Thriving after a weird start to 2022

Brooke Jeffrey.
Brooke Jeffrey.

Year 12 graduates are looking to the future with optimism after starting their crucial final year of school from home due to a Covid surge at the start of 2022.

At the start of the year, the Beaudesert Bulletin caught up with 2022 Beaudesert High captains Brooke Jeffrey and Nathaniel Cocks as they forged ahead from home.

As Brooke and Nathaniel graduated year 12, the Beaudesert Bulletin caught up with them again and found they are thriving despite their less-than-ideal start to the year.

Brooke, who at the start of 2022 wanted to be a primary school teacher, has accepted an early University of Southern Queensland offer to study her Bachelor of Education (Primary).

Nathaniel has completed his Cert II in Electro-Technology and is pursuing his career as an electrician, having already started his apprenticeship with Rhys Brown Electrical.

“Our year turned out to be really good even though there were a lot of complications throughout the year it was still a great year for me,” Nathaniel said.

“It went so quickly, and I will definitely miss the social aspect of school. I learnt a lot of useful skills throughout the year that will greatly benefit me in my future.”

Brooke said despite the tough start, the year had panned out well.

“We started this year learning in our own houses, locked away thinking, ‘oh my goodness there goes our year 12 year’, and now we’re at the end,” she said.

She said the year had been challenging and rewarding.

“We were lucky we got everything out of this year – carnivals, full school parades, we hosted events and had lunchtime activities without Covid restrictions ruining things,” she said.

“It was a relief knowing we were guaranteed our graduation and formal, having something to look forward to after the challenges of exams and the freedom to look forward to the big celebration we always hoped for.”

Brooke said her own teachers inspired her to pursue a career in education.

“I have an incredible connection with so many of the teachers in our arts department and that’s just who I want to be as an individual and a teacher,” she said.

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About Keer Moriarty 508 Articles
Small town newspaper Editor, journo, social media manager and tea lady.