Aboriginal Education National Conference (1986)

Aboriginal Education National Conference held at the University of Newcastle in 1986.

WARNING : Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander listeners are advised that the following Collection may contain audio recordings and voices of people who have died.

Held from the 23rd-24th October 1986, it featured well known Aboriginal leader, academics, and notable identities discussing education within the Indigenous Australian Community's.

Thursday, 23rd October – Chair: Dr Bill Jonas

(WARNING: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander listeners are advised that the following audio recordings may contain voices of people who have died.)

Welcome: Professor Don George, Vice-Chancellor, The University of Newcastle, Australia

‘Beyond School’ – Professor Eric Wilmott, Head of School of Education at James Cook University.

‘Opportunity in Diversity: The Aboriginal Community College, Adelaide’ – Mrs Lillian Holt, Deputy Principle of the Aboriginal Community College in Adelaide.

‘The ASTEC Key Centre’ – Ms Veronica Arbon, Lecturer in Aboriginal Studies, the Aboriginal Studies and Education Centre (ASTEC), South Australia College of Advanced Education. (Veronica pulled out of the conference at the last minuet, so Sonny Flynn filled in and presented a paper on Aboriginal Education.)

‘The Need For Aboriginal Professionals’ – Dr Eve Fesl, Linguist and Director of the Aboriginal Centre at Monash University

‘The Monash Orientation Scheme’ – Mr Isaac Brown, Director of the Monash Orientation Scheme for Aborigines

Friday 24th October – Chair: Dr Bill Jonas

Welcome: Professor John Hamilton, Dean, Faculty of Medicine, The University of Newcastle, Australia

Mr Bob Morgan, President of N.S.W. Aboriginal Education Consultative Group

Mr Barry Thorne, Acting Co-ordinator of the Aboriginal Education Unite, TAFE, Sydney

Mr Errol West, Chairman, National Aboriginal Education Committee, Canberra. (No recording has been found of Errol)

Reflections, Awabakal Tribute, & Final Farewell

The “Newcastle Recordings” is a collection of audio recordings from the late Margaret Henry (1931-2015). Margaret was a history lecturer at the UON and then in the Department of Community Programmes where she was responsible for the Open Foundation course in the 1980s. As an academic at Newcastle University, she is remembered very fondly as a mentor and supportive influence by hundreds of mature aged students and in particular women students. She was responsible for the establishment of innovative new courses and involved the department and her students in many local social and environmental campaigns. She is especially remembered for mentoring Indigenous students and her active involvement in the establishment of indigenous studies at the university.

She encouraged generations of Novocastrians to engage in history and cultural heritage of the region. These recordings document various aspects of life in Newcastle, from education at the University of Newcastle to public meetings and campaigns from 1975 to 1995.

The cassette tapes have been digitised and made freely available to the wider global research community thanks to the generosity of the University of Newcastle Library, Special Collections.

The original audio recordings are held in Special Collections at the Auchmuty Library, University of Newcastle (Australia).

You are welcome to use the sources for study and personal research purposes. Please acknowledge as Courtesy of the “Newcastle Recordings Collection, University of Newcastle (Australia)" For commercial requests you must obtain permission by contacting Special Collections.

If you are the subject of the stories, or know the subject of the stories, and have cultural or other reservations about the stories available on this website and would like to discuss this with us please contact Special Collections.

If you have any further information on the audio files, please leave a comment.