Learn.

Grow.

Thrive.

Bringing high-quality schools and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities together

Yadha Muru means “good path” in the language of the local Dharug people.

Yadha Muru Foundation is an independent, not-for-profit organisation that seeks to grow and empower Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples whilst nurturing their identity, in partnership with schools, families and communities, by creating their own good path to learn, grow and thrive.

Empowering Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children to learn, grow and thrive

Empowering Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children to learn, grow and thrive. We recognise that high-quality education is a powerful mechanism for development and growth for students, their families and the community, giving them the opportunity to realise their full human potential, and ultimately to lead a thriving and fulfilling life.

Working towards a brighter future for our communities and the nation, by doing our very best for our children.

Situation

Evidence from NAPLAN testing shows that by Year 3, many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children display literacy and numeracy achievement levels well below their non-Indigenous peers. The NAPLAN data demonstrates that this educational gap persists as students progress through the school years.

Results

Children who reach high school with basic literacy and numeracy skills well below their peers are more likely to struggle to catch up.

They may also fall further behind, which can cascade into a cycle of disadvantage and dependency.

Strategy

Yadha Muru Foundation’s (YMF) strategic goal is for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children to reach high school with the same achievement levels as their non-Indigenous peers, maximising their chances for success in high school and beyond. This will be achieved by facilitating a large network of local, high expectation K-6 schools for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students, formed as a partnership between local Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities and established high-quality schools.

Partnership Model

YMF works with communities and schools to establish relationships, developing trust, understanding and respect; culminating in partnerships between the local community and high-quality schools.

Key Building Blocks

The key building blocks of the partnership model are respect, reciprocity, relationships and responsibility. Each partnership uniquely arises out of a local collaboration that ensures the school is designed to meet the particular needs of the students and the local community. Agility, flexibility, autonomy and responsiveness at the school-level are critical.

Future

YMF is delighted to be working with schools and communities to facilitate the replication of this partnership model across the nation.

By breaking the cycle of disadvantage in the early years of education the model is focused on prevention not intervention.

Students are at the heart of everything Yadha Muru Foundation is striving to achieve.

The YMF Community + School Partnership Model

City-Country Partnerships Program

IMPORTANT NOTICE: Yadha Muru Foundation (YMF) is an independent not-for-profit organisation formed in 2019 with the objective of assisting high-quality schools and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities to come together in partnerships to develop pathways for their children to success in education and a thriving and fulfilling life. YMF is independent of the schools mentioned in this web site and does not receive any financial or other assistance from those schools.