The University of Technology Sydney (UTS) has launched a national competition to select a design team for a 250-bed Indigenous residential college on its Ultimo campus.
The First Nations college will be built on the Gadigal Land of the Eora Nation and will be the first truly comprehensive Indigenous residential college of its kind in Australia, enabling Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students to receive a university education in an environment that celebrates and nurtures cultural identity.
The facility will also include communal spaces public art installations; new through-site links from Harris Street to Omnibus Lane; and a new open space in the form of a precinct heart. The design, landscape and public art process should be led by deep consideration of and respect for Aboriginal Country.
UTS special advisors to the vice-chancellor on major Indigenous priorities, Professor Michael McDaniel, said Indigenous education is for all Australians, and it is about building a nation that cherishes and celebrates First Nations peoples.
“Most Indigenous people don’t have a history of participating in university education. By creating a place with Indigenous culture at its heart – not on the periphery – the college will help Indigenous people ‘see’ themselves at university,” said McDaniel.
“For the first time Indigenous people will be the hosts not the guests in a place based around their traditions and identity.”
Indicative design of the UTS Indigenous college (2018).
Image: UTS
The college intends to remove the barriers preventing Indigenous participation in higher education and the broader economy by raising the aspirations of young Indigenous people, maximising opportunities for entry to higher education, and supporting the pursuit of quality employment.
The purpose-built facility will offer a comprehensive range of services beyond accomodation, and will be “defined by its ethos of pride in Indigenous identity and culture,” UTS said.
The project will be funded through a multi-party model between the university, government, the private sector and philanthropic contributions. UTS announced in its initial 2018 plans that it estimates the college will cost around $100 million.
Expressions of interest for stage one of the design competition opened 2 December to eligible design professionals and will close 2 February 2023. An invited design competition for successful contenders will launch in April 2023, with submissions closing in July. Presentations to a jury will then take place within the following weeks, with a winner selected in September.
The college is slated for completion in 2027. For more information, visit the UTS website.
