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School students engage celebrities for youth forum at UNE

April 07, 2005

The University of New England is to host the New England region’s first event in a national series of youth forums that has had a profound impact on teenagers around Australia.

Called “Step to the Future”, the program engages local high-school students themselves in organising the forums, at which prominent Australians speak about their road to success.

The 40 members of the student organising committee, from secondary schools in Armidale and Tamworth, met (as pictured here) at UNE last week to plan the content, management, sponsorship and promotion of the event scheduled for May 26. The day of lively discussion and creative planning has already resulted in the commitment of Hugh Evans (last year’s Young Australian of the Year, and recently named Young World Person of the Year), Barbara Holborow (author and former Children’s Court magistrate), and Julian Burton (AFL player and a hero of the Bali bombing) to speak at the forum. There will be six speakers altogether.

Speakers at previous forums have included General Peter Cosgrove, Dr Pat O’Shane, Wendy Harmer and Louise Sauvage. “I left feeling very inspired” is a typical comment from student participants in the forums.

The National Executive Director of Step to the Future, Robert Van Houten, said the event at UNE would be one of 21 throughout the country in 2005-6. He explained that the program had begun in Sydney as a pilot project in 2002, and that its immediate success had led to events in other State capitals and Canberra (as well as its debut in regional NSW) in 2003. The program aims to provide 15-18-year-olds with positive role models, motivation, and an insight into the lives of people prominent in a wide variety of fields, including business, politics, entertainment and sport.

“They’re able to invite anyone they like to be a speaker,” said Mr Van Houten, explaining that the students plan the program themselves and arrange for the speakers’ expenses to be covered, while the speakers donate their time on the day. “The speakers talk frankly about both success and failure,” he said. “And, in the 25 minutes of question-and-answer after each talk, the students are not afraid to ask the hard questions. Comment from the students can become very emotional.”

One of the student organisers, Mim Gardiner from Calrossy School, Tamworth, said the day of planning and discussion had “empowered” the members of the organising committee, giving them the freedom to make their own decisions. The event would “give the youth of the district a bit of a voice”, she said.

Mr Van Houten and his colleague Diane Allan, National Forum Convener for Step to the Future, visited Armidale for the day of the planning meeting. “They’re a great bunch of young people,” Ms Allan said at the end of the day.

For more information on Step to the Future at UNE, contact John Kauter, UNE Marketing Officer, on (02) 6773 2490.

For photographs contact Leon Braun on (02) 6773 3771.


Posted by Jim Scanlan at April 7, 2005 03:47 PM