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Dr Philippa Soccio two years. The findings will be used to and Hamlet in repertory – because sees me at MU Sport running practical paediatrics. I had never really thought graduate position in enterprise software
sessions, bringing back fond memories
after six months (they thought I was crazy
about working with children but ended
nothing says ‘good time’ like existential
(Howard 2002) refine energy efficiency modelling for dread in two different plays… of my time playing and coaching up finding a real passion for it. The and said I’d be welcome to come back
Australia’s regulatory tools, including the
I was an active Nationwide House Energy Rating Scheme undermanned, yet always determined, rewarding part of paediatric optometry if things didn’t work out) to join a small
member of (NatHERS). In 2024, I had the chance to revisit JCH JCH Sports teams. It’s been great seeing is that you often find yourself restoring agency at the height of the app gold rush.
the Janet while directing a play for the Melbourne the College’s recent successes in this area. vision, rather than watching it decline as Before the big players dominated the
Fringe Festival. The play was set in
Clarke Hall I am also a Chief Investigator on the with most adult eye conditions. market, anyone with a Mac could sell a 99c
community, NHMRC-funded project with Wilya Janta college dorms, so I chose to specifically At the time of writing, my biggest news app, and every business wanted one.
serving and the University of Sydney Coming place it in JCH – a fitting tribute to is that I’ve recently become a father. My While working at this busy full-
as Social Home, Making Home, Valuing Home: the place that helped shape my early partner, Katharine, and I welcomed our scope practice I discovered, through Soon, I joined some university colleagues
years. My time at Janet Clarke Hall was
son, Thomas, in December 2024. We’re
supervising university students on clinical
to develop Omny Radio, an app which let
Coordinator A Health and Wellbeing Evidence-Base
of the Student for Aboriginal Cultural and Climate- magical and I cherish the memories and embracing this exciting new chapter of placements, that my true calling wasn’t users create personalised radio stations
Club during Appropriate Community-Designed Homes. friendships formed there. life. Living in Ocean Grove, we enjoy the just treating patients, but teaching. I combining music, Facebook birthdays,
my three In this role, I lead the environmental It’s been a winding road, but at the beach lifestyle, with the river and surf decided to reduce my hours in corporate news and short form podcasts. It was a
bit ahead of its time – Spotify Radio has
beach metres from our door. I still run,
optometry to take on a role as Clinical
years there monitoring of Indigenous community-led heart of it all is my love for storytelling,
(2002–2004) while completing a Bachelor housing solutions. collaboration… and occasionally convincing cycle, swim and surf, and I’m a regular Skills Demonstrator at Deakin University. similarities today, but arguably we were
of Planning and Design at the University Education remains central to my values. strangers to exchange vows in a field. competitor and volunteer at the Ocean From there, I successfully applied for the more fully featured! However, with most
of Melbourne. After JCH, I followed the We open our home to the public on Grove Park Run. If anyone is ever visiting role of Clinical Educator at the Australian podcasts being over an hour long, we
on a Saturday morning, come and say
struggled to source short-form content,
College of Optometry (ACO), where I
well-trodden path to Brunswick, living Sustainable House Day, hosted by Renew,
in a share house off Sydney Road while and I serve as the Sustainability Advisor Dr Hugh Gundlach (2007) hi! I will soon be joining the unofficial supervise students from across three so we pivoted to a tool that helped radio
completing my Bachelor of Architecture. to the Judging Panel of Australia’s House Since leaving but very competitive category for dads states and four universities. stations convert live broadcasts into
running with strollers!
shareable clips. Omny Studio took off,
The supportive environment of college Awards, held by Architectural Media. JCH at the I hope everyone from my years at JCH is Whilst at the ACO, Australia’s only public becoming widely used across Australian
eye care clinic of its kind, I completed
life drew me back to College Crescent I live in Brunswick with my husband, end of 2011, radio, and Omny clips are now frequently
when I began my PhD in Architecture. Matty, and our two sons, Teo (7) and Finn I’ve explored doing well. Best wishes. the Advanced Certificate in Children’s embedded in news articles. The company
Vision in 2022. I now share my expertise
This time, I joined St Hilda’s College as a (3). I still keep in touch with friends made several Hugh was a resident tutor from 2007. in this area with students during their expanded globally and was eventually
residential tutor. Upon leaving St Hilda’s in my first year at JCH and reflect fondly avenues: paediatric placements at the ACO, which acquired, and I went looking for my next
to marry Matty Soccio (also a residential on my time there. marketing is particularly important given the challenge.
tutor), I remained involved as a member research; Adine Wield (2009) near-sightedness pandemic the world Channel 7, recognising the rise of Netflix,
of the St Hilda’s College Council, serving teaching is facing. In 2023, with years of teaching aimed to create a new streaming TV
as Deputy Chair until the birth of my Bridget Sweeney (2012) English, When I was experience behind me, I also secured a platform to retain younger audiences.
second child in 2021. Media and asked to write
Since leaving for Luce, it position at the University of Melbourne’s As the first mobile hire for 7plus, I led a
I still reside in Brunswick, now in an Janet Clarke Business as a struck me that teaching clinic, Melbourne Eyecare Clinic. small team of three, tasked with building
award-winning home I designed and Hall, I’ve been secondary school teacher; and serving my career Looking back, it feels as though I’ve come new iOS and Android apps in just eight
as an education officer for a not-for-
renovated in 2017. The project served as on a bit of an profit organisation dedicated to English actually began full circle. I started at JCH, made lifelong months. Operating as a ‘skunkworks’
a testbed for ideas developed during my adventure teaching. Alongside these roles I’ve also sixteen years friendships, and set the foundation project, we half-convincingly told curious
PhD, which explored indoor environment – think less ago at the for my career. Now I’m back at the colleagues we were working on ‘the tennis
quality (acoustics, air quality, lighting ‘linear career done sessional lecturing in business and University of ACO, where I trained, and working at app’ to avoid unwanted attention. While
education at various universities.
and thermal comfort) as a multi-sensory progression’ Melbourne Melbourne University’s Eyecare Clinic. not entirely untrue, 7plus later absorbed
design challenge. In recognition of its and more While I imagine many of JCH’s alumni – though, Almost every day I walk past JCH on my both the tennis and Olympics apps and
innovative approach, my home received ‘choose your have ventured far and wide, I’m almost in reality, it way to work, and it’s surreal to realise went on to serve millions of Australians
the 2023 National Biophilic Design own adventure embarrassed to be back at the University started at JCH, even before I set foot in how far I’ve come. It’s rewarding to monthly. (Don’t blame me for all the ads!)
Award in the ‘Interiors and Renovation’ novel where of Melbourne, albeit now as a full-time my first lecture theatre! Coming from now help guide the next generation of Eager to return to a startup-like
category from the Living Future Institute the author keeps changing her mind’. academic in the Faculty of Education. It three years of boarding school in Perth, optometrists, just as I was once guided. environment with greater ownership, I
of Australia (LFIA). I’ve lived in London and Edinburgh, is my dream job, combining my passions I thought I had a pretty good idea of joined Airwallex, Australia’s $5.5 billion
Entering my home into the LFIA awards where I worked as a Harry Potter tour for writing, teaching, presenting at what to expect from a university hall of global fintech, originally founded in a
conferences, and conducting research.
residence, but I don’t think I could have
program was part of a broader career guide. Despite the Australian accent, my The role also allows for regular domestic anticipated how much college life would Jarrod Robins (2007) Melbourne coffee shop. Together with
shift – one that aligned more closely red hair made me a natural for Weasley- and international travel, which I shape me, or how the friendships I made I lived in Janet my old 7plus mobile team, we built
with my values and ambition to play related banter. Before the world hit pause appreciate. I truly love working in there would stay with me for all these years. Clarke Hall from Airwallex’s global banking apps as their
a more active role in environmental in 2020, I spent my time gallivanting educational organisations as they have 2007 to 2009 first mobile employees.
sustainability. This transition led to an across UK music festivals, performing fake cultures of freedom, reinvention, inquiry After three unforgettable years (2009– while studying For the past year, I’ve worked as an
exciting new role as Team Leader of wedding ceremonies in a giant inflatable and growth. 2011), I moved out of College and into a Bachelor of independent contractor on various
Social Impact and Living Labs at CSIRO. church. (Don’t worry, no legally binding a house with three of my JCH friends to Engineering projects, most notably at Chronosphere,
My interdisciplinary team explores mistakes were made.) Currently, I’m teaching English and finish my degree. I graduated in 2013 (Honours) the analytics company founded by fellow
real-world housing performance and Now back in Melbourne, I’ve launched Business teachers while researching following five years of hard work (the in Software JCH alumnus Rob Skillington (2006). One
residents’ experiences, with a focus on my own creative brand, artistic allsort, to solutions to the global teacher human eye is incredibly complex) and Engineering. of the best aspects of being a software
health, comfort, and climate change. house my ever-growing artistic pursuits. shortage. My primary interest lies in was both eager and a little anxious to When I first engineer is exposure to diverse industries
We also leverage machine learning, understanding how to attract, train, start working as an optometrist. But on moved to – it’s always evolving and never dull.
augmented reality, and mass media I currently work with the Starlight sustain and retain school teachers. One the Tuesday of my second week, I was Melbourne
to promote sustainable living, energy Children’s Foundation, Complete Works particularly enjoyable side project has hit with the devastating news that my from country Victoria, the career I would Reflecting on my journey, I can’t imagine
efficiency, and improved indoor Theatre Company, Hearth Theatre, and been building a database of teachers in father had unexpectedly passed away. eventually pursue didn’t exist. For most where I’d be had I chosen another
environments. Melbourne Shakespeare Company. I film and television, analysing trends in To make matters worse, while I was away of my post-university career, I have college. Janet Clarke Hall introduced
originally joined Melbourne Shakespeare their representation (gender, ethnicity, on personal leave, my boss quit, leaving developed iOS and Android mobile apps me to so many people who became
I am the Project Leader of CSIRO’s Company as an actor then director age etc.) and depiction (status, behaviour me as the only optometrist in the practice. in various types of of organisations – lifelong friends. I even met my wife
$3.2m Apartment Energy Behaviour and have since taken the reins of their etc.). Publishing from this project even Fortunately, I had started in corporate start-ups, scale-ups, agencies, corporates, through a college friend! My interest
Study (AEBS), Australia’s largest marketing. Check us out on social media! led to some media interviews on radio optometry with Specsavers, and they and more recently, as an independent in mobile development was sparked
study on occupant energy behaviour and TV which was quite surreal. quickly found me a new workplace where I contractor. In 2007, the iPhone had just by conversations I had there. Living
in apartments. I am recruiting 430 On the directing front, I’m currently gratefully received the support I needed. been announced, but getting one in and studying at JCH was an incredible
households nationwide and equipping assistant director for Three Sisters at Recently, I’ve taken on teaching an Australia wasn’t easy. opportunity that profoundly shaped my
them with $3,000 of smart devices Theatre Works, marking my first foray undergraduate breadth subject, helping The practice I joined was a bit different career and life.
to track energy use, cooking habits, into Chekhov, but certainly not my last! students from various disciplines improve from typical corporate optometry After a short stint doing what I was
indoor comfort, and air quality over Next year, I’ll be performing in The Seagull their sports coaching skills. This often settings as it had a strong reputation for ‘supposed to do’, I resigned from my first
36 L u ce Number 23 2024 Janet Clar ke Hall 37