My name is Kristy Kennedy, I am 25 years old, and I am from the Barkinji (north-west NSW) and Ngarrendjeri (Coast of SA) Nations. I was born and raised in Bourke where I did most of my schooling, before attending boarding school at St Scholastica’s College in Glebe, where I completed my HSC.

My mother insisted that I return to Bourke for 12 months, and during this time I worked as an Aboriginal Teacher’s Aide at my old primary school. Upon entering university, I enrolled for a Combined Bachelor of Arts/Law through the Koori Centre’s Cadigal Program.

I lived on campus at the Women’s College for the first few years, then I moved into private accommodation while I worked for the NSW Attorney General’s Department and studied part-time.

In 2006, I completed a Winter Clerkship with a large corporate law firm, Allens Arthur Robinson, and at the end of 2006, I commenced a cadetship with the firm under the National Indigenous Cadetship Program.

The cadetship involves me working full-time during my summer vacation (12 weeks) at Allens Arthur Robinson, and receiving a study allowance during Semester 1 and 2 of the University calendar.

I recently graduated from my Bachelor of Arts with a major in Aboriginal Studies, and I am now completing my Bachelor of Law. I have returned to live at the Women’s College and am enjoying the opportunity to return to full-time study without financial pressure to engage in employment that is not essential to my study.

I'm very fortunate that during my study I received tremendous support from family and friends, the Koori Centre, the Women’s College, the University of Sydney Law Faculty, and from legal professionals who act as my mentors.

University is a wonderful environment in which to be challenged academically, but it also provides you with essential life skills to cope with the wider experiences that all students face upon entering the work force as graduates. I have struggled through my studies for personal and financial reasons, but due to the wonderful support that I received, I have been able to continue studying, with the goal of completion of my Bachelor of Law now in sight. On completion of my Bachelor of Law, I will endeavour to enter the legal profession.

I encourage any student to consider opportunities that are presented to them, including tertiary study. Attending university was not something that I really thought about, but now that I reflect back on when I first enrolled I can appreciate all of my experiences, and the opportunities that university has presented me – opportunities that I had never dreamed of.

My name is Ryan Bulger I am a Koori man from the Wiradjuri country of NSW. In 2006 I was approached by the University Sport Union to come to Sydney and play cricket for the University. I was living in Canberra at the time and was looking to improve my chances to play cricket as a professional. I took up the offer and later that year moved to Sydney and worked for the NSW Cricket association. During the summer the sports union suggested I should study, not having done well at school and not having done any study for around eight years I was quite apprehensive to say the least, but with great support from the Koori Centre at the University I was able to apply and get in. Now in 2009 I am in my third year of a Bachelor of Human Movement Degree, enjoying University life and looking forward to graduating next year and furthering myself as an educator not only for Indigenous Australian students but also non-Indigenous students.

My name is Adam Ridgeway and I am Sydney College of the Arts studying my Bachelor of Visual Arts, Object Art and Design (Honours). After four years of study at Sydney I have found that it’s really not just about getting a degree, it's about finding out where you want to go and what you really enjoy in life.

Since I began my course in 2005 I have been able to engage with my Aboriginality and use my work as a means to express the concerns and issues that are effecting a new generation of Aboriginal people. I would never have thought that I would be exhibiting around Australia and internationally when I was at school but I guess it wouldn’t have meant as much to me if I known exactly what I wanted to do then.

I have been on the ITAS tuition scheme and it has been crucial to reaching, maintaing and pushing the results I have received. As a result my work has been exhibited in competitions such as the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Award in Darwin, the Gold Coast International Art Award and the 4th World International Ceramic Biennale in Korea to name a few.

The most important thing I have come to realise is that tutoring is not for people who are failing, it is for people who want to achieve and perform at a higher level than they currently are.

Being able to live at International House (an international college on campus) has enriched my whole university experience. My studies have been able to help me understand that as a new generation of Indigenous students we have to think whether a black or white approach is the way in which to catagorise ourselves.

We all come from so many different backgrounds and cultures and programs such as AIME are crucial in that they acknowledge the complex culture makeup of kids today and how important they are for the future understanding and interpretation of Aboriginal culture in Australia.

The most important thing about the Koori Centre for me is that they have been there at the university for me. It doesn’t matter who you are, what you are studying or what your aspirations are, there is always someone there to talk to and to help you achieve whatever it is that you set out to do.

Hi, (Dhanggu nyuwayi Caroline Bradshaw), my name is Caroline Bradshaw, (Ngaya Dhanggati), I am Dhanggati. Dhanggati country is one of the prettiest places on the North Coast and homes the Macleay Valley, Kempsey, South West Rocks, Bellbrook areas.

I am the eldest daughter of seven children born to Ellis and Jacqueline Bradshaw. I was born at Macksville just off country as my mum and dad lived at Warrell Creek, but now live back home in Kempsey. I am a very proud mother of three boys and grandmother of four grandsons and almost three granddaughters.

My education started at Green Hill Public School at the age of five in 1965, while living with my mum’s sister's family at Green Hill Aboriginal Reserve, a fringe dwelling just out of Kempsey. My family then moved into Kempsey town and I attended Kempsey West Public School. The move was a huge step for my family as we were moving away from the security of extended family and placed in a street with no other Aboriginal people. The new school was so scary, it was the first year Aboriginal children were allowed to attend with non-Aboriginal children in Kempsey and none of my cousins started with me. It was mainly all whites and I had to catch a bus as well. One good thing came from the move, I met my very best friend Lucy, a non-Aboriginal girl (blood sister for life). Lucy lived up the road and was in my class at school. She helped me deal with all the hardships of racism other people and kids inflicted upon me including members of her own family.

My High School years saw me at Kempsey High and with the encouragement of one of my teachers I went through to 1st Term of year 11. I was aiming to finish year 12, but I was the only Aboriginal student in that year and I found the isolation too hard to continue so I moved on to TAFE enrolling in an Office Training course. On completion of the course I worked for a little while with the Aboriginal Land Council and then traveled to Sydney with my partner and found myself working for The Department of Aboriginal Affairs (DAA) at North Sydney as a Clerical Assistant.

The birth of my eldest son and the fact my mother took him and wouldn't give him back saw us return home to Kempsey. I started work as a Field Officer at DAA Port Macquarie Office. Two years later I was pregnant with my second son. It was after the birth of my baby (third son) and the fact that I wanted to be home when my sons were home that I started working for The Department of Education at Green Hill Public School as an Aboriginal Education Assistant (AEA). With my permanent appointment in 1990 came my enrollment at The University of Sydney, Koori Centre, AEA Certificate and Diploma Program. It’s with thanks to the staff at the Koori Centre, I was then able to continue my studies at the Australian Catholic University, where I gained my Bachelor of Teaching in1996.

Looking back on my own struggles and the struggles of our young people today, I feel there is a need, not only to revive our languages but revive to our people those values that once saw our people as a danger to the invaders. It is so important to our own identity and self esteem that respect, pride, language and culture is once again valued.

It is because of these reasons that I have enrolled in the Masters of Indigenous Languages Education. I believe so many of our adults and children are lost and find it hard to cope in today’s society. Our children’s inner strength, identity, pride and respect are the things that they need to survive in a world where they are so outcast within their own Country.

This course provides me with the skills I need to decipher the written languages of linguists. It allows me the opportunity to investigate good teaching practices for teaching language. It also provides me with the opportunity to see how Aboriginal languages work eg: language phonetics, sentence structure etc…. and the advantages/disadvantages of technology.

I see myself as a tool for the people of the Dhanggati nation, using what I have learnt within this course to support my people in their struggle to revitalise our language.