AGY-1202 | Department of Technical and Further Education

Full description

The Technical and Further Education Act, 1974 (Act No.72 1974) commenced on 1 January 1975 replacing the Department of Technical Education with the Department of Technical and Further Education. Provision was made for the establishment of regional or district councils to co-ordinate the activities of groups of colleges, and, also for the Minister of Education to delegate advisory and executive powers to the new bodies and to college committees. (1) A general reorganisation of the head office administration was also undertaken with the number of Assistant Directors increased from three to five while the position of Superintendent (Building Courses) was abolished. (2) The Head Office of the Department of Technical and Further Education would supervise five new divisions -
* Research and Planning;
* Education Methods and Resources;
* Staff Development;
* Student Services; and
* Library Services The first two District Councils were appointed during 1976 for the Hunter and Illawarra Districts with headquarters colleges located at Newcastle and Wollongong. (3) Also 61 College Committees of Technical and Further Education had been established. (4) Four more Regional Districts - New England, Central Western, North Coast and Riverina - were created in 1977. Each of the six Regions contained an average of 45 technical colleges under the control of a Regional Director who also held the position of principal of the Region's major college. Special stand-alone administrative status was conferred on Broken Hill Technical College - the only college in the great Far Western region of the State - and Goulburn Technical College - the State's first Technical College with its own residential facilities. A new position of Chief Executive Colleges was created while the office of State Supervisor was gradually eliminated. (5) In 1990 the government endorsed a major restructuring of the Department of Technical and Further Education. The Technical and Further Education Commission Act, 1990 established the Department of Technical and Further Education as a statutory body known as the Technical and Further Education Commission on 1 February 1991. ENDNOTES
(1) Report of the Minister for Education upon the activities of the Department of Technical and Further Education for 1975 in the Joint Volumes of Papers presented to the Legislative Council and the Legislative Assembly 1976-77-78 Volume 5, p.1032.
(2) Ibid. p.1035.
(3) Report of the Minister for Education upon the activities of the Department of Technical and Further Education for 1976 in the Joint Volumes of Papers presented to the Legislative Council and the Legislative Assembly 1976-77-78 Volume 5, p.1083.
(4) Ibid. p.1107.
(5) Report of the Minister for Education upon the activities of the Department of Technical and Further Education for the year ended 31 December 1977 in the Joint Volumes of Papers presented to the Legislative Council and the Legislative Assembly 1978-79 Volume 5 p.893.