What’s Happening?
Schools across Toowoomba and the Darling Downs have taken key honours in the national Hermitage Schools Science Competition.
Winners were announced at the Department of Primary Industries’ Hermitage Research Facility near Warwick. Local recipients came from Clifton, Warwick, Yangan and Pilton, while more schools were recognised across the region.
Teacher Amanda Coy and student May Turkington received two of the competition’s leading awards. Young pupils Clara Coy, Florence Anderson and Darcy Stepanoff also won major age-group prizes.
Julie Unwin and Amara Hockings were highly commended or runners-up in their categories. Toowoomba schools also received science, art and Guardians of Earth prizes.
Why It Matters?
The competition connects classroom science with plant diseases that affect farming and food security. Its Fungal Forensics theme examined plant pathogens, scientific research and plant breeding.
It also showed how disease management can protect crops and agricultural production. Hermitage Project Officer Kerrie Rubie said the entries showed strong interest in agricultural science.
“It’s inspiring to see so many young people embracing science and developing a greater understanding of the important role it plays in agriculture,” Ms Rubie said. “The quality of this year’s entries was exceptional and highlights the talent, curiosity and creativity of students right across the country.”
Ms Rubie said the competition could help students consider careers linked to farming and research. “Agriculture relies on innovation and scientific discovery, and competitions like this help inspire the next generation of researchers, plant pathologists and agricultural professionals.”
Local Impact
Local recognition stretched from Prep pupils to senior students and teachers. Amanda Coy won the Alan Cruickshank Memorial ‘Germinator’ Outstanding STEM Teacher Award.
She teaches science, agricultural science and rural operations at Warwick State High School and Yangan State School. Glennie Heights State School primary teacher Julie Unwin was highly commended in the same category.
Clifton State High School Year 11 student May Turkington received the Earthwatch Student Challenge Fellowship. At Yangan State School, Year 6 student Clara Coy won the Joe Baker Outstanding Achievement Award.
Clara won the category for Years 3 to 6. Pilton State School Prep student Florence Anderson won the equivalent award for Prep to Year 2.
Pilton Year 2 student Darcy Stepanoff won the John and Chris Purdie Young Science Investigator Award. Amara Hockings, from Glennie Heights State School, was runner-up in that category.
Amara is a member of the school’s Year 2U class. The teacher award carried a shared value of $1,500.
The Joe Baker awards had a $100 shared value. The young investigator award carried a $200 shared value.
Other Darling Downs schools earned individual and class prizes in science, art and Guardians of Earth categories. Recipients included St Ursula’s College Toowoomba, The Glennie School, Scots PGC College and Warwick State High School.
Recognition also went to Clifton, Yangan, Pilton, Glennie Heights, Nobby, Cecil Plains, Warwick West and Back Plains state schools.
By the Numbers
- More than 3,700 budding plant pathologists took part in this year’s national competition.
- Entries came from 130 schools across Australia, including Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria and South Australia.
- May Turkington’s Earthwatch Student Challenge Fellowship was valued at $8,000.
Zoom In
Outside the Darling Downs, the senior science award went to Glasshouse Christian College student Charlotte Kelly, known as Lotty. The Year 12 student won the Paul Johnston Memorial Senior Science Award.
The category carried a $1,500 shared value, while classmate Elizabeth Muller was runner-up. Kelly said she was honoured to present her work to scientists, educators and fellow students.
Her project was titled Evaluating the Genetic Resistance of Selected Barley Cultivars Against Net Blotch Disease and its Impact on Plant Growth. It compared three barley varieties by tracking disease severity and plant growth over time.
“I chose this research topic as part of a class investigation into plant diseases, and I was curious to explore why some barley varieties were more resistant to net blotch than others. I compared three varieties of barley by monitoring disease severity and plant growth over several weeks to see how the disease affected each,” Miss Kelly said.
Kelly also explained how she planned to use her award money. “With the prize money, I plan to put it towards a laptop for my tertiary studies, where I will be completing a degree in nutrition and dietetics.”
Her findings showed that small genetic differences could change how strongly net blotch affected a barley plant. “I found the results of this experiment extremely interesting as it was evident that minor differences in the genetic makeup of barley cultivars made such an impact on the effect of net blotch on the plant.”
Zoom Out
The national program covered science, art, posters, scholarships and teacher achievement across several year levels. Its prize list included schools from Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria and South Australia.
Major awards covered teaching, crop science, research, posters, scholarships and early-year investigations.
The Department of Primary Industries supported the event with community and industry partners.
Full List of Major Prize Recipients
Alan Cruickshank Memorial ‘Germinator’ Outstanding STEM Teacher Award
The award carried a shared value of $1,500.
- Winner: Amanda Coy, Science, Agricultural Science and Rural Operations Teacher at Warwick State High School and Yangan State School, Queensland.
- Highly commended: Julie Unwin, Primary Teacher at Glennie Heights State School, Warwick, Queensland.
Earthwatch Student Challenge Fellowship
The fellowship was valued at $8,000.
- Recipient: May Turkington, Year 11, Clifton State High School, Queensland.
UniSQ Crop Science Award
The award was valued at $2,000.
- Recipient: Glasshouse Christian College, Years 10 to 12, Queensland.
Paul Johnston Memorial Senior Science Award
The award carried a shared value of $1,500.
- Winner: Lotty Kelly, Year 12, Glasshouse Christian College, Queensland.
- Runner-up: Elizabeth Muller, Year 12, Glasshouse Christian College, Queensland.
Crawford Fund International Agricultural Science Award
The award carried a shared value of $850.
- Winner: Isla McNeil, Year 10, Glasshouse Christian College, Queensland.
- Winner: Liam Brockhurst, Year 8, Child Challenger Homeschool, Queensland.
- Winner: Thea Sondergeld, Year 5, Yangan State School, Queensland.
- Runner-up: Yasmine Brockhurst, Year 12, Child Challenger Homeschool, Queensland.
QUT Most Outstanding Poster Awards
The awards carried a shared value of $1,000.
- Winner: Isla McNeil, Year 10, Glasshouse Christian College, Queensland.
- Winners: Ally Borrelli, Jack Bennetts, Kahlia Bosward, Charlotte Goodwin, Taliah Rice and Harry McCallum, Year 7, Lindisfarne Anglican Grammar School, New South Wales.
- Winners: Evelyn Crowe, Layla Purcell, Emryn van Katwijk and Paige van Zyl, Year 6, Narangba Valley State High School, Queensland.
- Winner: Year 2U, Glennie Heights State School, Queensland.
- Runner-up: Patrick Rosina, Year 10, Glasshouse Christian College, Queensland.
- Runners-up: Rehmi Sandhu and Ted Glasson, Year 7, Lindisfarne Anglican Grammar School, New South Wales.
UQ FEAST Scholarship
The scholarship was valued at $550.
- Recipient: Khairan Ahmad, Year 10, Sunnybank State High School, Queensland.
Ag Institute of Australia Junior Science Achievement Award
The award carried a shared value of $250.
- Winner: Kaelan Elson, Year 9, Cleve Area School, South Australia.
- Runner-up: Rafferty Harris, Year 9, Cleve Area School, South Australia.
Zonta Warwick STEM Award for Young Women
The award was valued at $300.
- Recipient: Poppy Campbell, Year 10, St Ursula’s College, Yeppoon, Queensland.
Joe Baker Outstanding Achievement Awards
The awards carried a shared value of $100.
- Winner for Years 3 to 6: Clara Coy, Year 6, Yangan State School, Queensland.
- Winner for Prep to Year 2: Florence Anderson, Prep, Pilton State School, Queensland.
John and Chris Purdie Young Science Investigator Award
The award carried a shared value of $200.
- Winner: Darcy Stepanoff, Year 2, Pilton State School, Queensland.
- Runner-up: Amara Hockings, Year 2U, Glennie Heights State School, Warwick, Queensland.
Other Queensland Prize-Winning Schools
These schools received other individual and class science, art and Guardians of Earth prizes:
- Clifton State High School
- St Ursula’s College, Toowoomba
- St Ursula’s College, Yeppoon
- Glasshouse Christian College
- Warwick State High School
- Scots PGC College, Warwick
- Child Challenger Homeschool
- Faith Christian School of Distance Education
- Kurwongbah State School
- Yangan State School
- Pilton State School
- Glennie Heights State School, Warwick
- Nobby State School
- Cecil Plains State School
- Narangba Valley State High School
- Mastery Schools Australia
- Warwick West State School
- Le Grange Homeschool
- Queensland Children’s Hospital School
- Back Plains State School
- The Glennie School
- Thornlands State School
Prize-Winning Schools From Other States
- Cleve Area School, South Australia
- Lindisfarne Anglican Grammar School, New South Wales
- Tamworth West Primary School, New South Wales
- Epsom Primary School, Victoria
- Campbell’s Creek Primary School, Victoria
- Cowra High School, New South Wales
What To Look For Next?
Lotty plans to use her prize money for a laptop before studying nutrition and dietetics. May Turkington’s fellowship gives Clifton State High School another major science honour.
This year’s success may also encourage more local classrooms to study plant disease and agricultural science. Full competition results remain available through the Department of Primary Industries.