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Women in Leadership Forum
The Seventh Annual Women in Leadership Forum
On a remarkable evening filled with inspiration and insight, our community gathered to hear from four captivating speakers who shared their wisdom on leadership. The event was a resounding success, thanks to the engaging and thought-provoking presentations from Ashani, Sarah, Sandra, and Jenni.
Ashani Dante
Founder of The Flourish Journey
Sarah Kenny
Head of Content and Editorial, BBC Britbox
(OLMC Parramatta Class of 1990)
Sandra Nicholson
Retired Assistant Victorian Police Commissioner
(OLMC Parramatta Class of 1967)
Jenni Ryall
Group Director, Business Development & Strategy (Content & Media), Bastion Transform
(OLMC Parramatta Class of 2001)
The Sixth Annual Women in Leadership Forum
On Wednesday 24 May 2023, the College held its sixth annual Women in Leadership Forum. We were inspired by renowned women from a variety of fields, as they share their perspectives on women in leadership and discuss how each of us can be courageous advocates with limitless possibilities. Thank you to Tracey Spicer AM, Dr Louise Koelmeyer, Jayne Steer and Lana Taylor for sharing your stories.
Tracey Spicer AM
Author, journalist and broadcaster
Dr Louise Koelmeyer
Head, Department of Health Sciences and Director of ALERT (OLMC Parramatta Class of 1986)
Jayne Steer
Group Manager, Internal Communications, John Holland (OLMC Parramatta Class of 1990)
Lana Taylor
Entrepreneur, Author and Co-founder and Director of Three Birds Renovations
The Fifth Annual Women in Leadership Forum
On Wednesday 25 May 2022, the College held its fifth annual Women in Leadership Forum. It was an inspirational event with a top lineup of speakers including Rosemary Kariuki-Fyfe, Amanda Rose, Dr Mary-Clare Waugh and Joanna Ryan. Sharing their stories, they spoke about seizing every opportunity and the importance of education.
Principal, Lucie Farrugia, was inspired by their messages of bravery and service and how they resonated with our Mercy community: 'This was an extraordinary night where all our speakers have inspired and ignited in us a sense of limitless possibilities.'
Rosemary Kariuki-Fyfe
Multicultural Community Liaison Officer, NSW Police Force and facilitator of the Cultural Exchange Program
Amanda Rose
Founder and CEO of Mentoring Women, Founding Director of Western Sydney Women and Founder and CEO of Small Business Women Australia
Dr Mary-Clare Waugh
Paediatrician and Paediatric Rehabilitation Specialist and Head of the Kids Rehab Department at The Children’s Hospital at Westmead
Joanna Ryan
Advisory Board Member of Advise Wise and member of the Advisory Council for the Sydney Women’s Fund
On Wednesday 26 May 2021, the College held the fourth annual Women in Leadership Forum.
On Wednesday 26 May 2021, the College held the fourth annual Women in Leadership Forum. It was a wonderful and inspirational evening with an impressive line-up of speakers including ex-students Melanie Silva and Dr. Natalie Galea as well as Michelle Lee and Professor Deborah Richards. Sharing their varied stories of successes and challenges, the speakers spoke honestly and with humility. Their messages of courage and service and resonated with our Mercy community. It was truly an extraordinary night where all our speakers inspired and ignited in us a sense of limitless possibilities.
Professor Deborah Richards – Department of Computing at Macquarie University
Professor Deborah Richards joined the Department of Computing at Macquarie University in 1999 as an Artificial Intelligence researcher and academic, after 20 years in the ICT industry. Now a Professor with the Department of Computing in the Faculty of Science and Engineering at Macquarie University, she is currently the departmental Industry and External Relations Director and Program Leader for the Information Systems and Business Analysis Major and previously the Business Information Systems major.
Melanie Silva is VP, Managing Director for Google Australia and New Zealand (OLMC Class of 1994)
Melanie Silva is VP, Managing Director for Google Australia and New Zealand, a role she took up in October 2018. She is based in Sydney. Mel has been with Google for more than fourteen years and has held a number of senior leadership positions in Australia and APAC, most recently as Managing Director, Go to Market Strategy & Operations, Google APAC, based in Singapore. Prior to Google, she worked as General Manager at Fairfax Digital’s Direct Access and she has an extensive product and marketing background in Financial Services from companies such as Citibank, ING Direct and AMP. She holds a Bachelor of Economics degree from Macquarie University, Diploma of Financial Planning and Diploma of Interactive and Direct Marketing from the Institute of Direct Marketing in the United Kingdom.
Michelle Lee – Adventurer and Athlete
Michelle Lee is celebrated as Australia's first woman to row any ocean solo. She is the current World Record Holder 1 Million Metre Row, taking more than 10 hours off the world record held by a German Olympic rower. She describes herself as an ordinary woman who thrives on breaking boundaries and living a life "less ordinary" to achieve the extraordinary.
CLICK HERE to see more information about Michelle.
Dr Natalie Galea – Academic, Activist and Olympian (OLMC Class of 1991)
Natalie Galea was Head Girl, at OLMC in 1991. Currently, she is a Postdoctoral Fellow in the Australian Human Rights Institute, UNSW Sydney and the co-founder and director of start-up Cultivate Sponsorship. Natalie is also an Olympian in the sport of judo, representing Australia at the 1996 Olympic Games. Her research focuses on human rights and gender justice in the construction sector and human rights and athlete abuse in elite sport. Prior to commencing her career in academia, Natalie worked for almost two decades as a construction project manager in Australia and the Middle East. Natalie has used her research to advocate for gender justice in the workplace and human rights in sport.
Mercy Girls were joined by College staff, parents and carers, Alumnae and students from local schools in the Ailsa Mackinnon Community Centre at Our Lady of Mercy College Parramatta on Wednesday 29 May for the 2019 Women in Leadership Forum.
Four inspirational Forum speakers from a variety of fields shared their perspectives on women in leadership and discussed how each of us can boldly expand beyond what we know we can be. Edwina Bartholomew - Journalist and Presenter with the Seven Network was joined by Annabelle Chauncy OAM - CEO and Founding Director of School for Life Foundation, Liz Scully - Chair, NSW Labor Women’s Forum and Chair, Parramatta Women’s Shelter and Belinda Woolford - CEO Ronald McDonald House Charities Greater Western Sydney.
“Each year the College is fortunate to have four generous, kind and confident women willing to share their career stories of successes and challenges, hopes and dreams, and diversions along the way. We know that girls learn from these narratives, particularly when the stories are told with humility and humour and the 2019 Forum speakers have been exceptional. Their consistent message of courage and service resonated with our Mercy community and inspired everyone present to consider ways they could effectively contribute to the wider community.” Marie Wood, College Deputy Principal
There were common themes throughout the evening including the importance of seeking mentoring, backing yourself, being courageous, being true to yourself and following your passion. The Forum kicked off with an appeal by Edwina Bartholomew to “be yourself, back yourself and believe in yourself.” She reiterated that it’s important to work very, very hard to achieve your dreams. Belinda Woolford outlined three important lessons she has learnt on her journey: "Leadership lesson number 1 is give it a go. Number 2 is you don't always need a plan, you just need the courage to take risks. Lesson 3 is get a mentor."
Liz Scully paraphrased Saint Teresa of Avila, encouraging students to trust God that you are where you are supposed to be. Annabelle Chauncy also highlighted the importance of mentoring: "One of the most important things about my journey is the fact that I had a mentor. My mentor taught me to crawl before you walk and walk before you run - taking one step at a time."
Four inspirational forum speakers took part in the second annual OLMC Women in Leadership Forum on Wednesday, August 29 2018 in the Ailsa Mackinnon Community Centre at Our Lady of Mercy College Parramatta.
Marina Go, Chair of Wests Tigers NRL Club and New South Wales Supreme Court Judge Justice Julia Lonergan was joined by the Captain of the AFL GWS Giants Amanda Farrugia and Restaurateur
Carol Salloum on a panel that will explore perspectives on women in leadership and discuss how each of us can boldly expand beyond what we know we can be.
Mercy Girls and their families were joined by alumnae of the College, current students, staff and the broader community for this special event which saw speakers each share their stories before joining the conversation through a Q&A session.
Principal (Acting) Marie Wood said it was great to hear the stories of such diverse women, and hearing how they have recognised opportunities and grown from them: “My hope is that, in sharing these stories, it will inspire our young women to be confident and positive in their engagement with the world.”
Panellist Amanda Farrugia, who is also an OLMC ex-student and current PDHPE teacher, was excited to share her insights about her leadership journey: “I want to enable students and all attendees to gain an insight into the demands and expectations of leadership in the broader world, the challenges of leading a team in a new sporting venture (particularly in a traditionally male-dominated sport) and the challenges women face in balancing sport, work and other commitments.”
Newly appointed Head Girl for 2018/2019 Sophie Brown says the Forum is a wonderful initiative that provides young women with lots of insightful information: “Hearing the stories of strong, confident women ignites in us the courage and belief that we can all be women of leadership in our own way.”
Four inspirational forum speakers challenged women to embrace all opportunities and to back themselves at the inaugural OLMC Women in Leadership Forum on Wednesday, August 23 2017 in the Ailsa Mackinnon Community Centre.
Linda Burney MP, Shadow Minister for Human Services and Labor Member for Barton, and Samantha Armytage, Media Personality and co-host of Channel Seven’s Sunrise, were joined by Author Felicity Castagna and Dr Yijiao Jiang, Senior Lecturer at MQ Energy and Environmental Contaminants Research Centre, on a panel that explored the challenges and opportunities faced by women today.
Mercy Girls and their families, representatives from the Sisters of Mercy Parramatta, students and staff from seven other Sydney schools and staff and friends of OLMC listened to the speakers’ addresses before joining in the conversation through a Q&A session and a live Twitter and SMS Feed.
Principal Stephen Walsh says that, in many ways, this event goes to the heart of what OLMC Parramatta is about; “For almost 130 years, OLMC has been equipping women to push the boundaries and at the forum, we heard personal experiences and insights from four outstanding women who do this well in their respective fields. We are passionate about giving our girls access to strong female role models and this is one of the reasons we initiated the annual OLMC Women in Leadership Forum. Every day at the College, through events like this, but also through smaller conversations, it is made abundantly clear that the OLMC story is about strong women of Mercy making an impact.”
The Forum speakers shared heartfelt advice, both from a practical and big picture perspective. Linda Burney MP told the audience that we all have something remarkable to share as women and it is important to remind yourself of what makes you who you are. She shared her seven ‘Ls’ of advice to Listen, Learn, Lose well, have Limits, demonstrate Loyalty, Live well and to think of life as a journey, a Long game. Samantha Armytage encouraged girls to identify and hold onto their values and to get to know themselves and treat themselves kindly. She challenged girls to be open to opportunities, brave, resilient, to work hard and seek out mentors.
A key theme that came through from each speaker, according to Deputy Principal Marie Wood, was the importance of being true to yourself – of being authentic; “Their wonderful stories were funny and inspiring and reminded us all to never give up believing in yourself and to live your life with courage and confidence.”
