Growing up, Jake Morris called many different places home. From Newcastle to Lightning Ridge and towns in between, Jake has lived in several different communities across Australia.
“A transient lifestyle like mine was not uncommon for Indigenous people, and it allowed me to see first-hand the challenges that my people face. During this time, I started noticing how many Indigenous children were involved in the childcare system, so I turned my attention to that, and to where I could become involved in helping change some of these horrible states in my local community.”
A proud Gamilaraay man, Jake is a part of the Tamworth Aboriginal community and has recently joined the team as Stakeholder Engagement Co-ordinator at UNE Tamworth.
Through this role, he has the chance to immerse himself in the local community while sharing information about the University of New England and the opportunities the university has for potential students. These include programs such as Pathways or TRACKS – a program that allows Aboriginal people to complete a bridging course which enables them to then move into a degree without a Year 12 equivalent.
Jake’s role was developed mainly to engage the local Aboriginal community to promote TRACKS and further Indigenous education within Tamworth and the surrounding region.
“I knew at a young age that I wanted to be in a position where I could have a voice and advocate for Aboriginal people in any format I was given, I just didn’t know what that was yet,” Jake says. “I wanted to give Aboriginal people the tools they need to give help to their own families and communities as I am doing, and I believe that the TRACKS program offers them this opportunity.”
Prior to working at UNE, Jake worked at the Department of Communities and Justice (DCJ) as a statutory caseworker, which opened his eyes to the reality of the sector.
“Working at DCJ is where I realised that the system had countless challenges that were not really changing, so I decided to take a role at UNE as this role was a proactive role, not a reactive one where I had worked previously,” he says.
“I see this new role taking me to different places and meeting new people to discuss Aboriginal matters, and I hope that the role will allow me to do this in many places not just Tamworth. I really appreciate what UNE does for Aboriginal peoples, and a program like TRACKS is second to none.”
