PARLOUR X TURNS TEN – WE CELEBRATE BY GIVING BACK

In celebration of this milestone, owner & buyer of Parlour X, Eva Galambos is giving back to her community by announcing a creative collaboration with Archibald Prize Winning Artist, Del Kathryn Barton who has designed a Parlour X Ten Year Anniversary limited edition scarf, whereby all proceeds raised will be donated to Ian Thorpe’s Fountain For Youth Charity. This has been a dream creative collaboration for both Del Kathryn Barton & Eva Galambos who are dedicated and passionate about this project & the cause. Eva says “We are using creative outpost to not only raise money for a worthy cause but it is the most effective way to educate & deliver such an important message & increase awareness”

Ian Thorpe’s Fountain for Youth is focused on supporting Indigenous learning, raising awareness and funds to deliver programs that can improve education and health outcomes for Indigenous children. Through the Literacy Backpack Project the charity is assisting over 2,200 students & families in 20 remote communities, delivering reading and education resources to the schools & newspapers and magazines to homes that were once bookless and had illiteracy rates as high as 93%. The project provides much needed books & education resources for literacy and numeracy giving effective support to Principals & Teachers to improve the quality of teaching &engagement of community groups and parents.  Without these resources there was little chance for home learning or parental involvement with children struggling to read in the absence of any kind of reading material.  The Literacy Backpack Program closes the space between home and school, stimulates reading & improves learning in the whole community.
Research has confirmed that the essential foundation for improved health and life expectancy is rapid progress in life empowering education – literacy is the crucial pathway to providing life opportunities for the children in remote Indigenous communities and the stepping stones towards closing the gap between Indigenous and non Indigenous Australians.(http://ianthorpes-fountainforyouth.com/programs/literacy-backpack-project/literacy-backpacks)

To further support this project, Australia’s First International Aboriginal Model Samantha Harris has become involved by featuring in the Parlour X Ten Year Anniversary Limited Edition Scarf campaign.
Eva says “working with Del Kathryn Barton is so exciting; she pushes boundaries with such confidence. To me, it is not just the end point that is important; it is also the process of the collaboration that has been an inspiration and a journey… “
Only 100 Parlour X Ten Year Anniversary limited Edition Scarf have been produced & will be sold for $450 at Parlour X from 8th June 2011, and will also be sold online at www.parlourx.com

Congratulations Echo Creek-Tully-Nth QLD.  Winners of the Tropical North Queensland Tourism Awards 2009.  Eco friendly, Indigenous cross-cultural training and outdoor adventure experience……walk in the footsteps of the ancestors.

“Join us and let us share our beautiful place” – Echo Creek

The Peninsula Community of Schools (PCS), 13 State Schools in the Pittwater Shire, Northern Beaches of Sydney and Macquarie University have made the education of Aboriginal Australians a ‘focus area’. 
To strengthen the education message, Ian Thorpe’s Fountain for youth (FFY)  is developing a school based approach starting this term with a link to the 13 Peninsula Community of Schools (PCS) in an education program involving AIME, Ian Thorpe’s Fountain for Youth and Macquarie University.

The Principals and Teachers are aware of the current educational issues facing Aboriginal Australians, the widening gap that exists between Indigenous and Non Indigenous students in all areas relating to academic performance, school attendance and high school completion rates. 
PCS schools are creating programs and opportunities for teachers and students to be involved in.
The primary and high schools plus Macquarie University have committed to a program with several goals:
• direct fundraising to support Ian Thorpe’s Fountain for youth Literacy Backpack Program for remote community schools and AIME in urban schools.
• education effort in classrooms (such as essay writing, music, drama, human rights reports, celebration of Indigenous success stories and discussion of contemporary Indigenous issues) to explain to students how and why Aboriginal students need our collective encouragement and support.
• linking teachers in Sydney schools to the movement to improve Indigenous education
• Macquarie University to provide a scholarship for training of Indigenous early learning teacher.
• encourage and challenge teachers in other NSW education zones to follow suit.

The PCS Staff Development Day will be held on Monday 19th April at Barrenjoey High School with all Principals and 600 teachers of the thirteen schools in attendance. 
Ian Thorpe, (Founder Fountain for youth) and Jack Bancroft (CEO AIME), along with Jeff McMullen (CEO FFY Director AIME), PCS and Macquarie University representatives will address the Forum and discuss the joint partnership with the PCS. 

Jeff McMullen will to address the South Western Sydney Principal’s Conference on March 26th and the Western Sydney Primary Principal’s Council on May 6th to further outline the approach taken by the PCS schools, AIME AND FFY.

Resources for Staff to download:

Stronger Smarter Way

FFY Program Summary

Resource List

Fountain for youth would like to congratulate Stuart Dwyer, Groups Schools Principal, Cath Meng the Project Officer who drives the Literacy Backpack Program and all Principals, teachers and families who work hard to make this program the great success it is.
The Schools First awards provided nationwide to primary and secondary schools and their community partners, recognised the partnerships’ direct impact on improved student outcomes, including greater engagement and increased attendance; improved literacy or numeracy; increased self-esteem; social, vocational or civic outcomes; global awareness and action.
Cath Meng will be given opportunity next year to present the project at workshops attended by other Territory schools who intend applying for 2010 awards

$5.2 million available in 2010 for school–community partnerships
In 2010, Schools First has $5.2 million to award to 108 school community partnerships.
If you would like to find out more about how your school can apply for a Schools First Award 2010, visit: www.schoolsfirst.edu.au.