Promoting Aboriginal Leadership in Schools (PALS)

The following notes are adapted from a presentation by Jo-Anne Fahey:

• PALS is a program run jointly by Campbelltown City Council, the Aboriginal Education Consultative Group and the Department of Education and Training.
  
  
• The main role of PALS is to promote Aboriginal leadership and give Aboriginal kids a voice in the schools.
  
  
• At he same time, it is intended to motivate students to participate in school activities and prepare for the world beyond school.
  
  
• In 2003, nine schools were targeted across the Campbelltown, Liverpool, Fairfield and Bankstown Districts.
  
  
• Schools each selected four students to participate.
  
  
• Criteria for selection were Aboriginality and identified potential leadership qualities.
  
  
• Benefits for students included
  • Increased self-confidence
  • Self-motivation
  • Engagement in learning
  • Increased participation in school-based leadership programs
  • Reduced absenteeism.
  • Improved outcomes.
  • Retention at school.
    
    
• Benefits for school and community included
  • Improved communication between home and school
  • Improved partnerships and access.
  • Student empowerment and development of networks.
  • Student-led change.
  • Increased participation in 'Youth Councils' by Aboriginal students.
    
    
• The road ahead (Term 4, 2003)
  • School Initiative Evaluation
  • Student Award Nights at regional and school level (organised by PALS students)
    
    
• The road ahead (2004 and beyond)
  • Induction of new student leaders and ongoing training.
  • Development of a 'Junior AECG'.
  • Linking with business, including
    • Business mentoring.
    • Workshops with successful business leaders and visits to successful enterprises.
    • Workshops with local and State government leaders, visits to centres of government.
    • Links with the Aboriginal Careers Aspiration Program (ACAP).

Jo-Anne Fahey explains further:

We selected one student from each district to be involved in a 'train the trainer' program. Then we took them aside for a day with AECG people and other Aboriginal community members and trained them in public speaking skills, meeting procedures and something about project management. And we made sure that an AEA was involved in each of those learning groups, so there were benefits for them as well.

On that day, the kids also spent a little bit of time planning the workshops that they were going to run with the whole group of PALS students. They had cultural advice from the AECG members about leadership and how to go about it.

Then we brought together the whole group at a conference centre and they had a series of one hour workshops, led by the leadership group. Some of the leaders were extremely nervous but they all did it, and did it well. They had support from AEAs and other people like me, but mostly they did it themselves.

One of the girls who was the most nervous later applied to be an exchange student in Japan and was accepted. The same student made a presentation at our inter-district SRC camp, doing the same workshops she'd done for the PALS students. She actually was showing them how to run a specific project, based on how to plan NAIDOC day. And that was for Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal students.

There are lots of opportunities in schools for kids to use these skills… running assemblies, end of year speech nights, ASSPA events, student award nights.