Call for unity in education
Our story – Lau Education Charitable Trust
BEHIND our vision and mission is a rallying call to the people and friends of Lau to come together in unity, to work together to improve the education of our children in the Lau Province.
It highlights the concerns, hopes and aspirations to lift the education standards of our children in our homeland of Lau, and we hope to create a platform for future success to enable our children to grow and reach their full potential.
While our focus is primarily on primary and early childhood education, we equally value the important linkages between secondary and tertiary levels.
Building on existing foundations, the strategy will complement the good work that is already in place.
Furthermore, we aim to lift standards, enhance outcomes, and achieve excellence across the schools in Lau.
Lau Education — a charitable trust (LECT) is registered under its parent organisation Vuli ko Lau Education Fund (Ltd) which was established in April 2021.
Registered in Australia, it is led by a board of directors that comprises Lauans from a diverse range of professions across the globe, who are united in their desire to improve access to quality education for the children of the remote islands of Lau province in Fiji.
Our foundational principles are:
■ Empowerment — enabling, equipping, and resourcing our children to grow and reach their full potential;
■ Equity — championing equitable access to opportunities and advancement and eliminating barriers to progress;
■ Respect and cultural identity — acknowledging the importance of indigenous Lauan world views that are central to our children’s identity, sense of belonging, kinship, community, and way of life;
■ Reciprocity and partnership — valuing integrity and trust in our relationships and partnerships; and
■ Teamwork and collaboration — recognising values of collectivism and community, teamwork, consultation, and consensus.
Our vulnerable Lau students need help!
LECT is committed to working collaboratively with all education stakeholders along the way, helping build and consolidate the foundations during the formative years in isolated island communities in order to function in a diverse Fiji and beyond.
As we evolve as an organisation, we will become better equipped to deal with the increased and multifaceted challenges of educating for life.
Along the education journey, a primary goal of LECT is to keep Lauan children grounded in their customs, culture and language and to continue to appreciate and conserve the pristine natural environments in which they are schooled.
LECT will use all our linked social media platforms and websites to increase awareness of the many problems we will address from now and into the future.
And to raise the necessary funds to source and send to the isolated islands much-needed school resources — with your help and donations — to fulfil our vision.