On 13 October 2009 Senator the Hon Joe Ludwig, Cabinet Secretary and Special Minister of State, announced the recipients of 9 Australian Prime Ministers Centre Fellowships for 2009-2010. Now in its third year, the APMC Research and Scholarship Program is proving to be a valuable—and popular—initiative.
The program supports scholars, creative workers and researchers working in the fields of political science and history, with Australia’s prime ministers and how they shaped the Australia we live in today as a major part of their focus. The Fellowships are selected by an independent selection panel convened by Old Parliament House representing national collecting institutions and the academic community.
Recipients of the 2009-10 Fellowships are Dr Norman Abjorensen, Dr Anna Cole, Dr Jacqueline Dickenson, Dr Lindy Edwards, Dr Shirley Fitzgerald, Dr John Hirst, Dr Evan Smith, Professor John Warhurst and Dr Auriol Weigold.
The recipients will undertake research projects on a range of topics, including:
a reassessment of John Curtin’s record as prime minister to determine if he was, as he is commonly judged, the best prime minister (Dr John Hirst, La Trobe University);
a study of ‘The Faith of our Prime Ministers’, examining the place of religious belief in Prime Ministers’ public and political lives, including their public policies (Professor John Warhurst, ANU and Flinders Universities);
how Prime Ministers and their respective Governments in the period 1975 to 2007 have viewed the political and social upheaval of the late 1960s and early 1970s in Australia, together with an analysis of how the events of the ‘decade of dissent’, from 1965 to 1975 have impacted upon Federal Government political decision making in the last 30 years (Dr Evan Smith, Flinders University); and
an examination of the reasons for the failure of Menzies and Nehru to form a constructive relationship during their shared years as Prime Minister (Dr Auriol Weigold, University of Canberra).
In addition to the Fellowship program, which is aimed at established researchers, Summer Scholarships are presented to students and graduates just starting their research careers. Summer scholars work on research projects which contribute to the Museum’s public history program with a focus on Prime Ministers. This year’s recipients will be announced later this year.
A copy of Senator Ludwig’s Media Release together with a full list of the recipients and their projects is available for download.
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