From teaching in prison and mental health settings to advocating for second chances

For more than 25 years Geraldine (Dino) Anderson has taught and supported people on the margins and with multiple disadvantages, helping them build skills and hope for a better future. If there’s one more thing she wants to do for her students, it is this – to be a voice of change for them.

From juvenile justice to the adult prison system and specialist mental health services, Dino has worked in a range of settings through Kangan Institute, teaching English, general education and computer skills.

This year, Dino was awarded a Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) for services to vocational education, with the seasoned educator embracing a new personal mission along with this accolade – to advocate for society and businesses to do more in supporting people in the prison and mental health systems with employment opportunities when they return to society.

“Through education we can provide hope,” explains Dino.

“I still have so much to offer. If the OAM allows me to have a bit more of a voice, I’m happy to use it for our students.

“To give a person a job changes their life. We’re working to get them to that point.”

Perhaps more than anyone else, Dino understands the impact of education and a second chance.

“I started as a youth worker, and I met a lot of broken young people. I then trained to become a teacher,” explains Dino.

“I also spent time teaching adults to read in a maximum security prison. You can change someone’s life forever if you can gift them the skill to read.”

Dino currently teaches at the Victorian Institute of Forensic Mental Health (Forensicare) Thomas Embling Hospital as part of Kangan Institute’s corrections training program. Her students include consumers admitted to the hospital who have had experiences in the justice and mental health systems. In addition to mental illness, often over a long period of time, many of the people Dino supports have been impacted by poverty, homelessness, or challenging social circumstances.

At the hospital, Dino also leads other Kangan Institute teachers who provide training in different courses. Hospitality, testing and tagging, building and furniture making, computers, art and horticulture are just a few of the offerings that can help create opportunity and hope for those who have spent years facing rejection and roadblocks.

Her decades of experience in teaching within criminal justice and mental health settings and systems has instilled a firm belief in Dino – the work she and other educators do has the power to transform outcomes for the individuals they teach.

“As soon as you meet our students, you find the real person behind the facade, the bad experiences. Their humanity is really clear,” Dino says.

“We want to give them another shot. We’re doing that by educating them.”

Many of Dino’s students have proactively engaged with the education process so they can work towards being qualified to contribute to a job and earn a living.  

“Their education gives them hope when they leave here. They’ve got value to offer employers in their qualification, and they’re keen to get started,” Dino says.

“They’re grateful for the chance to learn and they are worth every effort we put in.” 

Dino hopes that her voice will remove roadblocks and help people in prison get back on track after release.  

“Society needs to stop putting these hurdles in front of our people. Give them a job. Trust them to have a job. They deserve a second chance to make a better life for themselves,” says Dino.

“All I can do is to keep offering excellence in education. I want to use this OAM to advocate for second chances. We need to give these people a future.”

Kangan Institute provides vocational education and training for a number of Victorian correction and mental health facilities. Dino’s recognition was part of the 2024 Australia Day Honours List and follows the achievements of Kangan Institute corrections educator Lorenda Gracey who received a Medal of the Order of Australia for services to vocational education in 2023.