Doomadgee, Ravenshoe and Kowanyama State Schools

DXC Technology is delighted to have partnered with LiteHaus International to donate 150 reconditioned laptops to First Nations students from Doomadgee, Ravenshoe and Kowanyama State Schools. These schools are in some of the most remote areas of Australia, and consequently face significant barriers to accessing educational resources.

“The impact that technology has on these kids’ lives cannot be underestimated; it allows them to learn, play and connect in new ways, whilst providing the means to develop critical life skills, such as tech literacy,” said Stuart Meadley, First Nations Program lead.

Since partnering with Jack Growden, Founder and CEO of charity LiteHaus International, DXC has been able to extend its impact to the hard-to-reach communities, where digital access can have the most significant impact, and lack of it can cause the most profound limitations on education and diversity of career prospects.

The donation event involved LiteHaus’ Rob Birnie and Jack driving over 2,800km across Outback Queensland to personally deliver each device. Now, in Doomadgee, every student from Grade 9 to 12 owns their own device, while in Ravenshoe, the digital device ownership rate has risen from 2% to over 60%. The Kowanyama State School distributed their 60 laptops to the graduating Grade 6 class as a reward for completing another year of schooling when high school retention is a challenge. Jack and Rob handed over devices to all three schools. The Mayor of Kowanyama, Robbie Sands, was present for the hand-over ceremony, and expressed his gratitude to DXC Technology and LiteHaus International for the donation.

Jack Growden is passionate about addressing digital poverty, “A quality education can only be a digital education in today’s world. With First Nations Australians being at higher risk of experiencing digital exclusion, we are proud to provide support through resources. It is our strong desire that no student shall be left behind.” LiteHaus International is a Queensland-based NGO committed to providing digital learning opportunities to students across Australia and Papua New Guinea. To date, they have supported over 70,000 students.  

Community technology enablement is one of DXC’s key Reconciliation Action Plan initiatives, aiming to share the power of technology with First Nations communities to enable and support self-determination. This is in alignment with the Closing the Gap Outcome 17 - for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have access to information and services enabling participation in informed decision-making regarding their own lives, and Target 17 by 2026, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have equal levels of digital inclusion.