Mr Josh Williams wears multiple hats at Bunbury Cathedral Grammar School. Mr Williams talks about his passion for being a teacher and how he has integrated his family life into the BCGS community since joining the School seven years ago.
Teaching always seemed to be a profession I sort of fell into. I rowed competitively for a number of years after secondary school and was lucky enough to work for my coach, which gave me plenty of time to train. He was the one who eventually gave me the push into University, making sure I had something to go on with once rowing was over. A friend of mine was studying Education at ECU so I thought I would tag along and now more than 14 years later, here I am.
I trained predominantly as a secondary school mathematics teacher throughout my degree, however, was posted to Albany to teach Year 7 students in my first year. My very first year is one I will never forget and it made me realise I love teaching primary students. In 2012, my wife and I moved back to Bunbury to be closer to family. I started teaching Year 6 at BCGS in 2013.
To say that I loved it here at Bunbury Grammar would be underplaying it. The Year 6 programs and resources are outstanding and the team I taught with were simply phenomenal. The highlights of my first few years at Bunbury Grammar would have to be being a part of revitalising the Year 6 Go-Kart challenge and taking students across the country on the Year 6 camp to Canberra and the ski fields. It is in my eyes the best primary camp experience offered anywhere.
In 2014, I started work as a boarding supervisor at the recommendation of the Head of Primary at the time who said that “I might enjoy it.” What an understatement! Boarding has become a massive part of both my own and my family’s life. My first stint in residential Boarding came in 2015 as long service leave cover. Our daughter was only six weeks old and our son was two and now they have both spent more than half their lives living in our wonderful Boarding community, surrounded by dozens of older “siblings” who love having them around.
When the position of Assistant Head of June Reilly came up, we jumped at it. Juggling full-time teaching and Boarding can be challenging at times, but the pros easily outweigh the cons and I love it. I really enjoy the different hats I get to wear across my teaching role in Year 4 and my role in Boarding. Getting to work with both the young students in primary, as well as the older students in Boarding gives me a good perspective of the benefits that Bunbury Cathedral Grammar School offers across Kindergarten to Year 12.
I have always enjoyed the collegiality, friendship and support found amongst the staff. Whether it’s a bit of banter at the breakfast table in Boarding, a colleagues support in the classroom or just a good chuckle in the staffroom at recess and lunch. The staff here are some of the best and when you couple that with the amazing students and our beautiful grounds and facilities, it makes BCGS a pretty great place to work.
