MEET OUR 2022 NT ACADEMY STUDENTS BELOW

My name is Amity, I am a fast-tracked year 11 student completing the Certificate III within a year, following on from my completion of a Certificate II in Health Support Services through Mater Education in Brisbane last year.

I am a 17-year-old Wiradjuri woman born in Wagga Wagga, NSW. Due to my parents’ professions, I’ve lived in Wagga Wagga, Townsville, Brisbane and now here, Darwin, not by choice. I am attending my 7th school, Palmerston Senior College. I have dreams and goals for the future and after school to continue my studies in dentistry. Currently I am on work placement at Oral Health Services on Tuesdays. Amelia Speed (my supervisor) is very welcoming and patient, she is willing to take time out of her day at work to teach and familiarise me with dental terminology and providing hands on activities to ensure I get the most out of work placement with her.

I enjoyed working with the Oral Health team and would like to thank you for allowing me to do work placement with you all, I enjoyed learning about the different areas of dentistry. Gaining the knowledge from my work placement at Oral Health Services has opened my eyes to a passionate interest in becoming a dental technician. I was introduced to the IAHA Academy through Stars Foundation at school which has gained me a lot of knowledge about health and overall connecting me to other first nations people throughout Australia. One thing I like about the academy is despite where we came from and who we are as a person, the staff support and accept us for who we are and help us bypass obstacles and isn’t realistically set up from a school’s perspective, meaning it’s not all about work and pushing us to choose a career despite our young age, IAHA encourages us to slowly prepare for the future and does wellbeing sessions as a class to check in on everyone.

I do hope to achieve my desired career in dentistry despite being told “you’re not smart enough for a career like that”.

My name is Dakota Burrenjuk and I am from Tiwi islands and Belyuen. I am in year 12 and board and school at Haileybury Rendell, I like being at school with my friends it makes me happy, I also love being out bush back home because it is so calming.

My dream for the future is to further study dental technology and that is what I am interested on pursuing as a potential career. I joined the academy to get a Certificate III in Allied Health as an extra certificate to have with me, and also to find something that has a positive impact on my life.

I like the academy because everyone respects each other and is friendly, I also get a lot of help and guidance about school and help with options and pathways for after school & further study. The Academy is always the highlight of my week and hotpot Wednesdays are always the best!

My name is Brydie Williams; I am a young Larrakia and Torres Strait Islander women, I am currently a year 11 student at O’Loughlin Catholic College. I’ve lived in Darwin all my life with majority of my dad sides family.

I joined the IAHA National Academy (NT) to kickstart a career into health, as I was interested in health but wasn’t sure what I wanted to do within the sector. Although I was unsure, I partially had my eyes set on a career in Psychology.

I am still interested in Psychology and would like to pursue a career in clinical Psychology in the future. I want to pursue this career to give back to my community and people by trying to specialise in vulnerable youth, to help young Indigenous children in communities who can’t access those services because of being remote.

Recently with my work placement I got to go on remote trip to take a client back to country and I really enjoyed it, and it ensured me that I want to do something to help struggling remote communities.

I like how the Academy is flexible, inclusive and gives me a break from school twice a week. I also like the hands-on teaching approach and would recommend to any young Indigenous students who would like to go into a career in the Allied health sector. The Academy has exceeded my expectations because I thought it would be the same every week but is not.

Hi, my name is Adele Godfrey, I’m in year 11 I go to boarding school here in Darwin at Marrara Christian College. I come from a small remote community called Newcastle Waters (Marlinja) and my tribe is Mudburra and Garawa in Robinson River.

I love going out bush, hunting, fishing, and camping I also love music.

My dream is to become a doctor so that I can help and work within my community as well as different communities to help more Aboriginal people. I’m interested in the health industry because becoming a doctor will be my impact in the future and I love helping sick people get better, mainly old but even young people, I believe we need more Aboriginal doctors because some Aboriginal people don’t understand what’s being said, some might only speak language but if there’s an Indigenous doctor it would be more understanding.

I joined the NT Academy because I thought it would be best for me and my future. I really like the Academy because there’s a lot of support and help and a lot of kind people. I’m so glad I got this opportunity.

My name is Tyson M Ryan, and I am 17 years old. I go to Haileybury Rendall School in Berrimah. My tribe is the Gurindji mob from Wavehill/Kalkaringi but I grew up in Maningrida and speak Buarra. My skin name is Ngarritj.

I play Bass Guitar and I love baking cakes and brownies. My dream is to one day play for the Boomers in the Olympics for basketball and represent my community and my culture in the big lights. Sport science and physiology really interest me as an athlete and because we need more of those kind of people in remote communities.

I found out about the NT academy because my friends were attending it and were telling me a lot of good things about it and how much support they get and how much fun they have.

When I first started, I was quiet and shy but as I started getting comfortable, I was getting loud and started talking more and became confident working with opposite genders, I like the help and support we get and that we get to meet different students from other schools, we also get paid doing it and we get fed there which is good too.

My name is Justice Jacqueline Gnula Walker, I am a Gooreng woman from Gooreng Gooreng tribe around central Queensland freshwater region.

I am 17 years old in grade 12, I attend Mackillop Catholic College. I have been passionate about working in health since a child, I always forced my little brother to play nurse with me and he would be an injured patient. I have since started this dream from a young age, ranging from lifeguarding to disability support care. I have impulsive goals that I tend to achieve within a short amount of time. My next goal is to go to University to study nursing, whist in University I want to do marine ranging or disability support care, or both.

I joined the academy at the beginning of year 12, my mum tried forcing me into it at the beginning of year 11 but I wasn’t ready as I thought it would be too much. I since have been so blessed grateful that I was encouraged to do this course. From day 1 when Gabe cracked jokes and told us about hotpot Wednesdays it has been a welcoming environment. NT academy has helped me align my future through exposing me to the many different pathways I could take to become a nurse and showed how many opportunities I really have. Even though I am doing my ATAR as well as this course, I have had moments of stress but overall, I’ve gotten through it with the support of the people around me. I like that in the academy environment I am treated well by the students and staff, I have had a great amount of support from the academy staff especially when I started to feel the pressure from school and work.

I believe that being surrounded by positive staff and peers in an encouraging environment has helped me achieve a lot of my goals because they prioritised our emotional wellbeing which played such a significant role in my capabilities.

My name is Brooke Shields, I’m 17 years old, born and raised in Darwin, and currently in Year 12 at Mackillop Catholic College.

My grandfather is Larrakia, and my grandmother is Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara – APY Lands descent.

An interesting fact about me is I’m the middle child. I joined IAHA NT Academy this year as I was uncertain about my future and wanted a change of environment outside of the school routine.

After the second week of the Academy, I realised it was an advantage to have a Certificate III in Allied Health Assistance with workplace knowledge during high school. Whilst attending training and placement I’ve thought about the possibility of leading into a career in nursing or exercise/sport science.

In the future, I hope to travel around Australia and overseas to help others. The academy staff have been very supportive this year with school and the course. I like the academy because of the interactive way of learning which we wouldn’t get at school, the excursions, games, riddles, and hot pot Wednesday’s.

My name is Kori Holland, I am 16 years old, and I go to CSC. My family come from Darwin and surrounding areas.

I like to watch all genres of movies and listen to music.

I want to have a successful future and possibly go down the health pathway. What interests me about health is all the different areas it branches off to, I enjoy learning about all the different body systems and applying my learning to my daily life.

I first joined the Academy after being recommended the course from one of my teachers, I still wasn’t sure of the career I wanted to pursue but I knew this course could give me qualifications for any future jobs. The Academy is a very caring environment and helps me to get my work done and the staff are helpful and teach the topics in a way which is understandable.

My peers are supportive and are good listeners which create a good environment for group learning. When I first started in the academy, I remember feeling very nervous, I don’t open up very quickly and don’t really like public speaking but doing the academy icebreakers and activities helped me to open up and gain confidence.

Hi, my name is Bowen Smith I am seventeen from Darwin High School, my mob is from Ngarrindjeri.

Things I like to do outside of the Academy is play basketball and footy. An interesting fact about me is I DJ.

My future goals are to become a professional in what I do whether that be in the health or DJ industry. Things I like about the health industry is that you are always working with other people to help clients with their health needs. I joined the NT Academy because I wanted to be a part of the health industry. In the NT Academy I learn lots of new things about allied health. I also have lots of fun at IAHA because of all the welcoming teachers and students.

I was first exposed to the NT Academy whilst attending an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander male work force expo. At the expo I met Gabe and some of the previous NT Academy students where they told me about the academy. After the expo Gabe and the NT team reached out to have an interview.

Since being at IAHA I have learnt lots of new things on how the human body works and how to communicate with all sorts of clients and workers. NT Academy has also taught me things about the real world such as how to save money, pay taxes and how to cook. At NT Academy it is very easy and quick to learn as the teachers help a lot and adapt to your working capabilities.

I enjoy NT Academy because I get to spend time with great teachers and great people from different schools around Darwin. I have made lots of new friends from different schools. I have also met lots of employers in the health industry where I can potentially work in the future. I also enjoy the great feeds and conversations we have.

Overall NT Academy has helped me with growth and development in the workforce and professional settings. I look forward to continuing my journey with IAHA and in the health workforce.

My name is Emma Lewis Alum I’m a student from Haileybury Rendall School as well as allied health academy. I’m 17 years old and have been aiming to be a nurse or midwife.

I’m from Tennant Creek, my mob is from Elliot and Alice springs.

Dad’s parents Granddad’s country is Mudbarra /Jingili and my nana’s is Pita Pita. An interesting fact about me would be my artistic skills and very quiet personality. My dream is to have a stable job and a home that a can share with my little family members being like a fun aunt basically.

My interest in the academy formed when learning the human anatomy during art classes in addition to taking initiative of my life unlike other people I know. What’s unique about me my appearance and the way I think. I love how the academy is not forced like school for example like asking to go to the toilet we just let them know, overall is its chill if you do your work friendly team and unique guest speakers. I see myself in Darwin in five years working at in an office possibly.

My name is Jesse Butcher, I’m 16 years old, and my mob are Luritja, Arrentre from Papunya and Ntaria, Alice Springs.

I started at Haileybury Rendell School in 2021, I had moved up from Alice Springs, it was scary moving to a new school not knowing many people. I enjoy playing guitar and I hope to become an NRL player or a professional barber, I’d also like to do physiotherapy because I come from an athletic family, and it be good to use my knowledge as a future physiotherapist to provide rehab.

I joined the Academy to learn more about the different body systems and how the body works. I enjoy the academy because it is a good opportunity to open doors for me in the future, I also like the support that staff give me and that it is a culturally safe environment with all my friends. I found out about the NT Academy through current students in the program and told me how much support they get in the program. The things I heard in the program was the Deadly feeds, the guest speakers, and the other pathways you could potentially go into either health or other courses.

When I first joined the NT Academy, I was really shy and really nervous. I never knew I was going to make friends. Building relationships with the staff and students made me build my confidence up an have a good experience. My highlight so far in the academy is the leadership session I participated because it shows some emotions and some things you have common with some of the students, and it shows how strong your peers are. After the session I felt strong and empowered and determined to do amazing things.

My name is Dakota Paterson I am 17 years old I go to Casuarina Senior College. I was born and raised in Darwin, my family is the Larrakia people, the traditional owners of the land. I enjoy being around friends and family, going to the gym in my free time and working on myself.

I’m not completely sure what I want to do in the future, but the Academy has given me a lot of new information and choices of pathways into the health industry. I am learning new things every day. In the last couple of years, I have been around the medical/hospital setting allot and realised I was interested in going down that pathway as a potential occupation in the future.

I first heard of the NT Academy through a student that had already started the year before and knew I wanted to pick up a vet course, my teachers and peers knew that I was interested in health and encouraged me to apply for NT Aboriginal Health Academy. The reason I like the NT academy is because of the relationships we have all built with each other and we are more than a classroom its different than a school setting the teachers respect us and treat us like young adults. They show that they care about us individually and want us to succeed and keep us motivated.

My highlight since started in the Academy is the community engagement opportunities outside of Academy class. Last term (Term 3) I helped run the High School 2 Deadly Careers program with the IAHA staff, there we ran interactive workstations. I delivered the Heart rate station and did health promotion activities, I felt good because I was learning while delivering to group of middle schoolers. This event helped me gain confidence and looking forward to run another High school 2 Deadly careers program.

My name is Isadora Ruby Lorenzo, I’m 17 years old from the Tiwi islands and I go to school at St John’s Catholic College as a boarder. My interest includes cooking/baking, watching Netflix and going to the beach. In the future my dreams and aspirations are to be a good role model, study, travel and learn new things and meet new people.

When I was in middle school, I would always go to the health centre at school to chill at recess and lunch breaks. I started talking to the nurses and asking them random questions about health and I got inspired by what they did and their knowledge about health. So, I did a Certificate II in Health and Support Services, and next door was the IAHA class. It made me curious about what they did and who they were. I wanted to continue my adventure in health so I started searching for other courses that I could do, and I found out about IAHA. I joined the IAHA Academy because I wanted to develop my skills and get experiences and support in health.

So far, my journey in IAHA has been an eye-opening experience, I’ve learned about different areas in allied health and so many other things. During the first days of the academy, I was always so nervous to walk into the classroom but now, every time I’m about to walk into the classroom I feel more confident because there’s always the friendly, connected community vibe coming out of the classroom. My favourite thing about the IAHA community is the support we get, the friends we make, the hotpots, the group sessions where we come together and do activities together, the guest speakers visits and work placements.

Hi my name is Kathleen Rioli, I’m in Year 11 at Haileybury Rendell School, and I am from the Tiwi Island. I am in Allied Health because it shows me many different careers and opens opportunities for me as astudent to figure out what jobs or a career I would enjoy.

 It was scary at first coming into a new setting, filled with student from other schools and not knowing anyone. But now these are the days which I enjoy most about coming back to school and seeing everyone and learning about health.

What I look forward to for next year is to continue the IAHA program and hopefully find a career in health – or in a job that helps people and helps me gain more skills and experiences.

My name is Tahlia M. Tipungwuti, I’m from Tiwi Islands. My mob are the Tarigikiwi, and my community is Wurrumiyanga (Nguiu). I’m 17, I am the eldest out of six children and I go to Haileybury Rendall School.

What I love doing is dancing, cooking, cleaning, baking and taking care of my family. My strength is hard work, good at listening and being independent.

My dream is to get a good job that would suit me and eating healthy foods because I want a healthy lifestyle. I want to improve my skills and knowledge, and to boost up my strength. I’m interest in the health industry because I want to help people, young, old and injury, I want to learn different things in the health industry.

I joined the Academy because I heard it was fun, and it could be my first step toward my future and dreams. What I like about the Academy is the foods they give us is healthy and every Wednesday, we have hotpot which mean that some students would volunteer to cook with our supervisor and cook different hot meals. We get paid while we study at the academy that we might not know and medical words that we don’t understand. In 2023 I want to stay in town (Darwin) and study in CDU while having a part-time job.

My name is Raphael Djorlom, I’m a 17-year-old Maung man from Goulburn Island and am currently in Year 12 at Haileybury Rendall School.

I enjoy fishing, hunting, and camping back home and am interested in learning more about the different health professions. I enjoy running stalls at different schools teaching them what we learnt in class and doing other community engagement. The Academy has helped me get more confident meeting different people and learning new things.

When I’m older I’d like to be a ranger back home and work on country. I think the stuff I learn in the Academy will help me get there because it teaches me how to cope and handle dangerous situations. The case studies we learn in class relates to working as a ranger on Country.

I joined the NT Academy because a few of my mates were joining and I wanted to tag along however since starting the NT Academy really opened my eyes on the different health careers and meeting different students from other schools. My highlight since being in the Academy is getting to know other students from different schools and gaining confidence over time which helped me.

I enjoy the support I get with the schoolwork and the training/teaching helps me build on my communication skills.

My name is Demitrus Galaminda I’m 18-year-old I’m from Warruwi Goulburn Island. Interesting fact about myself I’m good at cooking and good at fishing and the reason I join the academy is because of Gabe, and the food too.

I go to Marrara Christian School I am in Year 12.

My aspirations after Year 12 I wish to be a counsellor for young men because at my work placement I deliver sessions with male clients. I feel great after each session because I’m supporting their journey. I wish to be confident leader in my community because for the future generation.

When I first started NT Academy, I was the bloke to arrive in the classroom and felt lonely thinking there wasn’t any blokes in the program. But I felt okay when a few more boys arrived made me feel safe. Since starting back in 2021 now, I feel confident during my time being in the NT Academy, my favourite highlight throughout the program was doing the group games i.e. jeopardy and quoits.

I like the food in the NT Academy and the staff taking care of us inside and outside of Academy, encouraging us to do our schoolwork in a safe and supportive environment. I enjoy my work placement at Darwin Indigenous Men’s Service (DIMS) because they are great mentors and role models, they don’t push you too much they try to develop my skills and challenge me for my own development. The NT Academy staff take care of you when you are sick or not feeling okay on the day.

I just want to say thanks to the NT Academy staff for taking care of me and supporting me on my journey. If I didn’t join the NT Academy program, I wouldn’t of found out about the different type of health careers you can pursue. I made some great mates in this course, I recommend this course to future Academy students because of the many pathways you can go into.

My names Maranda O’Donoghue I was born & raised in the NT, my Mum’s side of the family are from Oenpelli and Tiwi islands, and my dad and his side of the family are from Queensland.

I found out about the Academy through my school Taminmin college, I joined the Academy because I was interested in studying mental health. I like the Academy because I’ve got the opportunity to learn a variety of different things throughout the health industry.

Something Interesting about myself is that I am currently living away from all family members, and at the moment I’m working multiple jobs to save for a car. My dream is to leave the NT or get a 10 acre block out in the rural.

Hi, my name is Talisha Blanasi-Brown and I’m 17 years old and I go to Marrara Christian College. I am from a remote community called Beswick and my mob is Dalabon and Larrakia, on my mother’s side us Dalabon and my dad’s side is Larrakia.

An interesting fact about me is I like dancing, singing, and drawing. My interest for my future career is to be working somewhere in the health industry. My goal after Year 12 is to study ophthalmology to learn more about the eyes. In my work placement I am based at Royal Darwin hospital working alongside an ophthalmologist which has exposed me to that profession and wanting to learn more about.

I joined the NT Academy because I want to learn everything about allied health, and I enjoy everything in the NT Academy because I have friends in the program, and we have fun studying health.

My name is Robert Rainger, I’m 18 years old and I go to Taminmin College. I grew up in Darwin but spent the first 5 years of my life on my mum’s country in Gunbalanya, West Arnhem land, speaking Gunwinggu.

I’m not as fluent as I was when I was around 5 to 10 but I try go out to community when the holidays are available.

Two quotes that have stuck with me are, “Remember why you started” as well as “People are going to judge regardless of what you do so get judged doing what you love” .

I like many sports, art, music, science, economics, and politics. I went down to Canberra when I was 12 for sprinting and came 15th in the 200 meter and 23rd in the 100 meter in Australia.

I would love to become a psychologist or social worker to become like Tony Robins and if I train outer state for university or work, I’m going to make sure I come back to utilise that training, apply that knowledge to help my Territory.

I joined the deadly IAHA because their approach for work ethic and how a class runs, its so holistic and is run like family, they look out for you and are eager to help, they feed you, teach you and look out for you mentally. I aspire to help people one on one, talk to the masses influence change, efficiency, health, and wellbeing of lives for a better average mental and physical health all over in NT. I like the teachers and the bonds we grew; they are very welcoming, warm people. It’s a great little community filled by friendly students.

I’m so grateful that IAHA is so keen on investing in us, in their future I can’t wait until I can invest and nurture the growth of this community.

My name is Elleney Walters I’m a Anmatyerr/Warlpiri woman. I’m 17 years old. I go to Casuarina Senior college.

I was born and raised in Darwin; my mob is from Yuelamu Alice springs.

I enjoy listening to music and hanging with friends and taking care of myself. I have interests in different industries in the future, but IAHA has shown and given me many ideas and pathway opportunities for the future. The NT Academy has shown me many options and opportunities to pick from the health industry. So, learning new things helped me gain more interest for the future.

I found out about the NT Academy through a friend that had already graduated from the academy in 2021. I joined IAHA because I wanted to work around the health industry in the future. I like how the academy is more flexible with all aspects of my life.

Hey, my name is Keneisha Maree Riddle, I’m a Koongurrukun and Iwaidja/Morrung woman, with cultural ties to Warramungu and Warramunga. I was born here in Darwin.

I’m currently going to school at Palmerston Senior College, and I am in year 12. I joined with IAHA at the beginning of 2020 to better understand the health industry and all its professions, and since then, I’ve been able to learn so much and share it all with my cousins and family. They make it so easy for me to learn and never shame asking questions to understand things properly.

I’ve loved having guests coming in to talk to us about the pathways they’ve taken to get where they’re at. It helped me come up with ideas to map out a pipeline to become either a physio or dietician, it’s a goal of mine to one day can work in remote communities educating mob on healthy diets.

In 2022, I was impressed with the diversity this year of ladies and fellas from different schools. From where the NT Academy first started it has come a long way from the beginning and its amazing to see how much it grown. One highlight since being in the NT Academy is how the staff can connect us students through with Indigenous health professionals to visit and talk about their journey. The activities we do is engaging and teaching other students is fun, example doing health promotion with my peers.

I feel more of an ambassador this year because its great to encourage my cousins and family to make better choices in their health and have better understanding of health areas and conditions. I feel the love and the support in the classroom from both staff and students which makes it a safe space for me.

My advice to future Academy students is no questions is a silly question in the NT Academy, always an open discussion in the classroom.

We all learn off each other and learn, bounce off one another, the culture we developed in the Academy has been Too Deadly!

Hi, my name is Meleeka Quall I am 17 years old. I go to Casuarina Senior College. I was born and raised in Darwin.

My mob is the Warlpiri, Arabana and Larrakia tribe I am also Torres Strait Islander. I was born and raised in Darwin my whole life never lived out of Darwin. An interesting fact about me is that I can cook anything and everything cooking is my favourite thing to do.

I found out about the NT Academy through student completing the course last year in 2021, I heard great things about the Academy, and I had interest working in the health industry I felt the Academy was a good opportunity to expose me to the health industry. I joined the NT Academy.

My dream is to become a Registered Nurse I’ve always wanted to be a Nurse my whole life, if Nursing doesn’t work out for me, I would still want to work in the health industry. Everything interests me about the health industry nothing could not make me not want to work in health. I decided to join the academy because they give out so many opportunities in health and I heard about the good food they cook on Wednesdays. I like everything about the NT Academy, the people, the food, and the activities/excursions we go on.

My name is Jovian Dalywater, and I’m in year 12 at Haileybury Rendall School.

When I’m not at school, I live at Bulman/Weemol. My mob is the Dalabon people from Bulman/Weemol, which is Southwest of Katherine.

Joining NTAHA in 2021, I have been shown to be a role model for my friends, and I have grown into that role with the support of the Academy staff. I enjoy having such role models to learn from and can turn to for support.

I have enjoyed getting to know other students from the different schools who are in the Academy. We all have different stories and have different lives, but we are all working together and getting to know each other.

This year in 2022, I feel that my confidence has grown because of the support I get from the Academy staff. When we first started Academy this year it was Deadly to see how much we’ve grown and looking forward to meeting the new faces in Academy. I am currently doing my work placement at the Royal Darwin Hospital working in the allied health department.I enjoy learning the roles and skills when working alongside the OT’s and Speechy. I enjoy supporting patients and helping in their journey with language difficulties. This experience has grown my interest and potentially pursue this pathway.

My advice to others wanting to join the Academy is that you can make a good career out of health as there are many different areas to health, not just doctors and nurses.

My hobbies include sports, camping, fishing, hunting. My favourite sport is AFL, I love camping, fishing, and hunting on country with my family and friends.

After year 12, I am interested in a range of industries one of them being in the mines, health, and sports. I am looking at options to relocate outside of NT potentially however still weighing up my options.

Hi! My name is Shereeda Anderson, and I am in Year 12 at O’Loughlin College.

I joined the Academy to broaden my knowledge and experience within the health/medical fields as I have a high interest in having a medical career in the future.

The Academy has changed me in many ways, making me more confident, smarter, and mature. I had to learn how to talk to important people that might give me more opportunities in what I’m interested in for my future career/goals, which has dramatically built my confidence.

Overall, I have enjoyed everything about the Academy, but being specific, it would probably be the excursions and opportunities I’ve been privileged enough to experience, along with all the fun, hands-on activities we get to do when the guest speakers come.

The Academy supports me with school and my future goals by finding out more opportunities they think I would like that involve my interests and dreams.

Hi my name is Sonny James Wauchope and I am a 17 year old Maung man, and I go to Haileybury Rendall school. I’m from Croker Island and speak Maung back home. I also love to sing and play guitar.

In the future I’d like to start a cultural safari camp business back home on country during the dry season, and then work as a ranger during the Wet. One big inspiration for me is my grandfather, who Is a strong cultural man, he worked as a ranger and was the top aerial shooter back in the day.

I joined the NT Aboriginal Health Academy in 2021 so I can make a change back home in my community and help my family out with their health through life. This course will also help me to become a ranger later in life. I really enjoy the academy because I get to meet new friends from all different schools and learn heaps about the body and health promotion. Highlight for me I really enjoy the competitive games such as jeopardy.

My advice for future Academy students is to don’t be shy to have a go in class and get to know your fellow peers.

Hi, my name is Taniel Parry and my home Is Daly River. I go to boarding at Marrara Christian Collage. I’m a Year 12 student there at that school. I’ve been boarding at Marrara for 6 years and this year is my final year.

I joined IAHA because I always wanted to work in the health industry. I enjoy this academy because there’s lots of support from the team and they help you get where you need to be. When I first started this academy my communication skills were not good, I was always being shame to speak up or speak to other students in the class. Since going to this academy, I jumped out of my comfort zone and my communication is unbelievable.

My advice to students that want to join this academy but unsure, you will get supported with your VET work and your schoolwork. you won’t need to take your own food because the academy provides food there. You get paid just for going to your class and work placement and that could really help you out for your own needs. While being a student at IAHA I went on my first work placement at Eunoia Lane. People that work there are Occupational therapists, they help people with disability.

This year I am doing my work placement at the Royal Darwin Hospital, and I work with the allied health assistance there. I experience different health work like, Occupational therapist, physio, and speech pathology. I’m really excited to follow my dreams and hopefully become a qualified occputional therapist. I want to help those people with disability because they deserve to be happy just like everyone else on this earth.

Hi, My name is Tannwyn Lewis and I am 18 years old and in Year 12 at O’Loughlin Catholic College.

I joined the academy as I had an interest in working with young people around mental health and Psychology.

During my time at the academy, I got to learn a lot about health and was able to gain experience in working at Headspace as part of my work placement.

This was an amazing opportunity and allowed me to learn about the work before I committed to further study. It exposed me to all areas of the sector, and I learn so much and grateful I had amazing staff around me to teach.

My name is Kyrah Tye-Tupaea and I am in Year 11 at Darwin High School.

I joined the Academy as I have a strong interest in working with young people with mental health as well as children’s development and speech.

While at the Academy, I have had the opportunity to learn about various different areas in Allied health. The staff have always been there to support me with my journey and team work with us to ensure we are ready for the workplace.

The Academy is a supportive place and I really enjoy being part of it.