From Head of Quinn House, Olivia Kite
Quinn’s social justice focus is Indigenous affairs and creating awareness about and an appreciation for Aboriginal history and culture. On Friday 20 October, the Wandana Program came to Waverley College to spend the day with Quinn House students.
The program is designed to provide a rich, unique and structured learning experience through curriculum based Aboriginal Cultural programs that engage, educate and inspire.
We started the day by acknowledging the traditional owners of the land, the people of the Eora Nation, past, present and future. Eve White and Brian Cook from Wandana then led Quinn House in an Intention Ceremony. The ceremony was an opportunity for students to take a gum leaf and think of an intention for the day ahead. Students then placed their gum leaf in the coolamon to be offered up to the ancestral spirits.
Students spent time throughout the day learning from Eve and Brian about traditional Aboriginal culture, local indigenous history, traditional hunting methods, musical instruments, dreamtime stories and the importance of particular artefacts in ceremonies.
Along with the Head of College, Graham Leddie, each Quinn student contributed to a communal contemporary Aboriginal artwork. This artwork is representative of Waverley College’s history, Quinn House and our Edmund Rice traditions and values. Furthermore, it incorporates traditional Aboriginal and Indigenous symbols and art techniques to further highlight the need to embrace Aboriginal culture and celebrate it within our schools.
