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One of the 50 Indigenous secondary school students on a science camp at The University of Western Australia this week has never seen UWA before - yet if it hadn't been for quick-thinking by a University staff-member, she might have been born on campus.

Keely May, from Broome, ‘attended' UWA's School of Indigenous Studies (SIS) as an unborn baby when her mother studied there.

The School's current Director of Student Services, Marilyn Strother, drove Keely's mother to hospital in the nick of time, and Keely has always wanted to follow in Mum's footsteps and become a UWA student.

Keely is in a group of Years Nine and 10 students - from Broome, Derby, Fitzroy Crossing, Port Hedland, Karratha, Tom Price, Kalgoorlie, Albany, Carnarvon, Morawa, Cue, Bunbury, Christmas Island and Perth - at UWA until Friday 19 July for an annual SIS camp which introduces Indigenous students to  science, health and engineering, and encourages them to consider careers in these fields.

They are experiencing a range of campus activities, including experimenting with liquid nitrogen, designing a racing car, programming a robot, making moulds of their own teeth, suturing wounds, performing simulated laparoscopic surgery and testing their abilities in sport science.

The camp is one of many outreach programs run by SIS, and is fully sponsored by Aspire UWA and resources company Woodside.

SIS is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year, and 21 years of secondary school outreach programs.  The School has helped two generations of Indigenous students gain employment in medicine, dentistry, law, the arts, business, science, health and engineering.

Media references

Heidi Madden (Aspire UWA Project Officer)  (+61 8)  6488 7658
Michael Sinclair-Jones (UWA Public Affairs)  (+61 8)  6488 3229  /  (+61 4) 00 700 783