Year 9 Program – Team members

Jarrod Kayler-Thomson
Head of Year 9 On Queenslea Drive ProgramJarrod is a physical education and health educator who works with boys to assist them as they go through adolescent development.After spending more than a decade working with boys, Jarrod knows what underpins successful transitioning from boyhood to manhood. Jarrod believes that there is a stage in every young man’s life when he is ready to be involved in a Rites of Passage program, one that challenges boys to think about what sort of man they want to be and what behaviours a boy will need to develop for this to become a reality.Jarrod is trained in mentoring, leadership, communication, quality assurance and presentation skills. He obtained a Bachelor of Arts Education and Bachelor of Social Science at university and for the past decade has worked in a variety of schools and in a senior educator role. He is currently completing his Master of Education specialising in Mental Health and Wellbeing.

He has also successfully balanced a professional football career with his work in the education and training sector and has attended leadership training specific to Rites of Passage. As Head of the Year 9 On Queenslea Drive Program, Jarrod is responsible for the successful co-ordination, delivery and assessment of the program at Christ Church.

Ryan Myles
Director of KooringalRyan Myles is a professional educator with almost 20 years’ experience working with students in the outdoors. Ryan has a Bachelor of Arts in Outdoor Education and Diploma of Secondary Education from Latrobe University, Victoria. For most of his professional life, Ryan has been developing outdoor programs focused on physical and emotional challenges, safe risk taking and positive feedback through experiential learning, which provides the scaffold for strong positive growth in boys.Ryan commenced as the Director of Kooringal in 2016, and is responsible for the design, development and implementation of outdoor education programs where boys experience challenge, healthy risk taking, communal living and environmental care in remote settings. Ryan is skilled in integrating these programs with the Australian Curriculum and aligning these to the developmental stages of adolescent boys.Ryan’s extensive experience in developing targeted outdoor experiences, based around community living, will ensure the Outdoor Education component of The Making of Men program delivers a positive and powerful impact, resulting in the development of self-reliant, self-confident, responsible young men.