Hi, I’m monique (or as many people know me, mon!)
I have a strong and diverse background in health promotion, community engagement, research and evaluation, strategic planning and project management. Throughout this work my goal has always remained the same; to prevent non-communicable disease by creating a healthier environment for our children; our future! I am passionate about improving the health and wellbeing of our communities and will always keep that at the forefront of my mind when I am working with you.
I have worked and studied in my home town of Wangaratta, across various locations in Victoria, and internationally. I have worked for and with private business, community health, health services, local and state governments, education, academia, and on the ground with community of varying backgrounds and lived experiences.
My Approach
LET’S GET ON THE SAME PAGE
I never assume. I will ask you lots of questions to ensure I understand what you need from me, expectations are met, and you can get the most out of me as possible.
don’t underestimate time to plan
Too often I see projects being rushed and at risk of not having the impact wanted, not being sustained, or worse, having unexpected and unwanted outcomes. I will factor in enough planning time with you to ensure that your project is strong and your goals can be met.
challenges can be fun!
Challenges are inevitable in anything we do. It’s how we use these challenges that can change our experience of them. I always approach challenges positively by acknowledging a learning for what could be done better, and focus on a solution to deal with that challenge.
-
This certificate has been completed with the Center for Implementation and gives me the skills and resources to support you to implement various types of projects using the priniciples of implementation science. I graduated from this course in 2024. I’d like to thank Deakin University for providing the funding for me to complete this course.
-
I graduated with this certificate in 2012 with Deakin University and majored in Health Promotion, Physical Activity and Health, and Family, Society and Health.
-
This program, delivered by Alpine Valleys Community Leadership allowed me to deeply understand how to be an effective leader. I graduated from this program in 2020. I’d like to thank the Rural City of Wangaratta for sponsoring me to complete this program.
-
Understanding the importance of working with children, and safely, I always keep my WWCC up-to-date.
-
Not only do I keep my first aid and CPR up-to-date, but I have mental health first aid training which allows me to support people when they are dealing with a mental health problem. Complementing this, I have also undergone safeTALK training, which allows me to support someone if they are having thoughts of suicide.
qualifications
publications
While I am proud of the below publications and have learnt a rich amount from authorship in them, I do acknowledge they have not considered size-inclusive language. I am committed to having a health at all sizes approach in my work moving forward.
Strugnell C, Gaskin CJ, Becker D, et al. COVID-19-related lockdowns and changes in overweight and obesity, movement behaviours, diet quality, and health-related quality of life among regional Australian primary school children: A repeat cross-sectional study. Pediatric Obesity. 2025;20(2):e13195.Steven Allender, Cadeyrn J. Gaskin, Denise Becker et al. Three-year behavioural, health-related quality of life, and body mass index outcomes from the RESPOND randomized trial, Public Health, Volume 237, 2024, Pages 344-353, ISSN 0033-3506. Yoong SL, Brown AD, Leung GKW, Hillenaar M, David JL, Hayward J, et al. (2024) A protocol of a pilot randomised trial (Action-RESPOND) to support rural and regional communities with implementing community-based systems thinking obesity prevention initiatives. PLoS ONE 19(5): e0302047.Whelan J, Hillenaar M, Fraser P, Allender S, Jackson M, Strugnell C, et al. (2023) Perceived impacts of COVID-19 and bushfires on the implementation of an obesity prevention trial in Northeast Victoria, Australia. PLoS ONE 18(6): e0287468.Vargas C, Hillenaar M, Strugnell C, Allender S, Marks L, Green M, et al. Lived experience of participants who engaged in the co- creation of initiatives to improve children's health in a rural Australian community. Aust J Rural Health. 2023;31:659–669.TESTIMONIALS
I have worked with Mon on a variety of health promotion initiatives since 2013 and she is always a pleasure to work with. Mon has excellent skills in planning, implementing and evaluating health promotion work and understands the importance of community engagement as part of the process. Mon has the ability to engage well with both community members and organisations to develop partnerships that lead to successful initiatives and positive outcomes for communities. Mon has great interpersonal skills and takes the time to listen and understand the needs of the people who she works with. Mon has a passion for working together to build resilient, healthy communities and is an asset in our local community!Clare Schultz, Wangaratta
Monique and I worked together on projects applying systems thinking methods to community-led health promotion. Monique’s focus on community relationships is at the heart of her approach to health promotion, bringing fantastic expertise and experience in how to meaningfully build relationships for change. She made great use of systems thinking tools, such as STICKE and group model building, to leverage community passions and resources to improve community health and social outcomes. Andrew Brown, Deakin University
Thank you for your evaluation of the Inclusive Sports grant. Your support and professional approach throughout the process helped to clearly highlight the outcomes and impact of the program. Your insights have been helpful in showcasing what we’ve achieved. I look forward to the opportunity to work with you again in the future.