As we reach the half way point of the final school term for 2023, I wanted to share a brief overview of the progress and change this school has undertaken.
A new 1.7km perimeter fence is being installed around the entire school. This will increase the safety and security of our students as well as providing a number of advertising opportunities for local businesses keen on being seen by our increasing foot and vehicle traffic.
Additionally, the new toilet facilities have been completed providing students with modern amenities. The photos show how well appointed these are and we ask all students to respect this space and use it appropriately. Thankyou to our strong student body and community voices who worked together to make this happen. 
We are pleased to welcome Ms Diamond as an additional Deputy Principal who will prioritise undertaking an assessment of student and staff wellbeing services with the support of regional staff. This will further enhance the work currently being undertaken by school staff in refining the referral pathways for support services. Supporting students are two student support officers assisting with attendance and engagement of students.
Supporting staff is a new whole school technology platform called Compass. Compass will assist with the coordination and movement of students in and out of the school grounds and help us remove some of the administration processes teachers currently need to do so they can get back to doing what they are great at – teaching!
And we know our teachers are good at that having had not one but two of our teachers recognised for their skills at the recent Queensland TeachX Awards. Congratulations again to Ms Bentley and Mr Brieschke from our Agriculture Department!
At this year's annual awards, we saw a significant increase in the number of students who achieved academic merit awards meeting very specific criteria. This is exciting and demonstrates how focussed our young people are on meeting the goals set. Final exams see our students working hard to achieve their personal best and we as a team will do everything within our capacity to support them.
We are in the process of resigning our current school sponsors who are committed to continue their work with us. We thank Brian and the team from BOQ Beenleigh, Adam from Beaudesert Exhaust and his team, along with Mike and Hinterland Toyota. Another sponsor of our school is John Franklin from Franklin Plumbing & Gas who we extend our congratulations to on his recent win as RWC Business Person of the Year.
Like every year, there are challenges to overcome, moments to celebrate and more work to be done. I thank all of the community who have walked alongside us helping make change happen because together we are stronger.
Until next time,
Mr Grant Stephensen
Principal