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Community involvement

Gold Coast Institute of TAFE has established close links with a wide variety of local community organisations and State and Federal Government departments, ensuring that specific training needs are identified, developed, funded and delivered to the following clients:

Youths at risk
Indigenous Australians
Long term unemployed
Non English speaking background clients
Mature aged
Clients with literacy and numeracy difficulties and
Clients who have a disability.

This is achieved by the following four methods:

Gold Coast Institute of TAFE staff membership on community networks and organisations
Ongoing delivery of training at community locations
Partnerships between Gold Coast Institute of TAFE and community organisations and
Community organisation members and Government Departments:

taking part in Gold Coast Institute of TAFE Industry Reference Group meetings
assisting delivery of Gold Coast Institute of TAFE programs as guest speakers and
becoming a referral agency for Gold Coast Institute of TAFE students.

Gold Coast Institute of TAFE is proud to have been associated with, amongst others, the following organisations and Government Departments which make up the Gold Coast community:

Aspergers Syndrome Support Group
Centrelink
Department of Education, Queensland
Department of Families, Youth and Community Care, Queensland
Department of Health, Queensland
Elanora Uniting Church
Endeavour Foundation
Gold Coast City Council
Griffith University
Project for Homeless Youth
Re Connect
Silver Bridle Action Group
Street Co
The Migrant Centre
Yhes House
Youth Commitment Forum
Youth Suicide Prevention

Community input at Gold Coast Institute of TAFE Industry Reference Groups ensures that our training programs are regularly reviewed. This allows us to monitor trends and further develop programs in order to provide responsive training which meets the needs of specific learner groups.

Examples of partnerships between Gold Coast Institute of TAFE and community organisations are:

Youth:

Youth Suicide Prevention
Gold Coast Institute of TAFE continuously hosts "Youth Suicide Prevention" Information Sessions. One of our Counsellors, Garry King, is a former research consultant with the Australian Institute for Suicide Research Prevention.
Indigenous Youth at Risk Program
By identifying that many Indigenous Youth have additional cultural support needs, a 'Cultural Identity' module was incorporated into the Indigenous Youth Program. Furthermore, the concurrent delivery of an Indigenous Peer Tutor course attracted elders to have input into youth development, and gain a qualification which is rewarding to the Indigenous Community by assisting adults who have literacy problems.
Gold Coast Institute of TAFE Youth Program
The design and delivery of an innovative 'hands-on' approach to behavioural management, literacy, numeracy and vocational training for Youth at Risk has led to over 2,500 students being attracted to and rewarded with their first ever educational qualification. The program itself was officially recognised with the award of the 2002 Premiers Award for Excellence in the Focussing on our People Category .

Community:

Islamic Society of the Gold Coast
A comparison of female student data, world events following September 11 2001 and community discussions led the Faculty to consider the effect on our Muslim clients. Funded by a Community Responsive Training Program grant, an innovative course specifically for Islamic women, provided classes in a supportive, familiar and acceptable environment (Mosque) meeting both cultural and educational needs. Strategies included the provision of a female teacher and tutors and visits and information on community facilities. This provided an opportunity to put language skills into practice enabling participants to move into more formal learning environments and integrate into the local community. The programme not only attracted the attention of the Federal Minister for Multicultural Affairs who visited the class, but led to rewarding outcomes such as university acceptance.
Gold Coast Drug Council Inc
Full time residential clients of the Mirikai Drug and Alcohol Rehabilitation Facility required assistance in Language and Literacy development and job skills training. Gold Coast Institute of TAFE delivered programs which encouraged self expression in the form of creative writing, poetry, essays on life stories as well as letter writing to repair family relationships. Clients in the final rehabilitation stage were also given job search skills such as resume writing, job searching and application and interview techniques.
Queensland Program Assisting Survivors of Torture and Trauma (QPASTT) and Multicultural Families Office
Refugee students who had special humanitarian and refugee visas, were studying on a Special Preparatory Program and the Adult Migrant English Program. These students had survived trauma and torture in other countries and found it difficult to cope with large classrooms, noisy environments and excessive numbers of people. Originally housed in student services at Gold Coast Institute of TAFE and now at the Multicultural Families Office, this service enabled students to receive English Language Training in a safe, informal and friendly environment, combined with counselling from QPASTT, this encouraged a pathway to the usual TAFE campus when the student was ready.

This page was last updated at 15-April-2009