TAFE NSW Graduates Excel in Alternative Pathway to University

By Robert Heyward

As school leavers across New South Wales celebrate their HSC results, 50 TAFE NSW graduates are marking their success in an alternative university preparation pathway that bypasses the traditional HSC route.

Among these high achievers are three students from the Northern Rivers, including Asia Windeyer from TAFE NSW Wollongbar, who earned a Tertiary Entrance Score equivalent to an ATAR of at least 97.

The Certificate IV in Tertiary Preparation, a nationally accredited qualification, offers students a Tertiary Entrance Score recognised by universities and employers as a Year 12 equivalent. It equips graduates with the skills needed to access higher education and careers in a range of fields.

A Pathway to Success

Jobs and Skills Australia estimates that over 90% of employment growth in the next decade will be in roles requiring post-secondary qualifications, making programs like this increasingly vital.

For Asia Windeyer, the course provided an ideal alternative to traditional schooling.

“By the end of Year 11, I was really starting to feel the pressures of school, but I still wanted to gain my HSC and keep my options open for further study,” Asia said.

“The Tertiary Preparation Certificate offered subjects like Human Rights, which wasn’t something I would have had the chance to study in school. I even made some great friends while working towards my goals.

“Thanks to TAFE NSW, I’m now planning to study a Bachelor of Creative Industries in 2026 after taking a gap year. My dream is to work in the literary industry, and I feel like I now have the foundation and confidence to pursue that future.”

Ministerial Praise

Minister for Skills, TAFE, and Tertiary Education, Steve Whan, commended the graduates for their achievements and underscored the importance of diverse educational pathways.

“The Tertiary Preparation Certificate opens doors for students to pursue higher education and career aspirations without relying solely on traditional schooling pathways,” Mr. Whan said.

“This course equips students with essential skills, such as research and essay writing, in a supportive adult learning environment, preparing them for university and the workforce.

“It’s a program that can transform lives, offering new opportunities and helping students build a foundation for lifelong learning and career growth.”

A Bright Future

TAFE NSW continues to play a critical role in preparing students for the future, ensuring access to education and career opportunities for all. The success of these graduates demonstrates the power of alternative learning pathways in shaping the next generation of skilled professionals.

For more information about the Certificate IV in Tertiary Preparation and other TAFE NSW programs, visit tafensw.edu.au.

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Police shooting Grafton: four shots heard say residents

By Tim Howard

South Grafton residents said they heard four gunshots when police shot a 32-year-old local man in a park last week.

Around 6.30am on December 11 residents were startled to hear the shots ring out from the park that is part of the J J Lawrence sporting fields near the corner of Bligh and Vere streets.

The part of the park is across the road from the South Grafton Public School

“People were saying they heard four shots,” said one resident, who did not want to be named.

“Some people are asking why they didn’t use a Taser on him.”

During an interview with media after the event, Acting Commissioner Dave Waddell said a number of shots had been fired, but said specifics would be determined from a critical incident investigation which began after the shooting.

A statement from police said they received a call about 6.30am and officers attached to the Coffs/ Clarence Police District were sent to a park on Ryan Street, South Grafton, responding to reports of a concern for welfare.

AC Waddell said the concerns were that the man was acting in a way that indicated he might harm himself.

He said the two officers, one aged 23, with two years experience and the other a 43-year-old with 15 years experience, engaged with the man for some time, but were forced to discharged their firearms when he came at them with a knife.

He said the knife had been recovered and was evidence in the investigation.

The officers immediately rendered first aid until the arrival of NSW Ambulance paramedics.

The man was airlifted to Gold Coast University Hospital in a stable but serious condition.

The police officers were not physically injured.

Police tape surrounded the scene for more than a day after the shooting.

AC Waddell said A critical incident team from Richmond Police District will investigate the circumstances surrounding the incident.

The investigation would also be subject to an independent review.

Anyone with information about this incident is urged to contact Crime Stoppers: 1800 333 000 or https://nsw.crimestoppers.com.au. Information is treated in strict confidence.

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Jail murals by killer and rapist to be covered over

By Tim Howard

A series of murals painted on walls in the Grafton jail by notorious sex killer and rapist Lennie Lawson will be covered over when that section of the jail becomes part of the health system.

The NSW Department of Health Infrastructure has deemed the works too “triggering” for health staff, who will move into the section of the jail after renovations.

The decision marks a turn around from the time Corrective Services closed the prison in 2020.

At the time it said the murals painted by Lennie Lawson would be preserved for posterity.

There is nothing controversial in the murals, other than knowing who painted them.

They depict sunset over a mountain, a mountain lion and a marlin leaping from the water while two people fish from a boat.

The NSW Health Infrastructure said it would cover up the artwork as part of the site repurposing.

The murals were painted on brickwork and could not be dismantled or relocated due to the structural integrity of the wall.

The walls featuring the artwork would be retained and approval was granted under Section 60 of the Heritage Act to cover the artwork with internal wall lining.

Clarence River Historical Society president Steve Tranter said the society was against the move as the works were part of the jail’s history.

Mr Tranter said Lennie Lawson had been a fascinating figure at the jail who had done a lot of good, raising money for charity and helping fellow inmates.

“There are many [paintings] out there in the community in Grafton and the benefit he provided to charities is quite considerable,” he said.

But a passage in a book, The Last Governor, by former Grafton Jail governor John Heffernan revealed Lawson was always viewed as a threat.

In a media report he said Lawson remained “a dirty old bastard” until the day he died in 2003.

The report said Mr Heffernan and prison offices uncovered evidence Lawson had used access to a video recording device to splice together graphic images from movies and clips from children’s shows.

“He had created a collection which would later be described by a psychologist as ‘voyeuristic sexual fantasies’ and ‘sexual perversion’,” Mr Heffernan wrote in his book.

Soon after the decision was made to move Lawson to another jail and while he waited for the move he was moved into a cell with another notorious killer Allan Baker, who was serving a life sentence for his part in the 1973 kidnap, rape and murder of Virginia Morse.

Four days into his new arrangement, Lawson was seated on a stool in his cell awaiting breakfast when he toppled off and was likely dead before he hit the floor, the cause, a massive heart attack.

It was the end of a bizarre life which began in Wagga 76 years earlier.

During his early life Lawson found fame and employment as a comic book artist who created the Lone Avenger and Hooded Rider cartoons for Action Comics.

But in 1954, married with three children, he enticed a group of models into bushland at Terrey Hills in Sydney, for a modelling assignment.

Instead he bound the girls, gagged them, raped two and sexually assaulted the others.

He faced trial and was convicted of the rapes and sentenced to hang.

The sentence was later commuted to 14 years jail, but he only served half that time and was on the streets in May 1961,

It was a disastrous move.

In November 1961 he raped and killed 16-year-old Jane Bower and fled the scene to Moss Vale where he stormed the Sydney Church of England Grammar School, taking students hostage in the chapel.

During the siege he shot dead 15-year-old Wendy Sue Luscombe and in April 1962 was sentenced to life imprisonment.

For a decade he seemed a model prisoner, but in 1972 while in Parramatta Jail he attempted to take a young dancer, Sharon Hamilton, who had performed at the jail, hostage at knife point.

Other inmates helped free her, but the attack changed her and in 1978 she committed suicide.

In 1998 Lawson was transferred to Grafton Jail where he continued to follow his passion for painting and was interviewed on 60 Minutes.

He told journalist Liz Hayes he had no idea why he became a violent criminal.

“Something happened up here and I went haywire. I just completely lost the plot,” he told her.

While Lawson continued to be something of a favourite with prison officers who commissioned him to paint murals and provided photos of pets and family members for him to paint, he was largely reviled in the Grafton community.

“His fingerprint on earth should be erased,” wrote one social media user commenting on the merit of his artwork.

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Grafton Artist Respite Program Recipients Announced for 2025

By Robert Heyward

Grafton Regional Gallery and Arts Northern Rivers are delighted to reveal the three recipients of the Grafton Artist Respite Program for 2025. This initiative was designed to support artists from the Northern Rivers region affected by natural disasters, providing them with time and space to focus on their creative pursuits.

2025 Recipients

The successful applicants, all based in Lismore and significantly impacted by recent floods, are:

• Holly Ahern: A contemporary, multifaceted artist whose work explores texture, colour, scale, repetition, and design. Holly’s creations delve into themes of otherness, femininity, and the honest challenges of navigating an overactive mind.
• Kate Stroud: A talented maker and facilitator with expertise in music, typography, and community-driven design. Known for her unique lettering and hand typography, Kate has established a reputation as a sign painter, graphic designer, and muralist.
• Hunter Wilson: An emerging multidisciplinary artist with a strong foundation in graphic design, composition, and textiles, Hunter brings 20 years of experience in printing and signage to his artistic practice.

Project Overview

Each recipient will receive:

• A stipend to support their work
• Accommodation and studio space for one week
• Residencies scheduled between January and June 2025 at the Grafton Regional Gallery

Sarah Gurich, Director of Grafton Regional Gallery, shared her enthusiasm for the project, stating “The Artist Respite Project is a unique partnership between Grafton Regional Gallery and Arts Northern Rivers. We are thrilled to offer this program and look forward to welcoming Holly, Kate, and Hunter to the Clarence Valley.”

This initiative not only provides a space for creativity and growth but also strengthens the cultural fabric of the Northern Rivers community. Congratulations to the recipients!

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Memorial to a tragedy a city still feels

By Tim Howard

The tragic drowning of 13 Cub Scouts in the Clarence River 81 years ago on Wednesday was a trauma that proved to be a transformative event for the city.

The boys died when a punt with 28 boys and three older Scouts, returning from a picnic on Susan Island on December 11, 1943, overturned in rough weather.

Despite a heroic rescue and recovery effort that continued well into the night, 13 boys drowned

Clarence River Historical Society president Steve Tranter said that even 81 years after the event there is a core of local and non-local people who hold that date close to their hearts.

“Immediate families, relatives, next door neighbours, work colleagues and even those people who you might bump into in the corner store, everyone was in some way impacted by that event,” he said.

Only those that were there on the day, mostly now in their late 80s or early 90s can recall the terrible cloud of sorrow that overtook the cities of Grafton and South Grafton from that event.

Many close and distant relatives have however been told about the fateful events of that time and as such was the effect they saw on their family members, that they wish to express their support by holding the

One of those was Grafton man Bruce Gleeson, now deceased.

In an article in The Daily Examiner in 2011 Mr Gleeson, conveyed the harrowing scenes occurring on the river bank that afternoon.

Scenes from the funeral procession through the streets of Grafton on Monday December 13, 1943.

Aged just 12, a burst of activity in his street alerted him that something out of the ordinary was happening.

“I saw Alan Dahl come to our neighbour Eric Donohoe, who was a timber jinker, to get grappling hooks to drag the river to find the boys,” Mr Gleeson said.

“I ran all the way from my house down to the river to see what was going on.”

What Mr Gleeson saw that day stayed with him for the remainder of his life.

People told him the boys clung to each other in the water, increasing the death toll as they dragged each other under.

Bowlers at the nearby bowling club had launched boats and were able to rescue 15 boys.

The scenes during the rescue and subsequent recovery of the bodies were harrowing.

Mothers had to be restrained from walking into the river to look for their children.

By 10pm the last of the bodies was recovered.

Mr Tranter said the loss of life, occurring at a time when the deprivations of the world war being fought at that time, proved a hurdle that some could not get over.

“Families torn apart left the district, some permanently, to give their children some perceived protection from the stark reality of returning to school with classrooms with many empty chairs,” he said.

The tragedy also transformed the lives of the rescuers and people who witnessed the events that afternoon.

“We will remember those 13 boys who had a big future ahead of them,” Mr Tranter said.

“But almost as importantly we will remember the rescuers, the first aid providers, the government institutions that quickly assisted, Grafton City Council, South Grafton Municipal Council, Clarence River County Council.

The funeral ceremony for the South Grafton boys who drowned taking place at South Grafton Cemetery.

“Not only during the night as the children were recovered, but also from early morning when funerals were being arranged.”

Once the boys’ bodies had been recovered, there was a strong determination to ensure the two funerals were as dignified and befitting the children’s loss as could be possible.

Most of the city’s community groups made rallied to be part of the organisation of the funerals in Grafton and South Grafton.

On the day of the funerals, the streets were lined with people and the Grafton Bridge part of it, as the South Grafton cortege crossed, bearing the local boys to their final resting places.

To the city’s credit some good came from the tragedy with the residents determined to make sure in the future children could learn to swim in safety.

On the Friday following the tragedy the president of the Amateur Swimming Association, Mr Colin M Pollack, convened a public meeting with a view to re-invigorating the almost dormant progress to an Olympic sized pool in the area.

Fast forward 13 years and the pool, paid for almost exclusively from community fund raising had been built and was about to be opened.

Children impatient to enter the cool water in lined the poolside and waited for the ceremony to finish.

When he said, “now you can get in” or words to that effect, the fun began.

This year’s ceremony will take place, as in the past, at the Obelisk within Memorial Park, Grafton on Wednesday commencing at 4.45pm.

All are invited to attend and pay their respects. It will, for the most part, be a semi-formal event with small speeches and wreath laying.

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