1. Shine 51
Gavin McDougall
Castlemaine Secondary College 1976 – 1981
From country boy to international journalist, former Channel Nine
bigwig Gavin McDougall remembers his rural childhood. By Tina Luton
Where are they now?
A
n award-winning journalist and the current director of
public affairs at the Australian Consulate-General in
Hong Kong, Gavin McDougall’s journey from a former
gold mining town in central Victoria – home to around
8000 residents – to the sprawling harbour-side city of Hong Kong, with
a thriving population of almost seven million people, began as a student
at Castlemaine Secondary College.
“Castlemaine High School,as it was then,had an enormous amount of space,”
he recalls.“In addition to several large outdoor areas and two sports ovals,it
was bounded on two sides by bushland and a golf course.Our teachers had a
great way of utilising all of this space,and not just during sports classes.Can
you imagine learning French sitting on the side of a creek bed in spring?”
From high school,Mr McDougall joined 3CCC radio station as a trainee
broadcaster.A year later he moved to Southern Cross Broadcasting as aTV
presenter/journalist.In 1988 he joined Nine Network Australia as a journalist
and assistant chief of staff,eventually becoming Deputy Chief of Staff in 1997.
Six years later he joined SatelliteTV Asia Region (StarTV) as a producer of
network news and current affairs; one year on,he was made executive producer.
In March last year Mr McDougall moved into his current role with the
Australian Consulate-General,which is the face of the Australian Government
in Hong Kong and offers a wide range of diplomatic and government services
to advance Australian interests in Hong Kong and Macau.
As director of public affairs,Mr McDougall is responsible for all of the
consulate’s public diplomacy programs in Hong Kong and Macau,as well
as media management and cultural events.“Included in the latter is the
Australian Film Festival,which we held in September,”Mr McDougall says.“I
also support the objectives of other agencies in Hong Kong such as Austrade,
immigration,education and Australian Federal Police officers.”
While the sleepy streets of Castlemaine are a far cry from the bustling
commerce of Hong Kong Island,Mr McDougall says he still had countless
opportunities while he was growing up.“I don’t feel like I missed out on
anything,”he says.
“Notwithstanding that the simple lack of students limited some of the courses
we could be offered,in many respects we were offered far more than we could
have imagined,”he says.
“For example,our HSC English teacher,Justin Shortal (now public affairs
manager with the Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority),ensured
we had an incredibly active extra-curricular drama program,despite having
insufficient students in my year level to hold a drama class.
“And,under the guidance of our HSC year teacher Robin Dunse (now a
school technician at Castlemaine SC),and another teacher,Trevor Youngman,
we had access to an adventure education program with activities such as
rockclimbing and Nordic skiing. These activities may seem like normal aspects
of many school programs now,but they were certainly innovative at the
time. They taught me the resourcefulness of individual achievement and the
discipline of teamwork.
“These are not just fond memories.They were formative experiences that make
up who I am and that,knowingly or not,I still draw on today.”
Now
Then
If you know a past student who’s achieved success,
email us at editor@edumail.vic.gov.au
A fresh-faced Gavin McDougall in Year 11 at Castlemaine SC in
1980. “I don’t feel like I missed out on anything,” he says.
Gavin McDougall now works amid the frenetic pace of Hong
Kong, as director of public affairs for the Australian Consulate.