New STEM Education Partnership for Bradken in Western Australia

Located just 9 kilometres from Bradken’s Bassendean manufacturing and engineering facility, Sacred Heart Primary School Highgate will use the additional funding to support the development of its existing STEM program for Pre-K to Year 6 children (three to 12 year-olds) and extend it into the community.

Sean Winstone, Bradken CEO, said as a business operating across a diverse global footprint, Bradken takes its role in being part of a sustainable society very seriously.

“We’re committed to giving back to the communities we participate in, and education is a particular focus of that commitment - more specifically, providing a brighter future for women in STEM (Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics)-based careers by supporting complementary educational programs for young women,” Mr Winstone said.

“This new partnership with Sacred Heart Primary School, whilst co-ed in its participant group, will further enhance Bradken's commitment to promoting STEM education and opportunities for young people in diverse communities around the world.”

Carolyn Perlini, Science Specialist and Assistant Principal at Sacred Heart said the school is thrilled to be collaborating with Bradken to raise students’ awareness of the vast range of STEM-based career opportunities available to them from a formative age.

“The STEM experiences resulting from our whole-school approach to teaching STEM are designed to equip our students with the skills of collaboration, communication, critical thinking, problem-solving and creativity,” Mrs Perlini said.

“We believe these skills not only provide a framework for successful learning in the school setting, but also prepare our students to thrive in a world where change is constant and learning never stops.

“Having grown our capabilities in STEM over the past few years, we would like to use our skills to provide support to other educators both locally and regionally. The confidence that we have developed as STEM educators puts us in a good position to help other educators develop excellence in this area. We hope to achieve this by mentoring educators in surrounding schools and by encouraging other schools to visit Sacred Heart to learn more about our STEM program and facilities.

“In addition, we plan to facilitate face-to-face and virtual webinars and bring our knowledge and skills to remote schools by providing professional learning opportunities in relation to the STEM Design Process.

“We would like to take this opportunity to express our sincere thanks to Bradken for providing us with this generous sponsorship to achieve these goals.”