Talking the talk is not enough.
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That’s why Albion Park High School principal Suzi Clapham leads the whole school community to continually work hard in a “real way” to deliver the best in Aboriginal education for its students.
Celebrating and promoting “Aboriginality in a non-tokenistic” way has paid off, with the school honoured with an Aboriginal education excellence award at the 12th annual Nanga Mai Awards.
In receiving the Outstanding School and Community Partnership award, Albion Park HS was the only school among 17 academically successful students, confident leaders, talented performing artists and outstanding sportspeople who were also recognised at the award ceremony held in Sydney on March 22.
For Ms Clapham, the award was a “real celebration of the culmination of all the good work that has happened over the last four or five years”.
“I am actually a Murawari woman myself, so for a whole bunch of reasons it is very important to me,” she said.
“I often talk to my kids about not being a living statistic. That you have to work really hard to make sure that you are the very best that you can be.
“And, we work really hard at knowing our kids as individuals. You can talk the talk and say that but when you actually bring communities in and you are working in an ongoing way that is not tokenistic, that makes all the difference.”
We work really hard at knowing our kids as individuals.
- Suzi Clapham
This year Albion Park High School has significantly widened its network of support and increased collaboration with community groups and families in order to ensure positive outcomes for Aboriginal students.
School parents have become involved in contributing to students’ individual learning plans and are invited to participate in a range of cultural events and programs.
Ms Clapham said the school has been unflagging in its ongoing efforts to deliver the best in Aboriginal education for its students.
“I can rattle off any number of programs that our kids are involved in but basically all our community are involved, be it at the academic level, performing arts, cultural, there is science stuff, there’s sport stuff, there is Men’s Shed stuff and there is aboriginal dance with Southern Stars.
“So we try really hard to make it like a drip effect throughout the whole year and for it to be very real.”
Agron Latifi
Wollongong born and bred. I love reporting about the Illawarra region and have been doing it for more than 20 years. I've moved into sport recently after covering the education round for the last five plus years for the Illawarra Mercury. It's been a great pleasure.
Wollongong born and bred. I love reporting about the Illawarra region and have been doing it for more than 20 years. I've moved into sport recently after covering the education round for the last five plus years for the Illawarra Mercury. It's been a great pleasure.
