16 March 2026
For John Curtin College of the Arts Year 11 student Amy Newton-Norris, the 2026 Premier’s Anzac Student Tour will be an opportunity to connect with Australia’s wartime history and honour her family’s legacy of service.
Amy was born in Australia, but spent eight years of her childhood living in Georgia in the United States, an experience that shaped her perspective and appreciation for different cultures and ways of learning.
She said her decision to apply for the Premier’s Anzac Student Tour was deeply connected to her family’s history of service.
“I have a very extensive family background in the Australian Defence Force and because of that I have been raised to have the utmost respect for service members,” she said.
“I cannot remember a time when I did not know the Anzac legend. It played a big role in the way I was raised.
Amy at the Premier's Anzac Tour presentation.
“When I saw the tour opportunity, I saw a chance to use that respect and commemorative nature I had grown up with and walk in the footsteps of my family members, especially my great–grandfather, Clarence Newton, who served in Darwin during World War II.”
Amy said she was overwhelmed with excitement when she discovered she had been selected.
“I was sitting in psychology class, refreshing the webpage every few seconds and before it had loaded on my end, my mum called me and told me I had gotten in,” she said.
“I was ecstatic. I could not stop smiling and I went to tell my mentor teacher straight away. I honestly could not believe I had been selected.”
Amy is interested in pursuing a career in education and sees the tour as an opportunity to deepen her understanding of history.
“I know I want to work in education when I graduate and one of the pathways I have considered is becoming a humanities and social sciences teacher,” she said.
“I thought this tour would be a great way to consolidate the history I may one day teach and test my abilities in leadership and engagement.”
Students will spend the coming school holidays on tour and will visit key historical sites across Darwin and Singapore.
Amy said she is particularly looking forward to visiting the World War II oil storage tunnels in Darwin.
“I find the homefront efforts at war particularly interesting in how defence preparations were conducted,” she said.
“My great-grandfather, Clarence Newton, served with the 29 Operational Security unit around the same area at the same time, so visiting the tunnels may help me gain a better understanding of his duties.”
She is also eager to visit Kranji War Cemetery in Singapore.
“I remember briefly learning about it in Year 10 and I think it could be a really powerful experience to visit the final resting place of so many Allied soldiers,” she said.
“Physically seeing their names and walking where they walked can really change your perspective from when it is just words in a textbook.”
Amy hopes the experience will deepen her understanding of Australia’s history and help her share what she learns with others in the future.
The Premier’s Anzac Student Tour occurs annually, with WA students from Years 8 to 11 invited to apply.
Students were selected as tour ambassadors following a written submission and interviews, demonstrating their interest in Australian history and an understanding of the Anzac legacy.
The 2026 Premier’s Anzac Student Tour participants are:
- Year 10 Lucy Henville, Mount Lawley Senior High School
- Year 10 Zach Lentin, Wesley College
- Year 10 Maya Gallegos, Collie Senior High School
- Year 10 Mikaela Phin, Busselton Senior High School
- Year 11 Adelle Hoddy, Western Australian College of Agriculture - Cunderdin
- Year 11 Henriette Hoger, Kolbe Catholic College
- Year 11 Josiah Simmons, Hedland Senior High School
- Year 11 Shylah Broux, Shenton College
- Year 12 Amy Newton-Norris, John Curtin College of the Arts
- Year 12 Bronte McGillivray, Lumen Christi College.
Read more about the Premier’s Anzac Student Tour on the Department’s website.