ABB partners with AIME mentoring

ABB has announced a new partnership with the Australian Indigenous Mentoring Experience (AIME) to support the educational aspirations of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students.

AIME is a proven mentoring and educational program that gives Indigenous high school students the skills, opportunities, belief and confidence to finish school and transition into university, training or employment at the same rate as all Australian students.

This partnership represents a further commitment from ABB in Australia to advance meaningful opportunities for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and help close the gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities.

“AIME and ABB Australia both share a vision of building a better world for all our kids, and that is why we see this partnership as the perfect fit,” said ABB Managing Director Axel Kuhr. “AIME has proven to dramatically increase the chances of Indigenous students completing high school and going on to further education, training or employment.”

AIME started in 2005 with 25 Indigenous mentees and 25 university student mentors. This year, AIME is poised to reach 4500 mentees and 1600 mentors. The program is active in 340 high schools and 33 university campuses located in all mainland states and the ACT.

The program is driven by the belief that for every step forward that you take in life, you throw a hand back to bring someone with you. This belief has underscored outstanding results among Indigenous students in the program: in 2013, the Year 9-12 completion rate for AIME students was 76% - exceeding the national Indigenous average of 41% and approaching the national non-Indigenous average of 81%.

“We are more committed than ever to building an Australian narrative that has Indigenous success deeply interwoven throughout,” said AIME CEO and founder Jack Manning Bancroft. “It’s amazing to walk with ABB on the road to reach 10,000 Indigenous kids across Australia each year by 2018, and to see these kids transition through school and into uni, employment or further education at the same rate as non-Indigenous kids.”

As well as helping to fund the important work of AIME, ABB will provide AIME with engineering specialists to educate and encourage students to take up careers in the fields of engineering and technology and offer work experience or apprenticeship opportunities. ABB will also participate in initiatives to celebrate Indigenous success, such as National Hoodie Day.

Further information about AIME is available at www.aimementoring.com.