The Indigenous Land Corporation (ILC) has assisted Worawa Aboriginal College to implement a plan for enhancing educational programs for Aboriginal youth and overcoming environmental problems.
Worawa Aboriginal College is Victoria’s only registered, Independent Aboriginal school and is located on 55 ha of land that was once part of Corranderk Aboriginal Station near Healesville.
ILC Chairperson, Shirley McPherson, said “It is a great pleasure to be able to support the College. They have a proud history and have achieved a number of successes in education and land management over the years. I know that the ILC’s support, together with their ongoing work, will provide a great variety of benefits to many young Aboriginal people”.
Worawa teaches Aboriginal cultural heritage and values while drawing on the best of Western education, and serves up to 50 Aboriginal children and youth from around Victoria and interstate.
The college is in its twenty-first year and to celebrate its past achievements and reflect upon future plans is holding a Foundation Day on Thursday 4th August 2005 at the property.
Lois Peeler, Vice President of Worawa Committee of Management said, “The ILC’s assistance of approximately $240,000 is a key component of the college’s plans for land management and land management education. It will be used to provide equipment and infrastructure to allow us to undertake conservation, restoration, and cultural activities, and later, develop educational
tourism to generate supplementary income”.
Following Worawa’s application for assistance, the ILC held a workshop and field assessment of the property to get a better understanding of their proposal.
Worawa then developed a comprehensive Property Management Plan, which emphasises respect for the environment and renewal of the land by identifying ways to overcome the effects of erosion and pest plant and animal infestations associated with past land clearance, cropping and grazing. The plan includes partnerships with other land care and education providers.
The ILC assessed the plan to be viable and sustainable in the long-term, while also developing the school’s capacity to provide property management skills and other educational benefits to Indigenous.
ENDS
Enquiries: re the Foundation Day at Worawa College, call Lynne Murray, 03 5962 4344
Enquiries re the ILC, call Peter Keough, (08) 8100 7106, 0409 090 852
The ILC assists education and the environment at Worawa Aboriginal College