This Narrogin teenager has more runs on the leadership track than most adults

These are questions Dakoda Bolton-Black has been asking herself and her peers for the past five years.

It has meant the 17-year-old has more runs on the leadership track than people twice her age and a story which she hopes might inspire others.

And hers is a message as relevant to WA's farming communities and agricultural industries, as it is to her indigenous peers.

"I wasn't always a leader, I had to grow and to develop,'' Ms Bolton-Black said.

"You just have to think about what you are passionate about.

"What is the movement you want to create?

"And you have to focus on the younger generations.

"That is what I am doing, trying to a leader for the younger generations."

From starting as a shy and introverted primary school student at Bertram primary school in Perth, Ms Bolton-Black has harnessed a spark of early leadership ambition and all the opportunities that have since come her way, to emerge as one of WA's most inspiring teenagers.

She has broadened her skill and experience, rubbing shoulders with political leaders in State and Federal parliaments, and earned accolades - including as a Citizen of the Year in Narrogin's Australia Day awards in January.

"I have learnt how to build confidence,'' Ms Bolton-Black said.

"I definitely know that I can do more and I am not afraid to raise my voice when I need to.

"I wanted to take these opportunities because I wanted to be a better leader in my community and I wanted to make sure I can be the best that I can be.

"By taking these opportunities, when I come back, I can be a strong voice for all the Aboriginal kids at school and for the Narrogin community as well.''

Ms Bolton-Black was one of two Narrogin Senior High school students - and only four from the Wheatbelt - selected in October to join the inaugural WA Student Council.

She was also one of only four WA students - including three from Kalgoorlie - selected to participate in the national Work Exposure in Government (WEX) program in October last year, for which she traveled to Canberra to participate in a week of mentoring and leadership training.

Knowing Ms Bolton-Black was keen to develop her leadership skills, her teacher Prema Sexton, mid-last year asked if she was interested in applying for WA's first student council, which comprises 23 young people from across WA, who represent their peers and provide feedback and their perspective on policy and reform to the Education Minister.

The aim is to help the minister and his department better respond to the needs of students and to school issues.

As part of the selection process, Ms Bolton-Black had to provide a video pitch on what she would pursue if she was on the committee - for her is was to be a voice for Aboriginal and Torrest Strait Island youth and to advocate for improved mental health awareness and services.

"What we wanted was all a bit different,'' she said of the selected councillors.

"I wanted to put it from an Aboriginal youth's point of view, what a safe space at school looks like."

She said the other Narrogin student, who is in a Gifted and Talented Education Program run through Perth Modern, is keen to make sure that regional school students have the same opportunities as those at Perth schools.

"And mental health was a big one with all four of us," Ms Bolton-Black said.

All the WA student councillors now participate in weekly Zoom meetings, whenever possible, where they spent about an hour coming up with ideas or advocating for their peers and the issues that affect them.

Last week they were discussing sustainability and last term the focus was on youth mental health and how schools could improve it.

Next month, the councillors will all meet up for a camp in Perth to more broadly share their ideas, attend ministerial meetings and join in leadership activities.

"I like participating in the council because I know that what I am going say will have an action to it,'' Ms Bolton-Black said.

"I know all of the student councillors are very passionate and I am very grateful to be working with a group of passionate people on different topics.

"We all bring different ideas, because we don't all experience the same things in our communities.''

Ms Bolton-Black also enjoyed participating in WEX, a Federal government initiative which aims to develop indigenous leaders and provides a model which could be mirrored in other communities and by industry and advocacy groups.

About 55 year 10-12 students came together in October last year, from across Australia and the Torres Strait Islands, to participate in a week of activities and to discuss and workshop leadership, study and team-building skills.

The group also got to yarn with Federal parliamentarians at a breakfast, had a tour of Parliament House and got to sit in on Question Time.

"I have created a connections through that program and a lot of friendships that I will have for a lifetime,'' Ms Bolton-Black said.

"It was the best thing I have done so far in my high school journey.

"And it was crazy how close we all got in one week's time.''

Ms Bolton-Black's leadership journey began when she moved with her parents Latoya Bolton-Black and Armis Black and newborn sister Blake to Narrogin in 2018, to return to the embrace of their extended relations and the place of their family heritage.

Her mother, aunties and uncles grew up in the town and she draws strength and inspiration from her forebears.

"My mum is a great mentor to me, as we have both been on leadership journeys and have grown as leaders side-by-side,'' Ms Bolton-Black said.

"And both of my great-great grandmothers were role models, as they were the backbone of our family.

"I dedicated my Citizen of the Year award to my great-grandmother Mavis.''

Ms Bolton-Black has been a member of her school's student council since year 8 and is a one of 12 year 12 prefects - with a long list of ideas that she would like to implement in the eight months she has left at school.

"This year I am very keen to get more things up and running,'' Ms Bolton-Black said.

"The ideas are just flowing in my head."

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Lacking her own role models at primary school, Ms Bolton-Black was keenly aware that she wanted to be one for her fellow students - and more particularly, for her sister Blake, who is now six-years-old and has just started primary school.

"There are so many different home lives, it is the home lives that put the pressure on,'' Ms Bolton-Black said.

"Many kids haven't had the role models to aspire to finishing school.

"That was one of the things that has really motivated me in my leadership journey.

"In year 7 I knew that I wanted to be a young role model for all the kids, because I didn't have a role model myself.

"And I wanted my sister to know she can do it, our family can do it, our people can do it.''

But having decided on the destination, Ms Bolton-Black needed help to start her journey.

A shy and quiet student in primary school, year 7 and going into year 8 - "I just sat back'' - she credits much of her new-found confidence to the Shooting Stars educational program.

Her mother was the first program co-ordinator of Shooting Stars at Narrogin SHS and is now the current operations manager, managing sites across WA and South Australia.

Shooting Stars is an initiative of Glass Jar Australia and runs school-based programs in both States to support indigenous young women.

It uses sports, workshops, leadership camps and other tools to encourage greater school engagement among Aboriginal girls and young women, to empower them to make informed choices about their education and employment journey.

Similarly, the Clontarf Foundation Academy offers this kind of support for boys and young men.

Throughout high school, Ms Bolton-Black has remained a keen Shooting Stars participant and advocate, saying it helped her to become more outgoing and taught her how to speak up about issues that matter to her.

"It is kind of cool that we have been growing up alongside the program at Narrogin,'' she said.

"We have sessions weekly and we focus on many different things, such as leadership, health and wellbeing and mental health.

"It has created a lot of connections and bonds among the Aboriginal girls.

"It's a sisterhood with each other, which is really strong."

Without Shooting Stars, which pushed her out of her comfort zone, Ms Bolton-Black said she would probably not have had such amazing opportunities outside school.

It also challenged her academically, though this year she made some subject changes to have a better balance to her scholastic and leadership loads.

Having started an ATAR course in year 11, she has transferred to the Vocational Education and Training (VET) pathway for year 12 to study general maths, English, geography, visual design and photography.

She is also completing a Certificate II in Sport and Recreation and a Certificate IV in Preparation for Nursing.

"When I was doing ATAR subjects, with all the leadership stuff that I was doing, the WA Student Council and travelling to Canberra, I couldn't really find the balance in it all,'' she said.

"It was really hard."

Provided she passes English and maintains her other high grades, this combination of courses will convert to an ATAR of 70 - which will give her direct entry to university next year.

She is considering enrolling in an undergraduate degree in primary education next year - likely at Edith Cowan University's Bunbury campus.

Ms Bolton-Black said while moving to a new community and a new school as a young teenager had been daunting, she was grateful for the chance to grow up regionally.

"We definitely made the right decision moving back here, there are a lot of support systems with family, and Shooting Stars has been a really good support system for me,'' she said.

"I have definitely made a lot of different connections with friends and staff and around the community as well."

The possibility of teaching is her immediate career goal and then she

sees herself returning to a regional community.

But first she wants some adventure and travel - to experience life a bit.

She acknowledges her achievements, drive and passion for leadership will create expectations that she could have a bigger role on the national stage.

Articulate, bright and determined - it is easy to envisage her stepping into the top spot in an indigenous group or business, the corporate world or politics.

"I have the power to do that and the power is in my hands,'' she said.

"The question is where do I direct my energy?

"And what is the right way to go about it, to make the most change and to get the results that I want to see?

"I will go wherever the journey takes me."