Cathie and her husband Harry have five children: Djulain (21), Alinta (18), Djuarli (17), Djidin (14) and Milarli (12). All of their children’s names are Yamatji, from Harry’s grandmother’s country near Sandstone in Western Australia’s Murchison region.

Always encouraging their children to focus on a good education, Cathie’s oldest son Djulain started the program while at Hedland Senior High School in Year 8 and is now in his third year of university doing a double degree in environmental science and sustainable development.

“When my son graduated in 2007 he was the only Aboriginal boy at the school doing his TEE; last year when my daughter graduated there were only two Aboriginal girls in Year 12 and my daughter was the only one doing TEE,” Cathie said. “My youngest daughter is luckier as there are a big group of high achieving Aboriginal girls in her year who are all supporting and encouraging each other.”

“The Follow the Dream program started in Port Hedland in 2002, and all of my children have participated in the program from Year 8, with my youngest about to start in 2010.

“One of the big issues up here in Port Hedland is that a lot of people want to get school over and done with to earn big dollars at the mines,” she said. “Our family however focuses on different outcomes not necessarily aligned with mining so we want our children to explore all the opportunities presented to them and keep their options open.”

When her son Djulain started the program, Cathie was keen to take advantage of whatever additional assistance was available, initially seeing the tutoring as the key benefit, as well as a space outside the family home to study.

“The school itself only offers a couple of TEE subjects, so if students want to do other subjects they have to undertake long distance education, so having tutors on hand is really important,” she said. “Housing up here is very expensive and often over crowded, so having a quiet place to study is essential.”

The support from teachers extends beyond school work and according to Cathie gives students a broader perspective outside of the town’s boundaries.“A lot of our teachers are from overseas and elsewhere in Australia, so they can show the kids it’s not just about getting a local job; it opens their eyes to a world of possibilities.”

Despite the benefits of the program, Cathie reinforces that family support is the key to children achieving at school and getting the most out of the program.“Education has to be valued and important to the parents for the kids to want to put in the extra work and go to the centre,” she said.

“That said, I know for a fact that without the Follow the Dream support my children wouldn’t have done as well, I would have had to seriously consider breaking up my family and sending them to boarding school, so it’s true to say that this program has meant I can keep my family together.”

Cathie McGrath
Port Hedland

When analysing Djidin’s data as part of the acceptance process it was clear that her data was lower than any other student at the partnership. After her interview we decided to accept her as we could see she had potential to achieve success with the support of the centre through tutoring. After attending the partnership for only one semester Djidin had improved grades and her confidence in herself had grown. By the end of the first year Djidin was moved into a higher class. At first she was very nervous about not being able to achieve adequately in this class however as she attended the centre and worked with the tutors she soon found that she could keep up with the other students.

Djidin’s confidence grew and she began to trust that by working harder she could improve her grades in all areas. By the end of 2009 Djidin had one of her stories published in an education publication. At school Djidin has now been placed into the potential TEE stream class and is coping very well. Djidin now works steadily towards her goal of either going to WAAPA and studying drama or going into a science course where she can work with animals.

Djidin’s sister Djuarli entered the program in March 2005 as a Year 8 student. She was a very quiet and shy, but conscientious student. Djuarli attended the program most afternoons to do her homework as well as extension work with tutors. Djuarli struggled with some of her subjects at school but the program provided her with the opportunity to keep up with her work. Throughout the four years Djuarli attended the centre her grades at school and her personal confidence grew. Djuarli graduated Year 12 in 2009 and is now at Murdoch University in the course of her choice.

Elke Rhodes
Project Coordinator
Port Hedland