Moira Findlay says she feels “absolutely honoured” to receive a Public Service Medal for outstanding service to education in Victoria.
Ms Findlay received the medal as part of the Queen’s Birthday Honours, in recognition of her 45-year career as a teacher, principal and community leader.
Ms Findlay retired as principal of Iramoo Primary School in Wyndham Vale during April, after around 27 years at the school.
Around 150 staff, parents, colleagues and ex-students attended a function marking Ms Findlay’s retirement, which was held in Werribee during March.
Ms Findlay said receiving the Public Service Medal was “the icing on the cake of a career that I have always considered a privilege”.
“Iramoo and its wonderful staff deserve this award more than I do,” Ms Findlay said,
“No one person could have achieved what we have achieved together.
“I’ve had the privilege of working with a wonderful team of people at Iramoo and I share this honour with them.”
Ms Findlay, who started at the Iramoo as an assistant principal in 1993, said the promotion of equity and excellence in education was her “greatest legacy”.
“Almost all of the thousands of teachers I have worked with have heard me repeat again and again that the children leave their disadvantage at the school gate and an excellent education is the thing that can give them choices in life,” she said.
This is something which Ms Findlay has a personal insight into – when she was a child, her family migrated from Scotland to Australia in 1963.
For two years, they lived at a Fishermans Bend migrant hostel in a hut made corrugated iron, which had no plumbing.
Five years later, a young Ms Findlay went on to became dux of Graham Street Primary School and went on to study at Mac Robertson Girls’ High School.
Ms Findlay said that during her career, she devoted time to supporting and mentoring future school leaders, particularly women.
More than 20 teachers who have worked with Ms Findlay at Iramoo have gone on to become principals and assistant principals in the state government school system.
