Distinguished RGS Alumni Awards Dinner

The Distinguished RGS Alumni Awards offer a variety of award categories to celebrate the diverse achievements of the School’s past students. Award categories are:

• Distinguished RGS Alumni Award
• RGS Alumni Outstanding Achiever Award
• Central Queensland Community Contribution Award
• Past Staff Life Memberships of the RGS Alumni

How to Nominate

Any one is welcome to nominate a RGS past student for the awards listed above. 

Nominations for the 2025 Awards will open shortly.  

2025 Distinguished RGS Alumni Awards Dinner

The 2025 Distinguished RGS Alumni Awards Dinner was held at the School on Saturday 19 July 2025.  

Past Winners

The Rockhampton Grammar School Distinguished RGS Alumni awards have recognised many successful, inspirational and honourable recipients since its inception. We invite you to peruse the 2024 Award winners below. 

2024 Distinguished RGS Alumni Award

GRAHAM CLARK (1956)

Graham was born in 1940, the second child of seven, to Bob and Alice Clark (OAM) of Rockhampton. After attending Allenstown State School Graham joined RGS where he participated in the wide variety of co-curricular activities that RGS had to offer. He was actively involved in cadets and all sports, regularly representing RGS in inter-school sport. Graham won the Form Prize in 1956, the Mrs Kellow Cup as Junior Athletic Champion and took part in the Olympic torch relay when passed through Rockhampton. After completing a Bachelor of Science from University of Queensland, Graham joined the Queensland Department of Primary Industries (DPI) in 1962 as a Biometrician. DPI were starting to automate their analyses and Graham wrote two major applications. Graham’s next move was to IBM which saw him developing systems, large and small, for IBM and its customers. He won several IBM Excellence Awards and was promoted to Software Advisory Programmer. What followed was an extraordinary journey that would set Graham and his business partner, Terry Powell, on a path of business development, setting a benchmark for future software companies. Noticing a gap in the industry, in 1977, Graham formed Powell Clark and Associates. The company became an industry leader in offering professional consulting and data processing services. Powell Clark quickly became the largest supplier of IBM-based software and systems for hospitals in Australia and later Singapore. In 1984, Data#3 was created when Powell Clark and Associates merged with Albrand Typewriters Office Machines Pty Ltd. Data#3 moved ahead to become Queensland’s first IBM personal computer dealership and the first reseller of IBM’s “mid-range” multi-user computer systems. Data#3 went public in 1997 and has continued to grow. In the mid-1980s when the AIDS crisis was at critical point, Graham developed a system for Brisbane Blood Bank to enable them to identify risks to their blood supply. After 29 years, Graham resigned from the Board of Data #3 in 2006. He remains a shareholder in a supportive relationship with the company.

2024 Outstanding Achiever Award

MADELEINE MORRIS (1994)

Madeleine was born in Rockhampton on 15 December 1977 to parents John (RGS 1966) and Megan. She is the eldest of three daughters. Her sisters Margot and Elizabeth also attended RGS. Joining RGS as a day student for Year 8 in 1990, Madeleine achieved success in both the classroom and sporting arenas. From being awarded the Year 8 English prize at Speech Night, winner of the History Bursary in 1991 to several of her written works being published in the Capricornus, one could say Madeleine was destined for a career as an investigator and in delivering information to the public. Madeleine enjoyed success in netball, swimming, cross country and rowing and often represented the Red and Black at inter-School competitions. She joined the cast of Anything Goes in 1993 and was the School’s Vice Captain in 1994. After graduating from RGS, Madeleine undertook an exchange program to high school in France for a year, before attending University of Queensland where she graduated with a Bachelor of Arts, majoring in French and Journalism. Madeleine began her journalism career with ABC local radio in Rockhampton. In 2001 she joined the BBC London where she spent 11 years as an international reporter, presenter and producer, before returning to Melbourne where she again joined the ABC as a reporter for 7.30. Over her career Madeleine has reported from more than 20 countries and has won numerous awards, including a prestigious One World Media award for a BBC World Service Radio documentary on microfinance in India. Madeleine’s proudest career achievement is writing her book Guilt-Free Bottle-Feeding: why your formula-fed baby can be happy, healthy and smart, which has helped families all over the world. She is best known to Australian audiences as the Finance Presenter and Newsreader on ABC News Breakfast, which she joined in 2019, quickly becoming an audience favourite for her balanced reporting and friendly style. In late 2023 Madeleine hung up the early morning alarm and left the ABC. She is now enjoying consulting in strategy and strategic communications and working as a conference MC.

2024 Outstanding Achiever Award 

 ISOBEL CHISHOLM (2014)

Born in Brisbane on 27 February 1997, to parents Shelley and Duncan, Isobel is the middle sibling of 2 brothers, Hamish and her twin Callum. All siblings attended RGS with 3 special years overlapping. Isobel commenced at RGS in Year 7 as a day student and during her time was fully immersed in many of our co-curricular activities. These included athletics, cross country, swimming, netball, oratory, softball, rowing, touch football, rugby, tennis, Aussie rules, triathlon and water polo. Isobel was successful from 2009-2014 in making the Capricorn Representative side for athletics and cross-country, demonstrating her commitment and passion for competing.

Highlights and prizes won during her time at RGS include:
* 2009 - Year 7 Student Leader
* Netball – Most Improved Player 2009, Most Conscious Player 2010, Best and Fairest B Grade 2012
* Rowing – Most Outstanding Junior Rower 2011, Most Dedicated Rower 2012 & 2013, Most Improved junior girls crew 2012, Outstanding Club Member 2014 and Captain of Rowing 2014
* Aussie Rules – Female Player of the Year 2013
* Triathlon – Female Triathlon of the Year 2014
* 2014 – Prefect, Captain of Triathlon, Rowing and Athletics, Vice-Captain Wheatcroft House and Cross-country

After school, Isobel had a gap year in Rockhampton, where she worked as an Administrative Assistant at Grant and Simpson Lawyers. In 2016 she moved to Brisbane to commence her first year of Exercise Sport Science at the University of Queensland. Isobel continued her love and passion of sports and has gone on to achieve outstanding results as an adult. In 2016 she was U19 Female World Champion for Olympic distance triathlon representing Australia in Mexico. In the same year, she received a bronze medal at State Championships U19 for a triathlon Olympic distance and placed 4th at the National Championships U19. In 2017 and 2018 she was crowned the National and State Triathlon Champion at Mooloolaba over Olympic distance and was also crowned the National Champion for Long Course triathlon. She went back in 2018 to defend her title at the World Championships on the Gold Coast and won a bronze medal for U24 and a silver medal in the U24 Aquathlon World Championships. In the years that followed, Isobel took a break from racing and found a new passion in longer endurance events. This led to her taking part in the Smiling for Smiddy challenge in 2019; a 1,600km charity cycle from Townsville to Brisbane raising money for cancer research. The same year saw her also compete in the first of many Ultra-trail running events which she continues to compete in regularly today. Isobel joined the Australian Defence Force in June 2020 and is living in Sydney.

2024 Past Staff Life Membership Award

MARTIN LINNANE (1961-1976 & 1995-2002)

Martin Nestor Linnane was born 1937. Raised in Rockhampton, he attended Our Lady’s Infants School then the Christian Brothers College for grades 2 - 10. Upon finishing school, Martin obtained his Bachelor of Education from University of Queensland by external study over the course of 9 years. His first teaching role was at Crescent Lagoon State School in 1958. He was then sent to Alpha, Berserker & Gladstone Central State Schools by the Department of Education. In 1959, he was appointed Headmaster of Diamantina State School, a one teacher school in the bush, until 1960. Martin joined the Primary teaching staff at RGS in 1961 where he taught grades 3-6. In 1967, Malcolm Hewitson transferred Martin to the Secondary Department to teach English, Math and History. During his time at RGS, Martin gave him time freely to help and coach tennis, cricket, basketball cadets and football. Martin was often seen adjudicating interhouse oratory and debating competitions. With a passion for all things film related, Martin set up Movie Club at RGS by donating his own camera to get the club up and running. The boys were then able to create a school film under his guidance titled ‘Grow in Manliness and Learning’ which ran for 20 minutes. In 1972 he was promoted to Master of Middle School, a role he remained in until he finished at RGS in 1976. This year bought about change for Martin as he rejoined his first teaching school, Crescent Lagoon. In 1978, the Linnane family took part in a school exchange program which saw Martin teach at St Catherine’s, Ontario BC, Canada. The pull of RGS was too strong and in 1995 Martin rejoined the Primary Department where he worked until his retirement in 2002. Continuing with his love of teaching, Martin then taught and lectured part time at TAFE and Central Queensland University. Over the years at RGS, Martin gave so much of his own time encouraging students in all areas to do their best and to achieve all they could. He was described by many as patient and the force behind the dynamic progress of the students he taught. He was dedicated in preparing young people for life’s journey. Martin’s highlights whilst working at RGS were seeing changes to the curriculum, growing numbers in teaching staff and the girls coming back to RGS.