Queer Collaborations <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>,
Subject:LL:Vice Chancellor loots student funds
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From: "Peter Tremain" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Please Help
Vice Chancellor of Charles Sturt University, Cliff Blake has
appropriated $153,000 from the total pool of $253,000 allocated by
DETYA to CSU for Aboriginal Teaching Support.
The Aboriginal Education Unit of CSU allocates this money to
faculties on the basis of merit for initiatives supporting
Indigenous students. The money goes to undergrad and
postgrad scholarships for students, guest ATSI speakers to subjects
related to Aboriginal issues, support for Koori Academics to assist
ATSI students etc, etc.
The AEU has expended around 90 irreplacable working days as staff
prioritised bids from Faculties for this money, only to be told that
we could only allocate $100,000. This has meant that we have lost all
of our funds for scholarships, excursions, guest speakers, and so on.
We had $105,000 swiped off us about 2 years
ago, only to be 'given back' as funding for a proposed research
centre at Dubbo. I should point out that seed funding for new
research centres is not support for students.
Last year we had $53,000 pinched from the same funding allocation
from DETYA. We were told that this went to "repay an over allocation
from DETYA the previous year". By our calculations we should have had
an increase in funding.
Its interesting that CSU has asked its Aboriginal Education Unit to
be involved in formulating a Policy of Reconciliation with
Aboriginal people, while at the same time it is ripping as much money
as possible from funds earmarked for support of Aboriginal students.
It is also interesting that CSU received recognition as 'University
of the Year' for 1997 based on its high proportion of first
generation students. The high number of Aboriginal students enroled
at CSU, the majority of whom are first generation uni students,
played a significant roll in gaining this recognition.
The problem is that Universities are unaccountable to DETYA for the
way they dispose of these funds. At a recent meeting in Canberra,
DETYA consultants were told by ATSI support Centre staff from many
universities about this problem and were asked to set guidelines for
the disposal of these funds to ensure accountability.
If the university were Black organisations they would be under
scrutiny from ICAC. But universities remain totally unaccountable to
the government or to the communities they are meant to serve for the
manner in which they dispose of Indigenous Support Funds: Black money
is 'funny money'.
I believe that this is a very news worthy and topical story, and yet,
because these are White organisations appropriating Aboriginal
funds, no news organisation is willing to look at the case.
Aboriginal students and their support staff are constantly being
criticised by non-Aboriginal students and staff who believe that
Aboriginal students are getting a Rolls-Royce ride through tertiary
education. I believe that the public would be truly shocked at the
way universities are riding the gravy train at the expense of the
Aboriginal community, the most disadvantaged section of Australian
society.
This matter should be taken up immediately by ATSIC (which has no
education policy), the Reconciliation Council, etc. But nothing is
being done. Workers in Higher Education Support Centres are being
worked till they drop, trying to stretch the miserably few crumbs
that fall from the Vice Chancellors' banquet tables, to do the jobs
that need to be done.
Where are the activists when we need them? We are all activists in
the AEU's; its the nature of the job. But we need support outside the
universities. There are plenty of people who will jump up and down
about Hanson, Jabiluka, Deaths in Custody etc, but nobody is
taking up this cause.
The genocide is still being perpetrated by stealing Educational
opportunities from Aboriginal people.
Please circulate to all mailing lists
Peter Tremain
Winan-Gidyal Aboriginal Education Centre
Charles Sturt University Murray
Ph 060 516706
Fax 060 516865
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