13/02/2023
We are very excited to announce that the Stronger Smarter Institute is a partner organisation in two recently funded ARC Linkage grants.
Out of Home Care
SSI was approached by a team led by Professor Kitty te Riele from the University of Tasmania to partner in a project to investigate why children in Out of Home Care (OOHC) are absent from school more than their peers. This research aims to fill the knowledge gap about the reasons for these absences, understanding from the students’ own perspectives why their school attendance is so low.
The project team have recognised the need to pay particular attention to the needs and experiences of First Nations children and young people. Our role will be to ensure First Nations processes and perspectives in the research.
First Nations children and young people are over-represented in Out of Home Care. Previous research has found that intergenerational trauma resulting from past removal practices creates an imperative to ensure that current child protection practices do not repeat these past practices and cause additional trauma and distress.
Dr Rhonda Coopes from SSI will be a researcher on the project. The project is funded for 3 years and will contribute to both policy and practical solutions.
ARC Centre of Excellence for Indigenous Futures
SSI is a participating organisation in the new ARC Centre of Excellence for Indigenous Futures.
The Centre is led by a team from The University of Queensland and aims to transform and improve the life chances of Indigenous Australians by using Indigenous knowledges in unique trans-disciplinary cross-sector designed research to enhance our understanding about the complex nature of Indigenous intergenerational inequity.
The Centre will be led by Indigenous researchers working with communities, government agencies and practitioners. The work will have an intentional focus on the four Priority Reform areas in the National Agreement on Closing the Gap.
The Centre is funded from 2023 to 2029.