Peter Dutton (Dickson, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Health and Ageing) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I would like to take this opportunity to praise a non-government, not-for-profit charitable institution that has been committed to developing the potential of young Australians not only in my electorate of Dickson but Australia wide since 1977. Young Achievement Australia, YAA, provides a challenging and entrepreneurial business skills program to over 5,000 senior secondary and tertiary students each year. Two such schools in my electorate have taken up this challenge, Mt Maria College at Petrie and Toogoolawah State High School.

The Toogoolawah students, the Kreeyatives, consist of Samantha Collins, Brittany Pratt, Emmanuel Cindric, Christine Davis, Brodie Kidd, Edith Graham, Garth Edwards, Justin Osmond, Katherine Granzien and Jacqui Parusel-Lanham, who developed a product called Kreeyatives Young Driver Kit. The group saw a need for something longer lasting to display L and P plates on cars. They found existing products on the market unsatisfactory. They designed a kit that would last the four years that these combined plates are required to be displayed and, after various tests, the final product has been found to be very sturdy. The students had positive feedback at the YAA Expo in August and won an award for product knowledge and sales process.

Mt Maria students call their business YaYaBitsi and consist of Lachlan Andersen, Daniel Cordery, Brendan Cotton, Brendan Dunn, Damian Dunstan, Shellsea Ellacott, Joel Gilbert, Alkira Henderson, Jayde Hermans, Anthony Holdsworth, Brent Jackson, Douglas Milne, Stevie Pavey, Eva Siasat, Isaac Smyth, Natalie Stuart and Jonathon Walker. The group set about producing an environmentally-friendly book with lots of fun facts, tips and pictures to promote environmental awareness. The glossy 78-page publication, titled Gen Y Care, features creative and eye-catching photos taken by the students themselves, compiled in an attractive and appealing layout. At the YAA Expo, in August, YaYaBitsi won the overall trade expo runner-up, the marketing award and the media award and were entered as a regional finalist in the Company of the Year award. The team took out nine regional awards and six state awards, including Company of the Year and Outstanding Product award, bringing their overall tally so far to 19. I wish them well at the National Awards dinner on 26 November, where they will be represented in six categories. I congratulate and commend all parties involved in this project.

It is great to see the broader community working with our schools. I congratulate the teachers—in particular, Jacinta Griffin from Toogoolawah State High and Fiona Turner and Kerry Smith from Mt Maria College. (Time expired)