The Adelaide Football Club has partnered with Generation Australia and Tauondi Aboriginal College to deliver its new Junior Web Developer program and encourage the participation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in the tech sector.
The demand-led Junior Web Developer program will prepare students with the technical and behavioural skills to quickly find employment in the industry.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people make up nearly zero per cent of STEM professionals in Australia, according to research from Indigitek.
With 75 per cent of Australia’s workforce expected to be made up of STEM professionals by 2025, there is a great need to provide pathways for participation in STEM-based careers within the community.
The Adelaide Football Club will provide launch support and promote course placement opportunities to its Youth Academy alumni as a commitment of the clubs focus to building opportunities beyond football for their players.
Tauondi Aboriginal College will offer Generation Australia’s course to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in Adelaide and provide physical space on the campus for participants to complete the online course, as well as support services for participants.
Tauondi Aboriginal College is an independent organisation based in Adelaide and governed by the Aboriginal community that has provided Aboriginal Vocational Education and Training since its foundation in 1973.
Jeremy Johncock, Indigenous Programs Manager at Adelaide Football Club, says the Club is excited to assist in launching this initiative to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community in Adelaide, and was confident it would provide pathways to meaningful employment for participants from day one.
"Generation Australia has an incredibly thorough and supportive employee consultation process from beginning to end,” Johncock said.
“From the selection of diverse participants, to the social support and ongoing mentoring they receive to ensure long term retention with their new employers, we know each participant in this new initiative will be supported to their full potential.
“The Crows have a proud legacy of creating and supporting programs that advocate for young people and we’re only too happy to help build the starting blocks for this program to help Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in Adelaide move into meaningful careers in tech.”
Brenz Saunders, Board member for Tauondi, says the partnership is a natural fit due to Generation Australia’s methodology in training the whole person, instilling behavioural as well as technical knowledge.
“Tauondi Aboriginal College prides itself on providing more than just skills in its education. Through our courses, we uphold Aboriginal cultures and identities in ways that respect traditional lore and custom and the diversity of students’ experiences and ambitions.”
“Tauondi is excited to be working with a like-minded organisation that has social impact embedded in its mission and creates programs that equip participants with the right skills and mindset to move into in-demand jobs,” says Mr Saunders.
Malcolm Kinns, CEO of Generation Australia, says the partnership model created with Tauondi will be used to offer career paths to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people all around the country in future.
“Generation Australia’s approach is to seek partners who are embedded in the communities they aim to serve. By partnering with organisations who exist to drive actual change, we’re able to bring our proven methodology to training and development and make it available within networks of people who have traditionally faced barriers to employment,” says Malcolm Kinns, CEO, Generation Australia.
“Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are one of the key groups Generation Australia seeks to assist, and with the help of partners such as Tauondi and other organisations around Australia that we can help facilitate greater participation in the tech space for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.”
