An education engagement program to empower Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander girls and young women is helping to strengthen confidence, cultural identity and positive attitudes, and improve school attendance rates across Western Australia and South Australia.
Since 2015 Shooting Stars has supported more than 1,000 participants in WA and SA through advocacy, engagement activities, and wellbeing sessions to better equip and inform their decisions around education and future employment.
The majority of the participants have maintained or increased their school attendance to at least 80 per cent, and another 25 per cent of the girls have shown substantial improvement each term.
Last year Mineral Resources (MinRes) joined forces with Shooting Stars as principal partner of its Seven Sisters program, now known as Deadly Minds Matter.
The mental health and wellbeing program was piloted in Narrogin three years ago and has now been implemented at all 20 Shooting Stars sites across WA and SA.
Over 10 weeks, participants in Deadly Minds Matter learn how to recognise and name their emotions, develop strategies for emotional regulation, and build healthy relationships.
The program finishes with a community sporting event celebration and recently girls from across Western Australia's South West and metro regional programs took to the netball courts in Collie.
MinRes, a resources company with operations across WA, has committed $600,000 over four years to help Shooting Stars deliver the Deadly Minds Matter programs.
MinRes Stakeholder Engagement Manager Daniel Barker, who attended the Collie event, said the improved school attendance rates is "proof that Shooting Stars is making a real difference to so many lives".
"That's why MinRes is so proud to support the Deadly Minds Matter program. We look forward to seeing how the participants are empowered to thrive and achieve their goals," he said.
Brooke Cuthbertson, program coordinator for Collie Senior High School, said working for Shooting Stars is "such a wholesome experience".
"It is so rewarding to support our girls and to watch how they grow when they are engaged in the program," she said.
