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USC awarded national research grant
10 January, 2005
The University of the Sunshine Coast (USC) has received its first Discovery Grant from the Australian Research Council (ARC).
The $150,000 research grant is a major step forward for the University and gives USC national standing among Australian universities.
USC Vice-Chancellor, Professor Paul Thomas, said the grant is significant, as it will establish key research opportunities for the University in the future.
"ARC grants are extremely competitive in the national higher education sector. Receiving one is a coveted award for any university, particularly a regional one.
"Developing strong research facilities within USC will also enable us to entice top level researchers to the University," Professor Thomas said.
"ARC is the key funding body in Australia and fosters the highest standards of research in all discipline areas.
Dr Julie Matthews, USC Senior Lecturer in Social and Community Studies, led the team's application to ARC.
"There is only a 20 per cent success rate in applications for ARC grants, so we were delighted to learn we had received one," Dr Matthews said.
"USC's entry into the sphere of nationally competitive grants is indicative of the excellence and high quality of USC researchers and bodes well for the future of our research endeavours," she said.
Dr Matthews' background is in social justice in education, which she is deeply committed to, and much of her work so far has focused on minority students and problems of racism and sexism. Her research areas include; educational research and sociology, curriculum development, and refugee and international education.
She was a post-doctoral fellow at the University of Queensland in 1999 and returned to USC in 2002 bringing with her a wealth of experience in school based research.
As a high-school teacher in the UK she taught on pioneering curriculum projects such as Integrated Humanities and World Studies.
The ARC grant, titled Schooling, Globalisation and Refugees in Queensland, will make a difference to young lives across the state.
"It focuses on refugee students in Queensland's public education system - students who have come to be regarded as 'illegals' and 'queue jumpers'," Dr Matthews said.
"Most of these children are fleeing the destruction of their homes and communities due to war, so it is ironic that they have come to represent the evils of the world."
The project looks at how education institutions address these issues of identity and citizenship.
It will have a two-fold approach. Firstly it will produce a website that will educate school children about issues facing refugees.
"Secondly, the research will undertake policy analysis at international, national and local levels directly associated with refugee education in Queensland," Dr Matthews said.
Other members of the research team come from The University of Queensland, Queensland University of Technology and The University of South Australia. The project will run for three years.