Breaking Barriers at Fintona: The Power of Dismantling Gender Bias

When Sofia Plymin (Class of 2011) walked through the doors of Fintona Girls’ School, she embodied a spark of curiosity and ambition that would later see her named Victoria’s Young Scientist of the Year. Her journey – from School Consul and passionate science student to Senior Medical Scientist at Northern Pathology Victoria – is living proof of what unfolds when girls are given the freedom and support to follow their passions. This freedom is precisely the outcome championed by LEGO’s global research, which reveals that although girls possess innate creativity, gender bias and limiting language from adults still impede their confidence and recognition as innovators. Fintona’s culture and curriculum exemplify how removing these barriers leads to extraordinary achievement.

At Fintona, every student is actively encouraged to ‘have a go,’ embracing opportunity in all academic domains, leadership, performance, the arts or sport. In the area of STEM, from Year 9, Accelerated Mathematics, Coding, Applied Computing and Science programs alongside opportunities to participate in Science Talent Search, da Vinci Decathlon, Tournament of Minds, and Australian Maths and Science Olympiads provide platforms where talent is developed and celebrated, regardless of gender. Fintona students are regularly recognised with prizes in both Junior and Senior divisions of the Science Talent Search, results demonstrate how an environment free of bias and where possibility is celebrated, enables girls to thrive.

Learning at Fintona isn’t confined to textbooks. Students are invited to explore ideas, grapple with logical reasoning, and grow critical thinking skills. Students also connect with women in real-world STEM careers – most memorably last year during International Women’s Day at Moorabbin Airport, where Years 8 to 10 met female firefighters, pilots and airport operations managers and saw firsthand how women excel in roles traditionally dominated by men.

In 2023, the BrainSTEM Innovation Challenge saw girls design prototypes of a tactile chemistry set and fidget pen to support vision-impaired and sensory learners. While these creations were simple, their purpose was profound: making STEM more inclusive, and echoing LEGO’s view that creativity should have no boundaries.

Empowering girls with financial skills is also front and centre. From the Lemonade Stand Game in Year 6, where students learn about entrepreneurship and business and a Year 9 Financial Literacy Subject, to senior classes tackling property investment, budgeting, share markets and the economy, Fintona girls build skills and confidence for life after school.

Leadership is another thread weaving through every aspect of school life. Programs like Ad Senatorum and the Leadership Series invite students to learn from staff, community leaders and accomplished alumni. Such role modelling shows girls how empathy, resilience, and strategic thinking enable successful leadership, regardless of the setting.

Co-curricular activities reinforce these lessons, with students diving into clubs like Dungeons and Dragons, STEM Club and Model United Nations. By stepping into spaces often dominated by males, girls develop teamwork, experimentation, critical analysis and communication skills, building confidence to challenge boundaries throughout life.

Extraordinary achievements abound! Sofia Plymin’s (Class of 2011) career as a medical scientist is mirrored by other alumni successes, including Sarah Poustie’s (Class of 2024) Australian Football League Women’s debut while studying commerce at The University of Melbourne, Georgia Griffith’s (Class of 2014) record-breaking Olympic running, and Mackayla Hanney (Class of 2010) – Chief Commercial Officer at a global transport company – who credits Fintona with inspiring her commitment to advancing opportunities for women in male-dominated industries.

The School’s influence is confirmed by tertiary results: in the Class of 2025 23% of VCE students chose a business, commerce and international studies degree, 22% opted for science and engineering and 15% entered medicine and medical related fields. For the Class of 2024, 35% of VCE students entered business and commerce, 27% medicine and health sciences, and 13% science and engineering; in the Class of 2023, 26% chose science and engineering, 18% business and commerce, and 16% medicine and health sciences. These figures illustrate students choosing traditionally male-dominated fields and pursuing their ambitions without limitation.

At its heart, Fintona empowers each girl to break boundaries and shape her own future. As the LEGO research highlights, creativity, ambition, and leadership flourish where bias is dismantled and experimentation is valued. At Fintona, the result is seen in every student who confidently challenges convention, dares to ‘have a go’ mad is driven to do what she does well.