I honestly love it. The project management skills that I developed when working at a law firm for 10 years have been extremely useful to me as my leadership role at Kinetic requires me to manage a number of projects and initiatives across our Southern operations.'

Mackayla oversees operations in New South Wales, Victoria and Tasmania and leads a team of close to 2000 staff.

Reflecting on her school days, Mackayla said that Fintona always encouraged students to develop their leadership skills. Through her own experiences in going through the leadership program and as a Deputy Consul she has used this educational background to further develop her skills in leadership.