The 2024 Gardiner Foundation Tertiary Scholars are: Libby Clymo, Calivil (Shirley Harlock scholarship); Alexandra Ingram, Timmering (Doug Weir scholarship); Clara Linn, Childers (Jakob Malmo scholarship); Eloise Murnane, Warncoort (Bill Pyle scholarship); and Alysha Toohill, Kyabram; Ella Bryant, Kaarimba; and Harry Murphy, Irrewarra (Niel Black scholarship).
They are all starting their first year of tertiary study this year. Each scholar will receive $10,000 annually for three years to support costs associated with their studies.
These scholarships are granted to students accepted into courses that will benefit the Victorian dairy industry or dairy communities.
The tertiary scholarships are named in recognition of services to the dairy industry by Niel Black, Shirley Harlock, Jakob Malmo, Bill Pyle and Doug Weir.
Gardiner Foundation chief executive officer Allan Cameron said the program encourages students to return to Victoria’s dairy regions upon graduation or after gaining work experience. This ensures a diverse range of essential skills within these regions.
“More students from dairy communities obtaining skills and experiences in their chosen field of endeavour will help create thriving and vibrant communities where people want to live, work, and invest,” Mr Cameron said.
There is no preferred field of study, with past students enrolling in a variety of courses, including agriculture science, nursing, medicine, engineering, journalism and commerce.
Libby Clymo, who grew up on a family dairy farm at Calivil in northern Victoria, plans to study physiotherapy at La Trobe University in Bendigo.
“Growing up in a farming community, it is not uncommon to hear farmers complain of their ‘aching lower back’ or ‘kinked neck’ while not seeking further treatment,” she said.
“A large proportion of farmers are not properly educated about the impact of their work environments on their muscles and bodies.
“My hope is to empower farming communities by providing access to top-quality health care ensuring some of our hardest-working individuals are kept fit and pain-free.”
Other recipients
- Alexandra Ingram, Timmering: Alexandra completed her VCE at Rochester Secondary College where she was school captain. She will study a Bachelor of Social Work at La Trobe University Bundoora. Her aim is to return to her home town and support locals during times of hardship and advocate for wellbeing. She has witnessed some of these hardships with the Murray Goulburn dairy factory closure as well as the floods in October 2022.
- Alysha Toohill, Kyabram: Alysha completed HSC at Moama Anglican Grammar. She will study a Bachelor of Health Science at La Trobe University Bendigo. Alysha has a goal of becoming a dentist, while also working toward getting her private pilot’s licence.
- Ella Bryant, Kaarimba: Ella grew up on a family dairy farm and completed Year 12 at St Mary of the Angels Secondary College in Nathalia. She will study a Bachelor of Health Science at Deakin in Geelong. Ella wants to work in radiography and provide a specialist service to smaller towns to prevent regional people having to travel greater distances for care.
- Clara Linn, Childers: Clara grew up on a family dairy farm in Childers, Gippsland. She recently had a gap year after completing Year 12 in 2022 at Mirboo North Secondary College. She will study a Bachelor of Medical Studies/Doctor of Medicine at Monash Clayton. During her gap year, she volunteered at Latrobe Regional Health. After seeing the barriers to health care access first-hand, Clara was inspired to study medicine and be part of the solution.
- Eloise Murnane, Warncoort: Eloise grew up in Warncoort in Victoria’s south-west, and finished Year 12 at Colac Secondary College. Eloise will study her Diploma in General Studies at The University of Melbourne Dookie Campus with the aim to transfer into a Bachelor of Agriculture for her second year. Her love of agriculture grew from spending her early years on her grandparent’s farm, which her parents stepped in to help manage in 2018.
- Harry Murphy, Irrewarra: Harry is from Irrewarra north-east of Colac. He completed Year 12 at Trinity College where he was school captain. Harry will study a Bachelor of Business majoring in Supply Chain Management and Logistics at RMIT Melbourne.