AIME

AIME Indigenous Corporation is a not-for-profit charity with Deductible Gift Recipient (DGR) status and is established as a national organisation. 
The CEO and Founder of AIME is Jack Manning Bancroft.

AIME provides access to a six-year Mentoring Program for Indigenous Australian students while undertaking their high school studies from Year 7 through to Year 12.  It partners University student volunteers in a one-on-one mentoring relationship with the high school Indigenous students for an hour a week over the course of a 17-week program.

The goals are to improve Year 10 completion rates, Year 12 completion rates and University admission rates for all participating students.  The program offers Indigenous high school students over 60 hours of extra one on one support from Year 9 through to Year 12. This has to make a difference. It’s a simple model that can be transferred across the nation.

Apart from the impact AIME is having on Indigenous high school students, it offers a significant opportunity for Indigenous and non-Indigenous University students to gain invaluable experience working with Indigenous high school students, and offers a great base for University marketing and recruitment with AIME facilitating the development of long-term partnerships between local high schools and the University.

If the AIME program is given the infrastructure to develop it has the potential to help make huge changes in Indigenous education.  With this knowledge the AIME staff, Board, mentors, and supporters work beyond the call of duty, because for all involved in AIME, this is more than work, “it’s the right thing to do.”

After four years running the program, AIME will produce its first report tracking completion rates in February 2009.  Early indications are that this program is achieving results like no other, AIME works.

AIME is looking to partner with Universities and the corporate sector to help expand the program around the country. 

Ian Thorpe’s Fountain for Youth is proud to be a partner in such an important project and will direct $50,000 per annum to AIME for 2009 and 2010.

Ian and the board of directors of Fountain for Youth are convinced that AIME’S support of many hundreds of Aboriginal high school students each year is one of the best ways we can create stepping stones to higher education, better health and employment, and ultimately equality for all young Australians.

Ian is personally very committed to AIME’S future growth and through his charity hope’s he can help develop the national reach of the project.

Find out more about the AIME Program:  www.aimementoring.com.au