Photo: ABC Goldfields: Robert Koenig-Luck
EGRP Campus Manager Cassie Tasker has been named ‘Education Champion of the Year’ by the Australasian Corrections Education Association (ACEA) which accepted nominations from across Australia, New Zealand and South-East Asia.
Ms Tasker was recognised for her work developing and providing innovative education and training programs which reflect the complex learning needs of a mainly First Nations cohort of prisoners.
ACEA President Dr Helen Farley said: “The judges selected Cassie for this award because of the passion and dedication she has shown providing life-changing educational opportunities to prisoners with complex backgrounds.”
Ms Tasker said she was blown away by the acknowledgement.
“Dr Farley sent a video message from New Zealand and it was played to me here in Kalgoorlie. At first I didn’t realise she was talking about me. I couldn’t believe that I had won such a big award,” she said.
Ms Tasker was nominated for the award by Regional Prisoner Education Manager Lisa Cross.
“Cassie has turned the Education Campus into a happy place, where prisoners feel empowered to learn and take part in the programs on offer,” Ms Cross said.
“That’s a big achievement for people who didn’t have many positive experiences of education when they were younger.“
Ms Tasker grew up on a Goldfields sheep station and went to school in Kalgoorlie, before moving to Perth to complete a teaching degree.
A mother of three, she has worked at Eastern Goldfields Regional Prison since 2011 and is passionate about linking offenders to education and training opportunities, including university degrees.
“I love my job so much because prisons can be complex places but when the prisoners come to education we talk about their future and give them hope,” she said.
In 2022, the first art gallery in a WA custodial facility opened at EGRP, with artworks created by men and women in custody displayed in the gallery.
Ms Tasker assists with the management of the art production, stock supply and sales opportunities for the prisoners.
Ms Tasker, who also runs a Kalgoorlie dance school which teaches 320 children per week, believes in the power of the Arts.
She recently worked with six Aboriginal prisoners to create a bilingual cover of the Paul Kelly song ‘How To Make Gravy.’
The version with lyrics in English and Pitjantjatjara, a Western Desert language, was recorded at the prison, lauded by Paul Kelly and went viral on social media.
Importantly, the project allowed prisoners to improve their literacy and musical skills, boosted their confidence and encouraged them to tell their stories.
