Curtin University, Australia
Profile
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🎓 Early Academic Pursuits
Professor Cheryl Kickett-Tucker AM is a proud Aboriginal Western Australian and a Wadjuk traditional owner and custodian of Balladong and Yued country. Born in Subiaco, Western Australia, she has spent the majority of her life in Perth. Cheryl's academic journey began at Edith Cowan University, where she earned her Associate Diploma and Bachelor of Applied Science. She later pursued a Master of Science at the University of Oregon in the United States, followed by a PhD from Edith Cowan University in 2000. Her doctoral research focused on the sense of self, identity, and self-esteem of urban Aboriginal children in school sport, through which she developed five culturally appropriate instruments for assessing racial identity and self-esteem across the lifespan.
🧑💼 Professional Endeavors
Cheryl is a leading academic, researcher, and community developer with over two decades of experience translating research into practical community-based programs. She currently serves as a professor and holds multiple leadership roles in research projects funded by prestigious bodies such as the Australian Research Council, National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC), WA Mental Health Commission, and National Indigenous Australians Agency. Her efforts focus on Aboriginal youth, mental health, cultural security, and educational outcomes. Cheryl has also contributed significantly to policy-oriented work in Aboriginal education and wellbeing.
🔬 Contributions and Research Focus
Her research portfolio is diverse and deeply community-centered. Cheryl’s projects include Moombaki Cultural Learnings, Balanginy, Weeip Maali Boodja, Yawardani Jan-ga, and Young Minds Our Future. These projects address crucial issues such as Aboriginal children's wellbeing, racial identity, perinatal mental health, and mental health services auditing. Additionally, Cheryl has developed impactful community-based programs including Too Solid, Moorditj Koorlong, Solid Kids Solid Schools, and Kaat, Koort, and Hoopz—a basketball-based wellbeing program for Aboriginal youth aged 4–20.
🌍 Impact and Influence
Professor Kickett-Tucker’s work bridges academia and community, ensuring that research translates into tangible change. She is the Chief Editor of the textbook Mia Mia: Aboriginal Community Development (Cambridge University Press), which won an Educational Publishing Award. She has also emerged as a children’s book author, with her debut picture book Ninni Yabini—a celebration of the Noongar language—being shortlisted for the 2023 Karajia Award for Children’s Literature. Cheryl has been an influential board member of the Koya Aboriginal Corporation for 21 years, continuing the legacy of her late father, a Stolen Generation survivor.
📚 Academic Citations and Recognition
Cheryl has been widely recognized for her outstanding service to tertiary education and Aboriginal communities. In 2020, she was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia (AM). Her accolades include the 2019 WA Local Hero Award (Australian of the Year), National and WA NAIDOC Scholar of the Year (2001), and WA NAIDOC Sportswoman of the Year (1992). She has also been awarded the Roberta Sykes Foundation Scholarship, and the Queen's Trust Award for Young Australians twice (1992 and 1995). Her academic contributions are extensively cited, especially in the domains of racial identity development, culturally secure education, and Aboriginal youth resilience.
💻 Technical and Research Skills
Professor Kickett-Tucker is skilled in qualitative and quantitative research, development of culturally adapted assessment tools, program evaluation, and community consultation frameworks. She demonstrates excellence in developing culturally safe methodologies that respect and uplift Aboriginal perspectives. She has a deep understanding of data collection in Indigenous contexts and has trained others in culturally respectful research and service design.
👩🏫 Teaching Experience
In addition to her research and community work, Cheryl is an experienced educator who has mentored numerous students and early-career researchers. She integrates cultural knowledge and lived experience into her pedagogy, fostering an inclusive learning environment. Her teaching spans Aboriginal community development, identity theory, Indigenous research methods, and youth wellbeing, both in classroom settings and through community-based education models like Bush School.
🏀 Legacy in Sport and Youth Development
Beyond the classroom and research institutions, Cheryl’s legacy also includes elite-level basketball. She was named Most Valuable Player at the 1985 National Aboriginal Basketball Carnival and was later inducted into her high school’s Sports Hall of Fame in 2010. Her sports background informs her youth programs like Kaat, Koort, and Hoopz, where she blends physical activity with cultural and emotional development.
🌱 Legacy and Future Contributions
Professor Kickett-Tucker continues to pave the way for future generations through a holistic model that integrates academic research, cultural knowledge, community engagement, and policy advocacy. Her forward-looking initiatives promise to redefine Aboriginal youth engagement, influence health and education policy, and provide culturally meaningful educational experiences for Aboriginal children across Australia. Her vision is one of self-determination, resilience, and cultural pride—ensuring that Aboriginal voices and identities remain central to the systems that serve them.
📚 Selected Publications
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Moorn (Black)? Djardak (White)? How come I don’t fit in Mum? Exploring the racial identity of Australian Aboriginal children and youth
CS Kickett-Tucker | Health Sociology Review | 2009
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How Aboriginal peer interactions in upper primary school sport support Aboriginal identity
CS Kickett-Tucker | The Australian Journal of Indigenous Education | 2008
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The association of infant feeding with parent‐reported infections and hospitalisations in the West Australian Aboriginal Child Health Survey
WH Oddy, C Kickett‐Tucker, J De Maio, D Lawrence, A Cox, SR Silburn, et al. | Australian and New Zealand Journal of Public Health | 2008
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Mia Mia Aboriginal community development: Fostering cultural security
C Kickett-Tucker, D Bessarab, J Coffin, M Wright | Cambridge University Press | 2016
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Aboriginal identity, worldviews, research, and the story of the Burra’gorang
G Bodkin-Andrews, F Bodkin, G Andrews, R Evans, C Kickett-Tucker, et al. | Mia Mia Aboriginal Community Development: Sustaining Cultural Security | 2016