Brisbane State High’s outstanding former students revealed
We asked Brisbane schools to nominate their most outstanding former students and the response has been overwhelming. Today we present the most notable alumni of Brisbane State High School.
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We asked Brisbane schools to nominate their most outstanding former students and the response has been overwhelming. From Supreme Court judges to musicians, artists and more than a few politicians, their lists prove our schools have long been producing leaders in their fields and continue to do so. Today we present the most notable alumni of Brisbane State High School.
BRISBANE HIGH SCHOOLS HONOUR ROLLS
* Brisbane Girls Grammar School
* Brisbane Boys Grammar School
* St Rita’s College, Clayfield
William (Bill) Hayden
Governor-General of Australia
William graduated in 1949 and joined the Queensland Police, working as a police officer for eight years while studying economics part-time at the University of Queensland.
He was elected to the House of Representatives at the 1961 federal election, aged 28, and had a successful political career until 1988.
He was leader of the Labor Party from 1977 to 1983, as well as serving as a cabinet minister in the Whitlam and Hawke governments.
In 1989 he was appointed Governor General of Australia.
He received an Honorary Doctorate of Laws from the University of Queensland in 1990 for his contributions to Australian life. His other awards include admission to the Order of St John Australia and also the Gwanghwa Medal of the Korean Order of Diplomatic Merit.
In 1996 he was recognised as the Australian Humanist of the Year by the Council of Australian Humanist Societies
He retired as Governor-General in 1996.
WALLY LEWIS
Rugby league legend
During his final year at State High School in 1977 Wally captained the First XV rugby union team.
He went onto become an inspirational rugby league player whose feats have gone down in history and is recognised as one of the true legends of the game.
Wally initially played with Valleys in the Brisbane rugby league competition and made the run-on side for Queensland in the inaugural State of Origin match in 1980 before making his Test debut the following year.
In later years he played for the Wynnum-Manly Seagulls and after fending off offers from NSW clubs, was signed by the Brisbane Broncos as inaugural captain in 1988.
Wally‘s countless career highlights include captaining Australia 23 times, leading the Kangaroos on an undefeated Ashes tour, 31 State of Origin games and 33 Tests for Australia.
He has since been inducted into the Australian Rugby League Hall of Fame and in 1999 became the sixth member of The Immortals. In 2000, he was awarded the Australian Sports Medal for his contribution to Australia’s international standing in sport of rugby league.
In 2011, he was awarded the prestigious Queensland Great Award.
GENERAL EVA BURROWS
World leader of the Salvation Army
General Eva Burrows graduated in 1946 and with her parents both Salvation Army officers, she was commissioned in 1951 after completing an arts degree at Queensland University.
She worked for many years in Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) before becoming the principal of the Army’s international officers’ college in London.
From 1977 she was the Army’s territorial commander in Sri Lanka, Scotland and southern Australia.
She became General and World Leader of the Salvation Army in 1986 - the youngest person ever elected to the role and only the second woman to hold the position of General.
Under the Army’s constitution her term should have expired in 1991, but she was persuaded by international leaders to stay on until her retirement in 1993. During this time she led the Salvation Army back into Eastern Europe.
Following her retirement she was the International Champion of the ‘Be A Hero’ campaign and sat on the board of the International Bible Society.
She continued to work with Melbourne’s disadvantaged until she was 82 and passed away in March 2015, aged 85.
HAYLEY LEWIS
Olympic swimmer
Hayley graduated in 1991 and during her final year captained the girls’ swimming team.
In 1990, at only 15, she became a household name winning five gold medals at the Commonwealth Games.
She went on to win two medals in the 1992 Barcelona Olympics - silver in the 800m freestyle and bronze in the 400m freestyle.
She was awarded an Order of Australia Medal (OAM) for her services to swimming and today enjoys a career in television.
PAUL MORGAN
Businessman and stockbroker
Paul graduated in 1964 as school captain.
“Porky”, as his friends fondly called him, represented Queensland in rugby league during his first year out of school.
A stockbroker by trade, he was credited for bringing the stock market to “mum and dad investors” and co-founding the Brisbane Broncos.
Paul passed away in 2001.
DUNCAN ARMSTRONG
Olympic swimmer
Duncan graduated in 1985 and was the school’s swimming captain.
At 20, he became an Australian sporting icon when he brought home a gold and a silver medal from the 1988 Seoul Olympics.
He has won a number of prestigious awards including being named Young Australian of the Year, a Centenary Medal and being awarded an Order of Australia Medal (OAM) for his services to swimming.
Today, Duncan has a successful career in the media.
DR NICHOLAS GIRDIS
Property developer/investor
Mr Girdis is an emblem of a successful Queenslander: born to Greek migrant parents in Brisbane’s West End in 1926, a school captain at State High when he graduated in 1943, he studied dentistry befoire turning his hand to development.
He went on to help reshape and preserve Brisbane’s waterfront in the 1990s by turning a run-down ship-building area into the Dockside Precinct, Kangaroo Point.
He was also involved in the development of Fisherman’s Wharf at Main Beach.
He led the campaign to raise $5 million for the restoration of the historic Customs House for The University of Queensland, and developed a 480-berth marina for the Royal Queensland Yacht Squadron.
He’s also been a successful sportsman — sailing in Sydney to Hobart races and becoming Commodore of the Royal Queensland Yacht Squadron — and a community contributor with his appointment to the Senate for the University of Queensland.
DAVID WILSON
Rugby international
David was already a promising rugby union player when he graduated in 1984 and went on to captain the Wallabies nine times.
During his rugby union career he won every international trophy available to an Australian Test player, including Bledisloe Cup series wins in 1992, 1994, 1998, 1999 and 2000, a World Cup in 1999 and a Tri Nations Series win in 2000.
Injuries forced an early retirement at 35 and he now works as a businessman.
JON SIEBEN
Olympic swimmer
Jon was still a student at State High in 1982 when he made his debut at the Brisbane Commonwealth Games, capturing a bronze in the 200m butterfly as well as gold in the medley relay.
Two years later, at the Los Angeles Olympics, he stunned the swimming world when he beat all odds to win the 200m butterfly final, taking the gold medal from hot favourite, Michael Gross of Germany in a storming finish.
Jon was the Australian 50m, 100m and 200m butterfly champion and was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) for his services to swimming.
He swam for Australia at the 1988 Seoul Olympics and the 1992 Barcelona Olympics without achieving the same level of success he did in Los Angeles.
He was named the Young Australian of the Year in 1984 and inducted into the Sport Australia Hall of Fame in 1985.
IAN HEALY
Australian cricketer
Ian graduated in 1981 and went on to become arguably the most successful wicket keeper of all time, playing for Australia for more than 10 years.
Missing just one Test over the course of his career (because of a broken thumb), he collected five world records along the way.
Ian holds the record for the most dismissals by a keeper in Test history with his final tally of 395 made up of 366 catches and 29 stumpings.
Today, he is a television commentator, who is also involved in special appearances and speaking engagements.
DR ANDREW LIVERIS
World CEO Dow Chemicals
Andrew graduated in 1971 and is now a recognised global business leader, having transformed Dow Chemicals from a cyclical chemicals manufacturing company into a novel enterprise.
A recognized global business leader with more than 42 years at Dow, he was tapped by the current U.S. administration to help identify new ways to spur innovation, revitalize the U.S. manufacturing sector and drive economic growth and prosperity as chair of the Manufacturing Council and a member of the Apprenticeship of the Future taskforce.
Previously he served as co-chair of President Obama’s Advanced Manufacturing Partnership steering committee and was a member of the U.S. President’s Export Council.
He sits on the board of directors of IBM, Worley and Saudi Aramco and on the advisory board of Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation and NEOM, as well as being a member of the Concordia Leadership Council and the Australian government’s Industry Growth Centres Advisory Committee.
Dr Liveris received the Expatriate Achievement Award in 2008.
PROFESSOR GARY ROUBIN
Cardiologist
Professor Roubin graduated in 1965 and is internationally recognised for pioneering the development of stents for blocked arteries, as well as developing the techniques of carotid stenting and embolic protection devices.
His ground-breaking research helps millions of people around the world.
Prof Roubin is currently the director and physician-in-chief of the Cardiovascular Service Line, Continuum Cardiovascular Centers of New York.
DR ALAN LAWS
Anaesthesiologist
Dr Laws was Dux of the school when he graduated in 1953 and went on to graduate as the gold medalist from the University of Queensland in 1961.
He undertook anesthesia training in England and moved to Toronto in 1966 as a Research Fellow, working with Dr. Barrie Fairley, a clinical anesthetist at the Toronto General Hospital. As a clinician-scientist, he studied the effects of anesthesia on respiratory mechanics.
He became very involved in the examination process, becoming Chair of the Royal College Written Test Committee from 1977-88 and Chief Examiner in Anesthesia from 1980-87. Under his leadership, the examinations became more clinically-oriented, a process that has continued to this day.
NORMA CROKER (FLEMING)
Olympic athlete
Norma Croker graduated in the class of 1952 and became the first Queensland woman to win an Olympic gold medal.
In the months leading up to the 1956 Melbourne Olympics she had a triumphant win against the world record holder for 110 yards.
Following this, and with little formal training, she combined with Shirley Strickland, Fleur Mellor and Betty Cuthbert to win the 4x100m Olympic relay.
At the same Olympics, Norma finished fourth in the individual 200 metres race.
She made the Australian team for the 1960 Olympics where she was disqualified in th2 200m and finished 15th in the long jump.
In 2009 Norma was inducted into the Queensland Sport Hall of Fame.
AIR MARSHAL RAY FUNNELL
Chief of Air Staff RAAF
Ray graduated in 1952 and the following year began his career with the RAAF as an officer cadet.
He had many different roles within the RAAF, including being an operational pilot and the Vice Chief of the Defence Force. His career highlight came in 1987 when he was appointed Chief of Air Staff.
Retiring from the RAAF in 1992, he was founding principal of the Australian College of Defence and Strategic Studies from 1994 to 1998.
He has been heavily involved with government defence and security projects in Australia and overseas, as well as immigration issues.
He has received an Order of Australia Medal and the Legion of Merit (US).
PROFESSOR LAWRIE POWELL
Scientist and researcher
Lawrie graduated in 1952 and is globally recognised for his contributions to liver research.
He joined the team at Royal Brisbane Hospital as a senior medical student in 1958 and after completing clinical training began a clinical position as a hepatologist.
Prof Powell was director Queensland Institute of Medical Research (QIMR) until 2000 and after his retirement helped establish the Director of Research position and research centre.
His pursuit for research excellence attracted a $20 million contribution from Atlantic Philanthropies founder Chuck Feeney towards the development of the UQ Centre for Clinical Research (UQCCR) at RBWH.
That paved the way for Prof Powell to establish the Centre for the Advancement of Clinical Research, as well as the Research Advisory Committee, which meets regularly to provide expert guidance and advice to the hospital and RBWH Foundation about research.
Today Professor Powell is still involved with medical research projects with hospitals and universities.
In 1990 he was made a Companion of the Order of Australia Medal.
WILLIAM ROBINSON
Artist
William graduated in 1951 and forged a career as a prominent artist.
He is considered one of Australia’s foremost living artists and is recognised for his unique interpretation of the Australian landscape as well as his whimsical portraits and narrative scenes.
His national fame grew in 1983 when several of his works featured in Sydney’s Australian Perspecta exhibition and in 1987 won the coveted Archibald Prize.
He repeated that success in 1995 and in 2004 he received the Queensland Great Award.
In 2009 the William Robinson Gallery was opened at the QUT campus in Brisbane’s Old Government House.
PATRICK THOMAS
Conductor and musician
Recognised with awards such as the Member of the Order of Australia (AM) and Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE), Patrick’s long association with ABC Orchestras and as guest conductor of many famous orchestras overseas were a major part of his distinguished career.
He was the only Queenslander to hold the post as chief conductor of the Queensland Symphony Orchestra.
Patrick remained active as an author, poet, broadcast presenter, and was a patron of the Music Teachers’ Association of NSW.
He passed away in August 2017, aged 85.
ROBIN GIBSON
Architect
Robin graduated in 1947 and went onto become known as the man who helped transform Brisbane, turning our eyes to the river and creating the bustling cultural hub.
His building designs include the Queensland Art Gallery, the Queensland Museum and State Library, the Queensland Performing Arts Complex (QPAC) and Brisbane’s Queen Street Mall. Robin’s work has been honoured on 27 occasions for meritorious architecture by the Royal Australian Institute of Architects.
He passed away in March 2014, aged 83.
SIR LEO HIELSCHER
Pre-eminent public servant
After graduating in 1941, Sir Leo had a long and successful career in the public sector.
Primarily working in finance, he was responsible for the development and funding of the state’s long-term superannuation and employee liabilities.
He was head of Queensland Treasury, Queensland Investment Corporation and Queensland Industry Development Corporation (Australia) and has been acclaimed as one of the key figures responsible for transforming the state’s economy over the past 40 years.
In 2007, Sir Leo was presented with the Queensland Great Award and in 2010 was recognised for his achievements when the Gateway Bridge was renamed in his honour.
WILLIAM MCLEAN
Australian rugby captain
After graduating in 1933, William served six years with the Australian Imperial Force.
After returning home, he captained the Australian and Queensland rugby union teams.
He captained the Wallabies in five Tests and led the side to tour the United Kingdom in 1947–1948.
William passed away in 1996.
SIR SYDNEY SUNDERLAND
Medical researcher
Sir Sydney graduated in 1929 and was Dean of the Faculty of Medicine at Melbourne University for many years while actively researching in the field of nerves and nerve injuries. Widely published, he had an international medical society named in his honour.
Serving on many government health, university and military committees, he played a key role in the establishment of the Australian Academy of Science where he was one of 23 Foundation Fellows.
Sir Sydney passed away in 1993, aged 83.
BRETT DEAN
Composer, violist and conductor
Brett graduated in 1978 and studied in Brisbane before moving to Germany in 1984 where he was a permanent member of the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra for over 15 years.
He returned to Australia in 2000 and is now one of the most internationally performed composers of his generation.
With over 56 compositions, Brett he won the Grawemeyer Award for music composition in 2009 for his violin concerto The Lost Art of Letter Writing and received the Elise L. Stoeger Prize in 2011 from the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, New York.
More recently, he was the Composer in Residence at the 2013/14 Grafenegg Festival.
Brett has performed throughout the world as soloist, chamber musician and conductor.
He has appeared as soloist with the Berlin Philharmonic, RSO Frankfurt and Montreal, Winnipeg, Melbourne and Queensland symphony orchestras, and performed numerous premieres of solo and chamber works by some of the leading composers of our time.
He has conducted ensembles such as the Netherlands Chamber Orchestra, Australian Chamber Orchestra, Scharoun Ensemble and Birmingham Contemporary Music Group.
PROFESSOR MARTIN GREEN
Scientist
Professor Green graduated in 1965 as Dux of the School and has had a successful career working on the development of silicon solar cells.
In the mid-1980s, the Solar Photovoltaics Group, a group he established, succeeded in producing a 20% efficient silicon cell. Under his guidance, the group improved the performance of silicon solar cells by more than 50% from what had previously been considered a mature technology.
His group holds a number of world records for solar cell performance.
He is now Scientia Professor at the University of NSW and director of the Australian Centre for Advanced Photovoltaics, involving several other Australian Universities and research groups.
His major international awards include the 1999 Australia Prize, the 2002 Right Livelihood Award, also known as the Alternative Nobel Prize, the 2007 SolarWorld Einstein Award, the 2016 Ian Wark Medal from the Australian Academy of Science, the 2010 Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) Eureka Prize for Leadership in Science and the 2017 Global Energy Prize.
Samu Kerevi
Rugby international
Samu was born in Fiji and moved with his family to Australia at the age of four.
He represented Queensland at the Australian Schools Rugby Championships in 2011 and in July 2013 he signed an extended player squad contract with the Queensland Reds for the 2014 Super Rugby season.
He is the current captain of the Queensland Reds.
In June 2016, Samu was included in the 33-member Australia team for the 2016 England rugby union tour of Australia, making his debut at inside centre.
He has been playing a starring role for the Australian Wallabies during their World Cup campaign in Japan.
Alasdair Hutton
Writer, broadcaster, European parliamentarian
Born in London, Alisdair moved to Australia at the age of 14 and after leaving school
got his first job in commercial radio station 4BH.
He worked as a journalist on The Age newspaper in Melbourne before returning to Scotland to become a reporter for The Aberdeen Press and Journal and Evening Express and then a broadcaster with the BBC in Scotland, London and Northern Ireland
Alasdair served for 10 years as a Scottish Conservative Party Member of the European Parliament for the South of Scotland European Parliament constituency between 1979 and 1989 and later served as a local councillor on Scottish Borders Council from 2002 to 2012.
Alasdair became the storyteller and writer of the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo in 1992 and has gone on to become the most experienced presenter of tattoos and big shows in the English-speaking world adding concerts, DVDs, seminars and conferences to his experience as a speech writer and maker.
He was appointed to the Order of the British Empire as a Member in 1986 and raised to Officer in 1989. He was awarded the Territorial Decoration in 1977 and was invested as a Serving Brother of the Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of St John of Jerusalem in 2014.
Tahu Matheson
Conductor
Tahu has worked for Opera Australia since 2007 and in 2017 became Head of Music for the company.
He studied piano with Kalle Randalu in Germany and with Oleg Stepanov and Natasha Vlassenko at the Queensland Conservatorium, where he completed his Master of Music.
He is a frequent accompanist for international artists including Teddy Tahu Rhodes, Anthony Dean Griffey, Yvonne Kenny and Emma Matthews.
Tahu has conducted many concerts including a concert performance of a new opera, Nelson, by Stuart Greenbaum in London
He has been a soloist in the major concert venues throughout Australia and New Zealand, toured for Musica Viva and Chamber Music New Zealand, and been broadcast on New Zealand and Australian radio and television.
Julie Lea Goodwin
Leading Australian soprano
Julie Lea Goodwin is a principal soprano with Opera Australia.
Aged only 19, Julie Lea was invited to sing the leading role of Christine Daae in the national tour of The Phantom of the Opera – starring Anthony Warlow. The following year, she played Maria in West Side Story across Australia.
Julie Lea has featured as soprano soloist with the Melbourne Symphony, the Adelaide Symphony and Sydney Philharmonia.
A regular star performer at corporate events, she sang at the 85th anniversary celebration of Jaeger-LeCoultre in Malaysia, the relaunch of Hilton Sydney’s Grand Ballroom, an intimate event for Holden on the State Theatre stage and the Men of League Foundation’s Gala Dinner.
Fintan Magee
Street artist
Fintan is a street artist known for his murals throughout Australia and the world.
Growing up in Brisbane, he gained a reputation as a graffiti writer before obtaining a fine arts degree and relocating to Sydney.
He has been described as “Australia’s Banksy” by a number of media outlets.
His work often deals with environmental issues and he often uses personal stories to talk about broader issues such as climate change and the migrant crisis.
In 2015 his solo show at Backwoods Gallery in Melbourne was themed around his own personal experiences in the 2011 Brisbane floods.
Fintan received national acclaim for his mural depicting Felix Baumgartner in Brisbane and has participated in various public art festivals in Australia and abroad.
Charlotte Caslick
Rugby Sevens international
Charlotte is an Australian professional representative and Olympic level rugby union player who represents Australia in sevens rugby and touch football.
She debuted for Australia in May 2013 and by December 2015 had earned 13 rugby sevens caps, racking up 31 tries in just two years.
Charlotte has been described as “the best women’s rugby sevens player on the planet”.
She has also represented her country at the Australian Youth Olympic Festival and 2013 Rugby Sevens World Cup as well as playing for Touch Football Australia at both age-grade and open levels.
She was named in World Rugby’s 2014–15 Team of the Season and was one of four players nominated for the 2015 World Sevens Player of the Year.
Charlotte was also voted player of the tournament in the Australian Nationals.
She was a member of Australia’s rugby sevens team at the 2016 Olympics, defeating New Zealand in the final to win the inaugural Olympic gold medal in the sport.
In October 2016, Caslick was named as Australia’s women’s sevens player of the year.
Sandra Sully
TV presenter
Sandra is a well-known TV news presenter and journalist who began her career on Brisbane television, presenting Ten Eyewitness News Brisbane in the 1990s.
She moved to Sydney to present Channel 10’s flagship 5pm weeknight bulletin.
Sandra was the first Australian television journalist to cover news of the September 11 terrorist attacks. She was on air when the first attack occurred and began presenting live breaking coverage.
She was also the first woman to co-host the broadcast of the Melbourne Cup carnival and did so for seven years.
Sandra has also hosted major network news events such as the Federal Budget, the royal wedding coverage from London and Oprah Winfrey’s big ‘O’ event at the Botanical Gardens.
Sylvia Jeffreys
TV presenter
Sylvia began her media career in 2005 at the Nine Network in Brisbane, working as a script assistant in the newsroom.
She completed a Bachelor of Journalism/Bachelor of Arts at the University of Queensland and in 2008 began filing lifestyle stories on Queensland’s Extra program, before returning to the newsroom in 2009.
In 2011, Sylvia was appointed weekend weather presenter on Nine News Queensland.
In January 2012 she moved to Sydney to join Today as a NSW reporter before joining Nine News as a reporter and fill-in presenter on Nine Morning News, Nine Afternoon News, Weekend Today and Today.
In June 2014, Sylvia rejoined Today as news presenter, replacing Georgie Gardner.
She has hosted Channel 9’s netball coverage and this year left Today to work on other projects.
In August Sylvia was appointed host of 9NewsWatch, a bulletin broadcast on Facebook.
Jane Hunter
Executive
Jane is Boeing Phantom Works International Chief Operating Officer, responsible for the project portfolio and business operations of Boeing’s advanced prototyping and development business in Australia, the United Kingdom, India, Saudi Arabia and South Korea.
She is also a company director of Brisbane-based Boeing Defence Australia, where Phantom Works International is headquartered.
The success of technology developed within Jane’s Australian project portfolio was a major contributor to Boeing’s decision to establish the company’s first self-funded R&D program outside of the United States in Australia.
Boeing now invests more than $47 million per year in Australian R&D.
Last year, Jane was honoured at the A18 Airspace Awards, receiving the Outstanding Contribution to the Aviation / Aerospace Sectors – Women in Aviation/Aerospace Australia award.
The award recognised the critical role Jane has played in the advancement of aerospace technologies and innovative capability development in Australia.
Jordan Petaia
Rugby player
Jordan currently plays for the Queensland Reds in the Super Rugby and is on the fringe of paying for the Australain Wallabies.
During his time at Brisbane State High, he played on the wing for the 2016 First XV premiership team and in his final year played fullback.
He was called up to the Australia squad by coach Michael Cheika in early August this year, before the first Bledisloe Test in Sydney, but did not make the final team to play against New Zealand.
In August he suffered a hamstring injury that ruled him out of the final Rugby World Cup warm-up game against Samoa.
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