«I wanted to go to a boarding school because Darwin was getting a bit boring and I wanted to go to a better school with a better education and I asked my nan, “How can I get a good school outside of Darwin?” » he said.

The Australian Indigenous Education Foundation is looking for students like Thanasi, not necessarily those who are excelling academically but those who are tapped into the idea they could achieve more – be more – if they had access to the right opportunity.

AIEF chief executive and founder Andrew Penfold wants to share more stories such as Thanasi’s – 5000 more to be precise. After helping fund the high school and university dreams of 2000 students with $44 million raised between government and the private sector, Mr Penfold is today launching the boldest phase of the program, backed by advertisements in The Australian.

«Today we’d like to expand that and stretch ourselves from 2000 to 7000 students and in order to do that we need to raise another $100 million,» he told The Australian.

«Thanasi is a great example of the sorts of kids we are really interested in assisting because of his enthusiasm and natural drive and interest in what’s going on around him. His aspiration for something better, not just for him but for his family and community, as well.

«We don’t look for who are the academic stars for scholarships, we look for who are the most engaged. We’re not trying to recruit students and say all students should go to boarding school.»

The AIEF advertising campaign references Newspoll research it commissioned which revealed two-thirds of Australians didn’t think they would live to see an Aboriginal prime minister.

But with indigenous students on AIEF scholarships achieving 90 per cent Year 12 completion, 40 per cent higher than the national average for indigenous youth, Mr Penfold hopes to change that.

«This is just part of the overall indigenous education framework – we understand that – but it works,» he said.

Ms Bin-Sallik, herself an emeritus professor at Charles Darwin University, is acutely aware of the value of education.

She was the first Aboriginal person to work in Australia’s higher education system and the first to gain a doctorate – in education – from Harvard.

«Thanasi realised he had opportunity – a bright child with an inquisitive mind. He begged me to help him get to boarding school, and begged me to convince his nan Elaine to let him go,» she said.

Thanasi was 18 months old when his grandmother successfully fought for custody of him through the courts, a battle that proved the ultimate foundation for his start in life.

«My mum wasn’t very capable of raising us . . . Nan just didn’t think she could do a very good job,» he said. «I guess she (Nan) did a good job because I am here.

«This chance means a lot to me and I hope it helps me achieve my goals to become a very successful lawyer and make lots of money so I can help other people. For some of these (Aboriginal) kids, I think it’s hard to have a goal because they don’t know what they really want. Or maybe they know what they want but just don’t know how to say what they want and can’t ask for the help.»

Thanasi started in Year 9 this year with what has become known as the formative Scots boys” experience: two full terms of a camp in Kangaroo Valley, two hours southwest of Sydney.

There is no phone, no internet, and as such no choice but to get to know his peers.

Conversations with home are few and far between but, when they happen, his nan is full of questions. «She is like “So how’s the school, how’s Jonny (the indigenous scholarship co-ordinator at Scots), got any friends, got a girlfriend yet?” And I always say, “Nan, no”,» he said.