Breadcrumbs
Popular culture expert to become Senior Fellow
One of Australia’s leading popular culture experts, Associate Professor Karen Brooks, will this month become an Honorary Senior Fellow of the University of the Sunshine Coast.
The Courier-Mail columnist and novelist, who often appears as a social commentator on national television current affairs shows, will accept the award at USC’s graduation ceremony on Thursday 24 April.
Dr Brooks left the Sunshine Coast last year, after working at USC for more than 11 years, to take up a position at Southern Cross University in Lismore.
The former actress and Australian Army officer completed her PhD in literature and cultural studies at the University of Wollongong in 1996 before starting work at the University of the Sunshine Coast.
After realising that younger students found it difficult to concentrate on classic literature, Dr Brooks developed a new way of teaching popular culture.
Her unique and captivating teaching style recently earned her a $10,000 award from the Carrick Institute of Learning and Teaching in Higher Education.
“What I loved about working at USC was that the University was open to fresh and innovative ideas,” she said.
“There is no particular demographic of students at USC. They range from kids just out of high school right through to mature-age students. We needed a way to capture them all at once.”
Dr Brooks said she was surprised and delighted by the honorary award.
“When I found out, it literally took my breath away,” she said. “I was at a loss for words . . . which is pretty profound for someone who is a wordsmith. I felt truly humbled.”
The graduation ceremony will hold even greater significance for Dr Brooks, who will now have one of the best seats in USC's new sports stadium to watch her daughter, Caragh, graduate with a Bachelor of Arts.
Dr Brooks will be one of four people to receive honorary awards at USC’s graduation ceremony which is set to be attended by a record crowd of 2,600 people.
Former USC Chancellor Ian Kennedy AO, will become an Honorary Doctor of the University, while award-winning agricultural businesswoman Martha Shepherd of Cooroy and former USC academic Dr Paul Corcoran will become Honorary Senior Fellows.
— Claire Bruynius