Regional QLD schools battle it out in School Business Challenge

The annual CQUniversity School Business Challenge (SBC) kicked off this week' with round one producing strong competition.

Attracting over 30 schools from across Queensland' the SBC saw high school students from Years 10 to 12 battle it out in three regional competitions: North Queensland' Central Queensland and Wide Bay regions.

The competitions were held simultaneously on Tuesday' 26 April between 5.30pm and 7pm via video conference.

CQUniversity senior lecturer and quiz master for the event Martin Turner said there was great energy and humour among the competing teams' including from a very spirited Ayr State High School.

"Due to rising floodwaters outside Townsville on the night of the competition' students from Ayr State High School were unable to reach Townsville for the event'" Mr Turner explained.

"CQUniversity Technology Support Officer Dalyce McKay' who stage-manages the SBC from her IT headquarters in Rockhampton' quickly patched Ayr State High School into the competition from their own school which allowed them to compete."

Ayr State High School proved they were not fazed by this distraction' scoring 10/10 for the accounting section of the competition' along with the Rockhampton Grammar School' which Mr Turner said is a feat rarely achieved.

The overall winner for round one from the Central Queensland region was the Rockhampton Grammar School' with the Whitsunday Anglican School in Mackay as runner-up. The Cathedral School in Townsville took the crown for the North Queensland region' with the St Augustine's College in Cairns coming in as runner-up. And in the Wide Bay region' Shalom College was the winner.

These teams will compete in the finals on Tuesday' 26 July for a total prize pool worth approximately $50 000' including $6500 in cash prizes available to winning schools and $43 000 in scholarships to be shared among the winning students.

Mr Turner said this year's participants have set the bar high for future competitors and added how appreciative he was for the nine competition sponsors who all greatly contributed to the event.

"Two sponsors in Townsville' Fiona McGill from PVW Partners and Nik Rozis from Findex' discussed the wonderful employment opportunities in accounting' and business more generally' throughout regional Queensland' including the many opportunities available for students during and after their university studies'" he said.

"There was also a lot of networking going on between business teachers at different high schools and our accounting firm sponsors at each of our campuses.

"We were able to assist Justine Lyons' who is the Business Teacher at St Margaret Mary's College in Townsville' promote amongst other business teachers in Townsville to participate in a Business Teachers Networking Event she is organising in May.