Robina Group was proud to support Bond University’s 2013 Indigenous Art Auction Gala Dinner which was held on Friday 18th October.
Gold Coast City’s indigenous community is a sector of our society not often in the spotlight. Yet the number of indigenous people in Gold Coast City is in excess of 6,000– and like most indigenous communities around Australia, they suffer from poor education completion rates amongst many other challenges.
Only 1.4% of all higher education enrolments in Australia are from this population group. This limiting education scope causes many issues, including inability to obtain decent paid employment opportunities.
In admirable fashion, Bond University has launched a range of support programs and scholarships to allow more indigenous students to successfully complete their high school and tertiary education. There are currently over 25 indigenous students studying on campus, five on full scholarships.
In addition, a mentoring program has been introduced. In this program Bond University students mentor indigenous high school students on a regular basis. The program is experiencing amazing results with these high school students finishing school at almost the same rate as every Australian child.
In May 2012, the Nyombile Centre at Bond University was created to provide support for Bond’s Indigenous Community. This centre offers assistance with the unique challenges some students face when moving from remote communities to study at university.
To support these efforts, Bond University holds an annual Indigenous Art Auction Gala Dinner. This sumptuous three course dinner featured works of art from across Australia including music and storytelling. The event was an absolute success with a great atmosphere on the night and a mix of Gold Coast City residents, business leaders, art patrons, university students and their families filling Bond University’s Princeton room to capacity.
This year, five works of art were auctioned and sold on the evening, generating precious revenue for the program. Former Queensland State of Origin representative and new student at Bond, Scott Prince was also a special guest along with co-author of his new book ‘Deadly D and Justice Jones: making the team’, David Hartley.
As a private not-for-profit University, Bond University does not receive any government funding for indigenous education initiatives and rely on the support of individuals and organisations, like the Robina Group, to help continue to provide these supportive and life changing services for the community.
Robina Group are very proud to have had the opportunity to offer our support for such a worthwhile endeavour and wish Bond University and its indigenous students every success in the coming year.
Robina Group will be providing updates and insights from the indigenous students attending Bond University scholarship program in 2014 through.
To find out more about Bond University’s Indigenous Program or to offer them your support, please visit: Bond University’s indigenous program page.
The artwork pictured was gifted to Robina Group by Bond University as a thank you for their support of the Indigenous program. The artwork is called Ngapa Jukurrpa (Water Dreaming) – Pirlinyarnu, it is painted by artist Mickey Jampijinpa Singleton. This fantastic artwork has made a fantastic addition to the Robina Group office.
