The Kalianna-La Trobe University Community Research Alliance will see psychologists, speech pathologists, dentists, occupational therapists and social workers – as well as students pursuing those careers – work alongside Kalianna staff and students. 

Pre-service teachers in the university’s education courses will also have the opportunity to train at the school, equipping them with experience in a special education setting.

La Trobe associate professor in inclusive education Mary Keeffe said the deal brought together the broad range of disciplines for the first time and would help inform better practice for teachers and allied health professionals.

“Theory is challenged in the real conundrums of the classroom,” Ms Keeffe said.

“This will make our students’ experience more real.” 

Second year occupational therapy student Carly Stasiak, who is completing a work placement at Kalianna, said not only did the experience allow her to use what she learnt in class, but also made her more confident about starting a health career.

“It’s been good to see what we might experience in the workplace,” she said.

“I really enjoy working with the kids and getting them to engage.”

A forum at the school on Wednesday was attended by Victorian education minister James Merlino and La Trobe vice-chancellor John Dewar, with both men emphasising the need for new teachers to have experience in environments like Kalianna.  

Mr Dewar said the memorandum of understanding with Kalianna was part of his institution’s commitment to inclusive and diverse education, explaining La Trobe was also a pioneer of the Safe Schools Coalition and autism research.

Asked what would happen if La Trobe research challenged his schools way of of working, principal Peter Bush said he was “not afraid”. 

“If we find something that’s working, it can then be rolled out across all schools, including mainstream schools,” he said.

“That’s what we want.”

The agreement is another win for Kalianna after securing more than $4 million in this month’s state budget.