Joanne Ryan says her selection as the ALP’s Lalor candidate sends a strong message. Nick Toscano speaks with the 51-year-old high school principal.
What encouraged you to become political?
I’m one of eight and I’m number seven – learning to debate was critical in my existence. And obviously I grew up in Lalor and attended school here, primary and high school, starting at St Andrews and then to MacKillop College, when it was just a couple of portables in a cabbage patch. It was a small country town. There may have been great social divides in terms of families’ income, but we were a strong community together.
What political values resonate most strongly with you?
Fairness, opportunity and responsibility – they’re the big ones for me. It’s the fact that a postcode doesn’t determine anybody’s future, that we all have a responsibility to ensure everyone in the community gets the opportunity to reach their potential and the opportunity to enjoy the dignity that work brings.
Do you believe the ALP has stayed true to its core values?
I think the Labor party is a broad church of people but the base of everybody I know in the ALP is that drive to ensure fairness and a society that’s true to its responsibility.
In terms of the Lalor community and its specific needs, what do you believe the federal government’s main responsibilities are?
The Labor government will ensure that public hospitals have appropriate levels of funding. The other celebration is for DisabilityCare Australia, which will do the same thing – it’s a landmark piece of legislation that creates fairness.
You’ve been a teacher and principal for 27 years. What’s driven you to focus your professional and political life on education?
Education is fundamental. What happens in a classroom is the quality intervention that makes a difference in someone’s life. Making sure all classrooms are quality classrooms, that between-school differences are minimised and bringing every school to the highest possible standard are my big ones.
Do you believe the Labor Party made the right choice in replacing Julia Gillard with Kevin Rudd as prime minister?
I believe that, regardless of the choice, the future is clear. We can fight for a Labor government so the journey that started in 2007 can continue, and that’s what’s required. What’s required is a focus on the future, and I think the last few weeks have seen a Labor Party in that process, taking a look at itself and putting some renewal in place that needs to occur. I support those renewal principals. In terms of my own endorsement as a candidate, it’s a clear signal that grassroots, homegrown politics will be respected by the ALP.
You’re well known for your leadership in the 1998 campaign against CSR’s planned toxic dump in Werribee. What other community roles have you played?
I started volunteering when I was the treasurer of the Werribee Netball Association at the age of 17. I was a player, a coach, an umpire and a volunteer committee member. I’ve spent a lot of times in classrooms and courtside. I’m coaching my under-17s right now – the Hoppers Crossing Eagles, a very proud bunch of girls. My first passion was netball, then I had three sons, so I became a football/cricket/basketball mum. My professional life in education has been all about service.
