Jesuit Social Services

Timeline

This effort by the Australian Jesuits began in 1977 when they opened four residences for youth released from Victoria correctional institutions; by 1996 they oversaw housing for 171 of these youth. Over the years the centre addressed youth employment needs, in part through a small farm. They also initiated a youth addiction and mental illness program (1989), buttressed in 1995 with an $890,000 grant. In 1987 outreach to Vietnamese youth was added, with in 1992 “Rising Sun” half-way house; in 1996 a video on cross-cultural problems followed. The year 1988 saw the first of their many outdoor and wilderness programs for inner-city youth.

In 1996 the name Jesuit Social Services Limited was officially registered. Its headquarters was then at 140 Park Drive, Parkville. The same year JSS began training personnel for the Big Brothers Big Sisters mentoring program, and took charge of New Family Home of Jesuit Refugee Service (that went back to 1988) for young, family-less Vietnamese in secondary or tertiary studies. JSS also began training personnel for Parenting Australia, and Richmond Community Care and the The Outdoor Experience were incorporated into JSS. In 1997 when Pentridge Prison closed JSS conducted public tours and later commissioned artists to decorate the cells with paintings for an “In the Can” exhibit, drawing 360,300 people in all.

In the following years JSS worked with the government as the programs mentioned above evolved and other programs were inaugurated dealing with domestic violence, community building (Yarra), youth art exhibits (Artful Dodgers Studios), advocacy for comprehensive health care, support after suicide, restorative justice, and in conjunction with University of Melbourne working on courses and social work placement.

In 2006 Jesuit Social Services was awarded the International Spirit at Work Award in New York. In 2006 also, it was granted Registered Training Organisation (RTO) status in Business Services, Community Services, Visual Arts and Craft Design, and Outdoor Recreation training.

JSS’s 30th anniversary in 2007 featured Martin Flanagan, journalist, and Paul Kelly singer/songwriter. The same year saw the initiation of a full-service program for women before and after their release from prison. The centre also expanded its outreach to include an impoverished community (Mt. Druitt) and the Aranda people in Alice Springs. In 2008 Konnect Indigenous Program was developed to offer support to indigenous people leaving prison. In 2009 Just Leadership Breakfast Series was launched for young professionals and leaders to foster their efforts to build a just society. And along with National Australia Bank JSS began Adult Multicultural Educational Services (AMES) to provide skilled African Australians with the employment that had eluded them; also (in 2010) a mentoring program for African men exiting prison. The book Doing Justice: Reflections from thirty years of Jesuit Social Services, 1977-2007 was published by JSS in 2009. In 2011 a full-service post-detention program was established for unaccompanied minors from Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan, Burma, and Vietnam.

In 2011 Jesuit Community College was founded as a part of JSS to bring literacy and communication skills to people whose education was interrupted. The same year a store was opened in Western Sydney to offer affordable food and clothes to this underdeveloped area; it includes a retail training centre and hospitality training space Ignite Café.

Today

JSS programs are currently divided among separate managers for the following areas: northern territories, Western Sydney, housing and complex issues, learning and practice development, justice, support after suicide, Jesuit Community College, and social enterprise. Business support and advocacy & strategic communications are separate departments. Committees advising the board of directors deal with risk and finance, corporate governance, national strategic planning, policy, and fundraising.

A major effort of the Center is producing position papers on social issues facing the country. From 1995 through 2015 it published 127 such papers.