Aboriginal staff members at Walgett Community College High School took this year’s NAIDOC theme to heart, celebrating the next generation at the school’s inaugural NAIDOC Formal.

Next Generation: Strength, Vision and Legacy is the 2025 theme, and the July 3 event put those values in the spotlight.

Vital to the formal’s success were the efforts of Senior Leader Community Engagement Doreen Peters, and the NAIDOC committee, including Aboriginal Education Officer Cara Kennedy, and School Learning Support Officers Deb Walford, Margaret Dennis and Kaisan Walford.

Cultural Studies Senior Project Officer Liz O’Reilly said the drive, commitment and backing of those women gave students the confidence to help design and run the event, and be formally presented to their community

“These amazingly strong Aboriginal staff members were born and live in community are determined to help students succeed,” she said.

“They take their responsibilities towards the students and community very seriously and relish the opportunity to showcase the young Aboriginal students at the school.

“To allow our students to emerge as young Aboriginal individuals with a strong Cultural identity is perhaps the most important lesson we can teach them.”

Over many weeks, the committee organised dresses, jewellery, shoes, make-up, suits and ties.

Orders were placed and deliveries anxiously awaited.

“The students rose to the occasion,” Ms O’Reilly said.

“It's not every day they have to present themselves in public, and it is not easy to be ‘on point’, walking across the hall to receive an award in high heels or a tie, navigating eyelash extensions and aftershave.

“Students enlisted ex-students to help them to get ready and all the while, the NAIDOC committee women were there, curling and straightening hair, fixing nail emergencies, preparing the kitchen, and encouraging students to get past last-minute nerves.

“They transformed the school hall, normally filled with sports equipment, into a first-class formal venue.”

All school staff got behind the event and more than 90 people attended to support the students.

“The legacy of Elders past and present was evident in the strength of family and kinship connections, not just in Walgett, but across neighbouring communities and nations, as Aunty Fay Green and Doreen Peters made clear in their Welcome to Country,” Ms O’Reilly said.

“Community pride was at an all-time high, and students, staff, families, and guests agreed it was a privilege to be part of such a great night for the next generation.”

The formal will become a fixture of future NAIDOC weeks.