Media Release
Australia
Media Release
November 10, 2022
Australia CEO spends week with young men from Indigenous communities of Nhulunbuy and Yirrkala
Instead readying himself for a week in the office, Australia CEO Glenn Morgan packed his bags and took two flights to travel 4,200 kilometres to the remote settlement of East Arnhem in the country’s Northern Territory in October. There he spent the week with the students of two Clontarf Academies, education facilities focused on helping Australia’s Indigenous young men by getting (and keeping) them in school.
“An Indigenous boy in the Northern Territory is more likely to end up in jail than he is to finish year 12. About 84% of prisoners in the territory are Indigenous despite being only 26% of the population. Indigenous kids make up 96% of people in juvenile detention. The longer kids stay in school, the more likely they are to avoid trouble and get a job,” explained Morgan.
The secret to Clontarf’s success is empowering the boys; it is their choice to come to school. But the staff have a big role to play, “I was simply in awe of them,” said Morgan. As well as driving out to the community every morning to pick up kids who have not shown up, they help educate the regular teachers at the school. “In a lot of schools, you would get sent to detention for not wearing your uniform. But imagine you are ten-year-old kid who has endured a night of noise or even violence at home. You make it through the night, manage to get out of bed, find some clothes, and get out of the house without waking anyone. Then you arrive at school and your teacher gives you a detention for wearing the wrong shoes. The Clontarf staff make sure everyone understands the issues,” explained Morgan.
One of the academies Morgan visited is in Yirrkala, a settlement famous as being the home of the Bark Petition; the first documentary recognition of Indigenous people in Australian law and the first Land Rights request by Indigenous people recognised by Federal Parliament. There Morgan spoke to Jacob, grandson of one of the petition’s architects, Wandjuk Marika.
Ten-year-old Michael from Jabiru in Kakadu also left an impression on Morgan. “I noticed straight away that he had an inquisitive mind. He asked me some searching questions about Deutsche Bank. He told me a funny joke and had the social grace to laugh at one of mine. I think he may be destined for a job on one of our sales desks and he might well be on his way.” Thanks to the foundation he has gained at Clontarf, next year Michael will join the Melbourne Indigenous Transition School (MITS) that prepares Indigenous kids for the challenges of secondary school education.
Even then, there is debate about programmes like Clontarf. “Some say taking someone like Michael out of a community robs them of a role model. The kids back home will miss his influence and initiative. Nothing is simple, but the Clontarf foundation is working hard every day - issue by issue, kid by kid. I am very proud that Deutsche Bank is helping out this remarkable group of role models.”
Deutsche Bank and Clontarf
For nearly six years, Deutsche Bank has been a proud partner of the Clontarf Foundation, which is aimed at improving the education, discipline, life skills, self-esteem and employment prospects of young Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander men.
Home
Instead readying himself for a week in the office, Australia CEO Glenn Morgan packed his bags and took two flights to travel 4,200 kilometres to the remote settlement of East Arnhem in the country’s Northern Territory in October. There he spent the week with the students of two Clontarf Academies, education facilities focused on helping Australia’s Indigenous young men by getting (and keeping) them in school.
“An Indigenous boy in the Northern Territory is more likely to end up in jail than he is to finish year 12. About 84% of prisoners in the territory are Indigenous despite being only 26% of the population. Indigenous kids make up 96% of people in juvenile detention. The longer kids stay in school, the more likely they are to avoid trouble and get a job,” explained Morgan.
The secret to Clontarf’s success is empowering the boys; it is their choice to come to school. But the staff have a big role to play, “I was simply in awe of them,” said Morgan. As well as driving out to the community every morning to pick up kids who have not shown up, they help educate the regular teachers at the school. “In a lot of schools, you would get sent to detention for not wearing your uniform. But imagine you are ten-year-old kid who has endured a night of noise or even violence at home. You make it through the night, manage to get out of bed, find some clothes, and get out of the house without waking anyone. Then you arrive at school and your teacher gives you a detention for wearing the wrong shoes. The Clontarf staff make sure everyone understands the issues,” explained Morgan.
One of the academies Morgan visited is in Yirrkala, a settlement famous as being the home of the Bark Petition; the first documentary recognition of Indigenous people in Australian law and the first Land Rights request by Indigenous people recognised by Federal Parliament. There Morgan spoke to Jacob, grandson of one of the petition’s architects, Wandjuk Marika.
Ten-year-old Michael from Jabiru in Kakadu also left an impression on Morgan. “I noticed straight away that he had an inquisitive mind. He asked me some searching questions about Deutsche Bank. He told me a funny joke and had the social grace to laugh at one of mine. I think he may be destined for a job on one of our sales desks and he might well be on his way.” Thanks to the foundation he has gained at Clontarf, next year Michael will join the Melbourne Indigenous Transition School (MITS) that prepares Indigenous kids for the challenges of secondary school education.
Even then, there is debate about programmes like Clontarf. “Some say taking someone like Michael out of a community robs them of a role model. The kids back home will miss his influence and initiative. Nothing is simple, but the Clontarf foundation is working hard every day - issue by issue, kid by kid. I am very proud that Deutsche Bank is helping out this remarkable group of role models.”
Deutsche Bank and Clontarf
For nearly six years, Deutsche Bank has been a proud partner of the Clontarf Foundation, which is aimed at improving the education, discipline, life skills, self-esteem and employment prospects of young Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander men.