Aurora Matchett is a vocal advocate for others with hearing loss, but attending school in another country for six months took the confidence of the once-shy Year 11 student at St Patrick’s College Sutherland to another level.

Aurora is an elected member of the NSW Youth Advisory Council, which guides state government decisions on areas of concern for young people in NSW, and of the YWCA Young Women’s Council – part of a global network that leads economic and social change for women around the world.

When she first started high school, she didn’t want to be seen as different so refused to wear her hearing aids.  With the support of diverse learning teachers at the school and the broader Sydney Catholic Schools network, she has become a peer mentor for younger students with hearing loss at the school and excelled at English and Science through the Newman Selective Gifted Education Program.

Her self-reliance has grown even more after advocating for her own learning needs while on a reciprocal exchange to Sutherland Shire Council’s sister city Lakewood, Colorado through a grant from Deaf Children Australia.

Between sharing with her new teachers which settings allow her hearing aids to work best and how access to video transcripts and subtitles was helpful,  Aurora experienced a highlight of the trip – hearing the sound of an elk mating call on a visit to Rocky Mountain National Park. Because the call is so soft, she was prepared to smile and pretend she had heard it.

“I was worried about wearing my hearing aids in the snow, but I actually got to hear the call,” she said. “The whole experience of living in another country and having this newfound independence was so good …