LORETO NEWS

From the Principal 

Dr Nicole Archard

Towards Reconciliation

I was fortunate in Week 4 of this term to spend fours days at Uluru with the other Australian Loreto Principals where we explored the Uluru Statement from the Heart as well as engaged in Indigenous immersion activities in order to consider how this broader understanding of Indigenous culture and peoples could help to influence our schools’ Reconciliation Action Plans. The subject of the rights of first nations people has been identified as a priority area for the Loreto Sisters and they have encouraged those connected within the Loreto network to reflect on the Uluru Statement as a way of helping us to find a path towards reconciliation including better life, health, and social outcomes for Indigenous Australians. In fact, the last line of the Uluru Statement, “We invite you to walk with us in a movement of the Australian people for a better future”, is asking us to do just that, walk together towards a better future for all. 

 

You can read more about the work of the Loreto Sisters in this area through their website Loreto Australia and South East Asia as well as individual projects led by Mary Ward International Australia. 

 

As a school, Loreto College actively pursues ways in which we can acknowledge and educate our community on the rich culture and heritage of our Indigenous people as well as provide pathways where we can contribute to the process of reconciliation through our explicit Indigenous Education Program. Whilst I reported on some of these initiatives in a Term 2 newsletter after Reconciliation Week, in light of the referendum I thought it was important to communicated further with our community with regard to the College’s approach towards reconciliation. The following outlines some of the actions taken by the College to date:

  • Working with The Smith Family in providing Indigenous Youth Leadership Program (IYLP) scholarships for indigenous students.
  • Engaging all staff and Indigenous students (and are in the process of engaging Indigenous community members with whom we have built connections), in writing the Vision Statement for our Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP) as well as a Loreto College specific Acknowledgement of Country.
  • Conducting an audit across all curriculum areas, Reception to Year 12, to identify where Indigenous culture and recognition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people can be included or further enhanced. 
  • Appointing an Indigenous Student Coordinator. 
  • Purchasing books by Indigenous authors as well as biographies on prominent Indigenous people for both our Junior School and Senior School libraries in order to showcase Indigenous culture, peoples, and stories.  
  • Appointing an Indigenous Student Leader who is part of our student executive team, thus ensuring there is an Indigenous student voice in all student run activities and events. 
  • Holding our first Indigenous student event at the College in February this year, this event was initiated and run by our current Indigenous students and attended by more than 80 Indigenous students from schools across Adelaide. 
  • Replacing our single flagpole in the Senior School with three flagpoles; we are now flying the Australian, Aboriginal, and Torres Strait Islander flags. We are currently working on replicating this in the Junior School. We also have all three flags on smaller portable stands so we can display these at indoor school events.
  • Constructing an Indigenous firepit and yarning circle, located in the Boarding precinct. Our Indigenous girls contributed to the design of this project. This firepit and yarning circle will create a cultural space to gather and celebrate Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander culture. This complements our existing Indigenous yarning circle and Indigenous Garden that is located in the Senior School.
  • Constructing a new garden for students in the Junior School that visually displays the spiritual coming together of the Loreto Values of ‘Freedom, Justice, Verity, Sincerity, and Felicity’ with the Kaurna word ‘Niina Marni’, meaning ‘Hi, how are you?’ 
  • Engaging an Indigenous artist to work with our Indigenous girls in the design of mural that will be located in the Senior School. The story that will be represented through this mural will then create an oral Indigenous history that can be passed down through our school community over time.
  • Providing the opportunity for twenty-eight students and three teachers to attend our first Indigenous Cultural Immersion trip in April this year to learn more about Indigenous culture and engage in a community project. This will now become an annual event.
  • Adding Kaurna Country to our email signature and letterhead, as well as other places where our address is published in order to acknowledge the College is located on Kaurna land.
  • Ensuring that all school events commence with an Acknowledgement of or Welcome to Country. Students also read an Acknowledgement of Country every day in their Homeroom class and at all assemblies.
  • Ensuring that we acknowledge significant dates/events such as the National Apology to Australia’s Indigenous peoples, National Sorry Day, Mabo Day, Reconciliation Week, and NAIDOC Week throughout the year. 
  • For Reconciliation Week this year, the following occurred:
    • All Indigenous students attended the National Reconciliation Week conference online.
    • We held a whole school assembly, Reception to Year 12, led by our Indigenous students, and inclusive of presentations by non-Indigenous students. This assembly included the following activities: a Welcome to Country and Smoking Ceremony by an Indigenous Elder, the teaching of Kaurna words and phrases to all students and staff, a performance by our Reception students who sang ‘Niina Marni’ and a presentation by our Student Indigenous Leader on her story and importance of Indigenous culture.   
    • We held a whole school 'wear it yellow day' to support the Wear it Yellow for Children’s Ground organisation. This organisation raises money and awareness to help children in remote communities in the Northern Territory with education, health, and safe spaces.
    • We raised money by selling donuts in the colours of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander flags for Piriwa Op Shop Enterprise, located in Balga, Western Australia, this organisation supports Aboriginal women in economy and employment.
    • We took our Indigenous students in Years 7 to 10 to Carclew House, where students made connections with other Aboriginal students and elders, they did painting, weaving, carving and produced a rap song, this provided students with an authentic cultural immersion. 
    • Our senior Indigenous students in Years 11 and 12, attended the Lowitja O’Donoghue Oration with guest speaker Hon Anthony Albanese MP who spoke about the importance of constitutional recognition and an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander voice.
    • Dr Sarah Moulds, a Senior Lecturer in Law at the University of South Australia, came to speak to Year 12 students about The Voice and the importance of voting.  
    • All staff participated in a professional development session where we analysed the Uluru Statement of the Heart.   
    • We held a staff morning tea with Indigenous foods e.g., kangaroo salami, crocodile Mettwurst, native fruits, native scones etc. 
    • We tied ribbons in the colours of the Aboriginal flag on the tree trunks of all trees along the street in front of the College in order to promote reconciliation to our community. 
    • We supported the Indigenous sports round, where all students wore Reconciliation ribbons (made by students) and an Acknowledgement of Country was read before each game. 

As you are aware, we are in an important moment of our Australian history as we approach the Referendum on Saturday 14 October. It is quite fitting that this momentous occasion leading towards reconciliation is taking place in our Loreto year of ‘Justice’. 

 

Dr Nicole Archard

Principal