What does it mean to chip a mark? A character?

Professor Phil Cummins, Hooke Family Professor of Practice in Educational Leadership at the University of Sydney.

Phil presents "Traces" his contribution to Dear Stardust, and leaves gorgeous marks on us with his letter and his work.

In his letter and our gorgeous conversation, we talk history, future, marks, character, and fine silk scarves.

Shout outs to:

The Cummins family - for welcoming us into their lives

Mrs Lemon - for her sheer enthusiasm and belief

Marcus Edwards - for leaving an endearing gorgeous mark on Phil’s life

Eva the school secretary - for being strong and leading with conviction to help Phil be his best

Sydney Character Initiative - for helping speak about character education with an Australian accent

Leonard Cohen - for giving us beautiful words to describe character

Geoff Richards - for lifting up Phil when he felt small in the world

David Thomas - for teaching Phil from 1982 still to today

Game Changers Podcast - for showing us the way and helping us take steps forward and up, and for shining a light on bold pioneers

Bill Gaynor from Mercedes College - for having the same impact on me through actions and deeds

Wayne Cotton - for being an all round good guy who shines a light on good teachers not just good teaching

Tim Allender and Jonathan Dallimore- for shining a light on the relationship in the classroom

Jay Leno - for suggesting that the car liberated the horse, and giving the hint that perhaps the science of learning could be used to liberate the educator

a School for tomorrow - for making marks on the landscape in Australia

Circle education - for advancing meaningful education

The University of Sydney and the Hooke Family - for their bravery in selecting and supporting Phil in his professorial debut

Eddie Woo and Scott Sleep - for being incredible colleagues and teachers

Anne McAllan - for joining Phil in introducing historiography into the NSW curriculum

Australian character education alliance, Sandra Milligan and Jim Togilini, University of Melbourne, the SACE board, and Learning Creates, Nicole Dyson, Janette Cheah (HEX) - for their work in broadening what it means to flourish

The Smith School and Lawrence Wainwright at Oxford University - for giving us meaningful education in the world of sustainability

Adriano Di Prato - for, amongst many things, challenging binary thinking

Ray Swann from Brighton Grammar School - for supporting young men to interact positively with the world

David Atkinson from Dr Challanon's Grammar school - for putting some of this work into words