The keys to higher education are more important than ever.
It’s why, in 2026 – and in memory of my mother – I worked with the Advancement and Community Engagement team to create the Keitha Edith Yates Education Scholarship (K.E.Y.E.S.) at The University of Queensland.
The scholarship is now part of the university’s Queensland Commitment and open for applications from students from regional, rural and remote areas of Queensland more than 200 kilometres from Brisbane – with preference given to applicants from the St George area.
The K.E.Y.E.S. Scholarship supports an undergraduate student from a regional, rural, or remote area where the cost of residential fees may be a financial barrier to taking up a place at UQ.
Keitha Edith Yates was born on 9 January 1940 and raised in St George in western Queensland. Although she passed the Queensland scholarship examination, distance, financial hardship and the cultural barriers to education faced by girls at that time meant she was unable to attend high school.
However, throughout her life, mum held a deep belief that education opens doors. A lifelong learner and strong advocate for opportunity, she ultimately ensured her children could access a university education at UQ.
Today, the K.E.Y.E.S. Scholarship helps give a student the ‘keys’ to a UQ education that may not otherwise have been available to them by providing a total of $45,000 ($15,000 per year over 3 years) towards residential accommodation while studying at The University of Queensland.