VICTORIAN INDIGENOUS ENGINEERING WINTER SCHOOL6–13 JULY 2019

REPORT

We acknowledge the Traditional Owners of the land in which the Victorian Indigenous Engineering Winter School took place, the land of the Wurundjeri, and pay respect to their Elders and families.

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VIEWS, an initiative arising from the 2015 National Indigenous Engineering Summit, was a collaborative venture between the University of Melbourne, RMIT University, Swinburne University and Monash University. Its aim was to provide Year 11 and 12 Indigenous students with an immersive experience of engineering and the offerings of the four universities.

Under the patronage of Professor Marcia Langton, VIEWS received generous support from each of the four universities, and sponsorship from CYP Design and Construction, BP Australia, Google, Agilent Technologies, ARUP, Honeywell, KBR and SYPAQ with philanthropic support from Boeing.

VIEWS 2019 was held in Melbourne from 6-13 July 2019 during NAIDOC week. This year 29, years 10, 11 and 12 Indigenous students from across Australia participated in a rich experience aimed at expanding their perspective on engineering and inspiring them to consider engineering as a career. This was the largest cohort to date since the program commenced in 2016.

“The generosity of our faculty volunteers and staff as well

as that of our sponsors is inspired by the need to

reach parity for Indigenous professionals in the fields of engineering so that they too

can contribute to making Australia great.”

Professor Marcia Langton, VIEWS Patron

Victorian Indigenous Engineering Winter School (VIEWS)

Residing on campus at Trinity College at the University of Melbourne

An opportunity to explore different university campuses, engineering options and study pathways.

Real-world experience of engineering through industry site visits.

Hands-on workshops to develop the problem solving and design skills used every day by engineers

Connection with Indigenous Support Units and meeting Indigenous Elders

Speaking with Indigenous university students and Indigenous engineers

Student feedback was very positive, with students valuing the rich experience VIEWS provided:

“VIEWS 2019 was one of the best experiences of my life. Building connections with like minded people and learning about a very likely future for myself all while improving my knowledge about my cultural background created the best environment for myself.”

“I loved VIEWS. It is an amazing educational experience, that helped me further my understanding of both engineering and university. I would recommend the program to any aspiring indigenous students.”

“The VIEWS program has taught me that engineering is much broader than you think. It was such an amazing experience and wish I could do it again, the other participants and mentors are like a family now.”

VIEWS 2019 participants

The VIEWS program included:

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SupportersThe VIEWS Steering Committee would like to express its gratitude to the programs sponsors. Without the continued and generous support of our Industry sponsors, and the sponsorship and collaborative engagement

of the four universities, the life-changing VIEWS program would have not been possible.

Swinburne School of Engineering

Monash Faculty of Engineering

RMIT School of Engineering

Melbourne School of Engineering

VIEWS will keep sponsors updated of the ongoing success of VIEWS participants, who will continue to be supported through the VIEWS alumni network.

The William Cooper Institute

CYP Design & Construction Consortium

Construction partner

PHILANTHROPIC PARTNER:

PRINCIPAL SPONSOR:

GOLD SPONSORS:

BRONZE SPONSORS:

UNIVERSITY SPONSORS AND INDIGENOUS ENGAGEMENT UNITS:

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Supporters

Patron: Professor Marcia Langton

Steering Committee:

Chair: Mr Josh Loyd Jacobs

Melbourne University: Professor Andrew Turpin Professor Elaine Wong Ms Hope Perkins Ms Michelle Bellino Dr Juliana Kaya Prpic Ms Rula Paterson

Monash University: Dr Daniel Edgington-Mitchell Ms Alana Harries

RMIT University: Dr Matthew Currell Dr Kate Fox

Mr Kevin Moore, Ngarara Willim Centre

Swinburne University: Dr Scott Rayburg Mr Joel Boojers

Engineers: Mr Ross Peek, Indigenous Engineer, Melbourne School of Engineering Alumni Mr Brendon McNiven, Structural Engineer

Sponsors: Principal Sponsor: CYP Design and Construction Consortium

Gold Sponsors: Google, BP Australia, Agilent Technologies

Bronze Sponsors: ARUP, Honeywell, SYPAQ, KBR

Philanthropic Supporter: Boeing

Indigenous Engineer Taylah Griffin, Systems Engineer Boeing

Panel Members: Ben Dews, Network Automation Engineer BP

Jaiki Pitt, Software Engineering student, intern at Atlassian

Indigenous Elders: Uncle Bill Nicholson, Wurundjeri Elder

Dean Stewart, Wemba Wemba/Wergala man, working on Boon Wurrung Country with consent from the Boon Wurrung Foundation (Aunty Carolyn Briggs)

Indigenous Mentors: Caleb Adams, Jackson Reid, Brittney Andrews, Stephanie Walker, Brittney Henderson,

Ethan Savage, Jasper Howell

“VIEWS 2019 was easily one the best experiences of my life. You meet up with other Indigenous students from all over Australia who share common interests, and you develop strong relationships up until the point that everyone is basically family. You also learn about different fields in engineering, and get a taste of what it’s like to be an engineer. This helped me to decide what career path I wanted to pursue in the future.”

VIEWS 2019 participant

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ParticipantsThe 29 participants (18 male, 11 female) attended from across Australia, representing schools illustrated in Figure 1.

Figure 1: Australia-wide participation in VIEWS

Victoria: 4

Beaconhills College

Manorlakes College

Lara Secondary College

Trinity College Colac

DubboSydney

Ipswich

Ballina

Brisbane

MelbourneColac

Murwillumbah

New South Wales: 10

Murwillumbah High School

Dubbo College Senior Campus

Evans River K-12

Sydney Boys

St Mary’s Cathedral College

Parramatta Marist High School

Carinya Christian School

Queensland: 5

Beenleigh State High School

Marsden State High School

Ipswich Grammar School

Tagai State College Secondary Campus

Western Australia: 7

Eastern Goldfields College

Geraldton Senior High School

Governor Stirling Senior High School

Laverton School

Alice Springs

Darwin

Northern Territory: 3

Centralian Senior College

Our Lady of the Sacred Heart College

Our Lady of the Sacred Heart College, Alice Springs

Perth

Thursday Island

Geraldton Laverton

Kalgoorlie

Adelaide

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ProgramAcross the seven day program participants gained first-hand experience into various aspects of engineering. Students visited industry, spoke to practicing engineers, built support networks and friendships while most importantly having a lot of fun.

The philosophy underpinning the program was to engage students in five key areas:

1. Explore four universitiesThe success of VIEWS arose from being a collaboration between four universities who were mutually to expose the participants to the full range of opportunities available.

Each day was hosted by a different university and included a range of presentations and engaging activities as summarised in the Appendix.

Visits to each campus enabled students to explore the facilities, the various courses on offer and to discover which university might best meet their particular needs and aspirations.

Students enjoyed meeting the staff from the Indigenous Engagement Units who welcomed them and outlined the services and support they offer. They also enjoyed hearing stories from Indigenous Elder, Uncle Bill Nicholson.

2. Meet Indigenous engineersVIEWS was designed to offer students the opportunity to meet Indigenous people who had successfully undertaken university study and become engineers. Introducing (left to right) Jaiki, Taylah and Ben:

VIEWS 2019 Indigenous Engineers Panel - Celebration Dinner, Melbourne Museum

Jaiki PittLiving in Maroubra Sydney his whole life, Jaiki’s mob are from Wuthathi and Meriam. Jaiki is currently studying software engineering at UNSW and is in his final year. “I enjoy software engineering because creating software applications and solutions is satisfying and challenging. Last summer I interned at Atlassian, I worked in the Build Engineering team. I hope to graduate in 2021 and join the Atlassian graduate program.”

Taylah GriffinTaylah is proudly Indigenous, belonging to the Gangalu mob. She grew up and completed her schooling in the sugarcane town of Gordonvale, FNQ. Leaving Gordonvale to study at QUT in Brisbane, she became the first person in her family to go to university. In 2018 she graduated from QUT with an Honours degree in Electrical and Aerospace Engineering, becoming the first Indigenous person to do so, and also the first Indigenous female to graduate from QUT with any Engineering degree. During university she completed a number of Industry internships, and Taylah now works as an engineer within the Boeing Defence Australia Wedgetail Test Team.

Ben DewsBen is a network automation engineer at BP, graduating from Swinburne with a Bachelor of Network Design & Security. Ben has been interested in computers since primary school, specifically in the management of computers. One of Ben’s earliest memories is of creating a virus that could control a device remotely. Ben’s interest evolved to system/network administration and then into IT and infrastructure.

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3. Discover pathways into engineering In addition to exploring the various pathways offered by the four universities, participants were also able to discover other

possible pathways into engineering and real world applications of Engineering.

CYP Design and Construction Consortium

Students visited one of the largest infrastructure projects currently being conducted in Melbourne, the Metro Rail Tunnel project – Cross Yarra Partnership. Students were shown the tunnel and virtual reality simulations of what the project will eventually look like on completion. Students also had the opportunity to ask the project’s engineers what some of the challenges of a project this size were, how much it costs and what part of their job they liked the most.

ARUP

The ARUP team ran a design workshop using the ongoing Southbank by Beulah International project (a new precinct in Melbourne) as the theme. The students were given a project brief and designed the overall shape of the building, planning out where all the space types would be located. Following this, each group was given one aspect of the precinct (transport, energy, water or waste) to design. As a bonus, the students were asked to incorporate an ‘X factor’, something out of the box which would set their design apart.

Boeing

Students and mentors visited Boeing and conducted a tour of their fabrication and assembly workshops. Here participants learnt about specific aircraft components that are manufactured here in Melbourne before being sent to the United States. The tour finished off with a Starliner space virtual reality experience. The visit was hosted by the Boeing Engineering team and was a great opportunity for students to ask questions related to aeronautical, aerospace and mechatronic engineering.

Precious Plastics Activity - Monash University

4. Experience the work of engineers An important element of the program was the industry visits, which exposed students to the variety and diversity of an

engineer’s daily work. Sites visited included:

5. Cultural activities An important element of the program was to provide a connection to Indigenous culture. Students had the opportunity to

participate in a guided tour of the Birrarung (Yarra) river through Indigenous eyes, including a discussion of the history of engineering/modification since European settlement and the pre-European history of the river.

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Student Evaluation and FeedbackParticipants were asked to complete a survey at the conclusion of the 2019 program to assess various aspects of the program and inform preparations for VIEWS 2020+. A total of 13 students (43% of the cohort) provided online feedback.

3. After attending VIEWS 2019 would you recommend the program to other year 10, 11 or 12 Indigenous students?

1. After attending VIEWS 2019 are you likely to consider applying to one of the Universities you visited?

2. Did you find the Industry site visits relevant and beneficial?

No No really Somewhat Yes Definitely Yes

No Yes

Don’t know Not likely Possibly Very likely Absolutely

100

80

60

40

20

0

100

80

60

40

20

0

100

80

60

40

20

0

54%

100%

100%

%

%

%

31%

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4 15%

2

13

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4. What was your favourite part of the VIEWS 2019 program?

Developing an understanding of a variety of fields of engineering, and learning about the processes and techniques that engineers utilise to complete their tasks.

MCG footy match & networking with current students and people highly regarded in their professions.

I loved all the opportunities provided for the students and the wholesome/welcoming feelings from all my peers.

All the bonding activities within the group made the whole camp so much better. It made me feel more comfortable asking questions and interacting. The highlight for me was the Formula SAE teams and simulator.

Meeting everyone in the program and building the connections between each other and discovering what different aspects of engineering do.

Meeting everyone and becoming somewhat family.

Visiting the Biomedical Sciences department and seeing the X-ray of a cadaver.

Meeting all the mob and the mentors and building great friendships.

All the fun activities we got to participate in, both with the universities and in the VIEWS group.

The variety of work, learning and work opportunities we got.

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“VIEWS 2019 was easily one the best experiences of my life. You meet up with other Indigenous students from all over Australia who share common interests, and you develop strong relationships up until the point that everyone is basically family. You also learn about different fields in engineering and get a taste of what it’s like to be an engineer. This helped me to decide what career path I wanted to pursue in the future.”

VIEWS 2019 Participants - Celebration Dinner, Melbourne Museum

“Honestly life changing camp for those considering engineering or need help deciding their future.”

“The only bad part about views was leaving, and when the machines ran out of hot chocolate.”

VIEWS 2019 participants

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“The VIEWS program provided an excellent program for High School students to engage with the Universities and engineering within an inclusive environment. I saw students foster positive relationships, learn more about what they can achieve, and grow their leadership skills. As a mentor, it was an extremely rewarding experience to witness this, as well as interact with some enthusiastic and positive Indigenous students.”

VIEWS 2019 Mentor

VIEWS 2019 Mentors - Celebration Dinner, Melbourne Museum

“The highlight of the week for me was the awards evening, and getting to see the kids so incredibly proud of their achievements.”

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Appendix

SATURDAY 6 JULY TIME ACTIVITY LOCATION

9:00am – 6:00pm Melbourne Tullamarine airport to Trinity College Trinity College

6:00pm – 8:00pm Dinner Trinity College Café next to dining hall

8:00pm – 9:00pm Yarning Circles/free time JCR Trinity College

SUNDAY 7 JULY TIME ACTIVITY LOCATION

7:30am – 9:00am Breakfast Trinity College Dining Hall

9:00am – 10:00am Free time

10:00am – 11:00am Welcome to Country/Smoking Ceremony OWL North & South, Trinity College

11:00am – 12:00pm Program and conduct briefing OWL North & South, Trinity College

12:00pm - 1:00pm Travel to AFL game

1:00pm – 4:00pm Activity: AFL game

4:00pm – 5:00pm Return to Trinity College

5:00pm – 8:00pm Dinner Trinity College Café

8:00pm – 9:00pm Free time JCR Trinity College

MONDAY 8 JULY – RMIT TIME ACTIVITY LOCATION

7:30am – 8:45am Breakfast Trinity College Dining Hall

8:45am – 9:00am Walk/tram to RMIT

9:00am – 10:30am Welcome to Country Ngarara Place Introduction and welcome session: Staff / student introductions, Ice Breaker

Ngarara Willim / Ngarara Place (005.010.01) then 80.04.019

10:45am – 12:30pm Activity: 3D Printing / Biofabrication and 3D Scanning Activity: Are you a true engineer? Discussion with current students

Building 55

12:30pm – 1:30pm Lunch RMIT or Birrarung (depending on weather)

1:45pm – 3:15pm Activity: 3D Printing / Biofabrication RMIT Building 55, Level 4

2:00pm – 4:30pm Activity: River Walk with Dean Stewart – Walkin Country, Walkin Birrarung

Enterprize Park on the Birrarung

4:30pm – 5:00pm Return to RMIT

5:00pm – 5:30pm Ngarara Willim session: support and pathways 005.01.01Ngarara Willim

5:30pm – 8:00pm Activity: Strike bowling, karaoke and dinner

8:00pm – 8:30pm Depart Strike Bowling and return to Trinity College

8:30pm Yarning Circles/free time Owl, Trinity College

VIEWS 2019 program

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TUESDAY 9 JULY – SWINBURNE UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGYTIME ACTIVITY LOCATION

8:30am - 9:00am Depart Trinity College to Richmond Football Club

9:00am – 10:15am Welcome, Acknowledgment of Country Activity: Marngrook Workshop (Bernadette Atkinson)

10:15am - 10:30am Morning Tea

10:30am - 11:00am Aaron Clark: Group address

11:00am – 12:30pm Activity 1: Observe senior football training and tour facilities Activity 2: TAGAMES incursion

12:30pm - 1:15pm Lunch

1:15pm – 1:30pm Depart Richmond and travel to Swinburne Hawthorn Campus

1:30pm – 3:00pm Activity 1: Formula SAE team Activity 2: Exploring the thermal efficiency of building materials

Swinburne University

3:00pm – 3:30pm Visit Moondani Toombadool Centre and afternoon tea

3:30pm – 5:00pm Activity: Aviation flight simulator experience

5:30pm – 6:00pm Dinner: Swinburne on campus pizzas Santoni’s restaurant

6:30pm – 8:30pm Activity: Movie – Spiderman (Lido private theatre) LiDO cinema

WEDNESDAY 10 JULY – UNIVERSITY OF MELBOURNETIME ACTIVITY LOCATION

7:30am – 8:30am Breakfast Trinity College Dining Hall

9:00am – 10:20am Visit Murrup Barak, Melbourne Institute for Indigenous Development to discuss pathways and morning tea

Murrup Barak

10.20am – 10:30am Split into two groups and transit (swap activities after 30mins)

10:30pm – 11:45am Activity 1: Computer Assisted Rehabilitation Environment (CAREN) – Interactive workshop Activity 2: Musculoskeletal Biomechanics Lab Tour – Strain gauging the body

CAREN labBuilding 184 Laboratories

12:00pm – 12:00pm Lunch

12:00pm – 2:00pm Activity: Google - App Inventor workshop Electrical Engineering Room 123

2:00pm – 2:30pm Travel to Boeing

2:30pm – 4:00pm Boeing: Site visit Boeing Aerostructures Australia

4:00pm – 4:30pm Return to University of Melbourne

4:45pm – 6:15pm Activity: Academic Centre of Cyber Security Excellence – Interactive workshop

Old Metallurgy - 202 (Room 2)

6:20pm – 7:30pm Dinner

8:00pm – 9:00pm Yarning Circles/free time Owl Trinity College

7:30am – 9:00am Breakfast Trinity College Dining Hall

6:00am – 1:00pm Departures in line with flight itineraries

VIEWS 2019 program

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THURSDAY 11 JULY – MONASH UNIVERSITYTIME ACTIVITY LOCATION

7:30am – 9:00am Breakfast Trinity College Dining Hall

9:00am – 9:30am Travel to Monash

9:30am Arrive at Monash Bus bay at Robert Blackwood Hall

9:30am – 9:45am Welcome

9:30am – 11.15am Activity: High Powered Rocketry Team The Leaders Room and Frearson OvalMeeting Room 4

11.15am – 11:30am Walk to Precious Plastic workshop Rooms 152 and 158, 17 Alliance Lane

11.30am – 12:30pm Activity: Precious Plastic Rooms 152 and 158, 17 Alliance Lane

12:30pm – 12:45pm Walk to Yulendj Yulendj - 10 Ancora Imparo Way

12.45pm - 1.45pm Lunch Yulendj - 10 Ancora Imparo Way

1:45pm – 2:00pm Split into two groups and transit New Horizons

2:00pm – 2:25pm Activity: Group 1 - The Cave, Group 2 – Monash Motorsport

Monash Clayton, New Horizons17 Alliance Lane

2:30pm – 2:55pm Activity: Group 1 – Monash Motorsport, Group 2 - The Cave

2:55pm – 3:00pm Go to bus bay New Horizons 20 Research Way

3:00pm – 4:00pm Depart return to Trinity College

4:00pm – 6:00pm Free time

FRIDAY 12 JULYTIME ACTIVITY LOCATION

7:30am – 8:00am Breakfast Trinity College Dining Hall

8:30am – 9:00am Tram 19 to Collins Street, tram 11 or 48 to Southern Cross Station (last stop), walk to 699 Collins Street

9:00am – 11:00am ARUP: Engineering workshop 699 Collins Street Docklands

12:00pm – 2:00pm CYP Design Construction Joint Venture: Site visit Metro Hub Facility, 332 St Kilda Rd, Melbourne

3:00pm – 5:00pm Dinner preparation Trinity College

5:00pm – 6:00pm Travel to the Melbourne Museum

6:00pm – 6:30pm Registration and pre-dinner networking Melbourne Museum

6:30pm – 10:00pm Celebration Dinner Melbourne Museum

9:30pm – 10:00pm Depart Melbourne Museum return to Trinity College Trinity College

SATURDAY 13 JULY DEPARTURESTIME ACTIVITY LOCATION

7:30am – 9:00am Breakfast Trinity College Dining Hall

6:00am – 1:00pm Departures in line with flight itineraries

VIEWS 2019 program