Columba College year 8 pupil Nicole Samuel is looking
forward to attending the Australian Blue Light Leadership
Camps in Australia next month. Photo by Craig Baxter.
The hard work is finally paying off for Nicole Samuel.
The Columba College 12-year-old has won one of two Blue Light
Youth Scholarships of Excellence for showing outstanding
potential and achievement in academia, the arts and sport.
Nicole will travel to Canberra and Brisbane for five days
next month to attend the Australian Blue Light Leadership
Camps.
''I'm very excited. It's quite an amazing opportunity,'' she
said.
She won the $2500 scholarship for her academic achievement,
which includes receiving high distinctions in the Australian
maths competition and the University of New South Wales
science examination, finishing runner-up in the Otago maths
competition and winning a Columba College academic
scholarship.
She has also received high honours in grade four piano and
grade six jazz dance, she won the principal role of Little
Cosette in the Taieri Musical Society's 2013 production of
Les Miserables and was a member of her school year 7
basketball team which won the Dunedin basketball competition.
Nicole said she enjoyed taking charge in group situations,
and her leadership style was very inclusive.
''I let people share ideas and then we mix them to come up
with a plan.''
While she was looking forward to learning new leadership
techniques from the camps, Nicole struggled to conceal her
excitement at the prospect of visiting theme parks on the
Gold Coast while in Australia.
- john.lewis@odt.co.nz
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