NEWS Archive | Page 6 of 8 | Johnathan Thurston Academy

Kids from remote Yarrabah and Kowanyama communities join the JTBelieve camp

Education Today ran a story in July about a group of students from Yarrabah and Kowanyama who successfully applied to attend the JTBelieve camp in Cairns with Johnathan Thurston.

The 20 students were chosen from those who successfully completed the JTBelieve program during the school semester, which meant have a great attendance at school and being respectful of the community both in and outside of school.

“The JTBelieve program was designed to help kids improve their self-belief, confidence and courage in their future abilities and opportunities,” Thurston said in the story.

“We believe that by providing programs which help build up the self-belief, confidence, courage and skillsets of youth, they are being given the chance to make decisions about their future based on what they want and what they believe they can achieve.”

To read the full story click here.

Johnathan Thurston wrong foots Woodridge High with a visit

A visit by Johnathan Thurston to Woodridge State High School in late 2018 as part of the JTSucceed program, caught the students as off-guard as he used to catch his opponents on the footy field.

The JTSucceed program has been developed to encourage students to attend school, to develop their confidence and self-belief and to not give up on their dreams.

“My message is don’t be scared of failing, be more scared of not giving it a go. I want to encourage as many youth as I can to keep turning up to school and to keep believing in themselves,” Thurston said in the story.

Woodridge State High’s Employment Connections Coach, Rhiannon Parsons organised the program for the school and added: “We know Johnathan Thurston is a major role model for the majority of our student population, and he has built such a great reputation for himself that we knew it would be a great program that our students would be excited to be a part of”.

To read the full story click here.

JT hopes the JTBelieve camp and program will be life-changing for students

In early July, Johnathan Thurston travelled to Cairns to meet school students from Yarrabah and Kowanyama, who had successfully completed the JTBelieve program.

Thurston and some of the students spoke with journalist Peter Carruthers about the program in a story that ran in the Cairns Post and Courier Mail on July 3, 2019.

“The JTBelieve program was designed to help kids improve their self-belief, confidence and courage in their future abilities and opportunities,” Thurston said.“The JTBelieve program includes what is essentially a set of values and tools to develop these skills.”

Kowanyama’s Hamish Gilbert, 11, told Carruthers: “We have been learning to introduce ourselves to other people to get more confidence as we grow up”.

To read the full story click here.

JT recieves his most prestigious award yet with an Appointment to the Order of Australia

Johnathan Thurston will forever be remembered as one of the greatest league players of our time, but for him, being named a recipient of the Order of Australia during the 2019 Queen’s Birthday Honour’s List will remain one of his greatest achievements.

Speaking with Townsville Bulletin journalist Kate Banville, Thurston said the award for his services to rugby league and as a role model through the JTAcademy was a huge honour.

“I now understand the impact that rugby league has and I started having that impact on people, especially young kids, and I don’t take that for granted,” Thurston told Banville.

“Especially with the indigenous kids and being a role model to them, I really try to show them that they can do anything; my focus is on education and getting kids educated because that can open up their future.”

To read the full story click here.

Johnathan Thurston “humbled” to receive Order of Australia medal

Australian football legend and the Managing Director of the JT Academy, Johnathan Thurston said he is incredibly humbled and proud to have today (Monday, June 10, 2019) been named a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) Medal for his “significant service to rugby league and as a role model”.

“I have very been fortunate to have the opportunities which have presented themselves to me and those I chased after,” Johnathan said. “I was proud when I wore the Australian colours to represent our country in football and I continue to be proud of the country I was lucky enough to be born in.

“Australia can indeed be the land of opportunity if we work together to provide opportunities for our young people and people with the right attitude. It’s this reason we launched the JT Academy in early 2018, which has already become a valued employment, training and education connector for Australians.

“Thousands of jobseekers have already registered with the JTJobBoard where they have been able to access the latest information about jobs, traineeships, apprenticeships and work experience in their area. We are proud to say this has led to hundreds of Australians gaining meaningful work and connecting with forward-thinking employers.

“I’m also extremely proud of the work we are doing in regional Australia with the JTBelieve and JTWomenToLead programs at a number of high schools to encourage students to believe in their future and themselves with courage, confidence and self-belief.

“And these are just a few of the programs we are running. The potential we see with the JT Academy is endless as there is such drive and enthusiasm for our forward-thinking programs and partnerships.

“To have that recognised by receiving an OAM is one of the most humbling and proudest moments of my life.”

JT kicking youth employment goals

In the Autumn 2019 edition of the industry publication Resource People, produced by the Australian Resources & Energy Group (AMMA), Johnathan Thurston reflected on the partnership between Queensland Field Mining Services (QFMS) and the JTAcademy.

“In many remote and rural areas, the mining sector forms the backbone of the local economy,” he said. “Any chance we have to partner with organisations working in this space who also want to see young people trained and employed, we are happy to talk with.”

Jason Holt, COO at CFMS added: “When we received the call to say we were accepted to work with the JTAcademy we were over the moon as there was some very large companies involved and we could see the opportunities it could open up and help to drive diversity in our workplace.”

QFMS has been a supporter of the JTAcademy since it was launched in March 2018.

To read the full story on page 30 click here.

The JT Academy receives federal funding to expand school based programs

We are incredibly humbled and proud to have been included in the Federal Government’s funding for Indigenous education programs in North Queensland.

The funding of $2.5 million will allow us to continue to roll out our forward-thinking and practical JTWomenToLead and JTBelieve programs and expand our reach into North Queensland. It enables us to take these much-needed programs into more regions and change more people’s lives in North Queensland in ensuring Indigenous kids attend school everyday.

The Johnathan Thurston Academy is a proud Indigenous owned and operated business, which is just over a year old.

Johnathan Thurston Academy’s Managing Director Johnathan Thurston said he truly hopes this announcement inspires other Indigenous owned businesses to continue pushing the envelope in supporting and encouraging our communities.

“To receive this funding and significant support , just over a year of launching the Academy, gives us great confidence that we are delivering much-needed programs, which work towards inspiring and supporting young Indigenous Australians,” Thurston said.

“This funding will go a long way in ensuring our JTWomenToLead program and JTBelieve programs continue to be rolled out across schools. Just in the past few months we have connected these programs at the Yarrabah State School, Woodridge State High School and Kowanyama State School, which saw a number of amazing students take part in this ground breaking platform.

“Over the past year, our team and Academy has been the missing link connecting passionate young people to employers. Our success to date makes us very excited about what we can achieve thanks to this significant contribution.”

We have also spent the past year building a wealth of resources and connections to secure employment outcomes across a number of sectors such as hospitality, tourism, construction, mining, resources, public service, banking and administration, to name a few.

Thousands of jobseekers have registered with the JTJobBoard where they have been able to access the latest information about jobs, traineeships, apprenticeships and work experience in their area. We are proud to say this has led to hundreds of Australians gaining meaningful work and connecting with forward-thinking employers.

Special thanks to Minister Scullion and the Indigenous Advancement Strategy for ongoing support to work with more communities and families in North Queensland to ensure Indigenous Kids attend school every day.

Torque Heritage talking the talk when it comes to driving Indigenous employment

With an aim to becoming one of the largest employers of Indigenous Australians, Torque Heritage was one of the first companies to come on board as a corporate partner with the JTAcademy a year ago.

A founding partner, their support has been invaluable in helping the Academy to get the word out about what we are doing and assisting more than 4,000 young people transition into jobs in the past nine months.

“We are receiving some fantastic response through the JTJobBoard for opportunities right around the county,” Michael Hall, CEO of Torque Heritage said.

“We are currently working on 140 jobs for projects in Qld, NSW, Vic and WA and we estimate that around 100 of those will be sourced through the JTJobBoard.

“We love working with JTAcademy.”

Hall said the Torque Heritage team is dedicated to becoming a major employer of Indigenous Australians, offering prospects to those in marginalized communities who have not always enjoyed access to these kinds of opportunities.

Torque Heritage is an Aboriginal owned and managed company with a focus on helping connect Indigenous Australians with sustainable employment opportunities throughout Australia.

Since August 2018, Torque Heritage has provided 200+ employment opportunities for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander jobseekers, completed over 90,000 Indigenous working hours and expects to be in the Top 20 Indigenous employers in Australia by the end of 2019. A goal, which Hall is very passionate about.

With employers utilizing the JTJobBoard to seek staff for jobs of this scale, we are excited to be providing jobseekers with new pathways to employment and simply could not have been as successful as we have without the support of our partners such as Torque Heritage.

JTAcademy partners with Queensland Health for new graduate opportunities

Job Alert Graduate 2020 Finance Management

At the JTAcademy we have been lucky enough to have the support of a number of major employers to help us present opportunities to Australian jobseekers through the JTJobBoard and this now includes Queensland Health.

Queensland Health is looking for graduates in Finance and Management for the Queensland Health Graduate Program (QHGP) 2020 through the JTJobBoard.

Under QHGP 2020, a limited number of graduates will be offered three year contracts with Queensland Health made up of four six month placements and a 12 month placement across Queensland.

“The JTAcademy was established so we can connect those looking for work with genuine opportunities for work, education and training,” JTAcademy General Manager Samantha Johnson said.

“We have had a huge amount of industry support where we have been able to place hundreds of Australians in training and work.

“In keeping with our commitment to helping as many Australians as we can into work, the chance to provide Graduate opportunities broadens our reach to jobseekers and shows the value of government working with independent organisations.

“We look forward to providing more Queensland Health work and training opportunities in the future.”

Applications for QHGP 2020 close March 31. For more details or to apply, visit the JTAcademy website.

JT steps up to help young women lead

Speaking with Danielle Buckley from the Albert & Logan News in March, Woodridge State High School Principal Kathleen Janecek said she was “privileged and excited” her students were among the first to undertake the JTWomenToLead program.

The JTWomenToLead program has been developed to help female high school students receive mentoring and support.

“What’s really inspiring about these students is that diversity is normal for them,” Janecek said.“They’re already very resilient and this program will help them be even more self-aware at an earlier age.”

The 14 girls chosen to take part in the program are in Years 9, 10 and 11.

To see the full story click here.