All new public schools in Victoria will drop English names in favor of Aboriginal titles in a bid to ensure children recognize the traditional owners of the land.
- Fourteen public schools were named after First Nations
- Indigenous names selected from a list of 7,000
- State government changed school naming policy
New public schools in Victoria will be given First Nations names under a policy aimed at ensuring students recognize the traditional owners of the land.
The Victorian government revealed that 14 new public schools will be given names in indigenous languages when they open in 2024.
Indigenous titles come after the Department of Education changed its School and Campus Naming Policy to prioritize local First Nations culture and heritage.
The policy is part of the Daniel Andrews government’s effort to put into practice the elements of the Treaty and Truth of the Uluru Heart Statement to better recognize and represent First Nations culture and language.
Education Minister Natalie Hutchins visited Yarrabing Secondary School in Aintree, formerly known as Aintree Secondary School, on Monday to unveil the new school names along with the names of four new kindergartens on school sites.
Fourteen new Victorian state schools will be given an indigenous name after changes were made to the state’s school naming policy to prioritize cultural heritage and First Nations names.
Yarrabing is a Woi-Wurrung word of the Wurundjeri people meaning ‘white chewing gum’ and was drawn from a short list of Aboriginal names.
Geographic names Victoria and traditional owner groups worked together to choose the names after a two-week community consultation process received more than 7,000 submissions.
“These 14 new schools will ensure that growing communities have a great local education for their children and a unique connection to the land through their indigenous names,” said Ms. Hutchins.
Other names include Walcom Ngarrwa Secondary College in Werribee, named after the words Wadawurring meaning ‘steps to knowledge’ and Laa Yulta Primary School in Black Forrest, named after the word Wadawurrung meaning ‘many stones’.
The names of the four new kindergartens in schools will be Laa Yulta Primary School Kindergarten, Wimba Primary School Kindergarten, Warreen Primary School Kindergarten and Murnong Kindergarten.
Geographic names Victoria and traditional owner groups worked together to choose the names after a two-week community consultation process received more than 7,000 submissions.
You can find a complete list of the translations of the names of the indigenous schools in the Victorian Government website.
The schools’ naming policy was first changed in March 2022, requiring the department to consult with traditional owner groups.
Under the initial change, the education minister would select a name for a new school from a list of proposed Aboriginal names.
If a name was not agreed, the Minister would choose another from the proposed list.
However, in March 2023, Ms Hutchins revealed that the policy would be changed so that “only traditional owner groups” could propose an Aboriginal language name.
‘TOAll new schools and government campuses will have preferred names proposed, in a move to further promote Aboriginal self-determination,’ said Ms Hutchins.
The policy also ensures that all new Victorian state schools opening from 2025 have a name in the First Nations language.
Education Minister Natalie Hutchins said the new names will ensure children have a connection to the land through the school’s indigenous names.
Early Childhood and Pre-prep Minister Ingrid Stitt said in a statement that she is “proud” of the new names.
“We are very proud that our new names for boys reflect the land they are in and help our youngest learners understand the role Victorian First Nations play in our heritage and history,” said Ms. Stitt.
At least nine new schools due to open in 2025 and 2026 have been given indigenous names, according to the Victorian School Construction Authority.
Earlier this year, 13 Victorian state schools, 11 new and two renamed, were given indigenous-language names, as well as two new campuses, The Age reported.
