|
There are five guest speakers at our meeting on 6 May, including four Silk Miller Scholars. Our very first scholar, Jacinta Battersby (1999) and our second scholar, Tim Forster (2000) will be joined by our two most recent scholars, Steve Turner and Josh Guy who both completed in 2024. They will each speak to their careers and the impact their studies of the Graduate Diploma in Adolescent Health and Wellbeing have had on their work. Also in attendance will be Dr David Broderick, our contact at Victoria Police and Dr Ani Wierenga, Academic Convenor of the program at University of Melbourne. Ani will also provide an update on research conducted with past Silk Miller graduates on the impacts of the program. It promises to be an informative and insightful view of outcomes of the Silk Miller Scholarship. Aside from the Paul Harris Breakfast, this is the longest running program of the Club and one which eventually led to the development of Victoria Police Leadership Mentoring Program. Jacinta Battersby - 1999 Jacinta began her career with university studies in Recreation at Victoria University with five years of work in the recreation field with young people at risk on outdoor education camps and working in and managing swimming pools and leisure centres. She then transitioned to Victoria Police, where she has accumulated 28 years of experience in various capacities, including operational roles at regional and metro police stations, as well as strategic roles in the Youth and Victim support areas. Her interests led to postgraduate studies in Adolescent Health and Welfare at Melbourne University which proved to be highly beneficial in her policing roles. Recently her focus in Victoria Police has been on developing and delivering organisational projects such as Protective Service Officers deployments at train stations, creation of a new Operational Response Unit and IT projects involving law enforcement data on mobile devices. Currently, she serves as a Senior Sergeant in the IT area of Victoria Police, working as a Business Technical Partner to ensure that technology meets the needs of the business. Tim Forster - 2000 Tim has been with Victoria Police for 30 years. The majority of time spent in the community engagement field, working with youth. He spent close to 20 years as a youth officer in the north-eastern suburbs, running youth education and crime prevention programs in schools and through the children’s court. Engaging with high-risk offenders, providing support to families and redirecting future offending pathways. He now performs the role of Acting Sergeant within the Priority and Safer Communities Division with oversight over the Aboriginal portfolio. He provides education and guidance to members around the state in relation to Indigenous issues. He also supports youth officers around the state, coordinating training and providing advice on best practice. Josh Guy -2023 Josh joined Victoria Police in 2017 with his first position being at Kyneton Uniform. Worked general duties from 2017 to 2021 spending 2 years at Sunshine and 2 years at Broadmeadows. Completed secondments in investigative roles in Firearms, Vehicle Crime and Sexual Offences and Child Abuse (SOCIT). Secured his first Detective Position in 2021 at Melbourne SOCIT. In May 2024 he took up a new position at Family Violence Command Taskforce where he is currently gazetted. This role is made up of targeting offenders who offend within the family violence setting and are actively avoiding apprehension across the country. They locate and ensure these people are brought before the courts to make sure their victims are safe. Most recently he has been on secondment as a Detective Acting Sergeant at the Child Abuse Report Triage Team where they work as a conduit between DFFH and SOCITs reviewing allegations of child abuse and matters involving children. They provide recommendations on whether incidents need to be addressed criminally, by either detective or uniform and in addition, provide advice on whether matters could be better addressed through a non-punitive measure by referral services. Steve Turner - 2024  Steve is currently overseeing Youth Tasking, Proactive Policing and Crime Reduction Teams in Caroline Springs. Has been heavily involved in the creation of and rollout of the YCPEIP – Youth Crime Prevention and Early Intervention Project which commenced in 2021 at trial sites including Brimbank and Wyndham Police Service Areas. Due to the success of the trial sites, the project has been marked to expand to a further 8 sites throughout Victoria in 2025.
YCPEIP takes a holistic approach to reviewing drivers of crime in young people lives and looking for ways to negate the risk factors and lean into the protective factors we can identify through this process. YCPEIP is a partnership between multiple stakeholders including Victoria Police, Victoria Legal Aid, West Justice, YSAS, CMY among others. Steve graduated from the Graduate Diploma of Adolescent Health and Wellbeing through Melbourne University in 2024 having been a grateful recipient of the Silk Miller Scholarship from the Rotary Club of Central Melbourne.  Dr Ani Wierenga: Silk Miller Scholarship - Graduate Diploma in Adolescent Health and Wellbeing
Rotary Central Melbourne instigated the Silk Miller Scholarship in 2000, named in memory of two slain Police Officers, Sgt Gary Silk and Snr Constable Rodney Miller. Scholarships funded by the Club have now been awarded to over 20 police officers.
Our Club became involved when Rotary’s focus on health included the issues of youth suicide prevention and youth mental illness. The club accepted the potential of a link with Victoria Police as one of the relevant agencies involved with youth. Through broader education, trained Youth Resource Officers and other police officers, would apply a greater understanding of how young people “tick” and assist develop improved strategies in dealing with them. It was considered that better interventionist strategies would assist the youth in our communities and potentially reduce youth suicide rates. This was in the context of the course aim to “improve young people’s life chances by focusing on adolescents at a critical life stage”. It includes the transition from childhood into adolescence and the transition beyond adolescence into adult life. Importantly, the club recognised that a key to improving young people’s health and wellbeing is to enhance the capability of practitioners in a variety of fields who work with young children. Our guest speakers at our meeting on 6 May include four Silk Miller Scholars. Our very first scholar, Snr Sgt Jacinta Battersby (1999) and our second scholar, Acting Sgt Tim Forster (2000) will be joined by our two most recent scholars, Sgt Steve Turner and Detective Acting Sgt Josh Guy who both completed in 2024. They will speak about their careers and the impact their studies of the Graduate Diploma in Adolescent Health and Wellbeing has had on their work. Also presenting will be Dr David Broderick, our contact at Victoria Police and Dr Ani Wierenga, Academic Convenor of the program at University of Melbourne. Ani will provide an update on research conducted with past Silk Miller graduates on the impacts of the program. |
