Funding for a residential complex (for up to 180 pre-release prisoners per year) and a six-month certified vocational training program has been given a green light by the NSW government, following extensive meetings with the Minister for Corrections, David Elliott MP, and Assistant Commissioner for Corrections, Luke Grant. A pilot program will commence in coming months.
Greg Symons, one of four Executive Directors, said: “We are very pleased to have the support of government as well as our private equity partners. Marana outcomes meet all the Close the Gap strategy targets. Mentoring and education deliver health and life skills as well as specific training in the building industry.
“Our participants will learn to build houses according to a patented modular system,” he continued. “The Village Construction System is geared to meet the growing need for affordable housing, especially in remote communities. It is strong, safe and very cost-effective.”
Mr Symons has an Indigenous background and over 40 years’ experience serving variously as legal counsel and advisor to major corporate clients in Australia, China, the USA, Europe, the Middle East, India and South-East Asia. He was Chairperson of the South Sydney Aboriginal Corporation and Resource Centre.
“Marana promises to reduce rates of recidivism and overcrowding in NSW prisons,” Mr Symons said. It would also represent savings to government, he argued, in the vicinity of $16 million per year.
The Marana management team boasts a wealth of experience and expertise.
Norma Ingram, Executive Director, is a Wiradjuri woman with credentials in Indigenous education, training and employment. She is Co-Chair of the National Congress of Australia’s First Peoples and Co-Director of the National Aboriginal College, based in Redfern.
Lisa Williams, Executive Director, has over 25 years’ experience in Aboriginal employment and training. She designed and developed the course on Aboriginal Culture and Community, and training for Indigenous Elders to act as mentors for participants undertaking Marana programs.
John Lanzky, Executive Director, is an experienced business owner and manager. He is active in a charitable program for the accommodation of homeless men in Waterloo, and has served on the executive of Lions Club Australia.
Dr Anthony Dillon, an Advisor to the Marana Board, is the author of the Marana Life Skills program. Mr Dillon is an academic at Australian Catholic University, where his work focuses on Indigenous disadvantage. His research interests include alternative conceptualisations of mental health (particularly ADHD), statistics and psychometrics, applied psychology and Indigenous health.
Norma Ingram has been invited to attend the World Indigenous Peoples Conference on Education in Toronto, scheduled for July 2017. She will present a paper on the Marana complex, training programs and outcomes.
