HOMEGROWN IT ENTREPRENEURS GIVE BACK TO THEIR OLD SCHOOL

Today Ms Mary Porter AM MLA, Member for Ginninderra, attended the announcement at Hawker College of a $1.4 million fund, by the Academy of Interactive Entertainment, to assist colleges in the ACT over the next decade.

At the launch Mr John De Margheriti and Mr Steve Wang, former students of the college, presented a cheque to the Hawker College Principal, Mr Steven Gwilliam, which will be split across all nine ACT colleges. The fund will allow students to pursue a career in interactive entertainment at the Academy through scholarships and other awards.

Ms Porter thanked Mr Margheriti and Mr Wang for taking such a keen interest in the future of ACT students.

“I am delighted that students have been presented with a new career option they can pursue and I am sure that this grant will open up many exciting opportunities to ACT students.” Ms Porter said.

Mr Margheriti and Mr Wang from AIE attended Hawker College in the 1980s and are now innovators in the computer gaming and software development industries. They wanted to give back to the school system that helped them on the road to success.

“The grant that has been announced today is a wonderful acknowledgement of the trust they have placed in the teaching and learning that is happening in our colleges. It is also a demonstration of their belief in the capacity of our students to help Canberra lead in the game development and interactive entertainment industries,” Ms Porter stated.

“Our students today need to be prepared for careers that were not ever thought of when they started school and may not still be imagined,” Ms Porter remarked.