By Kirsty Ross
IT WAS the summer of ’69 when it all began.
But when school starts again this summer, there’s one Footscray City College teacher who won’t be making an appearance – breaking the record for the school’s longest serving teacher.
Peter Noss took his well-deserved retirement at the end of the 2006 school year.
“I’m just going to put my feet up for a while and get myself a little boat to go fishing … see I haven’t travelled at all,” the 62-year-old said.
The longstanding art teacher’s colleagues said his departure meant that the school’s history would follow him out the door.
Mr Noss has served longer than any other teacher or principal during his tenure, which means he carries a richer knowledge of its past than any other.
“I’ve completed 45 years on the payroll for the Education Department in 2006,” said the food lover and keen musician.
During this time, the well-liked and respected teacher had taught generations of students from the same families at the school, and was also invited to help celebrate many milestone birthdays.
“I went to a graduation night two weeks ago and there were at least six fathers there and one mother who I actually taught, seeing their children graduate from year 12,” he said.
“The wheel sure does turn.”
A Footscray City colleague and teacher, Bill Lensky, said Mr Noss had helped thousands of students over the years – a quality Mr Noss believes most teachers have.
During his long tenure at the school, the father of two has seen the school’s name change seven times and has worked under 17 principals.
During this time he has also seen some big changes.
Mr Noss said the most obvious change was the introduction of computers.
“That’s had a big effect on kids’ learning,” he said.
He also thinks students are more forthright now, compared with the good old days.
“If you asked a kid to do something it was very rarely you were answered back or they didn’t comply. Things have changed a bit along that line,” he said.
Having been educated at a technical school himself, Mr Noss enjoyed his early days at Footscray because it also was a technical school.
Naturally, one of his biggest concerns is the demise of technical schools in Australia.
Mr Noss said potential apprentices were losing out “big time”.
Reliving the old days, the teacher with remarkable attention to detail rattled off all the school’s names changes, for history’s sake.
“When I was first came here it was Footscray Technical School. Then it was Footscray Institute of Technology Secondary School, and then it went back to Footscray Technical School. And then they had a few other little ones….like Footscray Technical High School, then it was Footscray City Secondary College. Then we merged with Footscray High School – or they merged with us, and it became what it is now.”
Mr Noss said he would always treasure the memories of students who made his last weeks so special.
“I think the thing that I’ll most treasure is the number of students I’ve taught this year that have asked me not to leave,” he said. That and a signed and framed caricature of himself by a student who is a close friend “took the wind out of my sails”.
