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Students from Ayr and Home Hill state high schools will have a golden opportunity to try their hands at trade careers in workshops organised by the Queensland Minerals and Energy Academy (QMEA) this week.

Supported by gold miner Evolution Mining, they’ll take part in hands-on activities in the Tradies for a Day workshops.

“It’s a great opportunity for students to meet some of our trades people so they can get a deeper understanding of what trades involve and how to step onto a trade career pathway,” said Evolution Mining’s Mark Brown – Health, Safety and Community Manager.

“Our people really love interacting with the local students and helping them to start thinking about the many and varied careers available in trades.”

Ayr SHS Principal Craig Whittred said the workshops also demonstrated the link between their classroom lessons and the world or work.

“This can create those lightbulb moments for students, while also helping them to select subjects for their senior school years to pave the way for VET training,” he said.

“It is a terrific opportunity for our students to have a chance to balance their school-based learning with practical industry-based hands-on opportunities,” said Home Hill State High School Principal Frank Kingma.

“I believe that it is great that such an opportunity is afforded to students in the Burdekin area, particularly when considering the current social and economic circumstances,” he said.

The QMEA engages with 80 schools throughout Queensland and is a partnership between the Queensland Resources Council (QRC) and the state government under its Gateway to Industry Schools program.

The QRC is Queensland’s peak representative body for coal, metal and gas explorers, producers and suppliers across the resources sector. It contributes one in every five dollars to the Queensland economy, sustains one in seven Queensland jobs and supports more than 14,400 businesses and 1400 community organisations across the state – all from 0.1 percent of Queensland’s land mass.

Media contact: Caroline Morrissey 0417 770 893