Ema Alenzi now plans to do a Bachelor of Science and Psychology. Photo: Facebook.
Three years ago, Ema Alenzi was attending an all-girls school in Kuwait that was exclusively for blind students. When her diplomat father got a posting in Australia, she was initially terrified of the prospect of attending a public co-ed mainstream school in a foreign country.
However, the 18-year-old has thrived at Erindale College, where she often did volunteer work, attended woodwork classes for the first time, and became a prominent voice for student advocacy and inclusion.
Her achievements were honoured last week when she won the Exceptional Young Person Award for 2024, an annual Children’s Week recognition for those who make extraordinary contributions to other children and/or young people.
“I feel kind of surprised at getting this award, but not in a bad way,” Ema said.
“You’re often taught to accept things the way they are and move on. But being in a place like Erindale College, they’ve supported me to share my voice, which has been life-changing.
“I got to do a subject like woodwork, which I thought wasn’t something for blind people. But it really brings me joy, I can see I’m able to do it and it makes me feel confident.”
The Year 12 student has also been part of the ACT Student Voice Forums, which gives pupils the chance to meet with bureaucrats and have input in how their school is run. She takes every opportunity to have her say.
“I’ve volunteered for open nights and talked to teachers a lot about what works well at the school and what we can do better. I also got to help out with the design of the outdoor area of our school. It used to be a bit boring, but with the principal and students, we figured out how we can bring the area to life,” she said.
Ema’s friend Lilly made her a braille crochet with the message ‘‘Ema, thank you for an amazing few years. We love our hayati. From Compass girlies’’. Photo: Facebook.
Ema is part of Erindale College’s Compass Program, which is designed to support students with special needs.
“She’s always so willing to understand and connect with people from other diverse backgrounds and to say what’s working and not working … Ema has been highly influential in the inclusive education space, she even presented a speech to 100 school leaders and teachers explaining her experience from an inclusion point of view,” Compass Program co-ordinator Renne Couto said.
Never shy to express her views on any topic, the Muslim student also had her say on the most topical issue for young people at the moment – the federal government’s push to ban social media for those aged 16 and under.
“For me, as a minority, having social media was really good, as I got to connect with people who were like me,” she said.
“You get a lot of disabled influencers and Arab influencers, that helps you feel represented and takes us out of our isolation.
“I can understand the perspective of banning it as a lot of teenagers think they would’ve been better off without social media; there is doomscrolling and cyberbullying. But for me, it’s my way of being connected to the world … if you’re going to take social media away, you have to provide them with something to fulfil them.”
As she completes her college education, Ema now plans on doing a Diploma in Health as a pathway to study a Bachelor of Science and Psychology at the University of Canberra. She’s thinking carefully about her career options.
“All I know is, I want to help people. I love psychology and learning about the brain. A part of me wants to be a neuroscientist or a doctor. I also love designing thing and coming up my own ideas. But recently, I have wanted to be a Renee [Couto].”
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