Australian Adventist School Gets OK to Operate Again

By TRACEY BRIDCUTT/Adventist Record

A Seventh-day Adventist School on the Australian island of Tasmania, which last month had its registration revoked, has now been approved to operate in 2017.

Hilliard Christian School in Hobart will be open for business this year after the Tasmanian Schools Registration Board (SRB) approved its registration application on Friday, January 13.

Adventist Schools Australia national director Dr. Daryl Murdoch said it is wonderful news for the students and staff who can look forward to a great year ahead.

“Hilliard Christian School can now get on with the job of what it does best—providing quality Christian education”

“Hilliard Christian School can now get on with the job of what it does best—providing quality Christian education,” Dr. Murdoch said. “The school has been successfully operating in Tasmania for over 100 years.”

On December 5, 2016 the SRB informed the director of Seventh-day Adventist Schools Tasmania that it would not renew the registration of Hilliard Christian School beyond December 31.

Since that time school personnel, supported by experts from within Adventist Schools Australia, have worked feverishly to correct shortcomings in the school’s documentation. As Christmas approached, the SRB offered to receive an application for a new school, promised to waive its normal waiting period and to expedite the approval process.

“We want to thank the Schools Registration Board for their willingness to work above and beyond to expedite the process”

On Friday the SRB, after reviewing all documentation submitted over the holiday period, determined that Hilliard Christian School could now be registered to operate.

“We want to thank the Schools Registration Board for their willingness to work above and beyond to expedite the process,” Dr. Murdoch said.

Hilliard Christian School will open its doors to students beginning February 7 and is committed to offering quality education to students and families seeking to benefit from its programs. Students have benefited over many years from the education given by its teachers and many have gone on to contribute successfully in a range of fields.

The newly appointed principal, Ross Reid, with a long history of school administration, has stepped out of retirement to return to school leadership at Hilliard. Reid is a former principal of Penguin Adventist School (now North West Christian School) in Tasmania, Lilydale Adventist Academy (now Edinburgh College) in Victoria and Noosa Christian College (Queensland), and he has also worked as education director in Victoria and Tasmania and for the Trans Australian Union Conference.