Aunty Stephanie Armstrong

Aunty Stephanie Armstrong is a proud Gamilaraay and Bigambul woman whose career in education spans more than four decades, shaping generations of Aboriginal and non-Indigenous students across Australia. Beginning her journey in 1982 as one of the few Aboriginal teachers of that time, she has remained committed to centring communities through culturally grounded education.

Her work has taken her from Ceduna (SA), to Bendigo, Melbourne and remote communities across the country, from the Pilbara to the Kimberley region (WA) and into national leadership roles as a teacher, consultant and mentor. Deeply influenced by community-led learning, Aunty Steph has championed education that is grounded in Country, relationships and cultural identity. Her contributions have been widely recognised, including the SA Equal Opportunity Award 1989 and an OAM in 2023.

A passionate advocate for Aboriginal-led education, she has worked with organisations at state and National levels. In the last decade her work, which she sees as her legacy work is that of mentoring pathways for young people—particularly First Nations girls pursuing health careers with the backing of “Indigenous Allied Health Australia” (IAHA), mentoring and teaching the next generation of young leaders using culture as a protective factor with the “Culture is Life” team and lastly her committed effort to work with “Children’s Ground” to honor the work of her mother of so many Elders and leaders who Centre Aboriginal Languages and culture.

For Aunty Steph this work of advocating and creating change to provide a First Nations education system by taking back the authority and direction to provide a caring, culturally informed learning environment to inspire future leaders, strengthen cultural knowledge and champion community-driven schooling grounded in respect, responsibility and connection to Country.