Council Members

Stan lives on Phillip Island in Cowes. He is the owner and operator of Bass Coast, Phillip Island and Wonthaggi Driving Schools. Stan was involved in the Building Industry for 30 years, has been a member of the Association since 1996 and a Committee member since 2006. Stan was involved in setting up the successful L2Ps Program in the Bass Coast area, is an accredited Keys2Drive Instructor and specialises in training people with disabilities to drive, covering all of Gippsland with modified hand control cars.

Rhonda lives in Hamilton and Horsham and offers a range of car driver training opportunities. She is a disability training specialist and works with several Occupational Therapists covering the Western and Wimmera regions of Victoria. She began in 1998 and started with a company gaining her Motorcycle and Heavy Rigid licence. A respected colleague then asked her to join his company and expand the car driver training branch of his business. For the past 13 years, Rhonda has run her own business and enjoys the dual citizenship. Since joining the ADTAV Council she is finding it a privilege and is pleased to represent a rural voice for our state.

My background as a driver trainer started in the Army Reserve as an Instructor/Licence Testing Officer. I was responsible for the running of my unit’s transport platoon and the writing and conducting of competency-based driver training in the Army’s fleet of vehicles. I completed a Certificate III Road Transport, Certificate IV Workplace Trainer and Assessor and a Graduate Diploma of Technology Education. I work as a teacher of Materials Technology at a secondary college and am passionate about educating our younger drivers. As a member of the Council, I want to work towards privatising the licence testing and introducing Competency Based Training. To achieve these goals will require further professional development of the ADTAV members which can only enhance the perception within the community of the level of professionalism of the ADTAV Driver Trainers.

Steve Staunton has been a driver trainer in the western suburbs since 2000, he worked for a small driving school before starting his own business a year later, sometimes working as a sole operator and sometimes employing other trainers as well.

Steve has a passion for teaching people how to be safe and responsible drivers, rather than to just get them to pass their licence test.  He sees driver training as an opportunity to educate all drivers according to their own learning styles, utilising their strengths and improving their weakness, rather than just following a standard routine or formula.

Steve believes that driver trainers can often experience a sense of isolation in their work, and need all the encouragement and support they can get from within and beyond the industry.

Steve has been involved for many years as a volunteer in various community clubs and groups and has been on the councils of several not-for-profit organisations.