Historic Humpybong Reaches New Heights

The history of Humpybong State School dates back 142 years to 1876. 'Umpie Bong' was the moniker given to the area by the local Indigenous traditional landowners, the Ningy Ningy people, and translates to 'empty shelter'. The phrase refers to the abandoned camps left by the first white settlers when they relocated their original settlement from Moreton Bay to Brisbane.

While proud of their history, the committed team at Humpybong State School led by principal Catherine Waldron has its focus on preparing students for the future.

From the construction of a shared community playground on school grounds to recent awards received, the school is increasingly being recognised for its pioneering practices. In 2016, the school was named one of 250 'Independent' public schools in Queensland, which involves a commitment to share innovative practices and make suggestions to help improve schools across Queensland.

Humpybong's particular area of innovation is in implementing the new digital technologies curriculum being rolled out through the Australian Curriculum. We have used some of the extra funds received from being an Independent Public School to employ a full-time Digital Technologies Coach, supporting our teachers' skill and knowledge base to teach the new curriculum,� Ms Waldron said.Humpybong State School has also been invited to attend and present at an international conference in Vancouver in April this year, after participating in a world-wide project trialed in classrooms in 2017. Through the initiative, students are taught specific skills to equip them for life in the 21st century.

This achievement and the opportunity to learn from practitioners around the world is very exciting,� Ms Waldron said.�

In the future, the school is looking to enhance the community mentoring program started in 2017 with the Redcliffe PCYC.

The vision is to engage people in the community who would willingly give up one hour of their time to become a friend of a child at school who needs an adult role model, where both the child and adult can learn from each other and trust each other,� Ms Waldron said. Any adults interested in being considered for this program can contact the school for further information.

With an illustrious list of alumni including the Gibb brothers, William McInnes, and Petero Civoniceva; Humpybong State School is sure to continue adding to its list of high achievers in the future. We are excited to see what they accomplish in 2018 and beyond.