About Us
Our Community
Our community is located in South Australia, approximately 70 km west of the Stuart Highway and 380 km south of Alice Springs.
Mimili is an Anangu community on the Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara Lands in the north west of South Australia. The Pitjantjatjara/Yankunytjatjara Lands are held on freehold title under the terms of the Anangu Pitjantjatjara/Yankunytjatjara Lands. Entrance to the APY Lands is dependant on having a permit. Anangu Education Services negotiate with Anangu Pitjantjatjara the issue of these permits. Schools can also arrange for the issue of permits.
Our community has grown around the former cattle station, Everard Park. The land was returned to the traditional owners in 1972. Mimili is the Pitjantjatjara name for the local area and may still be referred to as Everard Park on some maps.
The very striking, rocky Everard Ranges surround Mimili. Mimili is a very special place as it is the site of the maku or witchetty grub dreaming. It is the symbol of the maku that is taken as the school emblem. The dreaming is very important to Anangu and is taught through story and dance.
Community members have kinship ties over a large area of Central Australia. These ties cover three groups within Northern Territory, Western Australia and South Australia. These are the Pitjantjatjara, Ngaanyatjarra, and Yankunytjatjara peoples. Many people have ownership status to specific areas of land in the region around Mimili.
Entry to the Pitjantjatjara/Yankunytjatjara lands, when travelling from Adelaide is usually made near Indulkana, which is approximately 1,200 kms north of Adelaide on the main road to Alice Springs. Travelling north from Marla it is 46 kilometres to the turnoff. The roads on the Pitjantjatjara/Yankunytjatjara Lands are unsealed except for roads within the confines of most communities.
Public transport is limited. There are daily bus services from Adelaide and Alice Springs to either Marla or the Indulkana turnoff, from where visitors can be collected. PY Air operates a twice weekly air service to Mimili on Tuesdays and Thursdays. The primary function of this service is the delivery of mail but space is generally available for passengers. Booking well in advance is advisable.
Curriculum
Early Years
We implement the EYLF in both playgroup and preschool with a 2016 focus of including the DECD literacy and numeracy indicators for the preschoolers. The Anangu Lands Partnership has commenced the facilitation of the Families as First Teachers program in playgroups.
SACE Completion
There is a shared and targeted focus on coherent secondary pathways including FLO, Wiltja, TTC, SACE and VET. Students regularly attend the Trade Train Centre (TTC) to achieve SACE credits and VET certificates as well as working in class to achieve Stage 1 and 2 SACE.
Australian Curriculum
At Mimili our approach to Australian Curriculum delivery is being continuously developed and improved. It is in response to the Lands context particularly mobility of students and considerations of the complex needs of our students. The goal is that our students are successful learners, confident and creative individuals and active and informed citizens.
- Rich relevant integrated units. The units have a specific agreed structure including genre focus, literacy embedded and numeracy elements
- Keeping Safe Curriculum
- The Literacy/ English Block which feeds into units
- The Mathematics Block which feeds into units
- Pitjantjatjara FLMD program implementing Aboriginal Languages First Language Learner Pathway
- Strong cultural connections to units realising much of HASS learning area (Bush trips, Anangu stories and history)
- Site based development to implement aspects of Learning Areas such as HPE (e.g. through CAFHS Nurse programs e.g. trachoma, diabetes, Fun Run, marathon preparation, sport clinic visits) The Arts (through music specialist visits e.g. drumming and e.g. media through Ninti Media projects) which connect to the units.
