IT MAY fall in school holidays this year, but that didn’t stop students from The Armidale School and Minimbah Aboriginal School from coming together to stage a special NAIDOC Week assembly at TAS before the end of term.
NAIDOC (The National Aborigines and Islanders Day Observance Committee) Week falls from 7-13 July, but the growing relationship between the two schools stretches across the year.
Aboriginal students from TAS ran the assembly, during which they gave a history of the Yirrkala Bark Petitions of 1963 (the theme for 2013 NAIDOC Week), paid tribute to the life of Yothu Yindi singer and activist Mr Yunupingu, and heard a message of goodwill from former Indigenous student and TAS prefect Levi Kirkbright-McKenzie, who is studying medical science at Melbourne University.
A short video was screened about the relationship between TAS and Minimbah, which includes weekly visits for reading and play, and a joint athletics carnival with TAS Junior School. The assembly wrapped up with three indigenous dances performed by the indigenous students.
TAS has 14 Indigenous students, who are primarily on scholarships provided by the Yalari Foundation and the Australian Indigenous Education Fund.
TAS Headmaster Murray Guest said the assembly had developed in recent years to be a highlight on the school calendar and was a chance to both celebrate the achievements of the school’s Aboriginal students and recognise that NAIDOC Week is an important symbol in the path to reconciliation for our country.
“While students heard about the Yirrkala Bark Petitions and its importance in Australian legal and constitutional development, the real focus of the assembly was on our community, recognising the unique connection that Aboriginals and Torres Strait Islanders share to country, and how we can help build an Australia that reflects the achievements and furthers the aspirations of Indigenous people,” Mr Guest said.
