Karalundi College is an
independent
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Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups
* Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s
* Independ ...
Seventh-day Adventist
The Seventh-day Adventist Church is an Adventism, Adventist Protestantism, Protestant Christian denomination which is distinguished by its observance of Saturday, the Names of the days of the week#Numbered days of the week, seventh day of the ...
co-educational
Mixed-sex education, also known as mixed-gender education, co-education, or coeducation (abbreviated to co-ed or coed), is a system of education where males and females are educated together. Whereas single-sex education was more common up to t ...
secondary
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** Secondary electrons, electrons generated as ionization products
* The secondary winding, or the electrical or electronic circuit connected to the secondary winding i ...
boarding school
A boarding school is a school where pupils live within premises while being given formal instruction. The word "boarding" is used in the sense of "room and board", i.e. lodging and meals. As they have existed for many centuries, and now exten ...
for
indigenous Australian
Indigenous Australians or Australian First Nations are people with familial heritage from, and membership in, the ethnic groups that lived in Australia before British colonisation. They consist of two distinct groups: the Aboriginal peoples ...
students, located on the
Great Northern Highway
Great Northern Highway is an Australian highway that links Western Australia's capital city Perth with its northernmost port, Wyndham. With a length of almost , it is the longest highway in Australia, with the majority included as part of the ...
, north of
Meekatharra,
Western Australia
Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...
, Australia.
The Karalundi College is an affiliated school of the
Seventh-day Adventist education system, the world's second largest Christian school system.
History
Karalundi was established in 1954 as an Aboriginal boarding school run by the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Western Australia. It was begun after its founder Pastor Dudley Vaughan was challenged to begin such a work by Avy Curley OAM.
[An Extraordinary Woman](_blank)
'' Signs of the Times''. Retrieved 8 June 2011 The property was north of Meekatharra. The school served the Murchison, Upper Gascoyne, Pilbara and Western Desert regions. Classes began in September 1954, with a focus on literacy, numeracy and practical skills.
During its early years of operation, Karalundi was rated by the
Western Australian Department of Education as a "most efficient establishment" and commended for the "relatively high standard of attainment" by students. Karalundi was closed in September 1974 in a government move to phase out church involvement in indigenous affairs. The property was sold into private hands and operated as a farm-stay enterprise for 12 years.
In the early 1980s, many past students came to recognise that under the state system, their children's education was inferior to their own. These parents lobbied the state government for Karalundi to reopen as an independent parent-controlled
Christian
Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...
Aboriginalbr>
boarding school where children would be educated away from the problems associated with alcohol abuse and gain an education focusing on practical life skills, as well as literacy and numeracy. The advocacy group was supported by the Seventh-day Adventist Church and, in August 1986, Karalundi was reopened as such.
The school has been the location of published studies of a peer support program and a health promotion program in 1998.
Karalundi has recently extended its secondary program to include Years 11 and 12 and is recognised as one of the leading schools in Aboriginal education in Western Australia.
Student life
All students at the school are boarders. Students are housed in dormitories. Students are resident only during the school term and return to their communities for holiday periods.
[Karalundi Aboriginal Education Centre Profile](_blank)
. Aboriginal Independent Community School. Retrieved 2009-07-24
Due to the boarding nature of Karalundi, all staff are encouraged to participate in the overall program of the school, both within and outside school hours. This entails being involved with the students in the social and spiritual life of Karalundi.
Management
Karalundi is an independent parent controlled school, incorporated in 1986. An
Executive Committee
A committee or commission is a body of one or more persons subordinate to a deliberative assembly. A committee is not itself considered to be a form of assembly. Usually, the assembly sends matters into a committee as a way to explore them more ...
of 15 members (elected at an
Annual General Meeting) is responsible for the governance and long term planning of Karalundi. Day-to-day management is delegated to the Chief Executive Officer, Principal and Finance Controller who make up the Administrative Committee and are responsible for hiring of staff and faculty and implementing the strategic plan. The parents who operate the school are largely former Karalundi students. They are
Seventh-day Adventists
The Seventh-day Adventist Church is an Adventism, Adventist Protestantism, Protestant Christian denomination which is distinguished by its observance of Saturday, the Names of the days of the week#Numbered days of the week, seventh day of the ...
, and require that Karalundi be operated with the ethos of the Seventh-day Adventist faith. All staff are required to exhibit exemplary
Christian
Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...
standards before the students, and uphold the Christian ethos.
Spiritual aspects
All students take religion classes each year that they are enrolled. These classes cover topics in
biblical
The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts of a ...
history and
Christian
Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...
and
denominational
A religious denomination is a subgroup within a religion that operates under a common name and tradition among other activities.
The term refers to the various Christian denominations (for example, Eastern Orthodox, Catholic, and the many variet ...
doctrines. Instructors in other disciplines also begin each class period with prayer or a short devotional thought, many which encourage student input.
See also
*
Seventh-day Adventist education
The Seventh-day Adventist educational system, part of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, is overseen by the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists located in Silver Spring, Maryland. The educational system is a Christian school-based syste ...
*
References
External links
Karalundion the
South Pacific Division of Seventh-day Adventists
The South Pacific Division (SPD) of Seventh-day Adventists is a sub-entity of the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists, which oversees the Church's work in the South Pacific nations of Australia, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea and the isl ...
website
Karalundi Aboriginal Education Communityon Aboriginal Independent Community School Webpage
{{Adventist schools in Australia, state=collapsed
Private secondary schools in Western Australia
Private primary schools in Western Australia
Educational institutions established in 1954
Aboriginal schools in Western Australia
Australian schools providing vocational education
Adventist secondary schools in Australia
1954 establishments in Australia
Adventist primary schools in Australia
Boarding schools in Western Australia