1. SONNIE Senior Officers National Network of Indigenous Education

2. BACKGROUND The National forum resulted from a meeting held in 2002 between National senior officers of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander education and training concerning issues and outcomes of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students within their jurisdictions The name, Senior Officers National Network of Indigenous Education (SONNIE) represents the membership of this group

3. BACKGROUND All SONNIE members are the senior representatives for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Education within each State and Territory who have individual responsibility for their respective State/Territory and national policies, strategies and funding. SONNIE supports the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Education Policy 1989 and the Australian Strategic Directions for Indigenous Education 2005-2008 (currently under review)

4. STATEMENT OF PURPOSE SONNIE provides a vehicle to support key decision-makers of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander education and training through the provision of advice as well as the sharing of information on policies and programs that demonstrate improved education and training outcomes for Aboriginal people both at the State/Territory and national levels

5. STATEMENT OF PURPOSE The Senior Officers National Network of Indigenous Education (SONNIE) is committed to improving education and training outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples across the jurisdictions by establishing and maintaining effective relationships with the Aboriginal Community and education providers across all levels of government SONNIE aims to work collectively to share information and support State and national policies, strategies and initiatives designed to achieve equity for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples

6. COLLEGIAL PRACTICES An informative, collegial process that develops a common agenda and synergies between states and territories in their Aboriginal policies Professional development for members Interaction between Aboriginal leaders with non-Aboriginal members Support for Aboriginal members, who are in key (but often) ‘lonely’ positions Mentoring aspirant Aboriginal leaders.

7. MEMBERSHIP SONNIE membership is represented from the following jurisdictions: Northern Territory (NT) Tasmania (Tas) South Australia (SA) Western Australia (WA) Queensland (Qld) Victoria (Vic) Australian Capital Territory (ACT) New South Wales (NSW)

8. KEY CHALLENGES What should schools look like in education for the future? How should we respond to clientele needs and aspirations in this constantly changing environment? How should we provide effective support mechanisms that enable us to be responsive, innovative, accountable and have competitive advantage?

9. KEY CHALLENGES How should we continue to assert the right for our children to access quality education services that provide a security of culture and identity and the best educational outcomes? How should we focus on providing culturally inclusive education services and build inclusive school communities?

10. CURRENT SONNIE KEY STRATEGIC RESPONSIBILITES Hold membership of the MCEETYA Indigenous Education Reference Group Hold responsibility in each State and Territory for the reporting against the recommendations relating to the Australian Strategic Directions in Indigenous Education 2005-2008 Hold carriage for leading the evaluation of the 2005- 2008 Australian Strategic Directions in Indigenous Education Hold carriage for monitoring the development of the Indigenous Early Years Framework

11. CURRENT SONNIE KEY STRATEGIC RESPONSIBILITES Represented on the Teacher Quality – Indigenous Workforce Working Group – Better Pathways for Indigenous People Contributed to the evaluation of the What Works program and Dare to Lead (2008) Work collaboratively with the Dare to Lead Coalition and are represented on the Reference group

12. PARTNERSHIP BUILDS SUCCESS To enable the SONNIE and DARE to LEAD partnership to continue to build success we need to: Respect the governance and purpose of each structure and work within those constructs Continue to initiate and engage in open and frank discussion about key strategies and directions regarding Aboriginal Education and Training Collaborate in the planning and delivery of professional development and training opportunities Maximise the capacity and capabilities of each others structure to strengthen the relationship and scaffold on effective practice

13. BECAUSE THEY’RE WORTH IT