A HUNTER high school program designed to help with defence employment has had its funding restored after an investigation by the Newcastle Herald.
The ‘‘ME Program’’ runs in 52 Hunter schools and has lifted enrolments in science, technology, engineering and maths (the so-called ‘‘STEM’’ subjects).
It has been run since 2010 by a federal agency, RDA (Regional Development Australia) Hunter, with $3million in funding from the Department of Defence.
Defence funds similar programs in South Australia and Western Australia, which are run through their respective state governments.
When the Herald heard that the Hunter program had lost its funding, while the SA and WA programs had not, it contacted RDA Hunter.
RDA Hunter chief executive Todd Williams said the program’s federal funding had run out in December.
Mr Williams said RDA Hunter had been told the program could not be funded because of flow-on effects from two successful High Court challenges to the federal funding of school chaplains, one in 2012, the other in 2014.
These cases are known as the Williams cases, after the Queensland man, Ron Williams, who launched them.
‘‘The High Court challenges affected all federal programs to schools where the government funded the money directly to the schools, whether it was chaplaincy or not, is what we were told,’’ Mr Williams said. ‘‘The SA and WA programs were funded through their states and so their funding was not affected.
‘‘Even though the government had found a way to keep funding the school chaplains after the court case they were still saying they couldn’t fund us.
‘‘It was very disappointing, given the success of the course in lifting enrolments in STEM subjects.’’
Mr Williams said 32 Hunter companies were involved with the program, which had helped 7500 pupils since 2010 in state, Catholic and independent schools.
On Wednesday, Paterson Liberal MP Bob Baldwin confirmed the Hunter program had ‘‘been impacted by’’ the Williams cases and that the government and the defence department were looking for a solution.
This was confirmed by the department, which said the amount of funding for ‘‘industry assistance and innovation programs’’ was under review, with a new Defence White Paper and industry policy due later this year.
In separate advice, the Attorney General’s Department said the High Court ‘‘did not find any other program invalid’’ and said laws enacted after the second case gave ‘‘legislative authority’’ to the school chaplains ‘‘and a range of other programs’’.
The Herald was in the process of clarifying this advice when Mr Baldwin said the ME Program’s funding had been extended for 12months while a solution was found.
Mr Williams said RDA Hunter was pleased that the funding had been resumed.
View the Newcastle Herald story