Jamie Graham-Blair: Sharing palawa Culture and Education at St Virgil's College Leads to Tasmanian Young Achiever Award

The Dental South First Nations Peoples Achievement Award was this year awarded to pakana (Tasmanian Aboriginal person) Jamie Graham-Blair, of St Virgil’s College. As part of the Tasmanian Young Achiever Awards, this award is centred around the impact that outstanding young First Nations people have in Tasmania, and celebrates how their contribution has positively influenced peers and their community. 

Jamie is a Learning Support Officer at St Virgil’s College, but the work that he does at the College goes above and beyond what is required in this position. Jamie’s work at the College began in 2020, after founding the tunapri makuminya project. He has since continued as a member of staff as a Learning Support Officer and tunapri makuminya project manager. Jamie has helped provide St Virgil’s with great access to palawa culture and history, to help give the young men at the College an opportunity to hold conversations and tap into the ancient and contemporary culture of lutruwita/Tasmania.

Jamie’s experience as a trawlwoolway and plangermairenner scientist has helped support the College through the implementation of the tunapri makuminya project. This project started as part of a palawa biocultural survey of bushland that the Austins Ferry campus at St Virgil’s sits upon in 2020. The project provided students with an opportunity to connect with the land and offered insight into the deep palawa history and knowledge base stored within the landscape. Jamie also worked with the College to ensure that plant species that are culturally significant to the palawa people are recognised as important for food, medicine, crafting and conservation efforts by the St Virgil’s community.

Jamie Graham-Blair on Country with students from SVC

The work Jamie does with the young people of St Virgil’s is incredibly important, and the College is blessed with many strong relationships with the palawa members of the school community. He finds that the most rewarding part of his role is that he can help give young people access to the palawa perspective he wishes he had in the classroom. “Seeing them go from such small little humans into young adults and watching them nurture their own curiosities and crafts is so rewarding and hearing them talk about the pride they feel for being palawa is just magic.”

While the award that Jamie received is fantastic, giving him the recognition that he most certainly deserves, he acknowledges that there is still plenty of work to be done in the education space to ensure that schools have access to Tasmanian Aboriginal role models. “Too few children get to see positive Aboriginal role models, too few get to hear our stories and feel our presence so I would suggest, simply engage more meaningfully with the community. Build the relationships and watch things shift.”

Speaking of how he works with the students at St Virgil’s, Jamie said, “We are often hanging out on country just yarning about family and culture, and I think providing that space for them to decompress and feel comfortable, while still actively engaging in learning and growth opportunities is so valuable.”

On a day-to-day basis, Jamie can be seen at St Virgil’s supporting students in the classroom, offering professional learning opportunities to and yarning with fellow staff members, helping run ‘Bush Kinder’ with St Virgil’s stalwart Mark ‘Bushy’ Smith, and accompanying school excursions to sites of cultural and historical significance. During his time at the College, he has seen several students move on from the College and take up studies or work in land management and education spaces thanks to the love of country that he helped foster in them. “I have seen a number of students become incredibly interested and fascinated by cultural burning practices, hopefully sparking within them an interest in science, ecology or land care. Spaces where Aboriginal voices are sorely lacking.”

We congratulate Jamie on receiving recognition for his important work in ensuring that indigenous students receive the best possible opportunity to learn about palawa culture and Tasmanian history, and to congratulate him on winning the Dental South First Nations Peoples Achievement Award.  

For anyone who wants to learn more about the work Jamie has been doing as part of the tumapri makuminya project at St Virgil’s College, click here: https://www.stvirgils.tas.edu.au/our-college/about/tunapri-makuminya-project