Priya's the first in her family to go to university, and now she wants to help others

My name is Priya. I am a proud Kamilaroi woman and I grew up in Wagga Wagga in regional New South Wales.

I am going into my second year of University, where I'm studying a Bachelor of Arts and Education, with a major in English. My dream is to become a high school English teacher. I’ve always loved helping people and find joy in teaching and sharing the things I am passionate about. This being my culture, education, and English. So, education was an obvious career path for me.

I had amazing teachers throughout my school life, teachers who I knew were passionate about helping me. I saw and experienced the impact these teachers had on students, which is why I’ve pursued education as a career path. I was deeply inspired by their dedication and wanted to give back to students and the community the way they did for me.

While I was in high school, I also received support from The Smith Family. It wasn’t just financial support, but personal support too. My Family Partnership Coordinator, Chris, always encouraged me with my education. She would come to my school assemblies and was even there when I was named school captain. She was invested in my education and her encouragement made me believe in myself. I felt like I had someone on my team pushing me through.

I grew up in regional NSW and my school had only 500 kids. I thought that was a lot until I moved to Sydney. I went from knowing all my neighbours and seeing familiar faces everywhere I went, to knowing no-one and never seeing the same face twice.

Moving to Sydney for university was the biggest thing I have ever done. I moved away from my family, my community, and into an unknown world. I moved not knowing anyone and not knowing where anything was.

I thought I’d move to Sydney, make new friends, and explore my new home. But, after only a few months in, I became stuck thanks to the pandemic. I didn’t see my family for months and most of my new friends left to go back home. I was trapped in an unknown city with people I didn’t know that well. Thankfully things are going back to normal now, and I’ve even attended by first ever face to face lecture!

I wouldn’t be at university without The Smith Family. In 2018, I was awarded the Katrina Dawson Prize. This is given to girls on The Smith Family’s Learning for Life program who demonstrate strong academic performance, show promise in community leadership, and for whom the financial support would make a meaningful difference. For me it made a huge difference. It helped me to buy a laptop for the following year when I entered Year 11. I needed that computer, because I was studying a university level subject by distance. But, more importantly, a pass in that subject would mean early entry into teaching.

So in 2019 - when I was in year 11 - I passed a university unit and was awarded early entry. This was a huge relief, because in 2020 (my final year of High School) COVID struck and study became a lot harder, and the computer a lot more necessary. If it weren’t for The Smith Family I wouldn’t have been able to afford that computer, and my future could have been very different.

Now, I am the first person in my family to study at university, which is something I am very proud of. My younger siblings now have someone to ask about tutorials and lectures, about moving away to study, or how to enrol in subjects. I can now answer questions for them that no-one could answer for me.

My dream is to teach in rural and remote communities. I want to bridge the gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous children, to give kids the resources they require to achieve their own dreams, like what my own family and The Smith Family did for me. I understand the importance of teaching children the basics - but I also know the importance of teaching children kindness and respect. Something I hope to do with continuing support from The Smith Family.

The above was adapted from a speech delivered by Learning for Life Tertiary Student, Priya, at a Smith Family Centenary celebration with the Governor-General at Admiralty House.