Michelle Landry (Capricornia, National Party) Share this | Hansard source

During the parliamentary break I spent several days touring the north of my electorate and meeting with a number of local schools. Many of the students I met on the trip had visited parliament through the year and it was a great pleasure to chat with them once again. Some who hadn't been to Canberra visited Canberra on a virtual tour, one of the advantages of modern technology. I am informed it was 'very cool'. I met with students at Walkerston State School, where extensive redevelopment is taking place. Classroom and administration facilities are getting a significant overhaul of what are essentially the original 19th century rooms. It is wonderful to see such effort being put into our small schools. Walkerston State School has a long history as one of the region's oldest schools. Founded in 1874, the school has taught generations of local children and always has an eye on its future. These new buildings will be a great asset to the school and its students and teachers. I was proud to deliver on a request from the student representative council for a new set of Australian and Indigenous and Torres Strait Islander flags to replace their well-worn and well-loved set.

I then travelled down the road to Mirani State School, where I met with Principal Bruce Torrens and the year 6 students. It was wonderful to hear about their Canberra trip and how much they had learnt about the federal government. Marian State School was next on the list, where my visit coincided with the school assembly. At Marian, the student leadership runs the assemblies, from setting up the microphone and sound, to putting out and packing away the chairs and MCing the whole event. It was marvellous watching our future leaders run this assembly, and it was a pleasure to see so many students receive their awards.

My next stop was St Anne's Catholic Primary School at Sarina, where I discussed parliament with them, before heading to Marlborough State School. The Marlborough community celebrated their school's centenary on 19 September, a great accomplishment for a small rural town. It was fascinating discussing with such capable young minds the role of parliament, how a bill is passed and how I became the local member. I can certainly see these students becoming future leaders in the community in the years to come. That's why as a coalition government we are providing real needs based funding for our schools, to ensure every student can become what they dream to be.

I am proud to be a member of a government that values local communities and local schools. These kids are our future lawyers, graziers, engineers, tradespeople and leaders of our community, and I look forward to visiting more schools in the upcoming months.

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