Thirty young men will move into AFL's Cape York House next Friday in an Australia-first that its founders hope will be a template for indigenous educational strageties. The $5 million residential facility will be home to successful applicants from remote indigenous communities who will attend a Cairns High school and graduate with a clear exit plan. General Manager Richard Stewart, who boasts experience as a teacher and government administrator in Arnhem Land, the Kimberley and Papua New Guinea, will live on site and have the support of 12 staff including education and career managers. AFL Cape York has had a presence in indigenous communities for 15 years, but this is an unprecedented step."It's a new project, it fills an area of need and may provide a template for the rest of the country," Mr Stewart said. "There is a large number of students who leave (the) community and go away to boarding schools and have mixed experiences and end up back in their community. "We celebrate success by exception. But the road's littered (with failure). I'm not saying that everything we do is going to work fantastically well. But we'll know what works and what doesn't." Using Australian rules as the hook, staff will assist students in following their preferred pathways while attending either Peace Lutheran College, Redlynch State College, Trinity Bay or Cairns High. Saint Augustine's will take enrolments next year as the intake increases to 48 students. They will also enter junior teams in the AFL Cairns competition, with a home ground at their Buchan St complex. It will not turn into an AFL Academy though, stressed career manager Kane Richter. "AFL is the vehicle to do this because they are interested in it and are good at it, but the focus is providing an exit point once they are done here," he said. "We'll start with resume-writing, cover letters and then work experience, part-time jobs and apprenticeships as they get older." Facilitating the links between Cape York House and each school is education manager Rachel Elphick. "We'll make sure they are getting the support they need and I know from working in the Territory for 10 years that the AFL understands the purpose of engaging kids in sport (to get positive education outcomes)," she said. They are aware it won't all be smooth sailing though. "We make no claims that kids won't let us down from time to time and that's part of being a kid," Mr Richter said. "It will be about respect and building a culture - we hope the kids themselves are part of shaping that."
Photo and article courtesy of Cairns Post
Last Modified on 04/03/2013 11:33