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Arrow supports QUT camp by Miguel Holland 19 April 2014
S
ixty year 9 and 10 students from the Gladstone and Moreton Bay regions will get a taste of university life next week at QUT, thanks to a partnership between Arrow Energy and QUT’s Oodgeroo Unit. The Indigenous students will spend four days [April 23-26] at QUT’s Caboolture and Gardens Point campuses, for the Go Further! QUT Camp Experience. The camp is free as QUT and Arrow cover the costs for all participants including all meals, accommodation and activities. “Some Indigenous students worry that a tertiary education is not for them,” Arrow Energy Community Relations Manager Glenda Viner said. “This camp is about showing these 14 and 15-year-olds that university is a real option for them.” Students attending the camp will receive information on courses and careers, entry programs, financial assistance and support services. They will participate in a variety of activities on campus and receive additional information from current Indigenous students to assist them in making decisions about their post-school options. The camp includes a number of information sessions, outdoor adventure activities, cultural sessions by local Traditional Owners and a National Rugby League match between the Arrowsponsored Brisbane Broncos and South Sydney Rabbitohs at Suncorp Stadium. “This camp is tailored to deliver Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students an enjoyable and interactive opportunity to explore their tertiary studies, training and
Above and below: Students from the 2013 Arrow QUT camp . Gladstone and Caboolture teenagers will take part in an Indigenous youth camp at QUT in Brisbane and Caboolture next week
career options,” Ms Viner said. “It is part of Arrow’s commitment to Indigenous reconciliation.” QUT’s Oodgeroo Unit Director Professor Anita Lee Hong said the Go Further camps exposed Indigenous students to higher education and long-term career goals. “The camp is a great opportunity for students to see university as a possible pathway as well as discover the range of disciplines that are available,” Professor Lee Hong said. “Also hearing from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander QUT student ambassadors gives participants real life examples of working towards achieving your
goals.” Students had to complete a fourpage application form with a signed recommendation from their school to attend the camp. Arrow’s camp funding comes from its Brighter Futures community investment program which, last year, provided more than $4.6 million to 117 community projects across Queensland. This is the second Go Further QUT Camp. Last year, almost 100 students took part in activities from crime-solving exercises with the Faculty of Law to computer game design with the Science and Engineering Faculty. For video, visit: http:// www.youtube.com/ watch?v=CuqAYoDLoYk
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