Thursday, 2 May 2024

Glendal Primary School

Richard WELCH (North-Eastern Metropolitan) (10:03): Last Thursday I had the pleasure of meeting teachers and students of Glendal Primary School in my electorate. It felt like I entered a world of exploration and discovery. Thank you to Deborah Grossek firstly for the tour but mainly for her vision as the local principal. Her school has become a thriving hub of STEM education, igniting young minds with curiosity and innovation every day. Fifteen years ago Ms Grossek embarked on a bold mission to integrate STEM deeply into her school’s culture, transforming classrooms into dynamic environments where learning is an adventure. Today Glendal Primary School is home to 900 eager learners, each exploring the vast possibilities of science, technology, robotics, engineering and maths. At Glendal robots are not just part of the imagination; they roam the halls and were built by the very hands of the students. These are our future engineers, and they need classrooms that are vibrant workshops where subjects like mathematics and science leap from the pages of the textbooks into the real world, engaging and inspiring our students.

As an entrepreneur who built a successful business by leveraging the power of STEM, I can testify to the doors these fields of study open. Not just a pathway to promising careers, STEM skills are the keys to solving global challenges, from medical breakthroughs to technological innovations. Glendal proves it can be done and it can be done in primary schools. For the sake of Glendal Primary School and their exceptional STEM program, I hope this year’s budget rewards their hard work and gives them the facilities they need to grow this amazing program.