| Brief History | The following historical information was reproduced from www.wonguthacaps.wa.edu.au/about-us/history :
“Wongutha Mission Training Farm was established in 1954 by Rod Schenk on a 1000-acre bush block 24 kilometers North East of Esperance and 5 kilometers east of Gibson. The land was purchased freehold by Rod Schenk (son of Rodolphe Schenk who was the founder of Mt Margaret Mission [see entry], between Leonora and Laverton). Rod had grown up at Mt Margaret and then studied at an Agricultural College as he had a vision to establish an agricultural school for Aboriginal post secondary students in the Esperance area. This was in the early days of the discovery of the potential of the Esperance sand plain with the addition of super phosphate and trace elements. The land at Gibson was cleared, buildings established, and a course in agriculture for post-secondary students initiated. The agricultural boom occurred in the 1960’s and Wongutha students were readily able to find work in the area. There were two workers hostels established for Aboriginal men at Esperance [see entry AAEM Hostel] and Condingup [see entry], and ex Wongutha students were sought after farm workers. The Wongutha curriculum also included training in Christian principles and leadership, and students traveled from all over Australia to attend the course. As the demand for farm workers declined Wongutha moved into pre-trade courses and continued with these courses into the late 1980’s, when funding and staffing difficulties saw a decline in programs offered.
Many Aboriginal leaders emerged from Wongutha over the years and the program made a significant impact on Aboriginal Education, particularly in the sixties and seventies. Wongutha Mission was operated by a Board made up mostly of local Esperance people, farmers, business people, church leaders and Aboriginal leaders. In 1990 this board invited CAPS (Christian Aboriginal Parent- directed School inc) from Coolgardie to take over the training program. In October 1993, The Wongutha Board deeded the land and all assets to the CAPS Board, and the Wongutha Board ceased to exist.
The Christian Aboriginal Parent –directed School was formed in 1981 by concerned Aboriginal parents who felt that the government schools were failing Aboriginal students. This initial group were Aboriginal people who had grown up at Mt Margaret, or had some links with Mt Margaret. They felt that the standard of education that they had achieved was far better than what their own children and grandchildren were achieving, and they desired education sympathetic to the needs of Aboriginal students, Christian, and modeled on the Mt Margaret school. This group of Aboriginal people involved local non-Aboriginal supporters and formed the founding Board who met during 1980. The school commenced in the St Anthony’s Convent building in Coolgardie in February 1981 and catered for years one to ten. From it’s inception the school offered boarding accommodation for secondary students who traveled from the NT, Queensland, and all parts of Western Australia to attend the school. In 1980 /81 the new Non Government school movement was just beginning to gather momentum and the move to establish the school was a brave move into relatively uncharted waters. It was a steep learning curve for the new Board who sometimes had to learn from mistakes. Later, pre-school and year 11&12 courses were also offered and a second school was started at Kurrawang [see entry] Community, between Kalgoorlie and Coolgardie. This school offered pre-primary to year seven. Over time the school gained recognition as playing an important role in Aboriginal Education in Western Australia. The CAPS Board took on the additional responsibility of the Wongutha program’s in 1990 and the whole property in 1993. (S J Florisson, Wongutha CAPS) .
The limited resident population information available is contained in the Annual Reports of the Child Welfare Department for 1968 and 1969, and shows 4 and six “Native Wards” respectively at June 30th.
When the Welstat (national welfare statistical collection) definitions were applied in 1979, there were a range of other facilities, operated either by the Department or non-Government agencies, which were defined as “Other Homes for Children”. Wongutha was included in this category. Such a definition referred to “a residential child care establishment that is mainly for children aged under 15 and/or still at school, and that consists of either a single dwelling that is not a family group home, or two or more dwellings that share cooking and eating facilities” and which were not (detention) Institutions or Hostels. |