Since discovering her Aboriginal identity in senior high school, Caitlin Davey has been passionate about making a difference for Aboriginal people.
She is doing this through her PhD studies in Criminology at UNE – looking into prejudice and punitive attitudes and its impact on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians – and in her new role as an Indigenous Knowledges Lecturer.
Caitlin says:
“Racism is alive and kicking and it’s really important to have people willing to spearhead changes that need to be made, and that should have already been made. I feel passionate about being able to advocate for Aboriginal people, especially those who do not have a voice.
“I’m really thankful and lucky to have close relationships with my PhD supervisors, the Oorala Aboriginal Centre and with the Pro Vice Chancellor Indigenous Strategy, Professor Joe Fraser, who has been a mentor and sounding board. I’ve been given so many opportunities at UNE, including working on a publication called Rurality, Crime and Society and being a Research Associate with the Centre for Rural Criminology.
“I’ve been teaching units in Criminology as well as the Oorala Aboriginal Centre’s TRACKS [university preparation] program since I started my PhD. I’ve had the opportunity to collaborate professionally with criminology academics I really look up to, particularly through my participation with the Centre for Rural Criminology.
I tell my TRACKS students to be very honest with themselves about what they want to achieve. A lot of them tend to feel they are locked into a degree, that they can’t change to follow their interests. So I encourage them to set clear goals from the outset and be open to change as they grow as a person and student.
“My supervisor, Dr Kyle Mulrooney, has really advocated for me and has been just phenomenal. He’s been determined to give me opportunities he wished he had when he was a PhD student.
“Now I’m in a position where I can give back.
“I am on campus now, but as an undergraduate I studied online. I’ve always been very academically driven and had a clear direction of where I wanted to go, which has been a big motivator. But I know studying online can be a very isolating experience, especially for those who don’t have a strong support network, which I was lucky enough to have.
“Having a tutor is a really important option for students. I’m a tutor and unit coordinator in Oorala’s TRACKS program, and I focus on the adjustment from high school to university or back into study, those core skills are so important.
“I tell my TRACKS students to be very honest with themselves about what they want to achieve. A lot of them tend to feel they are locked into a degree, that they can’t change to follow their interests. So I encourage them to set clear goals from the outset and be open to change as they grow as a person and student.
“It’s also important to start developing study habits from day one: things like working to a schedule and having a specific study space, but always looking for and trying new methods to be more efficient and retain more information, to find a study routine that works.
“As an Indigenous Knowledges Lecturer, there are three things I’m really looking forward to: Firstly, building connectedness and engagement for Aboriginal students at UNE. There is power in sharing experiences and leaning on each other. At an institutional level, connecting similar experiences also provides the rationale to drive positive change.
“Secondly, I’m excited about the professional development for myself that the role will offer. Thirdly, I’m really looking forward to helping transform the policies, practices, procedures and curriculum at UNE to be more adaptive for Indigenous students, ensuring they are culturally sensitive and appropriate. Without addressing this aspect, all our best efforts will still result in student attrition.
“There are three other Indigenous Knowledges Lecturers at UNE, we work closely together but we are from very different backgrounds and different mobs – I think it’s important to have that diversity, because we have to talk about navigating our differences, which is a reminder there is not a one-size-fits-all approach for our students.
“I’m looking forward to making positive change, and helping make UNE a more welcoming place.”
Meet UNE's other Indigenous Knowledges Lecturers:
