Federal Education Minister Julie Bishop visited Charles Darwin University on Wednesday (15 November) for talks with Vice-Chancellor, Professor Helen Garnett.
Ms Bishop concluded her campus visit by meeting staff and students of the Indigenous Youth Mobility Program at CDU’s School for Australian Indigenous Knowledge Systems.
She handed out certificates of acknowledgement to Aboriginal students who have been studying a range of VET subjects under the program, which is run by Mission Australia with the assistance of CDU's Indigenous Academic Support Unit.
The Darwin-based Indigenous Youth Mobility Program is one of 10 centres established throughout Australia by the Australian Government to give young people from remote communities the chance to further their education.
Students stay in hostel accommodation in the major cities, and choose which VET or higher education courses they want to study with the aim of eventually returning to their community to fill labour needs.
Ms Bishop congratulated the students on their commitment to their studies, and said they were trail-blazers for their communities.
‘This is a significant government program that aims to support at least 600 people from rural and remote regions in allowing them access to educational opportunities,’ she said.
‘Education is fundamental, the essential building block in getting a job and making a contribution to your community.’
Ms Bishop was guest of honour at a dinner on Wednesday night at the Karawa Restaurant on the Palmerston campus of CDU, where the meals were prepared by VET cookery students.