Milestone for the Catalyst Clemente program

Left to Right:  Alex Prudnicki, Jeanne-Marie Thomasz (Manager MA), Nerissa Blake, Susan Ash (Associate Professor ECU), Anita Welsh, Mario Gomes (Catalyst Coordinator, MA), Tasha La Mer.  Photography by Phillips & Father  

Mission Australia’s Catalyst Clemente (Catalyst) program provides tertiary education in arts and the humanities to assist marginalised people escape cycles of poverty and homelessness.

Catalyst reached a memorable milestone when four of its students graduated from the 2009 program.

On the 31st January Alex Prudnicki, Anita Welsh, Nerissa Blake and Tasha La Mer received their certificates during the formal Edith Cowan University (ECU) Graduation Ceremony at the Perth Convention Centre. Three of these graduates are enrolled for further tertiary study at ECU in 2010.

The graduates were supported on the night by fellow students, family and friends, staff and academia from Mission Australia, Woodside, ECU and Curtin University. Claire Brown, the original program co-ordinator from ECU also travelled from interstate to see the students graduate.

True to its name, the program has proven for another year that it can be a catalyst for change and social inclusion.

Through the learning of the arts and humanities, students are empowered to think about and reflect on the world in which they live. In turn, this intellectual engagement can promote a broader re-engagement with society, and encourage students to take action in their own lives - as seen in recent survey responses from the students:

“My confidence – I have posture. I smile more. I have goals now that I’d like to meet. I’m not as ashamed. Now I feel my life has a purpose. It has given me self worth.”

“It has given me a new and different attitude towards education and myself.”

Their stories are evidence of the empowerment and hope that opportunities like this can provide.

Mission Australia now offers Catalyst in Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth. The program is also offered by other community services agencies in NSW (Sydney, Newcastle and Campbelltown), Ballarat (VIC) and Canberra.

The graduation event is a commendable achievement for the four graduates, acknowledged with immense pride by all who have been involved in developing and delivering Catalyst Clemente in WA. It also provides tremendous encouragement and motivation for the students who are currently engaged in the program.