Sunshine Coast, Noosa former school captains share career highlights
From top boy to Top Gun and even The Chase, here’s what some of the Sunshine Coast’s former male and female school captains are doing post-school life. See the full list.
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Being school captain is a big responsibility for anyone but these 30 former Sunshine Coast and Noosa based students have proven their tenacity for leadership by pursuing their dream careers.
From a Top Gun fighter pilot in the Royal Australian Air Force to a dual Olympian, these are just some of the stories of success coming out of Sunshine Coast and Noosa schools.
The Daily can reveal what some of the Sunshine Coast’s best and brightest school captains are up to now.
Coolum State High School
Zak Duggan – Class of 2017 captain
Mr Duggan is flying high quite literally as he pursues a career as a fighter pilot in the Royal Australian Air Force as part of the 76th Squadron in Williamtown, Newcastle.
His mother, Jude Butwell, told the Daily her son was currently doing his second Hawks training course before going to F35 or Super Hornet training if he passes the course.
“He’s learning air surface attacks and once he completes his second course on the Hawks, he’ll move to Top Gun,” Ms Butwell said.
Mr Duggan joined the air force in 2019 after initially studying aviation at Griffith University before pursuing his dream to become a fighter pilot.
“He loves it,” Ms Butwell said.
Glasshouse Christian College
Ben Giles – Class of 2014 captain
Mr Giles is working as a paramedic with Queensland Ambulance Service, and is currently stationed out of Cloncurry, Queensland.
“I’ve been in the north west and working in the various stations up here for the last two years while also working casually as a registered nurse at Cloncurry hospital,” he said.
Mr Giles said he’s enjoying his time in the outback and making the most of things when he’s not on duty.
Calista Theron – Class of 2015 captain
The 2015 graduate went straight into studying at the University of the Sunshine Coast and completed Bachelors of Sport and Exercise Science.
Ms Theron went on to start her Masters of Sport and Exercise Science by Research with a keen interest in biomechanics and is working on her thesis into MRI review of ACL reconstructions.
She now works as a clinical consultant at Stryker Corporation – a medical device company – and assists surgeons and nurses with new devices, tools and products in theatre.
Moale James – Class of 2016
Ms James is fully immersed in First Nations project work through community engagement and advocacy projects across South East Queensland.
“At the moment I’m working as an associate producer for Brisbane Festival community engagement programs here, designing how all diverse communities can engage in a different ways,” she said.
Ms Moale has also worked with QPAC to bring black musical activism projects to life and at GOMA as a curatorial assistant.
“As a Papua New Guinean white Australian, my family were the minority in the community so it’s important for me to be creating space where those minorities can feel welcomed in those communities,” she said.
Courtney Sinclair – Class of 2014 captain
Having graduated from the Queensland University of Technology with distinction in her Bachelor of Primary Education minoring in STEM education, Ms Sinclair continued her education by working towards earning her Masters in Education (Guidance and Counselling).
Ms Sinclair said she’s since been able to combine her love of the outdoors with her passion for education by landing a role as an educator at Barambah Environmental Education Centre, near Gympie.
“It has been amazing to be able to share my passion for the great outdoors with young people and gain qualifications in outdoor recreation. I have no doubt that I have one of the best jobs in the world,” she said.
“Moving forward, I think I’ll always be keen to learn more about helping young people and would like to investigate nature-based, adventure-based and equine therapies once I finish my postgraduate studies.”
Matthew Flinders Anglican College
Kristina Lane – Class of 2018 captain
Ms Lane was awarded an esteemed TJ Ryan Medal, which recognises her as one of Queensland’s top students and includes a $10,000 tertiary scholarship in 2018.
She is continuing with her studies of Commerce/Advanced Studies (Chemistry Major) at the University of Sydney.
Adam Brunes – Class of 2005 Captain
Mr Brunes’ passion for the creative arts has led him to be a co-founder of The Little Red Company and also the co-founder of award-winning creative communications agency, Aruga.
Through his work with the Little Red Company, which he launched in 2012 with Naomi Price, Mr Brunes said the once “side hustle” now produced some of the region’s best theatre shows, including Skyfall which is currently playing at QPAC’s Concert Hall.
“Little Red is certainly one of my proudest achievements, and one that brings so much joy,” Mr Brunes said.
“Proudly, Little Red was last year appointed as the producers of the Lord Mayor’s Christmas Carols – Queensland’s definitive Carols event.”
Mr Brunes runs his other business, the award-winning Aruga, alongside business partner Donna Kramer and said it had been a “wild ride” since it was created five years ago.
“My greatest satisfaction at Aruga comes from working on the campaigns and events that the people of Queensland genuinely care about, spanning arts and major events, tourism, hospitality, and not for profits,” he said.
Dr Alexander Tedman – Class of 2009 Captain
Dr Tedman was nominated for Young Australian of the Year 2021.
He was also the youngest finalist in the Queensland Health Excellence Awards in 2019 and won the Sunshine Coast Hospital and Health Service’s exceptional peoples award for bright ideas and research.
Dr Tedman has revolutionised access to public dermatology services in Queensland and is currently training in Brisbane before he planned to return to the Sunshine Coast University Hospital.
“From my point of view we are working towards improved and equitable access for dermatology services in Queensland and particularly on the Sunshine Coast and I will continue this in the future when I come back to the Coast,” Dr Tedman said.
Dr Renee Bazley – Class of 2003 Captain
Based in Sydney, Dr Renee Bazley is a clinical psychologist and educator specialising in adult mental health.
She’s particularly interested in mental health promotion and is the co-creator of Inside The Performer’s Mind, a podcast exploring mental health within the performing arts industry.
Caloundra Christian College
Rebecca Baggiano – vice-captain and Dux Class of 2000
Ms Baggiano, nee Mach, is an immigration lawyer based in Brisbane.
She was named as a 40 Under 40 Most Influential Asian-Australians 2021 awardee and recognised in the 2021 – 2023 editions of Best Lawyers in Australia in immigration law.
“My aspirations for becoming an immigration lawyer stemmed from my parents’ refugee background coming across to Australia as refugees following the Vietnam War,” Ms Baggiano said.
“They firstly settled in Toowoomba before relocating to Caloundra for me to do my schooling at Caloundra Christian College from Year 1 to 12.”
Kristina Birrell – Class of 2012 captain
Ms Birrell, nee Tricker, has become a young adult pastor at her Sunshine Coast based church since leaving school.
Since her graduation, Ms Birrell has also become an early childhood teacher.
Dion Guthrie – Class of 2001 captain
Mr Guthrie is currently the managing director for Schoolzine – which is Australia’s largest provider of school websites and digital newsletters.
Having finished his Bachelor of Business Management and Marketing degree at the University of the Sunshine Coast, Mr Guthrie said he’s been with Schoolzine since 2013.
He said he’s “lucky” to have landed himself a career back on the Sunshine Coast.
“I went to Sydney and Melbourne and always wanted the beach, so I came home and worked my way up,” he said.
Beerwah State High School
Saira Manns – Class of 2009 captain
Ms Manns has worked at Greyhound Australia for four years as social media manager.
“I love it, it’s a pretty great job being able to travel around Australia and promote our fabulous tourism destinations and work with community partners around Australia,” she said.
Previously she’s worked at Surf Life Saving Queensland and Australia Zoo.
Ms Manns said her six year experience at Australia Zoo, which started while she was at Beerwah State High School, allowed her to find a career she’s passionate about.
“I remember they said at university that ‘some of you end up in jobs that don’t exist today’ and I didn’t even think how that’s possible,” she said.
“But now working in social media, who knows what the next 10 years will look like, I’m excited to see where it takes me.”
Andrew Perryman – Class of 2010 captain
Mr Perryman is a Senior Data Analytics Consultant at Quantium.
He’s just completed his PhD at the School of Mathematics at Monash University.
Rhys Reynolds – Class of 2008 captain
Mr Reynolds is the Australia and New Zealand Communications Manager for Subway Restaurants.
He has also sat on the board of directors for the National Retail Association as a board member since May 2022.
Having studied at the University of the Sunshine Coast, Mr Reynolds has also worked in communications for the Star Entertainment Group and Cancer Council Queensland.
Dr Shannon Leftwich
Dr Leftwich is a Research Fellow at the University of Queensland Diamantina Institute Faculty of Medicine.
In 2020, she received a grant to research how to increase the number of breast cancer therapeutic antibody possibilities, patient choices and success rates.
Her qualifications include a Doctor of Philosophy and a Bachelor of Science (Honours) each from The University of Queensland
Brett Neucom – Class of 2000 captain
Mr Neucom is the National Sales Manager for a firm related to sustainable mining based in Western Australia.
“I deal mostly in the tech space largely playing within that mining and oil gas resource industry,” he said.
During his career Mr Neucom has been in several business and sale leadership roles for a number of companies and now also sits on the board for a K-12 College in Perth.
Paul Rawlins – Class of 2003 captain
Mr Rawlins is based in Canberra as a deployment strategist working for Palantir Technologies for the last 10 years.
“I’m working at a tech valley in the public sector here … where I oversee all of our sales and implementation for a software system for our Australian Government and other areas,” he said.
Mr Rawlins said his career has led him as far as London and he enjoyed the flexibility his job has to offer.
Sunshine Coast Grammar School
Alex Alderson – Class of 2022 captain
Mr Alderson is the digital consumer lead at Sportsbet since May 2022.
He previously worked for the NRL in a number of roles, including chief digital and customers officer.
Mr Alderson graduated with First Class Honours in Bachelor of Business (majoring in International Business) and a Bachelor of Laws from the University of Queensland.
Noosa District State High School
Inspector Peter Flanders – Class of 1982 captain
Inspector Flanders has demonstrated outstanding dedication and commitment during his career within the Queensland Police Service and received the Australian Police Medal in 2017.
As the current Road Policing Command Operations Manager, Inspector Flanders continues to contribute and excel in the organisational improvement, policy development and change management through his role to deliver improved road safety.
Issa Schultz – Class of 2001 captain
Mr Schultz, nicknamed “The Supernerd” has made a name for himself being a regular personality on the quiz show The Chase Australia.
He is also the five-time winner of the Australian Quizzing Championships (2011, 2013, 2014, 2016 and 2017) and has held the Pairs title since 2012.
He also appeared on The Rich List, where he won $200,000 in 2009, as well as Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? and The Einstein Factor.
In 2017, Schultz also appeared as a celebrity contestant on Hell’s Kitchen Australia.
St Teresa’s Catholic College
Jack Hayes
Mr Hayes works for the Global Institute for Women’s Leadership at the Australian National University, chaired by former Prime Minister Julia Gillard.
“In addition to this work, I’m a PhD candidate at the ANU researching the experiences of LGBTIQ+ people in international diplomacy,” Mr Hayes said.
“I didn’t have a clue what I wanted to do at the start of university so I studied widely – a combination of research opportunities, amazing mentors and a real passion for this kind of research nudged me along this path.”
Mr Hayes recently in June presented a paper at the University of Gothenburg in Sweden.
Madeleine Damiris
Ms Damiris is a secondary school teacher based on the Sunshine Coast.
Prior to teaching, Ms Damiris spent more than a decade as a Logistics Officer in the Australian Defence Force.
Gabriella Barnett
Ms Barnett is currently working as a Policy Officer at Department of the Premier and Cabinet for the Queensland Government.
Before starting her role there in November 2021, she had previously worked in other Queensland Government departments as a graduate policy officer.
Kathryn Lukin
Ms Lukin has worked in a variety of creative projects and now works as a development co-ordinator at Guesswork Television in Victoria.
Prior to this role she previously worked as an assistant co-ordinator at Fremantle as well as a working at the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions.
Ms Lukin graduated her Bachelor of Law and Creative Industries at Queensland University of Technology in 2019.
Kawana Waters State College
Lauren Dale – Class of 2011 captain
Ms Dale is a Senior Manager at Deloitte, working within the audit business as an accountant.
Having studied a Bachelor of Business (Accountancy) and Bachelor of Mathematics at the Queensland University of Technology, Ms Dale said her passion for maths led her down the career path of accountancy.
“I find that a career in audit has really allowed me to leverage my love of numbers, along with the problem solving skills from my maths studies in my day to day work,” she said.
“I have gone on to complete my Chartered Accountancy qualification and achieved academic results in the top 5 per cent of Australia and New Zealand throughout my studies.
“Now, my favourite part of my job is teaching my teams to apply accounting and audit skills and helping them develop their own careers.”
Pacific Lutheran College
James Kurz – Class of 2005 captain
Having always had a passion for the sea and sailing, Mr Kurz had dreamt about being a ship captain and went to study at the Maritime College after graduating high school.
After working on oil tankers and general cargo vessels going to Singapore for two years, Mr Kurz said he realised he was passionate about the logistics of ships more than being on them.
He went onto to study economics and international business at the University of the Sunshine Coast before landing a job with AAW Global Logistics.
Since 2011, Mr Kurz has worked in various role within the company which even led him to working in Shanghai, China for a stint.
“I travelled extensively around China, the role was to be a liaison between the Australian and China offices and do cross-cultural business,” he said.
Now Mr Kurz works as the commercial director and continues to “play around with ships all day, without having to go to sea.”
“I’d like to continue with my focus on trade and economics, I’m really interested in global trades and new international markets and shipping opportunities,” he said.
Immanuel Lutheran College
Alyce Wood – Class of 2009 vice-captain
As a canoeist, Ms Wood has competed in the women’s at the 2016 Summer Olympics and at the 2020 Summer Olympics.
In 2017 she won her maiden World Championship title in the K1 1000m and has won a string of World Cup medals.
Natasha Polsen
Ms Polsen is a management consultant for Deloitte and has recently returned from London.
“It was in London that I got my first taste of what it was like to lead major projects and have an impact on the workplace, workforce and generally making the future a better place to work,” she said.
“My passion is in shaping organisations to create workplaces and environments that engage employees, embrace technology and build meaningful workplace cultures.
“Most of my clients come from the energy and resources sector given my background in the construction and mining industry.”
Sunshine Beach State High School
Shae Potter – Class of 2014 captain
Ms Potter works for Deloitte’s Global Insider Threat Monitoring Program.
She will be commencing her MBA at the University of Sydney in August 2022 and has previously studied Harvard University Business School online.
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