An injury leads Frank to a new career in caring
3 May 2002
Frank Pardo.
When Westmeadows resident Frank Pardo enrolled to study at Kangan Batman TAFE two years ago, he was understandably nervous. He had last set foot in a classroom 25 years ago, having left school in 1975 at age 15. He also, by his own admission, "couldn't spell for peanuts".
Now, two years later, Frank has completed the Certificate IV in Community Services (Disability Services) and has a job he loves, helping to enrich the lives of people with a disability.
FrankÂ's commitment to his studies has also been rewarded with one of Kangan Batman TAFEÂ's highest student awards, the Harold C Richards Student of the Year Award.
This award is presented by the Institute Council to an outstanding student who has overcome difficult circumstances to succeed in their studies. It is named after the inaugural Council President of the former Broadmeadows College of TAFE (in which Kangan Batman TAFE has its origins).
After leaving school, Frank had a variety of jobs in factories, including leading hand positions where he supervised up to 30 people. Then for 10 years he worked as a brickieÂ's labourer, until a back injury forced him to seek a less physical job.
He found a part-time position as a driver for the Broadmeadows Disability Service, a day service which provides education and training, recreation and social activities for adults with a disability.
He enjoyed the work and three years later when a vacancy came up, moved into an instructor position. Although he now had experience in the disability field, he felt he needed to increase his knowledge by gaining a formal qualification and enrolled in the Certificate IV in Community Services (Disability Services).
Over the next two years, he attended TAFE classes two-nights-a-week as well as working full-time. This put considerable strain on his family life, as his wife had to look after their seven children (the youngest being three) on her own.
“At times I thought itÂ'd be easier to throw it all in and quit the course. It was hard going from work to TAFE, then coming home to do homework as well as trying to do household things. I couldnÂ't have done it without my wifeÂ's fantastic support”, Frank remembers.
Frank also found the study demands of the course challenging, but persisted with his studies by setting achievable goals and seeking support from his teachers and work colleagues when he needed it.
“The teachers were great. They overlooked the spelling mistakes in my homework and took the meaning of what I was trying to say. But my spellingÂ's actually improved since doing the course. I used to ask one of my workmates how to spell things but sheÂ's noticed I donÂ't ask as often now”, he says.
Despite his initial lack of confidence, Frank finished the course with excellent results. Still at Broadmeadows Disability Services, he is currently working with people with challenging behaviours.
“IÂ'd like to stay in this job for a couple of years and build up my skills, and then hopefully I can move a bit further up the ladder here”.
Kangan Batman TAFE has 24,000 students across its six campuses in Broadmeadows, Moreland, Richmond, Coburg, Avondale Heights and Essendon.
Each year in May, Kangan Batman TAFE conducts two graduation ceremonies at the Moonee Valley Racecourse to accommodate all of its graduates and award-winning students.
The first ceremony, at which Frank received his awards, was held on Friday 3 May. The Hume City Council was major sponsor of the ceremony, while Broadmeadows Town Centre was supporting sponsor.
Frank won the following awards:
- Harold C Richards Student of the Year Award
- Outstanding Achievement - Certificate IV in Community Services (Disability) Part-time.
