General News
20 November, 2024
Boarding schools prepare to visit North West ahead of Expo
Boarding Schools Expo Australia will be held in Mount Isa in early December with 13 schools to attend.
Thirteen boarding schools will visit the North West next month as they make their pitch to prospective students and parents.
The Boarding Schools Expo will be held at the Overlander Hotel in Mount Isa on Monday, December 2 and director Amanda Ferrari said she expected families to make the trip from all across the region to see what the different schools have to offer.
“The expo will run all day, from 9am to 5.30pm and parents and students will be able to meet with 13 different boarding schools from across Queensland,” she said.
“These schools are based in Townsville, Charters Towers, Brisbane, Toowoomba, Warwick and the Gold Coast.
“It’s a great opportunity to discuss whether boarding school might be a good option for your child.”
For many North West parents, sending their children to boarding school is the only option.
However, Ms Ferrari said that many parents chose boarding school because of the opportunities it provided their teenagers.
“Some might have a child that is really good at sport or music or way above average academically and would like to give them options to pursue new challenges,” she said.
“The expo provides parents and their children with a chance to chat face to face with each school.”
Ms Ferrari said those who thought boarding school might be beyond their budget should consider attending.
“A lot of the schools offer bursary and scholarship opportunities,” she said.
“You won’t know until you talk to the schools themselves.”
Former North West educator Luke Baills, who was principal at both Healy and Barkly Highway State Schools in Mount Isa, and also spent time in Cloncurry, said he would be attending the expo to speak first-hand to families.
Now the principal of The Cathedral School in Townsville, Mr Baills said he knew first-hand the challenges facing families in the Outback.
“For us, it’s about giving the very best education to children from the remote North West,” he said.
“It’s not just high school, but also tertiary education with JCU (James Cook University) right here as well. Ultimately, we want to educate them and see them return and give back to the communities they are from.
“We’ve got one graduate here who is from Mount Isa and she is now in her second year studying physiotherapy.
“She wants to return home and start her own physio business in Mount Isa.”
Mr Baills said parents often struggled with the decision of where to send their children to boarding school.
“They are sending away their most precious thing and parents have to be comfortable when making that decision,” he said.
“That’s why we like to be out there, talking with families on the ground, so that they understand what we are offering and can provide their children.”
The Boarding Schools Expo at Mount Isa is a free event for North West families.
You can register in advance at www.boardingexpo.com.au. Those who pre-register will go into the draw to win a $350 voucher from Worn Out West.
Check out the website for more details and grab a copy of next week’s paper for a special feature that highlights some of the schools.