The 17 year-old Finley High School student was nominated by the school to be a 2021 NSW Rural Youth Ambassador.
The program gathers exceptional young people from rural communities around the state to foster their leadership skills, hone a particular project they identify aimed at helping rural young people, and participate in rural and remote education discussions with organisations including government departments and officials.
At just 17, Archie is a perfect candidate for the program.
He has long been a dedicated Finley Cats cricket and football player, a farmer, and an integral part of the Finley community.
But he’s got big shoes to fill, with current school captain, sportswoman, and all round hard worker Jemma Coombs passing on the torch.
Jemma said participating in the program last year was ‘‘eye-opening’’.
Over the course of the year, she met other rural young people from all over the state, and even the education minister, as she advocated for her community.
‘‘We got to meet with bureaucrats, and people that work within the government building, and just talked about how we can improve problems that we find in rural education as compared to the city, or bigger places with more opportunities,’’ she said.
‘‘It was cool to see the things I thought were only issues here are actually issues for other schools as well.
‘‘Especially in the senior years. We found that subject selection was one of the biggest issues rurally. We could apply to do distance education, but in New South Wales especially, subject selections were still limited. It puts you behind.
‘‘What I learned most is that we all have a voice and we can all speak up for what we want to work toward.’’
Archie made his way to Sydney on Sunday to meet with the other ambassadors taking part this year.
Before leaving, he told the Southern Riverina News he was a little nervous but looking forward to seeing the other participants he had already met online.
‘‘It’s hard to say just what we’ll be discussing; there’s a lot I could bring up with them.’’
Finley High principal Jeff Ward said the school is proud of the leadership both Archie and Jemma have shown in being involved in the program.
‘‘It’s an excellent opportunity for rural young people to go out and truly represent themselves and their communities. They are representing themselves and their peers — the students of Finley,’’ he said.
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