By LACHLAN MOORHEAD
THE future of Fountain Gate has been solved by a group of determined Casey high schoolers.
The community gathered with pride on Monday morning as the student problem solving team from Fountain Gate Secondary – EPIC – officially unveiled their Fountain Gate Entry Feature.
The new icon is a symbol of identity for Fountain Gate, which is often overshadowed by its neighbouring suburbs.
The entry feature was the brainchild of the Fountain Gate Secondary Future Problem Solving team, EPIC – short for Encouraging Pride In Our Community.
The group began its project last year by looking at what its members felt were the major issues affecting the Fountain Gate community.
Starting with bullying, the group expanded their investigation to include an appraisal of crime in the area, including graffiti, littering and hoon driving.
It soon became clear to the team that there was a need for greater pride in Fountain Gate, and the students quickly went about uncovering the history of their suburb while trying to find a way to teach others about it.
The students worked strategically with community stakeholders to re-design the gardens surrounding the Robin Boyd fountain and garnered wide-ranging support from the City of Casey and local MPs.
These councillors and MPs again got together on Monday as the entry feature was officially revealed, more than a year since the EPIC team placed second in the International Future Problem Solving world championships in Iowa, America.
Narre Warren South MP Judith Graley on Monday praised the EPIC team for working “tirelessly” on their project.
“These outstanding students have worked tirelessly to ensure that the once-proud heart of the local community is restored to an iconic centrepiece we can all be proud of,” she said.
“It has a been a great pleasure to be involved in this project and I am just so very pleased to have seen how this experience has allowed these young men and women to grow and achieve so much.
“They should be quite rightly proud of their efforts, and I have no doubt that the new fountain and surrounding garden will be loved by all.”
