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Saturday 8 October 2016

School and College Librarians in Tasmania – a partial Honour Roll


The Children’s Book Council and school librarians are natural allies because they share the same objectives.  This listing may be of interest to CBCA members.
Prior to 1967 when I was appointed the first (and only) Supervisor of School Libraries, a number of Tasmanian schools had established libraries to supplement the dreary post-war classroom readers and the very limited number of textbooks available to teachers.  They were run by dedicated people with limited or no training in librarianship but who saw clearly the importance of recreational and research reading in education.  Among these notable pioneers were: Miss Faith GIBBONS (Hobart High), Miss Jessie BLYTH (Launceston High), Mrs Cecilia STUBBS (Burnie High), Mrs Doreen HOPKINS, Mrs Fanny HARDING, and Mrs Bronwyn MEREDITH.  Also deserving commemoration for their work with the School Library Service to primary schools were Miss Dorothy BELCHER and Miss Jean CRISP.  An important role was also played from the library at the Hobart Teachers College by Miss Amie EWIN and in the library at the Education Department’s Head Office by Miss Adele de Bomford.  There were others whose names, to my intense frustration, will not surface in my ancient memory.
From 1968 when I started work after studying librarianship at the University of New South Wales, an exciting new era began, taking advantage of the policy of the Federal Labor Party when it was implemented in 1972 by the Gough Whitlam government.  New or refurbished libraries were built, grants for books were increased, teacher-librarians were appointed, advisory and technical support was given, and training courses for teacher-librarians were begun at the Tasmanian College of Advanced Education.
Until 1991 when the Library Services Branch which oversaw these developments was abruptly closed down, I had the pleasure and pride of working with a large cadre of people who made a very significant difference to the quality of Tasmanian education.  It seems to me that their names deserve remembering and honouring.  It is a shame that there is no full register of them but some at least are listed below.

ABELL, Miss Jill 
BECKER, Miss Toni
BECKER, Mrs Marjorie
BEHRENS, Mrs Gaye
BENNETT, Miss Rhoda
BRIDGLAND, Miss Angela
BUCHANAN, Miss Vicki (later GRANT)
BUGG, Miss Sharron (later HEWER)
CANE, Miss Georgie
CLIFFORD, Mr Phil
CULLENWARD, Mrs Jan
DUNBAR, Miss Kay
DUNN, Ms. Lyn
EASTMAN, Mrs Berenice
GARDAM, Mrs Julie
GOWARD, Mrs Coral
GROOT, Mrs Barbara
HAMPTON, Mrs Monica
HAWES, Mrs Joy
HELLICAR, Ms. Ros
HICKMAN, Mrs Leslie
HOUGHTON, Mr John
HUCULAC, Mrs Eva
JAMES, Mrs Kath
JENSEN, Ms. Gita
KELLY, Mr Michael
LEWIS, Mrs Marie
LUDFORD, Ms. Sally
MAHONEY, Mrs Dulcie
McPHERSON, Ms. Lynn
MORRIS, Mrs Gill
PARRISH, Miss Amanda
ROBILLIARD, Mrs Jean
SCOTT, Ms. Judy
SHELTON, Mrs Judy
Glenn Pullen c 1972
SIANSKI, Mr Ed
SMITH, Miss Janet (later MIDDLETON)
STOWE, Mr Edward
WATTS, Mrs Irene
WHILE, Mr Richard
WILSON, Miss Karen
YOUNGER, Mrs Jean
ZIEGLER, Ms. Gaye

Because of inadequate records and the writer’s failing memory, there are many other names that could and should be added to this list, at least up until 1991 when a new generation of school and college librarians took over.  It would be a kindness if any reader could add any names by emailing the writer at Glen Pullen so that the listing could be at least a little more complete.

Glenn Pullen is a Life Member of CBCA Tasmanian Branch.

4 comments:

  1. I was appointed the Teacher Librarian at Oatlands District High School in 1981 and am still working in that capacity at Sacred Heart College in New Town now. Rhoda Bennett and I did our library study together. I was Dawn Shore when I first started. Felicity Shirley (now Sly) was also appointed as a TL that same year but I have forgotten where she first went.
    Thank you for thinking of doing this.
    Sadly when I left Clarence High School 7 years ago, I was not replaced.
    Dawn Price

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  2. My first Teacher Librarian placement was at Queenstown Primary in 1981, where I took over from another Felicity, Felicity Vincent. Apart from 6 years when I was on leave having children, I have held the position of Teacher Librarian in a variety of primary schools (not always full-time), and am now at Don College as Library Manager. Bronwen Sealy also trained with us and is now at Rosny College.

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    1. Felicity, I am sure your predecessor at Queenstown Primary was Francis Vincent who then went on to a primary school in Devonport. She then became Francis Furlani and held various primary school teacher-librarian positions in the south.

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  3. Felicity, I am sure your predecessor at Queenstown Primary was Francis Vincent who then went on to a primary school in Devonport. She then became Francis Furlani and held various primary school teacher-librarian positions in the south.
    Editor's note: apologies - technical glitch has delayed the addition of this anonymous post

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