In the middle of a classroom at Mabel Park State High School, there is a row of mannequin heads. They each have a name, like Cassandra, Sandra (yes, they’re different) and Cher.
The fake models are getting more use these days because real people who before coronavirus visited the school’s Hair and Beauty program on Mondays and Fridays are no longer allowed.
Teachers and peers however, are donating their flowing locks for hairdressing, faces for beauty treatment, and nails for buffing in order to ensure about 50 Year 12 students graduate at the end of the year.
It’s the first high school in Logan to have a Hair and Beauty program. And this will be the first class of graduates.
About 180 students across all year levels, including a couple of boys, are learning vocational skills under the watchful eye of Hair and Beauty Coordinator Natisha Rice.
“Some people have a passion for it,” she says.
“But it’s really about the little wins. It gives girls and guys the opportunity to work out what they really want to do.”
Mabel Park State High School has a strong vocational program, including Aviation and Health programs, which has helped grow the school’s population in recent years to more than 1000 students.
Some subjects contribute to a university degree. Others, such as the hair and beauty program, offer official qualification certificates which Ms Rice says makes each of the students highly employable.
Year 11 student Samira Alizadeh is one who knows what she wants.
“When I was 12, I used to see my sister wearing makeup and I thought she looked beautiful, so I wanted to learn more,” she said.
“I want to go further in the beauty industry, to become a makeup artist. This is a great opportunity for me.”
The program has a connection with the French Beauty Academy, and offers one student each year a $10,000 scholarship to help further their studies.
“This school does things a bit differently,” Ms Rice says. “Our classes are structured like any other. That means our students can be doing 70 minutes of beauty followed by 70 minutes of English or Maths. It’s a great system which shows that vocational training is just as important as other subjects.”
