Post by Queensland Department of Education

A kid from outback Queensland is now running news operations at CBS in New York. 🗽 Ross Dagan grew up in Blackall — a town of around 1,300 people in the remote Central West — and walked through the gates of Blackall State School for the first time in 1976. Fifty years later, he's the Executive Vice President of News Operations and Transformation for CBS News and Stations, one of America's most iconic broadcasting institutions. 📺 He credits it all to where he started. 'Despite relative remoteness, the school being smaller was often better,' Ross said. 'The intensity and focus of that supercharged the educational opportunity.’ Ross said he was lucky enough to find "that" teacher on his very first day of school. 'Miss Marie Messer had a profound impact on my life, and many others from Blackall,' he said. 'In many respects, she set up what the next 12 years of my life would be like in a safe, supportive environment where there was opportunity for all who wanted it.' A global career spanning five countries followed. But Ross says the most important thing he learned had nothing to do with media. 'The most important thing I learned at school was respect,' he said. 'My mum cleaned at the nearby pre-school. My dad built fences for some of the big stations around Blackall. They taught me, and my hometown taught me, to respect all around you. 'That has helped me walk into any room in the world and not only be proud of where I am from, confident I am qualified to be there, but also respectful of the people and the circumstance.' Today, there are 90 students enrolled at Blackall State School, serving a close-knit community roughly 1,000km north-west of Brisbane. It’s one of more than 1,250 Queensland state schools ensuring students in rural and remote communities have access to a quality education, no matter where they call home. Blackall State School's motto is "Strong foundations – broad horizons.” For Ross, it turned out to be a promise kept. Thanks, Ross, for sharing your story and reminding us that some of the most remarkable careers can start a long way from the spotlight!