Empowering Students to Tackle Racism at Truganina College

At The Stand-Up Project, we believe that real change in school culture starts with students. Our peer-led, anti-bullying training empowers young people to take the lead in shaping inclusive, respectful communities. One powerful example of this came from our work at Truganina College, where a group of passionate student leaders decided to focus on racism as a key issue affecting their school.

During the initial stages of the program, students at Truganina identified racism as a concern that had impacted them personally or that they had witnessed among their peers. Rather than avoid the topic, these students chose to confront it head-on. With support from The Stand-Up Project, they began planning how they could use their own experiences to educate and empower younger students at the school.

The result was a bold and compassionate initiative. SUP Student Leaders at Truganina designed a peer-education session that centred on their personal stories of racism and exclusion. These stories created a powerful emotional connection with the younger students they were teaching. By sharing real-life experiences, the leaders helped their peers understand the everyday impacts of racism and why it matters to speak up and stand together.

This is what The Stand-Up Project is all about: student-led action, Upstander training, and creating school environments where everyone feels valued, respected, and safe. Our anti-bullying program is grounded in evidence and built around empowering students to lead. At Truganina, this meant placing student voice and lived experience at the heart of the learning process.

Importantly, the work at Truganina highlights how our approach resonates in culturally diverse school communities. The Stand-Up Project works in schools across Australia, partnering with students from a wide range of cultural, linguistic, and religious backgrounds. Our flexible, evidence-informed framework allows student leaders to tailor the program to reflect the issues that matter most to their peers.

Racism, like bullying, is about power and exclusion. By recognising this, the Truganina student leaders modelled what it means to be Upstanders—young people who are not afraid to call out injustice and foster a culture of inclusion. Their courage and leadership are a reminder that the best solutions to school-based bullying and discrimination come from within the student body itself.

Through our student leadership training, Upstander training, and peer-education model, The Stand-Up Project is reducing bullying and promoting inclusion in schools every day. Whether it's addressing racism, homophobia, ableism, or everyday meanness, our student leaders are proving that young people are not just part of the solution—they are the solution.

To learn more about The Stand-Up Project’s anti-bullying training for students, student leadership training, or how we embed Upstander training across school communities, visit our website or reach out to our team.

Check out the website they created ab out their impact here.