Pharos Working Party advocates for revitalisation of Greek language in Australia

The Pharos Working Party recently met with the Minister for Education, Natalie Hutchins MP, to discuss the Modern Greek Strategic Plan for revitalising the Greek language in Victoria, the progress of Pharos sub-committees, and the need for government assistance in funding a position to coordinate Pharos’ work over the next two years.

Pharos is a diverse group of members from the Greek Australian community with the backing of all relevant stakeholders, including other state and Victorian community language advocacy groups like VietSpeak.

During the meeting, Theo Markos addressed the challenges that state schools face in offering Greek language programs at primary and secondary levels, the ongoing support of parent networks, the need for qualified language teachers, the cost of living pressures for seconded educators from Greece, and the possible need to revisit an existing Memorandum of Understanding between the Victorian government and the Greek government on matters of education.

“The crucial interrelations between all levels of language education (from pre-school to tertiary) were discussed, including the recent success of one of Pharos’ sub-committees in securing state government financial support for Multicultural Story Time at local libraries. The Minister showed great interest in the work being carried out by Pharos and committed to continuing the discussion with Pharos regarding its Strategic Plan and the revitalisation of Greek. We look forward to these discussions.” Pharos Board members Anita Kolaitis, Theo Markos and Stephie Nikoloudis said.

Additionally, Dr Stephie Nikoloudis highlighted that the detailed Strategic Plan, created under the guidance of Professor Emeritus Joe Lo Bianco, aims to ensure the teaching of Greek and its continued use in Australia beyond the classroom.

The campaign that secured the continuation of La Trobe University’s Greek Studies program had widespread support from individuals of both Greek and non-Greek backgrounds who value and support a multicultural and multilingual Australia.