What are the Trailblazer Awards?
The Trailblazer Awards celebrates Year 11 & Year 12 students beyond their ATAR, recognising students from across Australia who have overcome personal challenges and used their final years of school to positively impact their community.
The Trailblazer Awards acknowledge the significant contributions of 50 students within their schools, local communities and the impacts of their achievements. Our Top 50 Trailblazers will go on to have an incredible impact as future leaders in Australia!
The Top 50 Year 12 Trailblazers for 2023 were selected by our judges:
- Nivaaz Sehmbhi: Co-Founder of Insider xyz & Growth Engineer at Immutable
- Hannah Ahn: Founder of Flair & Co-Founder of Next Chapter
- Matthew Fitzpatrick: CEO & Founder of Investing for Charity
- Natalie Chandra: Curator for TEDxSydney & Operations Associate at Champions of Change Coalition
- Liz Jackson: Education Expert & Advocate for Grassroots Entrepreneurship
Who made the Top 50 Trailblazers?
We’re proud to present the Top 50 Year 11 & Year 12 Trailblazers for 2023! A huge congratulations to these 50 incredibly deserving students out of the impressive field of applicants — the judges all shared the difficulty in selecting a Top 50!
| First Name | Last Name | School | Suburb | State | Category | Bio |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sarah | Akhtar | Presbyterian Ladies College | Doncaster East | VIC | Business & Entrepreneurship | Profile |
| Sarah | Al Jameel | Fairfield High School | Fairfield | NSW | Social Impact & Change | Profile |
| Sophie | Albion | Nagle College Blacktown | Seven Hills | NSW | Arts & Music | Profile |
| Nausheen | Ali | Minarah College | West Hoxton | NSW | Sport & Elite Competitions | Profile |
| Lucy | Allen | Bega High School | Cobargo | NSW | Business & Entrepreneurship | Profile |
| Gouri | Baburaj | Illawarra Christian School | Wongawilli | NSW | Arts & Music | Profile |
| Anvesha | Bhushan | Baulkham Hills High School | Girraween | NSW | Arts & Music | Profile |
| Ruby | Bron | Santa Sabina College | Lewisham | NSW | Social Impact & Change | Profile |
| Patrick | Cooper | Orange High School | Orange | NSW | Arts & Music | Profile |
| Bianca | Duong | Chanel College | New Auckland | QLD | Social Impact & Change | Profile |
| Amelie | Elischer-Sproul | John Curtin College of the Arts | Melville | WA | Sport & Elite Competitions | Profile |
| Lylah | Ellao | The Scots School Albury | Albury | NSW | Social Impact & Change | Profile |
| Akemi | Evans | Nambour State College | Mooloolah Valley | QLD | Social Impact & Change | Profile |
| Maya | Farmer | Toormina High School | Sawtell | NSW | Social Impact & Change | Profile |
| Sophie | Fox | Abbotsleigh | Hornsby | NSW | Science & Technology | Profile |
| Bushra | Issak | Australian International Islamic College | Inala | QLD | Business & Entrepreneurship | Profile |
| Dekoda | Jackson | Coonamble High School | Coonamble | NSW | Sport & Elite Competitions | Profile |
| Kaira | Kapur | St. Aidan's Anglican Girls School | Sherwood | QLD | Social Impact & Change | Profile |
| Imogen | Kleidon | The Glennie School | Newtown | QLD | Science & Technology | Profile |
| Jessica | Kowalski | Maitland High School | Bolwarra Heights | NSW | Sport & Elite Competitions | Profile |
| Kaelyn | Lai | Cheltenham Girls' High School | Beecroft | NSW | Social Impact & Change | Profile |
| Meika | Lindsay | Karabar High School | Royalla | NSW | Social Impact & Change | Profile |
| Ewen | MacCulloch | Barker College | Normanhurst | NSW | Science & Technology | Profile |
| Sophia-Rose | Markham | Armidale Secondary College | Armidale | NSW | Social Impact & Change | Profile |
| Ella | Maryska | NBSC Manly Selective | Seaforth | NSW | Social Impact & Change | Profile |
| Rachel | Mathews | Barker College | Wahroonga | NSW | Science & Technology | Profile |
| Dominik | Mautner | Sydney Church of England Grammar School | Gordon | NSW | Social Impact & Change | Profile |
| Manuel | Maya | Ulladulla High School | Burrill Lake | NSW | Social Impact & Change | Profile |
| Karina | Maya | Ulladulla High School | Burrill Lake | NSW | Social Impact & Change | Profile |
| Mia | Mckay | Merewether High School | Toronto | NSW | Arts & Music | Profile |
| Asher | Miller | Moss Vale High School | Moss Vale | NSW | Social Impact & Change | Profile |
| Emelia | Naumov | Coffs Harbour Senior College | Sawtell | NSW | Science & Technology | Profile |
| Darcy | Oates | St Augustine's College | Kewarra Beach | QLD | Social Impact & Change | Profile |
| Amy | Padmore | Danebank | Blakehurst | NSW | Sport & Elite Competitions | Profile |
| Jasmine | Patankar | Cherrybrook Technology High School | Cherrybrook | NSW | Sport & Elite Competitions | Profile |
| Oscar | Peake | James Ruse Agricultural High School | North Epping | NSW | Social Impact & Change | Profile |
| Harry | Preston | Southern Cross Catholic College | Annandale | QLD | Sport & Elite Competitions | Profile |
| Kasey | Roati | Gilroy Santa Maria College | Ingham | QLD | Business & Entrepreneurship | Profile |
| Rachit | Saini | Sydney Boys High School | Wolli Creek | NSW | Social Impact & Change | Profile |
| Ella | Severin | New England Girls School | Gunnedah | NSW | Sport & Elite Competitions | Profile |
| Julia | Sigalas | Georges River Grammar | Chipping Norton | NSW | Social Impact & Change | Profile |
| Hea | Singh | Hornsby Girls High School | Pymble | NSW | Social Impact & Change | Profile |
| Anushka | Singh | St John XXIII Catholic College | Quakers Hill | NSW | Social Impact & Change | Profile |
| Blair | Southam | Toronto High School | Kilaben Bay | NSW | Arts & Music | Profile |
| Arabella | Tavares | Willoughby Girls High School | Sydney | NSW | Social Impact & Change | Profile |
| Ahmed | Topiwala | Al-Faisal College | Berala | NSW | Business & Entrepreneurship | Profile |
| Isabella | Turner | Hunter Valley Grammar School | Wallsend | NSW | Social Impact & Change | Profile |
| Gillian | Wang | Turramurra High School | Turramurra | NSW | Social Impact & Change | Profile |
| Mia | Wilkinson | Lindisfarne Anglican Grammar School, Terranora | Tweed Heads South | NSW | Science & Technology | Profile |
| Sufiya | Wilson | Al Siraat College | Mernda | VIC | Sport & Elite Competitions | Profile |
Our Top 10 Trailblazers
| First Name | Last Name | School | Suburb | State | Category | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Maya | Farmer | Toormina High School | Sawtell | NSW | Social Impact & Change | Profile |
| Bushra | Issak | Australian International Islamic College | Inala | QLD | Business & Entrepreneurship | Profile |
| Kaira | Kapur | St. Aidan's Anglican Girls School | Sherwood | QLD | Social Impact & Change | Profile |
| Jessica | Kowalski | Maitland High School | Bolwarra Heights | NSW | Sport & Elite Competitions | Profile |
| Meika | Lindsay | Karabar High School | Royalla | NSW | Social Impact & Change | Profile |
| Ewen | MacCulloch | Barker College | Normanhurst | NSW | Science & Technology | Profile |
| Sophia-Rose | Markham | Armidale Secondary College | Armidale | NSW | Social Impact & Change | Profile |
| Dominik | Mautner | Sydney Church of England Grammar School | Gordon | NSW | Social Impact & Change | Profile |
| Manuel | Maya | Ulladulla High School | Burrill Lake | NSW | Social Impact & Change | Profile |
| Emelia | Naumov | Coffs Harbour Senior College | Sawtell | NSW | Science & Technology | Profile |
About Art of Smart Education
At Art of Smart Education, we’re an award-winning provider of holistic tutoring and mentoring for students in years K-12. Our mission is to help students answer the difficult question, “What am I going to do with my life when I finish school, and how do I get there?”
We understand that true success involves mastering study, career and leadership skills while maintaining your wellbeing, not just excelling in academics and as a result, over the last decade, we’ve supported over 10,000 students to achieve their best and maximise their options for life after school.
Each year over one million young Australians, parents, and teachers access our guides, videos and resources to navigate the journey through high school.
