Tent Hill Lower State School 150th Anniversary

Member for Ipswich, Ms Jennifer Howard MP; Lockyer Valley Regional Council Mayor, Councillor Tanya Milligan and Councillor Jason Cook; Tent Hill Lower State School Principal, Ms Christine Allen; former Principals and those from surrounding cluster schools; President of the P&C, Ms Katrina Baines; Chair of the 150th Year Celebration Committee, Mrs Natalie Morris and Committee Members; teachers and staff; students past and present; your families; ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls.

Thank you, school captains, for your warm welcome. I would like to begin by acknowledging the original custodians of the lands of the Lockyer Valley and pay my respects to Elders past, present and emerging, and to any First Nations people here today.

I am very pleased to be with you today for this special celebration of 150 years of education here at Tent Hill Lower State School in the Lockyer Valley.

That so many past and present students, teachers, staff, families and interested members of the public have joined us today is clear evidence of just how important this school has been, and continues to be, in their lives and in the life of this community.

I begin by congratulating the Principal and the hardworking volunteers on their efforts over the past 18 months to make this is a day to remember.  

Planning an event like this is a complex task, but you have risen magnificently to the challenge and have provided a living example of the school’s motto: ‘Together we can do anything’. Well done!

Every visit I make to a Queensland school is an opportunity for me to learn more about the history of our State, and one of the best places to start is the local school because education is always one of the very first services to be established in any new community.

Tent Hill Lower State School was no exception and I’ve been fascinated to discover how a pioneering sheep and cattle station in the 1840s became a community, bearing the name of the property – Tent Hill, and established this school.

In the 150 years since then, there have been many highlights in the history of the school and its community, but I particularly enjoyed reading the newspaper report of the monster picnic and sports day held here on New Year’s Day, 1901.

On that day, the school celebrated the birth of the new Australian nation by cutting a 12-metre tree from the scrub, painting it white and erecting it as a flagpole so that the crowd of 300 people could watch the flag being unfurled and hear the pupils proudly sing “Rouse, Australians”.

They also created a running track in the school paddock and each of the pupils received special commemorative medals.

It was certainly a memorable occasion and today’s celebration will rank beside it in importance in the rich history of Tent Hill Lower State School.

It’s a history of which the school and the community can be very proud as you continue to ‘grow beautiful futures in this valley of opportunities’.

Thank you for inviting me along to be a part of your 150th year celebrations and I shortly look forward to unveiling a plaque to commemorate this significant milestone for your school and community.