Yaama Ngindaay! (Hello everyone)

Welcome to the 2023 school year. In 2023 we have 13 Aboriginal students at St Kevin’s.

I will be at school every Wednesday and Thursday, working in classrooms to help students and teachers. I assist our Aboriginal students with their literacy and numeracy and I also help teachers with their planning and teaching of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Histories and Cultures. This is a cross-curriculum priority in the Australian Curriculum which is designed for all students to engage in reconciliation, respect and recognition of the world’s oldest continuous living cultures.

At St Kevin’s we have a very supportive community where we respect all cultures and celebrate diversity. I look forward to working with our staff, students and families again this year.

Anniversary of the National Apology to Stolen Generations Survivors

This week the country marked the 15^th anniversary of the National Apology to Stolen Generations Survivors. It is important to acknowledge the anniversary as Australians continue working towards reconciliation with our First Nations peoples. Some of our Aboriginal families at St Kevin’s have been impacted by past government policies of forced removal.

Here is a statement from the Healing Foundation about the anniversary of the National Apology:

February 13 each year marks the anniversary of the National Apology to the Stolen Generations, who suffered trauma because of past government policies of forced child removal.

Many of these removals occurred as the result of laws and policies aimed at assimilating the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander population into the predominately white community.

Stolen Generations survivors are some of Australia’s most vulnerable people and many have kept their stories and experiences secret for many years, even decades.

Through hearing the resilient stories of Stolen Generations survivors there is now a willingness for Australians to join in on the healing journey. To be part of solutions into the future. This is the spirit of the anniversary.

We commemorate the apology to keep the spirit of its words and their meaning alive. The commemoration is a very real part of the healing journey. One that encourages us to keep looking for new ways to work together for genuine change in the lives of our survivors and their descendants. – CEO, The Healing Foundation, Fiona Petersen

St Kevin’s Catholic Primary School acknowledges the land upon which we work as traditional Awabakal Country. We pay our respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures and to Elders both past and present.

Nginowa 

 

 Phil Taylor

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Education Teacher