Elite academy’s students postpone rally to save their school

Students and parents at Queensland’s top-performing school will stage a rally to block a plan to move them.

A rally to stop the Queensland Academy of Science, Mathematics and Technology from being moved to Coorparoo has been postponed as a petition nears the 4000 mark.

The rally was due to be held on Wednessday, March 31, but has been postponed to a new date yet to be set due to the lockdown.

About 150 parents of the Toowong academy, which consistently posts the best university entrance results in the state, met Education Queensland officials on March 15 to voice their anger.

The Department has flagged that the first new primary school in Brisbane’s westside in six decades could be built on the Indooroopilly State High School campus.

But a furious backlash from Indooroopilly residents led to suggestions QASMT should be moved to Coorparoo and its buildings retrofitted for the new primary school.

QASMT P&C president, Winand D’Souza, said that plan would essentially flush $33 million of taxpayers’ money down the drain.

The academy recently expanded to a full Years 7-12 campus, with expensive new buildings and university-standard facilities built on its sprawling site.

QASMT students visit the Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology. (L-R): Laura Boyle, Archie Mukherjee, Jackson Huang, Grace Solas and Madison Phillips.

“We’ve hard from parents, now this rally is the chance to hear the voices of the students,’’ Mr D’Souza said.

“We don’t want to steer them in any way. This is a chance for them to express their views.

“They have been feeling the stress of what has been happening.’’

Two-time state ALP candidate for the area, Palani Thevar, recently angered Indooroopilly locals with a strongly-worded Facebook post calling on QASMT to remain where it is.

Mr Thevar instead said population growth trends logically dictated that the new primary school should be built in Indooroopilly.

“The QASMT is built for high school students. This is a unique school that provides the best education for locals and the wider Brisbane community,’’ he posted.

But the #Stop School 5 residents’ lobby group said traffic in the area, particularly on Lambert Rd, was already at breaking point.

Spokesman Peter Cain said the primary school’s capacity had already been raised from 600 to 900 students, who would compete for road space at pick-up and drop-off times with nearby Brigidine College, Holy Family primary school and St Peters Lutheran College.

Dr Christian Rowan has sponsored a QASMT petition which has nearly 4000 signatures. Picture: David Clark

Local federal LNP MP Julian Simmonds, state LNP Shadow Education Minister Dr Christian Rowan, local LNP Councillor James Mackay and local state Greens MP Michael Berkman all oppose an Indooroopilly site.

Dr Rowan also sponsored the QASMT petition calling the academy to stay where it is.

The petition, open until April 18, now has nearly 4000 signatures after little over a week.

Cr Mackay ruled out the former Toowong Bowls Club site for the new school, saying Council would soon announce a new lessee and that the land was always meant to be for sport and recreation purposes only.

Mr Berkman has said constituents told him they favoured the TriCare Taringa aged care highrise development site, off Swann Rd, but neighbours on Swann Rd are already angry at the impact of traffic from a proposed new medium-rise unit tower.

Mr Berkman said the SES depot at Perrin Park and a car dealership have also been suggested as options, but they have flooding, traffic and space problems.

It is believed what many consider to be the best option, building the primary school on the edge of the University of Queensland St Lucia campus, was rejected by the State Goverment after UQ came back with a “high ball’’ lease offer.

Education minister Grace Grace and Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk tour the Indooroopilly State High School multipurpose shelter construction site. Education Qld has proposed building a new primary school at Indooroopilly State High, but has investigated other options. Picture: Liam Kidston

Arguments for QASMT to stay at Toowong (made by its P&C and parents)

- It has been Queensland’s top academic school for the past four years, is one of

Australia’s best International Baccalaureate schools and consistently outperforms IB

schools around the world. A move would disrupt that.

- More than $33 million dollars of taxpayers’ money has recently been spent to upgrade

the school to a six-year high school. The state-of-the art campus is not fitted out for

primary school children and relocating and rebuilding would waste more millions.

- Moving will disrupt the learning of Queensland’s top students and future STEM and

healthcare leaders, with many of them potentially leaving. The school would also

likely lose many dedicated and passionate teachers.

- The school is custom built for high school students with excellent public transport

options nearby. Two-thirds of the student body take public transport to school.

- Almost a quarter of the student body live in the surrounding suburbs, and even

higher in the lower years.

- Putting a primary school at the Toowong campus will significantly increase traffic in

the area for local residents. Major disruption will also be endured by locals for many

years during the relocation and rebuilding of a primary school.

- QASMT is a unique learning environment that supports equality and diversity and

provides a fantastic educational opportunity for students from all socio-economic

backgrounds. More than 50 languages are spoken by the student body at the school,

which is like a mini United Nations.

- About 75 per cent of future jobs will be STEM jobs. The students at QASMT are Queensland’s future workforce.