Oxfam Schools Program: meet Lucy

Lucy McCredie has been lending a helping hand at Oxfam’s Schools Program since November last year, in between finishing her Bachelor of Teaching (Secondary) at the University of Melbourne, starting her post-graduate study and and looking for full-time teaching work.

What I do at Oxfam:

Oxfam’s Schools Program believes young people play a vital role combating poverty and inequality and seeks to engage young Australians to become active and informed citizens.

My role in the team includes many different tasks from helping promote Oxfam educational resources at teacher conferences, organising the Teacher Reference Group to gather ideas on educational resources and linking Oxfam materials to the Australian Curriculum. Certainly no two days are the same!

I volunteer because…

I chose to volunteer at Oxfam as I am currently completing my Masters of Teaching. The position in the Schools Program team fits perfectly with my studies as it allows me to further explore areas of interest. I am passionate about teaching students to become thoughtful and engaged citizens and this is at the heart of what I do here at Oxfam.

Three things volunteering at Oxfam has given me:

1. The opportunity to develop skills: Working at Oxfam allows me to put in to practice many ideas I have recently learnt in my university studies. I have been working closely with the Australian curriculum and I am now full of ideas for engaging lesson plans!

2. The opportunity to explore other areas of interest: It has been fascinating to gain insight into how Oxfam runs. It’s an organisation I admire and the NGO sector has always been something I have wanted to learn more about. Volunteering has provided me with the opportunity to try out a different job and to learn lots of new skills along the way.

3. Inspiration: Since volunteering at Oxfam I have met so many passionate and inspiring people, who are full of new ideas. I have learnt so much more about so many different things and this has provided me with confidence and inspiration to continue to pursue my passions!