August 22, 2022, School News

Principal’s blog: A committed community can make a difference

As many of you will have seen on the local television news and in the newspaper, 15 of our brave Year 12 students, as well as three of our dedicated teachers, participated in the annual Ponytail Project ‘Hair Chop’ event last Friday 19 August.

The Ponytail Project aims to raise valuable funds for Cancer Council Queensland, with students cutting off their hair and donating it for the purpose of wigs for those impacted by cancer treatment.

While the event provides an opportunity for our community to gather for an afternoon of laughter and camaraderie, there is a serious side.

Each year, over 50,000 Australians die from cancer and while researchers continually make inroads and advances, it is a slow, expensive pathway. The best thing we can do as a community is raise money and keep the momentum of cancer research going.

For TAS School Captain, Aurelia Wood, the annual Ponytail Project is a rite-of-passage she has been working towards since primary school, and her most significant haircut to date, donating over 60cm. With the help of her peers and committed staff, she has built a marvellous fundraising platform around this event, remarkably raising over $26,000 for Cancer Council Queensland.

While it is always great to win educational awards, and achieve highly ranked academic results with ATARs, NAPLAN or Chess tournaments – the Ponytail Project is the perfect example of our school values in practice.

This is the fifth year our school has supported the project and I hope it has encouraged younger students to use their passion and enthusiasm to create change in years to come.

Thank you all. You have made a difference.

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