Second year student Hannah Broughton has been announced as the 2023 recipient for the Zonta Club of Bundaberg’s TAFE Queensland Bursary prize.
Hannah is completing her Certificate III in Commercial Cookery at the TAFE Queensland Bundaberg campus, and has been awarded the accolade as part of a highly competitive process.
Like the Zonta Club, TAFE Queensland strongly believes in supporting and enabling all women and girls to access educational and learning opportunities and to succeed in their chosen fields of study.
The new TAFE Queensland Bundaberg campus bursary program aims to help women pursue tertiary qualifications and overcome gender barriers from the classroom to the workplace.
The award recognises a female TAFE Queensland Bundaberg campus student who is committed to further education, training and employment in a non-traditionally female field of endeavour such as electrical, engineering, building and construction, agriculture and horticulture, cookery and information technology.
TAFE Queensland General Manager (East Coast region) Ana Rodger said she was incredibly proud of, and thrilled for, Hannah's success.
“This is a well-deserved and fantastic outcome for Hannah who’s not only a hardworking, creative and committed student who does us incredibly proud but also embodies the spirit and success of TAFE Queensland,” Ms Rodger said.
“Hannah represents both the quality of students that our Wide Bay campuses consistently produce and the calibre of training and education our educators provide every day.
“I believe this bursary prize from Zonta will further grow Hannah’s passion in food and cooking and provide more opportunities for her skills and greatness to shine.”
Hannah’s cash prize of $500 is aimed at supporting her in her studies by covering some of the potential costs related to her course such as course fees, resources, specific work clothing and tools.
According to the latest Labour Markets Insights data, females make up 54 per cent of the cookery workforce in Australia while cooks account for more than 20 per cent of all jobs in Queensland.
With the food services industry expected to experience significant growth over the next few years TAFE Queensland East Coast region Faculty Director Jo Charters said the Wide Bay region was in need of qualified cooks.
“With Queensland’s ongoing efforts to attract visitors and tourists from interstate and abroad, there’s certainly a demand for cooks, chefs and food industry workers,” Ms Charters said.
“Commercial cookery is rewarding in so many ways because it’s a job with skills that impacts many people and provides immediate benefits to our local community.
“I can’t wait to see what culinary delights and amazing dishes Hannah is able to come up with in the near future!”
TAFE award: Hannah's skills shine
Hannah’s Commercial Cookery teacher Bernice Sildatke saw Hannah’s potential firsthand and knew she had the skills and ability to apply for the bursary prize.
“Hannah is one of the most promising and motivated students so I’m not surprised at all that she’s won this award which is a fantastic recognition of her talent,” Ms Sildatke said.
“Teachers at TAFE Queensland are passionate about supporting our students to get the skills they need by working closely with them and industry to provide relevant training solutions and Hannah makes my job so easy and rewarding!”
Winning the prize means Hannah will be offered complimentary membership of the Zonta Club of Bundaberg for one year and also be invited to attend a dinner meeting of the Zonta Club to receive her prize.
Visit tafeqld.edu.au to find out more about the Certificate III in Commercial Cookery course or call 1300 308 233 for more information about the courses available and let TAFE Queensland help you define your greatness.
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