Ryan Vermeulen, Years 5 & 6 Teacher
I’m delighted to find myself here at BRIS in 2022 and am enormously looking forward to working with the students this year.
Upon finishing my own schooling I followed my passion for history and completed an honours degree in history at La Trobe University. When it hit me that my degree was coming to an end and I still didn’t really know what I wanted to be ‘when I grew up’ the most natural fit seemed to be primary teaching. This came largely from such warm and positive memories of my own primary school experience and my appreciation of the role one of my teachers played in opening my mind to the wonders of history. The thought of having that kind of impact and sharing my own passions with young people was enough for me to undertake my Graduate Diploma in Education.
I began my teaching journey in 2007 at a progressive, student-centred state school in Melbourne’s inner northwest where I worked for over a decade before taking a leap of faith and teaching for several years at Dili International School in beautiful Timor-Leste. What an amazing experience! Unfortunately, the pandemic forced us home and led us to making our next exciting move happen - and here we are.
Together with my wife - who grew up in Queensland - and our 5-year-old son we have recently moved to the Sunshine Coast and it has been lovely to be welcomed so warmly into the BRIS family. My son is equally excited to be starting his schooling here at BRIS with me and in such a beautiful location. I am passionate about music and have been an active member of the Melbourne music scene since about the age of 20 - playing drums in a range of bands and releasing several albums. The rest of my spare time is spent following the fortunes of my favourite soccer teams and playing lots of Lego at home on the floor with my son.