For 38 years, Pakenham’s Judy Bishop has had a hand in shaping the next generation of students at St John’s Regional College in Dandenong. But now it’s time for her to close the book for the last time, as she retires at the end of this year. Gazette journalist SHELBY BROOKS spoke to Judy to reflect on her time at the school.
Judy Bishop began teaching at St John’s Regional College in 1984 after five years at St Agatha’s Primary School in Cranbourne where she taught grade one, three and six.
Her time with the grade six students had piqued her interest in the move from primary school to high school.
“In my fifth year of teaching there I often wondered how the grade six transitioned to year seven so I sent out a few letters, one of which was to St Johns,” she said.
Father Kevin Maloney was the DSL brother who was the head of the school at the time and asked her to come in “for a chat”.
The rest is history.
When Judy started at the St John’s, it was one campus with different areas for junior middle and senior school.
“We had well over 1200 kids there and a massive staff,” Judy said.
“The staff all had the same common area, everyone got to know everyone it was really great.
“We had a lot of fun.”
Judy was one of many younger staff members in the junior school.
“It always had a really good vibe about it,” she said.
“Everyone got along so we always mixed outside of school socially which was good.”
Judy knew she wanted to be a teacher since she was in grade three.
“I lived at Garfield and went to St Joseph’s in Iona. In grade two we had a terrible encounter with a nun, all of us were so frightened of her,” Judy said.
“We’d cop the feather duster over the hand if we did the wrong thing.
“But the following year we got a lay-teacher and she was just a breath of fresh air, she changed our lives forever.”
Marie Wright, the teacher who Judy wanted to emulate, is someone she still sees today.
For three years, Judy attended Christ College Oakleigh next door to Chadstone Shopping Centre to undertake her study to become a teacher.
“I walked in and didn’t know a soul. I almost turned around and walked out again,” Judy said.
“My mother had to give me pep talks on the Sunday to get on the train to go back because I didn’t want to go back.
“I think that was mainly because I didn’t know anybody. It was pretty daunting I was only 17 years old.”
She preserved and became a qualified teacher.
In the early years of Judy’s time at St John’s, the junior staff had a lot of fun, even playing pranks on each other.
“It was almost like those junior school teachers have too much fun,” she said.
“We had fun with our teaching, the kids loved it. If the staff was happy, the kids were happy.”
Highlights of the early days were the big swimming and athletic carnivals as well as the performing arts side of musicals and the Founders Day talent quest.
She spent one summer holiday teaching herself year 10 maths after a principal decided to give her the challenge of a higher year level and unfamiliar subject.
“The principal kept throwing curve balls back at me and I kept socking them back, in the end we came very good friends,” she said.
“He had respect for me and I had respect for him.
“I wouldn’t have gone onto be a year level or house coordinator. If he hadn’t challenged me, I would have just been another teacher.”
In 2008, St John’s introduced a vertical home room system, which saw Judy become Delphius’ house leader.
“Our symbol was the dolphin but we never won a swimming carnival!” Judy said.
“But we could run and eventually the cycle come around the other way and we won a few swimming championships, but we were not so much with the athletics.
“At one point we won the house champion six years in a row.
“We were a little bit like the Collingwood of the competition, everyone wanted to beat us.”
In the classroom, Judy said her teaching philosophy was about expectations.
“I set expectations, kids knew what I expected and kids need boundaries, they knew the boundaries and my expectations,” she said.
“You don’t always have to be strict but if you set a certain standard the kids know that.
“I keep standards high for the kids and myself. The kids feed off your mood.”
Judy has maintained her involvement with and passion for the Garfield Football Club over the years, often racing back to Garfield after the work day to go over to the footy club.
She is currently the secretary and has previously served as president for five years.
“I just like it,” she said.
“When you’re born in and raised in Garfield if you don’t follow the football there is not a lot else to do.
“A lot of the people that play football you grew up with them or their sisters.
“It’s the fun and the stories and now we’ve got a new lot of people coming through and there are still lots of stories to tell. It’s just a really great place to be.”
Into her retirement, Judy takes with her lifelong friends she made while at St John’s, known as the ‘The Cone’- a group who support each other through the ups and downs of teaching life.
One of the trickier times was 2020 when the coronavirus pandemic hit.
“We started off with forums, where you could only type to the kids,” Judy said.
“There was no talking. It was one of the hardest things I’d ever done.”
Thankfully the system was changed to video and talking capabilities.
“Imagine what it’s like to type a maths question via typing it. It was awful,” Judy said.
Judy could see the defeat in the faces of many year 12s of 2020.
“I really fear for the year 12s last year, they never got to have a graduation ceremony, formal dinner, all the things they’ve watched other year 12s over the years, they never got to do that,” Judy said
“I really wonder how those young people are coping now. There was no closure for them. It was sad.
“I hope this year by term four, year 12s this year will have closure.”
