Schools' stories

The 12 schools involved in the implementation of the Gatehouse Project intervention strategy worked with the same theoretical framework, data collection process, and initial professional development activities. However, the journeys schools took were shaped by where they started, the priorities they identified and the other events taking place in their school communities at the time. These different journeys have been documented through interviews with staff from the schools over time, as part of the evaluation of the Gatehouse Project. This process has enhanced our understanding of the challenges, enabling factors and barriers to doing this kind of work in schools. In developing this website in 2001, we invited schools to share their experiences and tell their own stories, focussing on the following issues:

• the context and background to the involvement of the school in the Gatehouse project
• establishing a team to work on the Project
• use of the data from the Gatehouse Project Adolescent Health Survey and school audit to inform planning and determine priorities
• strategies used to address identified priorities
• the role and involvement of teachers, parents, students and student services in promoting change
• practices implemented by this college that have applicability to other school communities.

Stories are available from:

• Balwyn High School
• Brimbank College
• Camberwell Grammar School
• Genazzano FCJ College
• Cleeland Secondary College
• Kangaroo Flat Secondary College
• Maryborough Regional College
• Overnewton Anglican Community College