Brother John Taylor Memorial Prize

Mr MORRIS IEMMA (Lakemba—Premier, and Minister for Citizenship) [2.15 p.m.]: I bring to the attention of the House the achievement of two outstanding young students who were formally recognised today at a function in the Jubilee Room of Parliament House. The Brother John Taylor Memorial Prize is a special award presented each year to a student, or students, who have overcome significant hardship to attain academic excellence in their Higher School Certificate. The award, first presented in 1993, pays tribute to Brother John Taylor, who made a significant contribution to education in New South Wales, while recognising the outstanding academic efforts of students who despite personal difficulties achieved excellence in the Higher School Certificate.

This year there are two recipients of the Award: Samantha Dickson from Bega High School and Andrei Gudas from Sydney Technical High School. The first recipient, Samantha Dickson, had a troubled home and family life leading up to the Higher School Certificate. She attended four schools in five years before taking a year off school in 2005 to support her mother and elder brother. She returned to school in year 11 when she moved to Bega with her mother in 2006, but planned accommodation fell through and they were forced to live in a tent at a local caravan park, including through a cold winter.

Another blow came when Sam had almost finished year 11. Her mother decided to move again. However, with a strong resolve to finish the Higher School Certificate, Sam decided to stay put. She said that if it were not for her friends she would have studied non-stop, but they made sure she got out and enjoyed life as well. In September 2007 Sam was rushed to hospital with severe abdominal pains. She underwent surgery and it was discovered she had cancer. Unfortunately, she was not able to sit the Higher School Certificate exams, and her final marks were based on assessments. Her hard work earned her a place in a Bachelor of Science degree course at Macquarie University.

The second recipient is a young man who has overcome incredible obstacles to achieve outstanding results in the 2007 Higher School Certificate. Andrei Gudas suffers from Crohn's disease. He was first hospitalised with symptoms in July 2006, just before his Higher School Certificate trials. By November, he was recovering and decided to repeat year 12. Though still not in the best of health, he continued his studies in 2007 but in May he became very sick again. Tests revealed that he had Crohn's disease, and thus began regular visits to three doctors and a variety of treatments. One of Andrei's biggest emotional hurdles was the 2007 Higher School Certificate trial exams. He kept himself motivated by looking at the most immediate goal—just getting through the first trial exam then the next and the next.

As well as being supported by his family, his doctors were also considerate of his Higher School Certificate studies and timetable and ensured that his treatment fitted around that timetable. Faced with Crohn's disease and fitting in medical visits and treatment, he battled through. I am pleased to advise that this year he is studying a Bachelor of Engineering and a Bachelor of Business at the University of Technology, Sydney. I am sure that the House will want to acknowledge the outstanding achievements of Samantha and Andrei.

Mr ANDREW STONER (Oxley—Leader of The Nationals) [2.19 p.m.]: On behalf of the Opposition I am pleased to join the Government in congratulating this year's recipients of the Brother John Taylor award. These young people, Samantha Dickson, formerly of Bega High School, and Andrei Gudas, formerly of Sydney Technical High School, have made enormous achievements despite very considerable personal difficulties. In so doing they have inspired not only fellow members of their generation but also the wider society. Their achievements send a very strong message to us all about the importance of education and the opportunities that education provides to us all, regardless of circumstance or background. I am sure that Samantha and Andrei, despite the significant obstacles they faced and perhaps will continue to face, have very bright futures ahead of them. I wish them the very best in the future—in their studies and in their careers. They are indeed an inspiration to us all.