Professional Feedback
"Dear Francis
Now that we are over the rush of choosing subjects, we wanted to drop you a note to say thank you for your time and insight and accommodating us at such short notice. We appreciate all the hard work you have put in and it helped to affirm all doubts around what subjects to pick. I will tell you that you make one very fine skipper at the helm of the ship you command."
Our regards - K and L
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"Francis has worked extensively across school systems in terms of working with careers and skills development of young people. He has a passion for youth and developing the potential in young men and women with whom he works.
Francis is a man who thinks outside the square and is capable of driving his initiatives to the point of implementation. He is a wonderful communicator who thinks big ideas are well grounded in many years of experience.
Francis is a man of great integrity and was both professional and energising in his involvement with St Patrick's. Our applications would not have been successful without the network of contacts that Francis has been able to build or without his enthusiastic, logical, and creative input."
Alan Moran – Director, St Patrick's Business College
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"Mr Vella is an incredible knowledgeable gentleman, with a unique yet accurate method of developing vocational assessments specific to groups and individuals. He is able to work very closely with the school, staff members and students alike, within often very tight budgets, to create, undertake and deliver invaluable information to us as clients."
St John Bosco College – VET and Careers Coordinator
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"I have just completed a thorough and lengthy debrief with Francis in regards to the YouthStart program. I was very impressed with the accuracy of his reporting, his ability to pick out character traits and the strengths and weaknesses of the students without speaking with them. I was impressed by Francis Vella's rationale and thorough preparation of his programs."
Port Hacking High School - Careers Adviser
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"Francis,
Thank you so much for the very comprehensive analysis. I have had some preliminary discussions with HT Teaching and Learning over the report and she was very impressed. I want to do justice to the insights and advice contained. Thank you for the great effort you are making for our girls and for the huge amount of information and evidence, you are providing."
BGHS - Careers Adviser
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"We cannot speak highly enough about the YouthStart Natural Talent program and its accuracy.
We consulted with both Francis and Garrath from YouthStart to look to see how we could enhance and offer a fuller response for our Year 10 students with regard to better planning of their career pathways and for their upcoming subject selection.
YouthStart's approach to our needs and service was remarkable. They met with us to develop an understanding of the dynamics of the school and students. They then developed a tailored program for the 191 students which we implemented with great success.
What really stood out for us was YouthStart's unique and reliable approach to uncovering a student's Natural Talent. Their written feedback on each of the students, especially as they had not met with them prior, was very revealing and extremely accurate. Additionally, the subjects for consideration and learning strategies that YouthStart presented for each student revealed tremendous insights and directions not only for the teaching faculty but more importantly for the students and their parents.
We would highly recommend the option of post assessment one-to-one interviews with the students. It creates a tremendous catalyst for the student to hear an external group identify what is great within them and provides a positive motivation for the students.
The written report on each student was perfect. YouthStart's use of some great mindmaps and their easy to follow and understand feedback and layout was also extremely useful for the students and faculty."
Past Careers Adviser SGHS and past Deputy Principal of a Boys High
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As the Careers Adviser and VET Coordinator at Sir Joseph Banks High School I have worked closely with Francis Vella from Youthstart over the past two to three years. The program will enter its third year at the school in 2010 and to date it has assisted two Yr 10 cohorts and a Yr 12, in excess of two hundred students so far.
Francis has ensured that the program delivered meets the needs of our students and has adapted the questionnaire to reflect this need. He has also made himself readily available to meet and counsel our students and to explain to staff the long-term structural advantages of aligning teaching practices to student needs using Youthstart.
Students have always been astonished with the accuracy of the Youthstart analysis and have been keen to listen to the advice provided by Francis in the individual debriefs that the program provides. Student word of mouth testimonials for Francis and the debriefs that he provided encouraged some of the more reticent students to seek out his assistance, which he willingly provided. The documentation provided to students also enables them the opportunity to reflect in the longer term about their career pathway planning.
Francis' enthusiasm and dedication to ensuring that our students discover their natural talents and pursue employment and training outcomes that will enhance their lives is to be recommended.
As a Career Adviser, I appreciated the support that Francis has given students of our school and would readily recommend the program to others.
Linda Downey, Careers Adviser
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