Aunty Geraldine Atkinson’s indelible mark on Indigenous education recognised with OAM

Still, it’s always nice to receive one.

Adding to her swag of awards and accolades, the proud Bangerang and Wiradjuri woman is now a recipient of the Medal of the Order of Australia.

This honour acknowledges her distinguished service to the Indigenous community, to education, to First Nations self-determination and to reconciliation.

“I felt sort of privileged to be able to receive an award like that and to be recognised for the work that I’ve done over many years,” she said.

Correction: many, many years.

In 1976, Dr Atkinson began employment as a teacher’s aide at Wanganui Park Secondary College in Shepparton.

It was her first job and would serve as a springboard to a flourishing career in education.

Soon after, she played a key role in establishing the Lidje Child Care Centre and the Batdja Kindergarten, which later merged to form the Lullas Family and Children Centre in Shepparton.

“We had a huge cliff (in education) ... it would just drop off, and we wouldn’t have very many Aboriginal kids continuing to Year 10, 11 and 12,” she said.

“So, we came up with this bright spark of an idea: we’d start in the very early years because that’s the first important building block in their education.”

Dr Atkinson is dedicated to teaching language and culture in Victorian schools and expanding educational and training opportunities for Koorie people.

Some students are visual learners, others read and write.

When Dr Atkinson leads by example, all watch and learn.

Many know her as president of the Victorian Aboriginal Education Association, a position she has held since 1999.

And if not, most would recognise her as the inaugural co-chair of the First Peoples’ Assembly of Victoria.

During her tenure, Dr Atkinson played an integral part in developing the architecture for Treaty, laying the groundwork for a strong future development to be built upon.

“It was talking to people, working with them, and getting them to understand what we wanted to do,” she said.

“We wanted to ensure that we were bringing the whole of the Victorian Aboriginal community together to improve their lives and outcomes for themselves and their children in a whole range of things — housing, health, education, justice.”

The tenacious campaigner came to be known in Parliament House, regularly taking flight up and down the halls to lobby politicians.

“I promised myself I was never ever going to wear high heels ever again,” Dr Atkinson chuckled.

She described the work as “stupendous” and at times “horrendous”.

What came next was wholly the latter.

On the night of October 14, 2023, Dr Atkinson’s spirit broke along with fellow reference members of the Australian Indigenous Voice referendum after hearing one word: no.

The painful aftermath.

The swirl of disappointment and doubt.

The questioning of how long you’ve worked and how far you thought we had come.

All was felt in a single, gut-wrenching moment.

“That period after was one of the saddest in my life,” she said.

“But my mentor Colin Bourke, my sister Mary, and my brother Alf, they were absolute giants, and I walk on their shoulders.

“Every time I went through a horrendous time like that, I’d remind myself why I was there and what I had to do.

“You’ve got to continue fighting — and that’s what we’ll do.

“We’ll still fight for better rights for Aboriginal people.”

There’s no denying that Dr Atkinson has had an avalanche of impact.

But when standing on the shoulders of giants, the sky isn’t even the limit to what she can achieve next.

Aunty Geraldine Atkinson would like to thank Marcus Stewart, her co-chair at the First Peoples’ Assembly of Victoria, as well as VAEAI manager Lionel Bamblett and vice-president Mark Rose.

Additionally, she appreciates the person who nominated her, thanking them for their confidence in her.