On 22 May 2018, students, their families, Glencore mining representatives and Department of Education staff attended the Galuwa Scholarship Presentation Ceremony.
Students then stayed for a four-day camp to speak with Elders, mentors and a local artist and participated in numerous activities to push them out of their comfort zone and work as a team.
This year’s recipients come from Dungog, Kearsley, Scone, Muswellbrook, Cessnock West, Maitland, Telarah and Bellbird Public Schools.
The Galuwa scholarship is a program that was established in partnership between Glencore and the Department of Education. The program assists Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students in the Hunter Region in their educational journey from senior primary to high school and to develop their later career aspirations.
The program has now been operating for nine years, assisting 130 students, including this year’s group. The program not only provides financial support to ensure they are well equipped at school but also provides them with the opportunity to engage a tutor to help them academically, attend this camp to develop teamwork and confidence, and attend career aspiration days at the University of Newcastle and TAFE NSW. This year we have also planned to provide the students with the opportunity to meet and speak with successful Aboriginal people from different fields of work, and have incorporated a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) activity.
The first groups of scholarship recipients from 2010 and 2011 have now completed their HSC, and many of these students are now enrolled at various universities and other tertiary institutions. They are studying in fields such as Teaching, Science, Engineering, Performing Arts and Law. It has also been very pleasing to see the achievements of the current students, many of whom are in extension classes, and particularly one student who received commendations for coming first in five subjects last year. I hope that we can continue to assist our students into the future.
