CONSTITUENCY STATEMENTS
Ms JORDAN-BAIRD (Gorton) (16:33): What do you get when you mix high school politics, big hair, bigger personalities and an incredible soundtrack? The opposition are pretty famous for their theatrics, but even they would struggle to compete with Heathers:The Musical. On Saturday night, I was thrilled to attend Lakeview Senior College's production of Heathers: The Musical.
The Year 10, 11 and 12 students of Lakeview college are seriously talented. Alyce Watson, as Veronica Sawyer, guided us through the story with her incredible voice; Miley Meak was fearsome and stylish as Heather Chandler; and Manawa Teo brought the audience to tears with her rendition of 'Kindergarten Boyfriend' as Martha Dunnstock. A big shout out to Director Frankie Guida, the creative force behind this production.
Putting on a musical is no small feat. It takes months of rehearsals, teamwork, dedication and stepping outside your comfort zone. Congratulations to every student involved, and thank you to the teachers, staff and parents who supported them.
Last year, Eyoael Tesfay completed year 12 at Catholic Regional College Sydenham and was one of the 2025 Gorton Young Leader Awards recipients, but his entrepreneurial journey began long before he finished school. Since year 7, Eyoael has been developing his skills as a self-taught entrepreneur, innovator and business builder. Most recently, Eyoael developed and released Chill ATAR, an app designed as a personal assistant for VCE students.
It connects school and SAC timetables, helps organise notes and study schedules, sends reminders and calculates ATAR scores. It has an in-built screen-time blocker to help students spend less time on their phone. It can also connect students with AI tutors and local tutoring services, helping young people access additional supports when and where they need it.
Eyoael's story is a wonderful example of the young talent, creativity and ambition you'll find in Melbourne's west. I can't wait to see what he achieves next. I recently had the privilege of visiting Copperfield College in Sydenham to participate in the Be Bold Be Heard program alongside an inspiring panel of women across my local community.
Be Bold Be Heard is an outstanding leadership and advocacy initiative that empowers young women to become confident change makers within their schools. Thank you to the wonderful students at Copperfield College for having me on your recent program panel. It was inspiring to hear the students' ideas about how they are creating equal spaces and empowering women right in their very own classrooms.
Congratulations to Copperfield College and Nick Adamou for leading this remarkable program and partnering with St Albans Secondary College to bring together young women from across Melbourne's west. To our local students: your ideas matter, your voices deserve to be heard and you have the power to shape the future.