Melbourne Indigenous Transition School (MITS)

First Day of School and MITS Celebration Dinner Video - February 2023

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Today is a very special day for our MITS students.

Early this morning, our newest cohort of Year 7 students began their educational journey in Melbourne.  They woke for the first time at Lockington, our Year 7 Boarding House, before making their way down Richmond Hill to their MITS classroom at Richmond Football Club. Over the weekend, we shared an Orientation Program with our new students and their families, and Uncle Colin Hunter performed a Welcome and Smoking Ceremony for our students as they arrived on Wurundjeri County for the first time. 

Below is a photo of our Year 7 Class of 2023.

A new journey is also underway for our Year 8 students. Today, our MITS Year 8 program has officially commenced, making MITS a two-year transition program. We have made this step with the overwhelmingly positive support of our students and families. The additional year of schooling at MITS will better support our students’ academic and personal growth, before they confidently step into our Melbourne Partner Schools from Year 9 onwards.

In the short term, our Year 8 program will operate from a space that has been offered to us by Richmond High School, just 800 metres from Richmond Hill. This space will be used while the development of the William Cooper Centre at the Richmond Football Club occurs over the next couple of years.  Once complete, the new centre at Tigerland will offer purpose-built facilities for our Year 7 and 8 cohorts on the one site.

As we start the 2023 school year, I want to take a moment to look back on 2022, and share with you this 2-minute video from our 2022 Student Celebration Dinner at the MCG in December (created pro bono by Fancy Films).

The Student Celebration Dinner video paints a wonderful picture of our student community here in Melbourne. As we start 2023, over 70 students are living with MITS, with over 90 MITS students and alum living and learning inMelbourne. Together, they form a connected community of young people feeling strong and empowered as they pursue their dreams here in Naarm (Melbourne.)

The continued growth of MITS and our students relies on the generosity of our incredible community.  If you would like to support us through a tax-deductible contribution, you can donate here.

We are excited to update you on our students’ achievements throughout the coming year.  For now, thank you for supporting great educational opportunities for our students.

Best wishes

Edward Tudor | Executive Director
Melbourne Indigenous Transition School
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