News

St Mary’s secures $35k creative funding boost

By Bree Lambert

May 21, 2026

Students Archie Chillingsworth, Jaida Rose, Brylee Harvey and Bodhi Howe playing the maracas, djembes and xylophone. Photo by JORDAN TOWNROW

St Mary’s School Rushworth is bringing a slice of the Melbourne arts scene straight to the regional school.

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The school is embarking on a multi-term artistic journey after securing a $35,000 funding boost from the Victorian Government through the Creative Learning Partnerships Program.

The funding allows for all students from Prep to Year 6, along with their performing arts and classroom teachers, to collaborate with Melbourne’s Under The Creative Hood, a collective of four artists.

For St Mary’s School principal Angela Fiske-Kealy, the program is a gateway to opening students’ eyes to what is possible and exposing them to the opportunities that will be out there for them in the future.

“It’s around not just bringing a really good array of artists into the school to work with them, but it’s about, hopefully, it sparks in them an interest that they might pursue down the track.”

Ruby Gillie, principal Angela Fiske-Kealy, Sienna Chillingsworth, Scarlett Baddgery and Shiloh Long get to work on their arts and crafts. Photo by JORDAN TOWNROW

The artists will bring a variety of expertise, including in music and movement, puppetry, Japanese folklore, visual arts, fabric and design.

Instead of the program getting kids to perform a pre-written show, the team, led by an artistic director who will oversee, create, write and narrate the piece, will build the project over time, with the help of students.

While they don’t know what the final product will look like, Mrs Fiske-Kealy said it would include an organic mix of the artists’ talents and the students’ stories.

Students have already been working towards the project with their performing arts teacher, through a task where they drew what they see in front and behind their fence, with the task giving the artists a window to view their world so they can get to know the students and build their story.

The project will leverage other skills learned from recently hosting an Indigenous artist, potentially seeing students using their new weaving skills.

“They (artists) were also already talking about the students bringing things in from their homes and their properties or their farms, you know, and it might be that there’s hay that they weave,” Mrs Fiske-Kealy said.

Ruby Gillie and Sienna Chillingsworth. Photo by JORDAN TOWNROW

The artists will work with students every Tuesday either on-site or via zoom, allowing them to develop the piece together between their school visits.

“They’re getting this experience, and it’s not out of the parent’s pocket, which, I think, is absolutely amazing.”

The project will culminate in a showing in October, which community members will be invited to attend.

“I think it’s just a wonderful opportunity for community connection again as well because, you know, once we’re ready for the performance, then we’ll be inviting the whole community to come in and watch the performance,” Mrs Fiske-Kealy said.

“What parents and the community are going to get, is that Melbourne-class performance in the Rushy Hall.”