BACK TO SCHOOL 2020 Foxwell a classy facility
IT has just opened but parents have been scrambling for weeks to get their kids into the Gold Coast’s newest $64 million public school.
Set to welcome a founding group of 196 Year 7 students for the first time today, Foxwell State Secondary College has been swamped by parents inquiring to see if there were any vacancies in the lead-up to its grand opening.
The high school is one of 105 schools across the Gold Coast that will this morning welcome thousands of students for the first day of the 2020 school year.
“As a state school we take catchment families, we aren’t taking any out-of-catchment enrolments unless students qualify for one of our four specialty programs,” principal Kym Amor told the Bulletin.
“Initially we were expecting around 150 but we have exceeded that. It is good because we have enough to provide all the extracurriculars.
“We have had some people asking if we would take other grades or have told us they have moved to the area to get their child in, so it is a really encouraging sign.”
Lily-Mae Martin, 12, is one of the students who was lucky enough to find a place at the new state-of-the-art high school.
Enrolled into a private school until late last year, it wasn’t until both Lily-Mae and her mother learnt about what was on offer at Foxwell that they decided to sign up.
“It was a bit of a later decision because I had my mind on another school but my friends were telling me about this school – I’m like wow that sounds amazing,” she said.
“With the comparisons and the sports options here it was the better choice.”
The school, which is built on the farming property formerly owned by the Foxwell family, includes junior classrooms, a covered lunch area, admin building, a learning hub, an amphitheatre, sports hall and oval.
The two-level learning hub includes a library space filled with books to encourage students to read for pleasure, play chess, create visual art pieces and interact positively with each other.
The construction of stage two will begin later this year and the school will be able to accommodate grades 7-12 by 2025.
Gaven MP Meaghan Scanlon said the construction of Foxwell supported 192 local jobs and approximately 34,800 apprentice and trainee hours on site.
Parents on the school run, meanwhile, are being warned to be wary of police patrols in pick-up zones.
“Well, our police are ready so you had better be ready too,” police minister Mark Ryan said.
“School’s back and over the next few days you’ll see more police out and about around our schools, reminding us of the safety messages which we all need to take very seriously around schools.”
He warned of “unpredictable” students who “may run out in carparks” and “across roads”.
“There will be a lot of kids, there will be a lot of activity around schools. Please be patient and please be aware of your surroundings,” Mr Ryan said.
“Every school zone is a potential hot zone over the next three to four days.”