Celebrating decades of connection and support at Noah’s Ark Bundoora

In July 2017, Noah’s Ark and the Education Program for Infants & Children Incorporated (EPIC) came together under the auspice of Noah’s Ark—a significant milestone that united decades of shared expertise and commitment to supporting families of children with disability or developmental delay. 

Originally established by Dr Graham Clunies‑Ross in the late 1970s, EPIC began as a specialist service for children with Down syndrome. Over time, the service evolved to embrace all children and families experiencing disability or developmental delay, broadening its impact and strengthening its connection to the community. 

EPIC and Noah’s Ark joined forces in response to the introduction of the National Disability Insurance Scheme, sharing similar approaches and histories, to best support staff, children, and families. 

Noah’s Ark has been privileged to work from the RMIT Bundoora campus for nine years. This period has been marked by many highlights, including professional learning opportunities with national and international speakers from the Hanen Centre in Canada, workshops focused on inclusive practice, and countless meaningful connections with the Bundoora team and the families they support. 

Throughout this time, Noah’s Ark also valued the opportunity to collaborate with members of the teaching team at RMIT University, further strengthening the links between practice, research, and education. 

The Noah’s Ark team recently relocated to a commercial hub in South Morang, enabling continued support for families in Melbourne’s northern suburbs and closer collaboration with local allied health services. Our team continues to use the Key Worker model to support children where they live, learn, and play. 

To mark this transition and acknowledge the long-standing association of the Bundoora campus with early childhood intervention, the team came together to celebrate with staff both past and present, and to warmly acknowledge cleaner Josie Pinti, who is retiring after many years of dedicated service dating back to the EPIC days. 

(L-R) Josie Pinti with Team Leader Jen Galvin.