October 19, 2012
A group of Year 10 and 11 students from St Mary’s Catholic College are celebrating after achieving scholarships that could help make their dreams come true.
Blanche McLeod, Sarah-Jayde Eggmolesse, Shania Stewart and Glynn Boney have earned Queensland Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Foundation (QATSIF) scholarships to assist with their schooling.
The foundation distributes scholarships from interest earned from the State Government’s former (and now infamous) Aborigines’ Welfare Fund.
St Mary’s principal Michael Nayler said the students were outstanding young people and excellent mentors for younger children at the school.
Indigenous Educational Support teacher Lauren Arrell said the process of applying for the scholarships was a lengthy process.
Not only did the students have to prove themselves worthy, they also had to have community and family support.
So what do the girls want to do?
Sarah-Jayde is interested in going to uni to study psychology “and maybe a bit of law as well”.
“I like to study people … humans are interesting!”
Shania has already started a one-year traineeship at the Commonwealth Bank in Kingaroy and hopes this could develop into a career.
Glynn has begun a Certificate III in Indigenous Primary Health Care and Blanche is interested in becoming a hairdresser.
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You know you’re in the country, when a young man just awarded $250 says he’s going to save it up to buy bull semen.
What? No music downloads, books, clothes?
No, Year 10 student Matthew Harch is going to use his Gympie and District Beef Liaison Group scholarship in an artificial insemination program on his parent’s property ‘Danarla’, near Wooroolin.
The property is a Brahman stud, begun by Matt’s dad David about 30 years ago.
Matt has his own herd of Red Brahmans which he runs alongside his father’s Greys.
Until now he has done his breeding “naturally” but is keen to give AI a try.
If you haven’t guessed it by now, the Year 10 St Mary’s student wants to devote his life to the cattle industry, but just in case he needs something else to fall back on, he’s also planning to do a Certificate III in Personal Training.
He hopes to apply for another grant from the Beef Liaison Group when he is in Year 12.
