Some of our wonderful Year 12 graduates from last year have been great at keeping in contact with MacKillop Catholic College to let us know how they’re going as they have moved into their future pathways.
I’d like to highlight 2024 graduate, Darcy Andrikonis, who has recently begun his journey in the Tasmanian Academy of Leadership and Sport (TALS) Program.
The TALS Program was launched in late 2024 in partnership with Tas TAFE. The aim of this program is to train and educate students for future careers in the State’s growing sport sector, in areas such as AFL, netball, basketball and cricket. The program allows students to select their area of interest and complete Diploma level courses in Sports and Leadership to secure employment or count towards their future studies in relevant fields.
This program will continue to develop over the coming years but is overall a fantastic way for students with an interest in the sporting industry to kickstart their careers in what is such a growing and exciting area in Tasmania.
In 2024, Darcy was accepted into a number of courses through the University of Tasmania Schools Recommendation Program and was originally planning on enrolling in the Bachelor of Education (Health and Physical Education) to commence in 2025, until he heard about the TALS Program.
“I found out about the program through Miss Gurney at school, then Jesse (Education Program Manager) came in and explained a bit about the program, and from there I applied through a link that was sent to me, and everything was made very easy through the Tas Academy team.
My original plan was to do footy as that’s the sport that I’m most interested in, however in my interview I was told that choosing cricket would mean I’d have access to coaching opportunities and also potential access to some of the facilities at Ninja Stadium (i.e. cricket nets).
I will be working towards two Diplomas while also working in the number of different areas with the Tassie Tigers, Tassie Devils, Hurricanes and Jack Jumpers.“
Over the last few months, I have kept in contact with Darcy, and he often shares what they have been up to as part of the program so far. This includes starting and completing course work, being given access to areas of Ninja Stadium, working at Jack Jumpers games and the Day/Night Sheffield Shield matches, and most notably meeting and speaking with Brendon Gale and Scott Roth!
The TALS Program is proving to be a wonderful pathway choice for Darcy, and we are excited to be doing further work with the Academy this year to offer current and future opportunities for our students.
Sarah Gurney, Career and Pathway Advisor
