With 1.5 million 15 to 19-year olds in Australia, it would be a leap to say one mainstream education system can solely bridge the transition from adolescence to adulthood for all of them.
Now more than ever, children need high-quality learning options — and success can be found through alternate education pathways, which step away from a general approach and deliver a framework shaped to suit each student.

Innovation Design Entrepreneurship Academy (IDEA) fi lls this gap for young people aged 15 years old and over seeking a fi rst-class pathway to university, training and employment.

IDEA founder Nicole Gazey said the academy was born from her and fellow IDEA founder Rebecca Loftus’ own desire for alternative education for their children and a gap in credible options.

“If you don’t fi t into the standard model of education in Australia, your options are fairly slim,” she said. “Either students can go to TAFE, which is great but not designed for young people going through a major transition in life, or there’s low-skilled employment.

“Schools focus on the last two years of education — the Senior Secondary Certificate, which is the WA Certificate of Education in WA and may include Australian Tertiary Admission Rank (ATAR) exams.

“There’s a lot of focus on assessment and getting to the end of this journey, whereas at IDEA, we see it as the first two years of a young person’s career.

“Our essence is very much on creating a strategic plan around this transition, and everything we do here is to prepare them for the next few steps.”

According to Ms Loftus, IDEA ensures a case-managed, purposeful approach tailored individually to each students’ educational needs. She said graduates could expect to leave with one to four nationally recognised vocational qualifications, hours of work and volunteer experiences, and the foundation of a professional network and references.

“Our approach is based around what skills the student is going to need to be a successful, thriving adult both in life and their career,” Ms Loftus said.

“We start with a baseline of vocational qualifications where students can study from certificate II up to diploma level. Then, if they’re interested in something like technology or visual arts, for example, we shape projects, experiences and opportunities based on those interests. They can even study university part time and add units to their portfolio while at IDEA.”

IDEA opens its arms to a variety of students eager to engage with specialised learning. Ms Loftus described three typical personas who would benefit from IDEA’s style of education approach.

“One is the ambitious overachiever, which refers to students who are academically capable — in many cases, gifted — but just bored in school,” she said.

“They want to learn relevant things and are hungry for opportunities. Maybe they’re eager to try universityvearly or get into the workplace and start building their portfolio. We also get students who we call the connection-seeking independent. These are usually home-schooled and online learners who have left the system already but are looking to be around their peers in a cohort of the same age.

“They’re coming to IDEA because they want those connections, professional networks or career tasters and the opportunities we can provide.
Lastly are those who we call our divergent disrupters — they may be neurodivergent, making it challenging for them in a mainstream classroom, and they’re looking for something different.”

“Because we run IDEA like a young adult workplace with mutual respect between the adults and students, we provide a environment which works for these kids.”

Following today’s evolving society, children undoubtedly require education which keeps pace. Ms Gazey said IDEA was designed to
adapt with the changing needs of the modern youth.

“Our kids are no longer thinking about being jobseekers; they’re thinking about being job creators and many have side hustles now,” she said.

“The world has changed, therefore the system to support these kids through the transition must change.

“For parents, it’s okay if your child might not fit the mould — there are really highquality alternatives. All IDEA attendees graduate with a portfolio, hours of work experience and more credentials than a typical ATAR student in the classroom, and they’re more ready for the real world.”

Since opening its doors in 2022, IDEA has tripled in size, largely through word of mouth from the students themselves. Ms Loftus said one of the academy’s goals was to shift the narrative from alternative education being seen a last resort.

“If your options are to stay in school and spin your wheels for two years or start building your career and professional networks, exploring who you are and getting confident in the transition to young adulthood, for me, that’s a first choice, not a last resort,” she said.

“IDEA is designed by teachers, educators and parents who wanted something different, and it’s informed by the students.”

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