PARLIAMENTARY Secretary for First Peoples Christine Couzens today joined Yorta Yorta elders, the Rumbalara Football Netball Club, Kaiela Institute and the University of Melbourne to mark the start of construction of the Munarra Centre for Regional Excellence (MCRE).
The Government is investing $30M in Australia’s first Aboriginal-led pathways-based university – home to the Munarra Academy – that will provide programs from the Academy of Sport, Health and Education, the Kaiela Institute, Rumbalara Aboriginal Cooperative and more. MCRE will deliver culturally responsive education, employment, health and wellbeing programs that drive broad, long-term economic benefits and shared prosperity for the region and Victoria.
Indigenous-led company TVN On-Country is building the pioneering new campus, with the centre expected to open to the community in March 2024.
The design of the centre celebrates First Nations knowledge, culture and entrepreneurship, with Indigenous plantings and artwork. The campus will include an Elder’s lounge, yarning rooms, teaching spaces, a wellbeing courtyard, event spaces, community meeting rooms and co-working areas.
“The Munarra Centre of Regional Excellence signifies a critical shift in the education and knowledge of future generations of the Goulburn Murray, here on Yorta Yorta country,” said executive chairperson for Kaiela Institute Paul Briggs OAM.
More information on the Munarra Centre for Regional Excellence is available at: rfnc.com.au/munarra.
