Meet Chonny James, PLC’s new Director of Wellbeing. We asked Chonny a few questions to get to know her better!
Who inspires you most?
The most inspirational person in my life is my brother, Paul, who was born with cerebral palsy and has been confined to a wheelchair for the majority of his life. He is the most resilient person I know and a daily reminder of what really matters in life.
He’s often been a trailblazer! He was the first student in Western Australia to be given an electric typewriter to use in the classroom (pre-laptop days). Being a trailblazer for anything requires courage and an unwavering persistence to ride the bumps along the way, understanding that you are clearing the path for others follow, much like the journey we have begun with our PLC Lighthouse.
What are you most looking forward to in your new role as Director of Wellbeing?
When the idea of the PLC Lighthouse was first conceived, I was drawn to the possibilities of what wellbeing could look like in the future. I am a firm believer that wellbeing is individual and far from a ‘one size fits all’ model. Therefore, what I’m looking forward to most is working with students to provide them with the knowledge, skills and behaviours to personalise what wellbeing looks like for them.
When the P.E, Health and Wellbeing Teams started working on the curriculum programmes for the Lighthouse last year, we approached the project with two ideas that actually stemmed from a Denzel Washington video clip we had seen – ‘Don’t be afraid to fail big’ and ‘It’s not what you have, it’s what you do with what you have’.
With these two thoughts at the forefront of my mind, I begin this new role with great excitement and a sense of pride at the opportunity I’ve been given to lead wellbeing across the School and start the next phase for the PLC Lighthouse which, in mind, is to create a welcoming, vibrant and alive centre for the PLC community.
What areas are you currently exploring in your professional life which you can incorporate into your work at PLC?
I’m currently in the final stages of completing the Professional Certificate in Positive Education through the University of Melbourne. The course has been a great opportunity to research, explore and plan ideas for wellbeing at PLC.