WOODRIDGE High is building bridges and breaking stereotypes and someone, somewhere is taking notice. The school has been named a finalist at the Queensland Multicultural Awards.
The school is a contender in the education, training and skills category for its change makers project, an education-based initiative that harnesses the power of the media to break cultural stereotypes and bring about social change.
The four-year-old project brings together about 50 students from the high school with eight University of Queensland journalism students. In 2017, the team produced a 35-minute documentary that featured unique and powerful stories told by the school’s diverse student body themed around the subjects of pride, hope and inspiration. The documentary was the first of its type made in a Queensland school.
Islamic Women’s Association of Australia is a finalist in the Multicultural Queensland Ambassador category.
The IWAA dispels myths about Muslims through community education campaigns. Members appeared in an SBS documentary called The Mosque Next Door. IWAA also delivers parenting workshops that help migrants develop non-physical strategies for parenting children.
Access Community Services is a finalist in the business category. Access helps newly arrived migrants transition into communities. It builds bridges between diverse cultural and ethnic groups that live in south-east Queensland.
The Queensland Multicultural Awards recognise the contributions of those who support and promote a united, harmonious and inclusive community. The 2018 theme is ‘Building a prosperous, fair and harmonious Queensland’. Some 28 finalists compete across seven categories. Home to one residents from 200-plus nations, Logan groups work hard to build bridges across cultures. Here, Logan bats above its weight.
