Cultural Goverance

Our Goverance

  • Elder Advisory Group

    The Elders Advisory Group was formed to oversee the integrity of the Pertame language and how it is taught and passed on to the next generation in the Pertame School. The group is made up of fluent speaking Pertame Elders from each family group. The group meets quarterly to advise on the appropriate integration of Pertame language and culture into the programs. This group ensures the Pertame taught to the children is of a high standard by reviewing materials and monitoring the learning progress of staff and parent educators

  • Operations Committee

    The Pertame Operations Committee was formed to ensure the efficient and effective running of the program. This committee makes decisions and advises Pertame School staff on the strategic, operational and administrative matters of the school. It is made up of 10 members from a diverse section of the Pertame community with expertise in professional areas that directly relate to the operational success of the school.

  • Community Meetings

    Pertame community wide meetings are held once a year for all members of the Pertame community to get together, receive updates on the progress of the Pertame School and provide feedback and input.

Administration & Funding

The Pertame School runs as a project through the Centre for Australian Languages and Linguistics (CALL), a language centre based in the Division of Higher Education and Research at Batchelor Institute. The Batchelor Institute is the only First Nations dual sector tertiary education provider in Australia. Batchelor is a registered charity with the ACNC. The Pertame School’s  Financial and administrative services are provided by staff in Batchelor Institute's Finance division and in the Division of Higher Education and Research. This provides us with a strong administrative base for financial management and a range of other corporate services. CALL reports to the Executive Director of Higher Education and Research and through this line, to the Batchelor Institute CEO and Council, who are responsible for governance at a higher level. The Pertame School operates independently and self-funds through grants and philanthropic donations.

The Pertame Language Nest partners with Yipirinya School, an Aboriginal Independent two-way school in Alice Springs. Yipirinya provides their childcare centre in-kind for the Language Nest to run out of. Yipirinya School is also collaborating with the Pertame School on several learning on country grants.