Leadership Profiles: Dr Jane Williams

Name: Dr Jane Williams

Qualifications

PhD, BMgt, Cert Tertiary Teaching, RN (Paeds), Certified INPP Practitioner, Certified iLS Practitioner, GymbaROO Neuro-Development Consultant.

• Dr Jane Williams is a researcher and educator and who is actively involved in the development of high quality early childhood development programs in Australia, Asia and Europe. The GymbaROO/KindyROO program, in which she is involved, is focused on the delivery of a program that promotes healthy neurological, social and physical growth in the first five years of life. Importantly the program actively engages parents in their children’s development from birth.
• Spreading the message about the importance of development in the early years is a primary aim of Dr Williams. As Editor of First Steps, a magazine dedicated to parent education, she focuses on helping parents understand their child’s development. Dr Williams also has a number of journal publications aimed at drawing the attention of early childhood health professionals to the importance of early childhood development, prevention and early intervention. She has presented at a number of conferences in Australia, and the EU, and was an invited speaker at several of these.
• Dr Williams has taught across very diverse environments, to people with a large variety of interests and within enormously differing age groups. For the past 10 years she has been involved in a varied program of tertiary teaching in both academic and clinical domains at the School of Nursing, Midwifery & Nutrition, James Cook University, Townsville, Australia where she is currently holds the position of Adjunct Senior Lecturer. She has also actively engaged in the GymbaROO/KindyROO early learning program that focuses on parent education while providing infants and children with a program that is fun and neuro-developmentally stimulating.

Qualifications

• 2003 -2006 James Cook University (JCU) PhD
• 2002 JCU Graduate Certificate in Tertiary Teaching
• 2000 JCU Bachelor of Management
• 1979 Registered General Nurse (Royal Children’s Hospital, Melbourne)

Areas of Interest

• Early childhood development;
• early childhood prevention programmes;
• parent education;
• learning and behaviour intervention therapies/programmes.

Current Status

• Director, GymbaROO, Australia
• Research & Education General Manager, GymbaROO Australia.
• Editor, First Steps – GymbaROO’s magazine for parents.
• Adjunct Senior Lecturer, School of Nursing, Midwifery & Nutrition, JCU.

Brief Work History

• Feb 2006 – Feb 2007 Research Project Officer. Review of Australian Nursing & Midwifery Ethics Project. School of Nursing Sciences, James Cook University (1 year appointment).
• 2003 - 2005: Full time postgraduate student. Part-time tutorial leader.
• 1991 - 2003: Clinical educator, tutor and part-time lecturer: School of Nursing Sciences, James Cook University
• 1994 - 1997: Editor, First Steps magazine (parent education on early childhood development)
• 1989 – 1996. Owner/Manager & Neuro Educator: GymbaROO Townsville.
• 1982-1989 Community nurse: Dr I. Shellshear (Paediatrician), Townsville.
• 1981-1982 Clinical nurse: Townsville General Hospital, Qld.
• 1975-1980 Royal Children's Hospital Vic.

Publications

• Williams, J. (2007). Helping parents help their children: an innovative Australian program. American Academy of Pediatrics: Development and Behavior Newsletter 16 (1) (Spring, 2008), 18-20.
• Williams, J (2006). Learning from mothers: how myths policies and practices affect the early detection of subtle developmental problems in children. Child: Care, Health & Development 33(3), 282-290.
• Williams, J. (2006/2007). How social myths about childhood, motherhood and medicine affect the detection of subtle developmental problems in children. Contemporary Nurse 23(2), 274-287.
• Williams, J. (2006). Learning from mothers: how myths, policies and practices affect the early detection of subtle developmental problems in children. Unpublished PhD, James Cook University, Townsville.
• Williams, J., & Holmes, C. A. (2005). Literary folkloristics: using literary theories to read life stories. Australian Qualitative Research 5(2), 151-167
• Williams, J., & Holmes, C. A. (2004/2005). Children of the 21st century: slipping through the net. Contemporary Nurse, 18(1-2), 57-66.
• Williams, J. & Holmes, C. A. (2004). Improving the early detection of children with subtle developmental problems. Journal of Child Health Care, 8 (1), 34-46.

Parenting magazine publications

• Williams, J. (2009). Tummy time for terrific babies. Child Parenting Journal (Autumn).
• Williams, J. (2008). Learning to move - what dads can do to help. BubHub Newsletter, September 2008 72(3). Available online: http://www.bubhub.com.au/newslettersep0803.php
• Williams, J. (2008). GymbaROO. Themes: Primary education.17, p. 28.

I have also written over 50 articles on child development (1995-1998, 2004 - current) for publication in First Steps, a parent education magazine published by GymbaROO Australia. An example of topics covered include: 'Fidgety Babies', ‘Neurophysiological treatment of dyslexia, 'Your two year old', 'Your three year old', 'Encouraging your child's language development, 'Sensory play’, 'Attention deficit disorder: a developmental approach’, 'The business of child rearing', 'Helping your child to be unselfish’, ‘Helping parents help their children', 'Give baby the freedom and space to move', 'Talk, talk, talk', 'Creeping and crawling: More than just a way to get around', 'Caring through touch: Massaging your baby', ‘Parents, your voices are important’, ‘Slipping through the net’, ‘How a baby learns’, “Don’t fence me in’. “Tapping into parent power’ and ‘Why are early childhood development programs important?’

Seminar series

Conference presentations (2004- 2009 only)

Awards

Professional development (2005 - 2009 only)

Teaching (from 2008 only)