Youth on track to dream career

A bit of luck and a lot of effort has Happy Valley youth Jamie Hodgetts on track to achieving his career goal of building BMX tracks in and around Adelaide.

Only a few months ago, Jamie was a disaffected secondary-school student who hated school – but wasn’t sure how he’d find a path towards a job and a future.

But with the help of Mission Australia case manager Frank Ross, a lifelong passion for BMX that’s extended beyond riding and embraced the design and construction of the sport’s specialised tracks – and some good timing – Jamie is now looking toward a career in track building and maintenance.

Jamie, 17, was one of a group of BMX fans from Adelaide’s southern suburbs who had spent many hours repairing and maintaining the bike track at Pine Road, when he and mate Anthony Collins were approached by the City of Onkaparinga Council to help with safety-related track renovations.

A TAFE student in the Mission Australia “Flexible Learning Options” (FLO) program – managed through the organisation’s Southern Youth Exchange service at Christies Downs – Jamie says the council told him it would supply the enormous amounts of dirt required for the work, if he and Anthony would perform the work.

“It was a case of being in the right place at the right time,” Jamie says. “Anthony and I happened to be there when the council workers came to the track to look at what work needed to be done.

“They could see we’d put a lot of work into the track already, and knew what we were doing.”

After a week’s effort, filling every moment when he’s not studying for his TAFE graphic design certificate, Jamie says about half the work is done.

Jamie is hoping the project will lead to a fulltime job in track construction and maintenance.

Since joining the FLO program, he’s transferred from secondary school to TAFE and has enrolled to earn his bobcat and forklift licences after his 18th birthday in October.

He says “Frank” has helped him “make good decisions” about his future.

“I wasn’t going to school much, and Mission Australia suggested I move to the FLO program and find something I really wanted to study at TAFE,” Jamie says.

“With Frank’s help, I’ve changed from being a kid who really didn’t have a place at school to someone who can see a real future in a job I want to work for – all in a few months.”

Mission Australia provides FLO in partnership with the South Australian Government. It’s an initiative that offers education opportunities for young people who have dropped out of school or are at risk of doing so.

According to Mission Australia’s SA State Director, Jillian Paull, Jamie’s turnaround is a testament to FLO’s success.

“If we’re to stop young people who feel restricted by or excluded from mainstream schooling from dropping out then we need to be flexible,” said Ms Paull.

“We need to start building education around the young person’s needs rather than fitting them into the system.

“That’s exactly what FLO does – it provides accredited schooling outside the traditional classroom in a youth-friendly environment – and the results, like Jamie’s, speak for themselves.

“We’re over the moon at Jamie’s success and glad to see that Mission Australia and FLO have played a part in helping him stay engaged with his education and in a position where he can take advantage of the opportunities before him,” said Ms Paull.