CEO's Welcome
At our wonderful Student Celebration Dinner at the MCG on 4 December I shared the following reflections with students and families on the stories that bring meaning to the MITS experience.
At MITS, we often call on the stories and knowledge systems of our students and our communities to give meaning to life at MITS. We reference the seasons of the Wurundjeri Woiwurrung to mark the seasons of growth that students move through at MITS. We reflect on Namarrkon – Lighting Man, from the knowledge of the Gunmok people of the Stone Country– to articulate the brilliant release of potential energy that students experience in Melbourne. And at Lockington, Bunjil, the Creator Eagle, sits above the front door, watching over and looking after students and staff as they come and go from their home-away-from-home in Melbourne.
Perhaps our most deeply engrained metaphor is that of the pandanus weavings of Arnhem Land. The MITS logo – with a student at its centre – is based on these pieces of art. If you’ve been to any of our boarding houses you will have seen these beautiful weavings, from Gunbalanya, Maningrida, Ramingining, Gapuwiyak, Milingimbi, Galiwin’ku, Jabiru and more.
They hold two stories for us at MITS.
The first story, is one of hard work. The story of education. These weavings are the product of incredibly hard work for the women who create them. Their strength to remove pandanus fronts from the palms. The care to strip them into fine fibres. The patience to allow them to dry. The expertise to forage for bush dyes and colour each fibre. And then, the mastery of a complex skill, to create extraordinary pieces of weaving.
As in education, the process is long and laborious, requiring commitment, patience and care. The end product is only possible if each step is diligently followed.
The second story is one of cohesion and connection. Because individually, there is nothing particularly strong, or useful, or beautiful about a pandanus fibre. But when they are woven together they become all of those things – strong, purposeful, and beautiful.
Just as a student sits at the centre of our MITS logo, in our brilliant MITS weaving, and in tonight’s celebration, our students are at the centre. To our younger continuing students: congratulations on another year of hard work, of commitment to your education and to furthering yourself here in Melbourne. There is more work to come, but you are well on the path to becoming a master weaver.
To our Year 12s, we are so, so proud of you. What an extraordinary journey you’ve been on. In 2019 Bruce went on ABC Breakfast TV, Ruby ran onto the MCG with the Tigers on Grand Final Day, and Adam bear hugged Dusty Martin, the Treasurer, the Prime Minister and the Governor General, amongst others. In 2020 you navigated COVID lockdowns after just weeks in your new partners schools, and we loved having so many of you as part of the Darwin Hub.
As you leave MITS tonight, you do so as master weavers. We are so excited to see you step beyond MITS, to use the skills that you’ve honed through your education to weave the most brilliant creations, connections and communities.
On behalf of everyone at MITS, I wish our MITS community – our students, families, home communities, pathways schools, staff, volunteers and supporters – a very happy and restful break.
Edward Tudor
CEO