When it comes to their learning, areas of interests and personalities, Year 12 Windsor High School students Mirage Dodt-Butler and Cassidy Grima couldn’t be more different.

Softly spoken Mirage is a quiet achiever; a school captain who leads by example and is passionate about her involvement with the Schools Spectacular Aboriginal Dance Troupe. Mirage has high potential in performing arts and social-emotional domains and wants to pursue a career in hospitality.

Cassidy, also a school captain, is a self-assured student who has shown high potential in academic, sporting, performing arts and social-emotional domains. She is considering her university options for after the HSC.

While in many ways they’re at different points in their learning, they have both benefited from the school’s $6 million High Potential and Gifted Education (HPGE) upgrade.

Windsor High School was among the first tranche of schools to share in the NSW Government’s two-year $100 million in HGPE upgrades across 33 schools and is already reaping the rewards.

Part of a targeted state-wide program to give students HPGE opportunities regardless of the school they go to, Windsor has already completed renovations including new science labs and visual arts rooms.

More upgrades are in train including refurbished woodwork and metalwork rooms, an expanded food technology area and a resurfaced basketball court.

“It’s something that is already enhancing the educational experience for all our high-potential students across various domains,” Principal Jennifer Hawken said.

“These upgrades are designed to foster intellectual growth, while also supporting the social and emotional development of our students, as they engage in collaborative and expressive activities.”

Put simply, the infrastructure upgrades benefit not only those that show academic potential, but students who may be gifted in the arts, sports, or show advanced social and emotional awareness.

Mirage and Cassidy cross into multiple domains and the school now has both the extra infrastructure and learning capabilities to better meet their needs.

The latter came in the form of the professional development training received by every NSW public school teacher at the start of Term 2 to help them identify high potential students across the four domain areas.

Already a school on the move – in the 10 years Ms Hawken has been principal Windsor High School has grown from 420 to 650 students – now she sees an even brighter future ahead.

“I’m very honoured that Windsor High has been selected to be a part of this program because students deserve to have every possible opportunity we can give them; and now with the upgrades the students are just so proud,” Ms Hawken said.