Congratulations to the following Qld Graduate Awardees for 2025:

• Jose Salvador Palacios – Griffith University
  • My path into music teaching began naturally; I started teaching during my final years of secondary school, and it quickly became a consistent part of my musical life. I discovered a strong ability to communicate musical concepts clearly and support students in understanding, enjoying, and engaging deeply with their learning. My professional aspiration is to contribute to high-quality music education across diverse settings, helping students develop solid musical foundations. What distinguishes my approach is a holistic perspective shaped by teaching learners of all ages and by designing music courses and resources across a wide range of educational contexts.

• Courts Lovell – QUT 
  • Music has always been more than sound to me; it is connection, creativity, a way of experiencing the world. From performing in the school hall, to festivals, to the mountains of Tasmania, it has enriched my life beyond anything I could have imagined. Across all times and cultures, even within nature, we find music. Becoming a music teacher came from the desire to guide students towards the skills and appreciation to employ this universal language, helping them connect in a more creative and compassionate way to the world around them, an endeavour I intend to make into practice.

• Richard Shaw – Griffith University
  • I feel proud to receive this award from the Australian Society for Music Education as I complete the first year of my teaching career – six months with permission to teach and six months as a graduate at Pimlico State High School in Townsville.I have always been curious about classroom teaching and have had a longstanding desire to improve my instrumental music teaching skills. Since moving back to Australia to teach I have been fortunate to meet and become lifelong friends with many music teachers who supported me throughout my master of secondary teaching degree and first year of teaching. It is hard to say where my career will take me, but I would of course love to continue developing my holistic music teaching practice and incorporate more performance into this.