Raising Expectations at the 2024 EPHEA Conference

In November, the Raising Expectations team presented at the Equity Practitioners in Higher Education Australasia (EPHEA) Conference in Aotearoa, New Zealand.

This year’s conference provided an excellent platform to discuss critical issues surrounding equity in education, and we were thrilled with the positive response to our workshop, Increasing the Access, Participation, and Success of Students with an Out-of-Home Care Experience.

Our workshop focused on the unique barriers and challenges faced by students with out-of-home care (OOHC) experience, who are often overlooked in traditional equity frameworks. While care experienced students bring with them incredible determination and resilience, they often face significant hurdles in accessing and succeeding in higher education. From limited support networks to financial instability and the emotional impact of past trauma, these challenges can make the journey to a TAFE or university degree especially difficult.

Key Highlights from our Workshop:

• Raising awareness: One key objective was to raise awareness about the diverse experiences of students who have spent time in out-of-home care. We discussed how these unique backgrounds shape educational pathways and how higher education institutions can better support the needs of care experienced students.
• Inclusive frameworks: We sparked meaningful conversations about the importance of integrating students into equity frameworks. In Australia and New Zealand, there is an increasing recognition that students from care backgrounds should be explicitly included in policies and initiatives to improve access to education. Our workshop inspired discussions on how institutions can create more inclusive environments that acknowledge and respond to the unique challenges care experienced students face.

Raising Expectations is committed to helping students with an out-of-home care experience access and thrive in tertiary education.

Care experienced students deserve the same opportunities as their peers in accessing and achieving at TAFE and university. With embedded on-the-ground support, peer mentoring, and professional capacity-building, Raising Expectations is opening doors.

To learn more about how we support care experienced students, visit Raising Expectations or contact us at hello@raisingexpectations.com.au.