The University of Queensland marked a major milestone last week, celebrating the 40th anniversary of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies (ATSIS) Unit with a series of events that honoured the past, celebrated the present, and looked towards the future.
The week began with UQ Talks: Building bright futures through cultural strength, a panel marking Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children’s Day. Speakers explored how family, culture and community are vital to the wellbeing of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and the foundations needed for the next generation to thrive.
From left: Cassandra Diamond (Director of the ATSIS Unit), Keiron Lander, Dr Antoinette Cole, and Rhiannon Moreton at UQ Talks: Building bright futures through cultural strength, held on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children’s Day.
Moderated by ATSIS Unit Director Cassandra Diamond, the discussion set the tone for the week by emphasising the importance of cultural strength, responsive education, and safe, empowering spaces for young Indigenous peoples.
The following day saw the opening of the new ATSIS Unit space at UQ’s Gatton campus. Professor Bronwyn Fredericks, Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Indigenous Engagement), said the move signalled an end to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students being on the margins of campus life, with the new Unit now located at its heart.
From left: Professor Bronwyn Fredericks (Deputy Vice-Chancellor Indigenous Engagement), Susan Frost (Director of Gatton Campus), Cheryl Cannon, Kim Lees, and Cassandra Diamond (Director of the ATSIS Unit) at the official opening of the new ATSIS Unit space at Gatton.
For the first time in its history, the Gatton Unit will also have a permanent staff member based on site — Kim Lees — who was joined at the opening by her parents, including her mother Cheryl Cannon, who worked as a Student Success Officer at Gatton in the 1990s.
Mid-week, celebrations moved to St Lucia for the Afternoon at the Amphitheatre. The rain cleared just in time, giving students, staff, alumni and community members three golden hours to share food, listen to live music and reflect on the Unit’s history through a “memory lane” display of photographs.
Professor Fredericks told guests it was fitting to gather at the amphitheatre, which looks up to the building that will soon house the new ATSIS Unit at St Lucia — a larger space overlooking the lakes that will become the new home of Indigenous excellence on campus.
A guest walks down the “memory lane” photo display showcasing four decades of ATSIS Unit students, staff, and milestones.
The celebrations concluded with a special anniversary dinner at Customs House, where guests heard from an inspiring line-up of speakers, including UQ Vice-Chancellor Professor Deborah Terry AC, Professor Fredericks, and two generations of ATSIS Unit students.
Dyirbal gumbilbara bama woman Carroll Go-Sam, who was a student in the 1980s when the Unit began, reflected on its origins and its continuing impact on the lives of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students.
As a UQ senior lecturer in architecture, she has led important projects including the Campuses on Countries framework, which guides the incorporation of Indigenous knowledges and design principles across UQ’s campuses. Drawing on walking interviews with ATSIS Unit students and staff, she highlighted how the Unit’s current St Lucia space has not always met the needs of a growing cohort, yet the community within it has fostered a sense of home and belonging.
From left: Chenoa Masters (Senior Project Manager, Office of the DVCIE), Professor Bronwyn Fredericks, proud Ngunnawal woman and anniversary dinner speaker Tachae Douglas-Miller and her partner Max Cameron.
Proud Ngunnawal woman Tachae Douglas-Miller, a Bachelor of Dental Science (Honours) student, ITAR tutor and former Goorie Berrimpa Co-officer, echoed Carroll Go-Sam’s reflections on community by sharing how the ATSIS Unit has shaped her own journey. She spoke of the staff and fellow students who supported her along the way, emphasising how their guidance, encouragement and care not only laid the foundation for her success but also created the same sense of home and belonging that has defined the Unit for generations.
As it celebrates 40 years, the ATSIS Unit looks to the future with the same purpose that has guided it since 1984: shaping a strong foundation of belonging, scholarship and cultural pride for generations of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students and staff to come.
