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Indigenous Education Strategies in Higher Education 2001-2003

University of New England

• Objectives
• Consultative Mechanisms
• Current and Continuing Activities
• Planned New Activities
• Performance and Review
• Report on Expenditure
• Contact

Objectives

The University of New England’s Strategic Plan 1997-2002 purpose states "The University of New England is to pursue excellence in teaching, research and scholarship and, in so doing, serve its regional, national and international communities". As an operational value to the strategic plan the University of New England plan states an "active recognition of the interests of our culturally diverse, Indigenous and international populations, and local, regional and global communities in all facets of University work".

The aim of the University’s Indigenous Students’ Education Strategy is to enhance the quality of education for Indigenous students, through culturally appropriate courses, academic services, and support.

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Consultative Mechanisms

Indigenous people are included in all groups which provide advice and policy input to Indigenous education at UNE.

The Indigenous Access and Participation Committee, comprising representatives from the local Indigenous community, student association and staff, chaired by the Vice Chancellor met regularly throughout 1999 and 2000.

The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Student Association continues to work closely with the mainstream Student Association on a local and national level. Office space and administrative support has been provided to the association by both the University and Oorala Aboriginal Centre (the University’s Indigenous Student Support Centre).

An Indigenous Education Working Group with representatives from across the faculties, the Oorala Aboriginal Centre and the Centre for Research in Aboriginal and Multicultural Studies operated in 1999 and 2000 to discuss programs and cross-university collaboration.

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Current and Continuing Activities

The University of New England’s Indigenous Education Strategy addresses the following four themes:

1. Recruitment, Access and Participation

UNE, in conjunction with Oorala Aboriginal Centre, continued to work towards increasing the access and participation of Indigenous students to higher education.

UNE has promoted places for Indigenous students in its undergraduate and postgraduate research programs in its marketing campaigns. This has involved places in the Country Scholarship Scheme and targeted Doctoral scholarships for candidates from disadvantaged groups. In addition, in 1999 the Faculty of Economics, Business and Law introduced the Scott Williams Scholarship for Indigenous Management Studies and maintained the Postgraduate David Phillips Memorial Scholarship.

Oorala Aboriginal Centre undertook a recruitment plan targeting year 11 and 12 students within the Armidale region. Projects were planned developed and funding sought from the Department of Education Training and Youth Affairs under the Vocational Educational Guidance Aboriginal Scheme(VEGAS) to hold ‘Lets Go UNE’. Oorala Aboriginal Centre also established networks within the New South Wales education services and worked closely with Aboriginal Education Assistants and the NSW Education Department, the Association of Independent Schools and the Catholic Education Office to look at ways of recruiting Indigenous students.

Over 150 Indigenous people from around the North West of the state attended Open Day on Monday 20 September 1999. The day began with morning tea at the Oorala Aboriginal Centre for the school students, their teachers and parents before joining in the UNE's activities. Oorala hosted a parents' luncheon at the Centre where parents could talk to Oorala staff and Indigenous Community members about having a student studying at UNE. The day was designed to foster UNE ­ Indigenous Community relationships and the sense of culturally appropriate support for Indigenous students.

Oorala Aboriginal Centre conducted the TRACKS bridging course in Semester 2 1999. Oorala also re-wrote and developed TRACKS as an external course to commence in Semester 1 2000. Oorala Aboriginal Centre accessed a Teaching Development Grant to help with the production of a video titled :"MAKING TRAX TO UNE" to be launched in 2000.

The TRACKS bridging course was also undertaken by the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander men at the Glen Innes Correctional Centre. Assistance for this project was provided through a grant from the Vice Chancellor’s Strategic Initiatives’ Fund. Alterations were also made to enrolment with Indigenous students accessing University by undertaking TRACKS in conjunction with mainstream Units. All of these initiatives have helped to increase the recruitment and access to UNE.

The Internal Selection Program (ISP) was again conducted on two occasions during late 1999 for the 2000 intake. The ISP was conducted in October/November 1999 and resulted in a total of 12 enrolments. The Program was evaluated late in 1999.

As a result of these efforts to increase participation of Indigenous students at UNE in 1999, the number of students undertaking the TRACKS program increased from 12 in 1998 to 52 for 1999. Together with the ISP and the pre-law program operated by the Faculty of Economics, Business and Law, these initiatives are showing good results in 2000. These increased enrolments in pre-university programs translated to increased enrolments in Semester 1 2000 of 275 Indigenous students in UNE programs compared to 194 in 1999 and 189 in 1998.

2. Retention and Success

UNE continues to provide a supportive and culturally inclusive environment for Indigenous students by providing student support as well as administering the Aboriginal Tutorial Assistance Scheme. This enables Indigenous students to more equally participate in tertiary studies and subsequently enhance both the retention and success rates. The University continued to consult and assist the Oorala Aboriginal Centre with plans and strategies aimed at enhancing the success and retention rates of Indigenous students.

The TRACKS tertiary preparation course for Indigenous students acts as an excellent initiative for ensuring success and retention. Indigenous students are given access to library facilities, computer laboratories, lectures, tutorials and various other factors in a culturally appropriate environment. The TRACKS course has an integrated approach bridging academia and maintaining Indigenous cultural inclusivity. It also was used to develop academic skills for university studies. The academic skills development is continued by the tutors employed by the ATAS scheme who work with individual Indigenous students to succeed in their university studies.

The Oorala Aboriginal Centre worked closely with Faculties to promote Indigenous perspectives in curricula and to support cultural inclusivity in academic units and programs. These strategies ensure a more inclusive and relevant environment for Indigenous students.

The Oorala Aboriginal Centre continued to work closely with Equity Office staff in developing a cultural awareness training package and an associated video.

3. Community Outreach and Support

UNE will continue its involvement in Indigenous education within the Region. This occurred in 1999 and 2000 through the work of the Oorala Aboriginal Centre in drawing Indigenous students to the University through promotional initiatives such as the "Let’s Go UNE" activity; direct professional involvement by staff in Indigenous centres and schools, eg., the Minimbah Public School where collaborative research is being conducted; and participation in Indigenous organisations, eg., the Aboriginal Cultural Centre and Keeping Place. This outreach occurs across the New England region. A key element in this outreach, in 1999, has been the extension of the TRACKS program by the Oorala Aboriginal Centre at the Glen Innes Correctional Centre which is the final step for people to be placed before re-entering the wider community. At Glen Innes a total of 17 Indigenous students enrolled in this program.

The Faculty of Education, Health and Professional Studies, in collaboration with the Armidale Aboriginal Medical Service and the Office of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health, continued to support the Armidale Regional Indigenous Centre for Social and Emotional Well Being, located at the AMS in Armidale. This program offers Indigenous communities and Aboriginal Health Workers units of study in Aboriginal Studies, Community Development and Counselling.

The School of Health, in the Faculty of Education, Health and Professional Studies, developed a graduate Diploma in Health Services Management for Indigenous health workers from the region in New South Wales. This program is continuing to run with some 22 students participating. This program was developed after collaboration with the local regional Health Service to improve health conditions for Indigenous people in the New England region.

In 1999, through a Vice-Chancellor’s Initiative Grant, the Faculty of Education, Health and Professional Studies implemented an on-site teacher program at Boggabilla with 12 students. This initiative is being revised in 2000 as a collaboration between the New England Institute of TAFE and UNE as an articulated program for 2001.

Research and consultancy has been an important form of Indigenous community outreach. Staff from several Faculties have engaged in Indigenous research in several States especially in the area of archeology. Staff from the Centre for Research in Aboriginal and Multicultural Studies and the Oorala Aboriginal Centre have completed several studies associated with the Native Title legislation.

The Oorala Aboriginal Centre initiated the Moree Project between UNE and Moree TAFE. The project began in April 1999. The objectives of the project are to 'promote UNE in the north west New South Wales and develop (articulation) pathways for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students currently at TAFE to access UNE study' and 'to improve access, participation, support and recruitment in both internal and external UNE students and programs'.

UNE continues to expand its studies in and for Indigenous education.

UNE offers a major sequence of units in Aboriginal Studies with all units clearly labeled as "AB" units. Aboriginal Studies units are available in a range of disciplines offered by the Faculty of Arts and the Faculty of Education, Health and Professional Studies in the degrees of Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of General Studies, Bachelor of Social Sciences, Bachelor of Professional Studies, Bachelor of Urban and Regional Planning, and associated Masters programs.

Additional initiatives in Indigenous studies across the Faculties include the following: the Faculty of Arts has developed a Diploma in Indigenous Archeology to assist in community-based assessment of the Indigenous Cultural heritage; the Faculty of Economics, Business and Law developed a Diploma in Aboriginal Organisational Management for implementation in Semester 1, 2000; and the Faculty of The Sciences has implemented a unit on Indigenous Land Management in its Bachelor of Environmental Science degree. The Oorala Aboriginal Centre assists the Faculties to deliver specific academic units that have an Indigenous focus. Through a grant from the Vice-Chancellor’s Initiative Scheme, a new unit was developed ­ Managing the Indigenous Organisation.

To implement these programs, a number of Indigenous staff have been added to Faculties in 1999 or early in 2000. These include a lecturer in the Faculty of Education, Health and Professional Studies, the advertisement for a lecturer in the Faculty of Economics, Business and Law in Marketing and Management, and a traineeship in the Faculty of Economics, Business and Law to promote the Management Studies for Indigenous Students’ Program.

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Planned New Activities

The University plans to expand its programs for Indigenous students with the full implementation of the awards mentioned above and through the development of additional targeted programs. Examples of these developments include: a Bachelor of Indigenous Studies that will be offered from the Faculties across the University and the development of a Bachelor of Indigenous Studies/Bachelor of Teaching that will build on the studies completed at Certificate and Diploma levels of TAFE NSW and offering from the New England Institute of TAFE.

The Oorala Aboriginal Centre will continue to develop and implement programs to increase Indigenous participation in UNE awards. These will include:

1. Providing a Project Officer responsible for developing academic pathways from TAFE to UNE
2. Recruitment drives to identify the University of New England as a leader in external distance delivery of Indigenous education. The Oorala Aboriginal Centre will pursue its recruitment activities throughout the Armidale region, targeting Year 11 and 12 Indigenous students, as well as Correctional Centres and Indigenous communities across Australia.
3. Developing further mechanisms of support to retain and maximise success for Indigenous students at UNE. The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Student Association (ATSISA) will continue to be an integral aspect of the student support infrastructure at UNE and represented on the Vice-Chancellor’s Indigenous Access and Participation Committee. The collaborative partnership between the Oorala Centre, ATSISA and the Indigenous community will ensure a tertiary environment appropriate for Indigenous students at UNE.
4. Oorala Senior staff will continue to be pro-active in their national and international responsibilities to Indigenous higher education. Oorala has worked with the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies in Canberra with the view of conducting Native Title Seminars in 2000 at UNE.
5. Developing research and consultancy activities within the Centre to build and formalise a bond with Indigenous communities.
6. Seeking scholarships for Indigenous students from major mining interests.
7. Working closely with relevant Faculties to attract Indigenous students into the different UNE awards.
8. Working with staff throughout the faculties to integrate Indigenous perspectives into existing and new programs.
9. Promoting under-graduate scholarships for Indigenous students in the wider community to encourage greater participation in higher education.

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Performance and Review

UNE has experienced a substantial increase in its Indigenous commencing external student enrolments from 1999-2000 due to extensive marketing in the regional community of its bridging programs and the development of its distance delivery of the TRACKS program. This increase is reflected in the enhanced access and participation figures for 2000.

All UNE plans undergo annual review with a focus on the achievement of performance outcomes identified in the plans. The operational plan for the Oorala Centre includes detailed performance measures which are used in this review process. As Table 1 shows, the outcomes of UNE’s strategies to attract and retain Indigenous students generally compare favourably with national performance statistics.

Table 1: UNE ­ Indigenous Students Data

From 1997-1999 UNE has had a steady increase in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander access to higher education. The access rate of 1.42% was maintained from 1998 to 1999 and increased to 2.53% for 2000. This reflects UNE outreach programs attracting interest from the Indigenous communities.

Participation

In terms of participation, UNE has remained consistently high with a rate of 0.80 in 1998 and 1999, increasing to 1.08 in 2000. The Oorala Aboriginal Centre will continue to work upon supportive mechanisms which empower Indigenous students to be pro-active in their studies.

Success

In 1998, national and state indicators for success were 0.73. 1998 figures for UNE are consistent with the state and national rate. In 1999 the success rate was 0.66.

Retention

The retention rate of Indigenous students was 0.83 in 1998. This rate was equal to that achieved in 1999.

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Report on Expenditure

The following information shows sources of funding available for the Oorala Aboriginal Centre and its programs, the expenditure of operating funds, and special project funding.

Operating funds are allocated as a budget to the Oorala Aboriginal Centre and are expended on programs of the Centre. The decision making process for expenditure consists of the Director of Oorala and the line Manager, the Dean of Education Health and Professional Studies. Where necessary, they are guided by the UNE Indigenous Australian Access and Participation Committee.

Contact

Professor Rod Gerber
Dean
Faculty of Education Health and Professional Studies

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