About 60 Alexandra Hills State High School students will be better prepared for jobs of the future following a Queensland Minerals and  Energy Academy (QMEA) science technology engineering and maths (STEM) workshop at the school today.

The year 10 students will be taking part in QMEA’s new STEM Unearthed program, which showcases the importance of STEM in resource sector careers.

“Resource sector jobs are changing with the evolution of automation, and students need to be aware that this will have an impact on what they need to study,” said Katrina Lee-Jones, Director of Skills at the Queensland Resources Council (QRC).

 

“Whether students select trade or professional pathways, automation is a reality that they will experience in their future careers.

 

“This means they will need to have fairly high-level STEM subjects under their belts to gain entrance into these careers.”

This message will be reinforced by the industry representatives in attendance on the day, one of whom is a past graduate of Alexandra Hills State High School.  Aimee Meister is current the HR Superintendent at Glencore’s Rolleston mine and says that she is “excited to be returning to the school as a professional”.

Alexandra Hills SHS Principal Gail Armstrong said STEM was a high priority at the school, which recently opened its brand new $4 million Centre of Excellence in Automation and Robotics.

“We believe in inspiring future innovators and leaders in STEM through the delivery of  dynamic and innovative programs that promote creative applications of technology to solve problems. This has seen enrolments in technology subjects increase by 150 percent since the establishment of the Centre in 2016,” Ms Armstrong said.

 

“In collaboration with industry partners such as Glencore, our students have for instance completed a unique learning project around safety to solve a real- life issue using digital technology.

 

“We very much appreciate our partnership with the QMEA and close contact with industry people who bring to life our students’ classroom work,” she said.