6 Howard.indd Transformative Education Pathways to identity, independence and hope The number of Australians who are experiencing disadvantage, homelessness and marginalisation is increasing (Australian Bureau of Statistics 2006; Saunders & Wong 2009; St Vincent de Paul Society 2007). The reality of life for many of these people includes poor physical and mental health, substance abuse, domestic violence, financial difficulties, inferior housing, family breakdown, and unemployment (Vinson 2007). The durability of disadvantage and the complex interaction and impact of such factors can lead to people disengaging from society, with a critical outcome being social exclusion and often denial of their human right to educational opportunities. In this context, educators, communities and community organisations are challenged to engage with people who are disadvantaged or socially isolated in ways which enable them to move from a situation of dependence to being empowered to make their own decisions. This shift from dependence to empowerment occurs through people developing within themselves a sense of agency for setting their own goals and choosing pathways to achieve their goals, thus contributing to a positive sense of identity, quality social relations and new hope for the future. The importance of the role of education in assisting people to move beyond disadvantage is based upon positive correlations between education and the health, resilience and wellbeing of people (Hammond 2002, 2004; Hartog & Oosterbeek 1998; Marmot & Wilkinson 1999; Ross & Mirowsky 1999). A number of studies have indicated that relevant education can lead to improvements in self-confidence (Carlton & Soulsby 1999; Dench & Regan 1998); self-efficacy (Wertheimer 1997); self-understanding (Cox & Pascall 1994); competencies, communication skills and civic engagement (Emler & Fraser 1999; Parry, Moyser & Day 1992); a sense of belonging to a social group (Jarvis & Walker 1997); and substantive freedoms and capabilities (Sen 1999). Such diverse outcomes for the personal wellbeing of people indicate how purposeful and appropriate education can contribute to improvements within the social, economic and personal domains Gateways: International Journal of Community Research and Engagement Vol 3 (2010): 88–103 ©UTSePress and the authors ISSN 1836-3393 Peter Howard Jude Butcher Luke Egan Australian Catholic University 89 | Gateways | Howard, Butcher & Egan of a person’s life (Hammond 2004; Luby & Welch 2006). However, disadvantaged people most in need of access to education and the critical pathway it provides to transformative learning and social inclusion are often those least likely to access it (Butcher, Howard & McFadden 2003). The question remains as to what is the nature of such transformative education. This article explores the theory of hope as a basis for transformative education, examining in particular two key aspects of hope theory: the development within marginalised people of a sense of their own agency to set goals; and a belief in their ability to choose pathways that will help them achieve those goals. Transformative education needs to both develop their ‘will’ and show the ‘way’. If education is to provide disadvantaged people with pathways to social inclusion, hope theory suggests it must feature access to university education that enables them to have the confidence and capabilities to take personal control and engage purposefully in a changing society (Benson, Harkavy & Puckett 2007). We suggest there are three central elements to transformative education: —appropriate strategies: the ‘scaffolding’ processes provided —innovative partnerships: the collaboration of committed partners from community, academe, corporate and government sectors —purposeful reflection. The Clemente Australia (CA) program is a community embedded, socially supported university education (CESS) that delivers key personal, social and economic benefit to people and communities experiencing marginalisation or disadvantage. It is examined here in detail as a case study of transformative education, with research data provided on its impact on people experiencing disadvantage or social isolation. We conclude that community embedded, socially supported education has resulted in enhancing the life opportunities and choices of disadvantaged Australians, and raise some issues needing further inquiry. THEORY OF HOPE The construct of hope was originally studied only within the fields of philosophy and theology. Hope was integral to the human person who, with dignity, could have a positive sense of self and their purpose in life even in the most dehumanising of circumstances (Frankl 1963). Hope also provided a base for envisioning a better world (Bloch 1995) and articulating how people could work towards a ‘better tomorrow’. Psychology brought different perspectives to understanding the nature of the person and the role of hope. Maslow (1970) distinguished between a person’s basic needs including hunger, affection, security and self-esteem, and meta-needs such as justice, goodness, beauty and unity. His attention was upon the self-actualising person for whom there was a sense of oneness in the person and with the world. From Maslow’s perspective a self-actualised person would have a strong sense of hope. However, his theory does not provide a 90 | Gateways | Howard, Butcher & Egan basis for engaging with people who are disadvantaged or socially isolated and assisting them in developing a sense of empowerment through setting goals and identifying pathways for achieving them. With the advent of the positive psychology movement and the accompanying shift towards human strengths, psychological processes such as hope began to be studied scientifically. Hope theory, pioneered by the late CR Snyder in the early 1990s (see Snyder, Irving & Anderson 1991), provided researchers with an explanatory model that has stood the test of almost 20 years of empirical investigation. According to hope theory, the process of hope is cognitive in nature; it is goal-directed thinking. Emotions play an important role, but cognitions are primary: thoughts regarding one’s goals will determine how one feels (Snyder 2002; Snyder et al. 1996). Along with goals, hope is understood in terms of two other cognitive foci: pathways thinking and agency thinking. To hope for an outcome is to have a goal in mind. In other words, hopeful thinking is goal oriented (Snyder 1995). Before one can perform the tasks needed to reach a goal, the goal itself must be well defined and appropriate to one’s abilities and circumstances. Those people who are more hopeful set goals for themselves which are more realistic, more attainable, better articulated and grander in scope. They are more likely to divide their grand goals into smaller, more manageable sub-goals, and they are better able to shift their focus onto a new goal should their original goal turn out to be unattainable. Hopeful people are highly flexible in how they think about their goals, and they typically set a greater number of goals for themselves (Snyder 2002). In pursuing a goal, the two cognitive processes mentioned above – agency thinking and pathways thinking – operate (Snyder 1995). These represent the ‘will’ and the ‘way’ respectively, as it were (Snyder et al. 1991). ‘Pathways thinking’ refers to one’s ability to identify or generate the routes that lead to one’s goal. Agency thinking refers to one’s ability to motivate oneself to follow these routes successfully. Those who possess high levels of both pathways and agency thinking are said to be high in hope. The two components of hope are mutually reinforcing: it is much easier to motivate one’s self to pursue a goal when one believes that there are many workable pathways leading to the goal, and it is much easier to search for workable pathways when one is highly motivated to reach one’s goal (Snyder 1995; Snyder et al. 1991). The benefits of hope have been demonstrated in a variety of contexts: higher hope has been associated with better physical and mental health and better performances in academic, athletic and workplace settings (Chang 1998; Curry et al. 1997; Snyder 2002). One of the best ways to increase a person’s level of hope is to provide him or her with opportunities to pursue and attain goals (Snyder et al. 2000). Practice makes perfect, and successful goal 91 | Gateways | Howard, Butcher & Egan pursuit in one domain leads to broad increases in hope across all the domains of one’s life. This means that people who are helped to reach, say, an educational goal will become better able to reach a different goal, say finding employment unassisted (Snyder et al. 2000). This sense of hope is related to, but distinct from, one’s sense of self-efficacy (Magaletta & Oliver 1999). The relevance to educators is clear: by encouraging students to become more hopeful, a transformative education program helps them to reach the goal of moving beyond disadvantage. Educators need to address both the ‘will’ and the ‘ways’ a person brings to achieving goals. To this end, the Clemente Australia program has been structured to provide disadvantaged people with the opportunity to pursue such educational goals in a supportive community setting. The program offers its students an accessible, clearly defined structure leading to educational success, and the students are encouraged at all times to persist through the difficulties that arise as they undertake their studies. As a result, they become more hopeful, not only with regard to educational and academic activities, but also other aspects of their lives. The benefits of increased hope cannot be underestimated. To see a Clemente Australia student receive his or her certificate at the end of two years of dedicated study, to see him or her beaming on stage at the graduation ceremony, is to see someone who has become emphatically more able to meet all manner of challenges that may arise in his or her life. It is to see someone who has become almost immeasurably better able to move beyond disadvantage, and to engage with and contribute to a more socially inclusive future. The need for such transformative education programs for people who are disadvantaged is supported by a study by Partis (2003), which showed that homeless people’s sense of hope was related to their being able to make sense of their own experiences. In contrast, the respondents in the study expressed how their ‘perceived lack of power and control … led to feelings of helplessness and depression’. Research into the nature and impact of transformative education such as that offered by Clemente Australia needs to be developed to examine: —the impact of the program on the participants’ sense of hope —how the program contributes to their development of both ‘the will’ and ‘the way’ —the role of the social dimensions in transformative education, and —the relationship between the cognitive and emotional aspects of the participants’ engagement in the study. THE CLEmEnTE PROgRam Clemente Australia is an innovative program providing transformative 21st-century tertiary education for people who are otherwise excluded from tertiary education. The Clemente program originated in New York in 1999 with the expressed purpose of 92 | Gateways | Howard, Butcher & Egan empowering the poor and marginalised. A humanities-based education utilising a Socratic teaching paradigm that re-engages people suffering isolation and profound disconnection provides the curriculum foundation for Clemente Australia. Such a focus on the humanities enables accessible content matter for the participants, allowing them to draw upon their life experiences in reflecting upon the literature, artworks and philosophies being studied (Shorris 2000). Shorris (2000) promoted an education of ‘riches for the poor’, which offered people the rich cultural capital of citizenship. He expressed the following key pedagogical principles for the content and processes for Clemente: —It is generalist in content. The curriculum breaks down the substantive distinction between learning (for well off) and churning (for the poor), thus opening a regular routine of participation. —Dialogue is the purpose, taking the place of a teacher-centred education. —The classes become a temporary public space, a public sphere to be involved in, where its students can escape their private troubles and confront public issues. Clemente is a place and a time when students can break out of isolation. —The culture of prizes and rewards has no place. Participation is the measure of success. Academic grades are important to the students to be sure. But turning up is the success. Thus Clemente is designed to engage the disaffected, isolated, homeless and poor in values-based education, which promotes practices of autonomy that counteract the routinisation of the poor (Gervasoni, Smith & Howard 2010). Clemente was established in Australia in 2003 by the Australian Catholic University (ACU) in collaboration with St Vincent de Paul (St V de P) with the initial site being in East Sydney. Since 2005, eight sites have been established across Australia: in Surry Hills, Sydney (July 2005, Mission Australia – MA); Brisbane (July 2006, MA); Canberra (February 2007, St V de P); Campbelltown, south-west Sydney (August 2007, St V de P); Perth (February 2008, MA with Edith Cowan University); Melbourne (April 2008, MA); Ballarat (August 2008, ACU and University of Ballarat with The Smith Family); and Adelaide (March 2010, Finders University and MA). The sites named Clemente or Catalyst-Clemente share their knowledge and experiences under the umbrella name of Clemente Australia. There are now more than 130 students enrolled nationally each semester with 48 people having graduated from the program and many choosing to undertake further educational programs. The course and the individual units were designed to be sensitive to the particular needs, requirements and capacities of disadvantaged people while maintaining academic standards. This sensitivity to the needs of the students was paramount as many of the students experience problems with substance misuse and 93 | Gateways | Howard, Butcher & Egan mental health issues such as depression and anxiety, with co- morbidity (both substance misuse and mental illness) increasingly reported among disadvantaged Australians (Stockwell et al. 2005). Furthermore, levels of mental health are key indicators of disadvantage and poverty and a critical element for cognitive and communication skills, learning, personal development, resilience and self-esteem (Johnstone 2001). The community embedded nature of the program, with it being offered in a community service setting, both facilitates participant access to the program and ensures agency support in addressing the complex array of student needs (Mission Australia 2004, 2007). The program offers university-approved units in subjects such as ethics, literature, drama, art, philosophy and history, with students studying one unit each semester. On the successful completion of four units, participants graduate with a university non-award qualification that can provide access into an accredited university undergraduate degree or lead to other life choices. The subjects are taught over 12 weeks, and each week the students attend a two-hour lecture and a two-hour ‘shared learning’ tutorial-style session. The ‘shared learning’ sessions are staffed by volunteers from the business and corporate sectors. These volunteers are known as ‘learning partners’, to reflect the fact that both the students and the volunteers learn from their experiences of interacting with one another. The learning partners are provided with a professional briefing prior to the commencement of the courses. Their role is to assist the students in undertaking and completing their tasks, assignments and other coursework, especially with regard to computing and written language skills. To further coordinate the ongoing implementation of the program each site has a community-based coordinator who responds to the social support needs of students, liaises with the university academic coordinator in managing the everyday issues related to the program and oversees the weekly lecturing and learning partner sessions. The collaboration of community agency support staff, university lecturers and learning partners is integral to the socially supported nature of the program, as is the mutual support amongst the participants themselves. The ‘scaffolding’: Community Embedded, Socially Supported Education Clemente Australia engages people who are disadvantaged or socially isolated in university (humanities) education within community agency settings with access to professional welfare support and facilitated access to a diverse range of services. Important dimensions of this community embedded, socially supported university education (CESS) include: —permeability of boundaries between the education centre and other elements of students’ lives —greater openness of lecturers and tutors to students and their lives —informal and supportive culture of CESS education for course participants 94 | Gateways | Howard, Butcher & Egan —the expansive, caring and supportive role of centre or agency staff —balancing of the supportive and formal teaching roles of lecturers (Gallacher et al. 2007). Such education has been found to provide pedagogical tools and strategies for developing student competence and class membership and participation. These strategies include ‘teachers and students addressing one another as persons who can and do have choices, preferences and tastes. This is seeing and knowing someone, in all their particularity – and with dignity’ (Thomas 2007, p. 791). Often disadvantaged people in a mainstream university are labelled as alternative entry participants and regarded as an identifiable minority group (Tell 1999). In CESS these people find a formal but supportive educational opportunity for social inclusion. Through this scaffolding, disadvantaged people are empowered to establish for themselves a helpful balance across the three elements of university institutional requirements, their needs as both a person and a university student, and their further engagement with the wider community. The social support from the community agencies is critical to CESS university education. Students with significant health and other issues are best supported in their education when they can access professional welfare and the range of supports they need. Access to such services, which assists students in their handling of issues such as high anxiety through to contemplating suicide, is only possible through the permeability of boundaries in CESS university education. In contrast, students in mainstream university education pathways could access, at best, a general, rather than a specialised, form of welfare and medical services. Innovative Partnerships The collaboration of the education, government, community and corporate sectors is central to having disengaged and disconnected people access enhanced educational and learning opportunities, and is a key structural aspect of Clemente Australia. This collaboration is built upon new social arrangements and cross- sector community networks with a shared social vision based upon purposeful learning and people achieving higher levels of self-esteem, self-confidence and social connectedness in the community. The shared vision and commitment is expressed in a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the different organisations. The MOU details the vision and goals of the program, the shared values base, and the role and commitment of each of the organisations. The collaboration within this CESS university education (see Table 1) is structured to assure the quality, effectiveness and sustainability of the program for Clemente Australia students in ways that achieve the goals or missions of the individual organisations, as well as contributing to community social capital and wellbeing. 95 | Gateways | Howard, Butcher & Egan The structural dimensions of the provision of this quality service bring the different elements of CESS education together in a holistic way for the students. Health and welfare are readily available to students, while the learning support from people in the corporate sector contributes to the students’ self-dignity. The students are the focus for the provision of the program and the accompanying services. They see the place or site as their place, for which they have a strong sense of belonging and ownership. The partnerships contribute to the students’ sense of empowerment rather than the sense of dependency often associated with their seeking support or specialist assistance. Furthermore, the commitment of the stakeholders to institutional accountability, financial sustainability and institutional capacity building conveys to the students the stakeholders’ very high regard for Clemente Australia. There is a genuine understanding amongst all groups that they are collectively contributing to the enhancement of the community’s social capital. All involved with the program and the students realise that they are continually enhancing their own personal and professional competencies for engaging with marginalised people. Hence, mutual benefits and reciprocity are key features of the partnerships and cross-sectoral collaboration amongst tertiary institutions, non-government organisations, community agencies and corporate support. Purposeful Reflection Purposeful reflection is integral to transformative education. This reflection is a continual element of the learning and teaching for the students, lecturers and learning partners. Furthermore, reflective practice is a structured component of the reviews of the sessions, whether scheduled classes or learning partner sessions. These sessions provide the conversational opportunities for students to conceptualise and synthesise their thoughts and ideas. Such purposeful reflection enables them to share their life experiences with others and to come to a deeper understanding and appreciation of their identity in community. The knowledge Table 1: Collaborative contributions within community embedded, socially supported university education (CESS) Dimension of collaboration Education Welfare Health Corporate Student personal wellbeing and learning Increased self-efficacy and hope for learning and for the future Increased capacity of clients for engagement in meaningful activity Better self-management of health and medications Sense of fulfilment in engagement and learning Quality service delivery for students Certificate of Liberal Studies Structured pathways to re-engagement Ready portal for community health services Expression of corporate social responsibility Enhancement of social capital Social and community engagement across students, employees, volunteers, learning partners; increased engagement of students with families, friends and colleagues Accountability for quality and cost-effective services Quality assurance procedures within and across sectors Research into cost–benefits of program in terms of personal, social, economic and social benefits for the individual, community, society and government Financial sustainability of services University carriage of cost of student fees, student administration Provision of coordination and infrastructure Contribution through cash and in-kind philanthropic contributions Personal, community and institutional capacity building Capacity to offer community embedded, socially supported university education Holistic delivery of services through university- community partnership Provision of pathways to better health, e.g. from depression Employee engagement with people and communities in the complexity of their lives 96 | Gateways | Howard, Butcher & Egan frameworks evident within the course content provide structures and language which enable students to converse, explore and reflect purposefully upon many of the personal influences and impacts on their lives. Other formal structures for purposeful reflection are meetings between the students, agencies and institutions in planning and maintaining the delivery and sustainability of the program and amongst key university and agency staff in recognising and addressing the general and particular needs of the students who continually come from diverse demographic, learning and medical backgrounds. Such meetings ensure a sharing of interagency and community-based knowledge that strengthens the learning environment of the students and provides opportunities for all to reflect purposefully upon the program content, structures and delivery, particularly from the students’ perspectives. IDEnTIFYIng ImPaCT Since 2003, the Australian iterations of the Clemente program have been the subject of a broadening research agenda assessing the impact of the program upon students and the organisations involved. The researchers continue to acquire a deeper appreciation and understanding of the complex and intricate processes, relationships and transitions that occur during the programs (Egan et al. 2006; Gervasoni, Smith & Howard 2010; Howard et al. 2008; Mission Australia 2007; Stevenson, Yashin-Shaw & Howard 2007). In these studies the authors continue also to examine the impact of Clemente Australia on the students with respect to: —students’ goals —students’ sense of agency —students’ sense of hope for the future —appropriateness of the pathways. The research data gathered employs a ‘methodology of engagement’ with students as authentic collaborators in the study. The students, who usually have fragile and vulnerable backgrounds, give of themselves in undertaking the program of study, being involved ‘with’ the ongoing research and reflecting upon their learning journey. The research is built upon a collaborative research paradigm based on mutual trust, respect, integrity, dignity and rapport (Delamont 1992; Liamputtong 2007). The questions asked of the students are tailored to be respectful, engaging and open ended, allowing the participants to share their perspectives and experiences in a dignified way. The research shows that: —they are mostly single, separated or divorced —many have children or dependants —more than half have lived in crisis or emergency accommodation, or on the streets —most have attended primary or secondary school, but a small percentage have engaged in post-secondary education 97 | Gateways | Howard, Butcher & Egan —most have a longstanding physical health condition, illness, disability or infirmity —most subsist on a government pension, while a small percentage pay their way through working or other sources. Student Goals Students enrol in Clemente Australia with two types of goals. The first goal is the individual goal of personal transformation of their life and the ability to engage more in life. The second goal is linked to pathways for achieving a new sense of personal identity and independence through study, volunteering, employment and wider engagement with family and other people. Students see Clemente Australia as giving them ‘structure in life’ which led to ‘self- improvement’ and a more ‘purposeful life’. Gaining ‘knowledge led to achievement’ and the confidence within themselves to see purpose, opportunities and choices (Catalyst/Clemente Australia Forum 2010). Though the students find the course confronting and daunting, they also find it encouraging, stimulating, challenging, engaging and fulfilling. Building self-confidence and self-esteem enables students to take the risk of setting goals for both personal transformation and future learning achievements. Sense of Agency Many students have had to overcome significant internal and external barriers just to enter into and begin the program. Coming to the first class can be a daunting experience in itself and the ongoing attendance and completion can be precarious and fragile, depending upon the individual’s circumstance from week to week. CA students say that their engagement in the program has had a positive impact on their sense of self, their confidence as learners, their relating to others participating in the community, and on creating a future for themselves (Howard et al. 2008). Students express an enhanced view of self and their wellbeing. They comment on self-esteem, increased levels of confidence and personal development. These are essential factors in enhancing economic and social participation. The students also express a desire for enhanced and increased social participation with all others involved in the program. This was articulated at the beginning of the program as a hope and developed further as a reality as the program progressed. For some students, their relationships with others change in positive ways. The change goes beyond simply enhancing their social interactions to include changes in their relationships and how they engage with others, including family and friends. Sense of Hope for the Future Long-term disadvantaged Australians often find it difficult to see the potential and possibility of a different future for themselves and their families. They often feel they lack a sense of being able to control their future and are instead subject to circumstances outside their control. As the program progresses, the students speak increasingly about their future (Mission Australia 2007). They 98 | Gateways | Howard, Butcher & Egan establish hope and personal expectation that they will complete the program and then continue their studies. Many students identify key changes in the ways in which they communicate and interact with their family members, friends and others, and see in this a hope for a more socially inclusive future in their place within community. The CA students come to acknowledge that indeed they have a future and are able to plan more purposefully for that future with a newly evolving sense of hope. Appropriateness of the Pathways The structure and setting of the program are important factors. The relatively small size of the classes enables the students to receive greater levels of attention from the lecturers, and the two-hour duration of the classes allows the students to explore their subject matter in sufficient depth. The shared learning time when students are able to access weekly one-on-one sessions with their learning partners has been critical, as many of the personal barriers that constrain their learning (for example, levels of computing skills, reading and writing skills) are addressed and reduced. As well, delivery of the program within a community setting is significant as students are able to access the support services attached to the community-based venues (for example, medical and dental services, meals, counsellors). Each site offers or is in proximity to a number of services and facilities that can be accessed by the students. Furthermore, it is likely that the students feel more comfortable studying within the supportive atmosphere of the community setting than within a university campus. The students’ engagement is reinforced by the way in which the course content is delivered by the lecturers who engage the students in group discussions, excursions, drama presentations and other alternate learning strategies, encouraging all to participate. Each student is called upon to offer their own personal reflections, insights and contributions, and a high level of interaction is fostered. Students have clearly expressed the belief that the process of learning and the course content were important to them, as was the opportunity to engage with others in the learning process. The students have also commented on the value of participating in cultural or community arts activities linked, as requirements, to their study. Currently (2009–2011), data collection is occurring through a student survey across three sites; in-depth interviews with a sub-sample of students; focus group interviews; and a cost–benefit analysis of the program. Survey data is being collected across five key domains: demographic; health and wellbeing; social supports; program engagement and participation; and social inclusion. The study details the economic, social and wellbeing position of the student population on entry to the program and undertakes cohort comparisons with the Australian population from the subset of the ‘disadvantaged’ population from which the student population is drawn. A cost–benefit analysis will measure the extent to which 99 | Gateways | Howard, Butcher & Egan the program improves the outcomes of participants relative to the net cost of delivering the program. Cost–benefit studies of this type are complex, but there is a growing body of research that is attempting such analysis (Flatau et al. 2008; Pinkney & Ewing 2006). Following the survey, semi-structured interviews will gather data on individual student’s life journeys across the study, exploring and providing insights to their perspectives on their home, school and employment experiences, social interaction, health and wellbeing, and the impact of these factors on their studies. Interviews will be ‘guided conversations’ which, while having specific topics, will be fluid, allowing backtracking, reflexivity and diversions. The impact of CA also needs to be assessed in the context of the reasons why the participants undertook study in the program. The primary reasons include motivation for betterment through knowledge (68 per cent); learning interest, personal satisfaction, to prove to themselves their ability to achieve (each 64 per cent); to move on from where they were (60 per cent); and the gaining of additional skills. For most students, their circumstances meant that university study had usually not been an option for them in the past, either because they did not have the necessary entry qualifications, or because they lacked the confidence to tackle what they saw as a very intimidating place due to their physical and emotional difficulties. The more informal community-based program provided them with a new start. Overall, the students had a very positive evaluation of the program, and felt that they had been able to make several changes in their life as a result of their participation. Ninety-two per cent really liked life as a student, 88 per cent felt that the program met their expectations, 88 per cent were satisfied with the unit topics on offer and 88 per cent with the overall quality of teaching (Howard et al. 2010). COnCLUSIOn From the commencement at one East Sydney site in 2003 with 11 homeless students, CA now enrols more than 130 students who are experiencing disadvantage and social isolation each semester. Nationally, in 2010, there are collectively more than 15 community agencies, universities, community partners and local councils collaborating to deliver the program. Australians are supporting one another to provide access to quality tertiary education for many who never hoped or believed they had the right to such educational opportunity. The data presented indicate that for this vulnerable group of higher education students the circumstances of their lives had a strong capacity to influence the goals they set and their sense of agency in achieving their academic success. The students chose Clemente Australia as their educational program of choice for attaining their goals. They opted for a transformative humanities education program which is community embedded and socially supported. This transformative education is having a significant 100 | Gateways | Howard, Butcher & Egan impact on these students’ development of a new sense of identity, their independence and ability to establish control over their personal wellbeing, and their sense of hope regarding future opportunities including social, physical and economic success. The psychology of hope provided a theoretical framework for developing, implementing and researching the impact of Clemente Australia. People deciding to enrol in Clemente Australia have already made a decision about new goals for themselves. They pursue their goals within a humanities education program conscious of the social and other forms of support they are being offered by people in community organisations and the university, and the learning partners. The goals and the supports are integral to the participants feeling confident about achieving their goals. Clemente Australia is based upon collaboration, from a shared values base, and the commitment of the community, business, government and educational sectors. Ongoing investigations of the participants’ journeys will add to the understanding of the role and impact of collaborative, cross- sectoral transformative education programs. Students’ personal wellbeing, engagement and learning are a major focus for each of the organisations involved. This holistic approach expresses a shared commitment by all to the students’ wellbeing, engagement and learning. Student endorsement of the program and its delivery emphasises its impact both on their sense of agency and on their satisfaction with the collaborative approach that Clemente Australia offers. aCKnOWLEDgEmEnT The authors acknowledge the significant ongoing collaboration in relation to the Catalyst–Clemente program by the Australian Catholic University, Mission Australia, St Vincent de Paul, Murdoch University, Curtin University and Edith Cowan University, through an Australian Research Council Linkage Grant. REFEREnCES Australian Bureau of Statistics 2006, Census of population and housing Australia, Commonwealth of Australia, Canberra. Benson, L, Harkavy, I & Puckett, J 2007, Dewey’s dream: Universities and democracies in an age of education reform, Temple University Press, Philadelphia, PA. Bloch, E 1995, The principle of hope, vols 1–3, trans. N Plaice, S Plaice & P Knight, MIT Press, Cambridge, MA. 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