Cheryl is a proud Narungga Woman who is passionate about improving the quality of life for her people. Cheryl has spent the last 40 years working within the Aboriginal community, Federal Govt and South Australian Government to improve the lives of First Nations peoples. She has experience working within the Aboriginal community sector, law and justice, women’s issues, family violence, youth justice, child and family services and is currently working in the Aboriginal Community Housing sector. Cheryl is committed to influencing positive change and outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
Cheryl is a cultural change advocate. She has extensive experience developing and delivering cultural competency programs to assist workers in the government and non government sectors to gain a better understanding of the impact of colonisation on Aboriginal people in South Australia and its impact today through intergenerational trauma. As part of this work, Cheryl led the development of “A Cultural Inclusion Framework for the SA Government” – a set of guides and tools to assist agencies to work towards achieving cultural competency. She developed and delivered training programs for managers/supervisors who manage Aboriginal staff, delivered team building programs, and provided advice and input to assist with the development of culturally competent programs.
As an advocate for Justice Reinvestment and reconciliation, Cheryl is alarmed by the ever-increasing number of Aboriginal people trapped within the justice and child protection systems. It is obvious that systems in place are not working. Cheryl has held the positions of CEO of Aboriginal Legal Rights Movement and National Co-chair of National Aboriginal Torres Strait Islander Legal Services.
Cheryl is committed to promoting the self determination of her people and strongly opposing any forced Interventions – including income management, or any initiative that contravene the basic Human Rights principles.
Cheryl has a dream where Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians are treated with respect and dignity, enjoy a life without racism, enjoy a longer life expectancy, have real jobs, live a life without poverty, have stable and affordable housing, access to quality education and are empowered to make all our own decisions.