Click here for photos

Millmerran State School students will experience first-hand the vital role of energy production and resource extraction to our modern way of life when staff from Millmerran Power visit the school today.

They’ll take part in a Beakers.Bots.Build workshop run by the Queensland Minerals and Energy Academy (QMEA), the education arm of the Queensland Resources Council (QRC).

Neil Burtenshaw, Millmerran Power’s Site Services Manager, said students will gain an understanding of the range of careers needed in the resources sector, including electricity production.

“There is a critical shortage of electrical engineers, so we hope we can interest the students in this career in particular,” he said.

Jason Edmondstone, Acting Principal, of Millmerran State School said the hands-on workshop would help bring the students science technology engineering and maths study to life.

“The activities including programming a Lego robot and completing an engineering task, are a lot of fun and really help students put their classroom work into real-world context,” he said.

QRC’s Director Skills and Education Katrina-Lee Jones said the modern resources sector was highly technologically advanced and it was important for students to know the wide range of careers available to them.

“Many of these specialties are in short supply, and skills shortages are the number one concern of our members’ CEOs,” she said.

“We must cast the net wide and ensure that everyone, including girls and our Indigenous students, see that there are great careers awaiting them in our sector.”

As Australia’s largest and most successful industry-led education and skills training initiative, the QMEA seeks to broaden student and teacher knowledge of career opportunities in resources.

The academy encourages a talent pipeline of employees into VET and STEM-related careers, with a focus on female and Indigenous participation. The QMEA currently engages with 80 schools and is a partnership between the QRC and the Queensland Government under its Gateway to Industry Schools program.

Media Contact: Caroline Morrissey  0417 770893 or Carolinem@qrc.org.au