General Sir John Monash Foundation celebrates
a decade of partnership with BHP
Left to right: Jillian Kilby, 2013 BHP John Monash Scholar; Mike Henry, CEO BHP;
Annemarie Rolls, CEO General Sir John Monash Foundation; Maja Arsic, 2017 BHP John Monash Scholar; Kay Song, 2019 BHP John Monash Scholar
Commencing in March 2012, BHP entered a 10-year partnership with the General Sir John Monash Foundation and has recently committed to support the Foundation for another five-year term.
BHP’s long commitment and dynamic partnership is of integral importance to the support and development of our future leaders, helping them to deliver outcomes that inspire and benefit Australia and beyond. BHP’s investment equates to close to $4m since the partnership began.
BHP Chief Executive, Australia, Mike Henry said “BHP has proudly partnered with the Foundation since 2012, supporting postgraduate scholarships for outstanding Australians, many of whom have furthered their studies in fields that matter to us here at BHP too, like STEM, Indigenous affairs and sustainability.
“At BHP, we truly value this partnership. Together, our aim is to foster leadership, expertise and international networks, as well as build Australia’s capabilities for the future.”
The Foundation awards scholarships for postgraduate study overseas to outstanding Australians, whose leadership, talent and vision across all sectors will have an enduring impact on our future. Funding will continue to be in support of an annual scholarship program awarding scholarships in the field of "Innovation and Growth: The Foundation for Australia’s Future".
BHP is also the inaugural corporate partner of the John Monash Foundation Leadership Academy donating a one-off contribution. The John Monash Foundation Leadership Academy manifests our ongoing commitment to facilitating John Monash Scholars in bringing to life the legacy of General Sir John Monash, who embodied his belief that education is ‘not for individual benefit’ but to benefit the whole community and to fulfil ‘roles of leadership’.
BHP’s generous investment of $300,000 per year covers the cost of three years of post-graduate study support each year. This enables one scholar undertaking a doctoral degree with three years of funding or two scholars undertaking a one and a two-year master’s degree. The scholarships that BHP supports will be referred to as the BHP John Monash Scholarships and the Scholar to be known as the BHP John Monash Scholar.
BHP’s commitment to the mission of the Foundation over the past decade has enabled 12 formidably bright Australians to pursue valuable postgraduate education, securing their pathway to make huge contributions to Australia as leaders in sectors across engineering, science, business, medicine, quantum physics, law, mathematics, biodiversity and conservation.
General Sir John Monash Foundation Chief Executive, Annemarie Rolls said “The invaluable contributions from BHP towards research and innovation across multiple disciplines is a testament to their dedication to supporting the community more broadly and the leaders who will shape our future. With a further five years of scholarship funding, BHP will continue to have a substantial impact through the development of talented John Monash Scholars and the Foundation is deeply grateful for our dynamic partnership.
“BHP's contribution to the John Monash Foundation Leadership Academy in addition to the scholarships is further evidence of their active role in ensuring we enable ongoing learning across multiple years of Scholars and secure their strong voice in the community.”
To date, BHP has funded 30 scholarship years which have been awarded to 12 BHP John Monash Scholars including Dr Isabel Hanson, Holli Sargeant, Dylan Sherman, Kay Song, Nicola Bilton, Maja Arsic, Dr Eloise Hamilton, Dr Lauren Ward, Dr Emma McIntosh, Alexandra Readhead, Dr Sarah Bourke and Jillian Kilby.
The BHP John Monash Scholar for 2022, Dr Isabel Hanson will pursue postgraduate study at the University of Oxford in the field of translational health sciences, where she plans to gain knowledge and skills in best-practice community health, policy implementation, and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health from a world-leading Department of Primary Care. For over a decade, Isabel has accompanied the Aboriginal community of inner-city Sydney through her community work with Life for Koori Kids, a charity working to support and create opportunities for Aboriginal children and families.
An afternoon tea in the BHP Melbourne office brought together our CEO, Annemarie Rolls; Board Members and three of our BHP John Monash scholars alongside Mike Henry, BHP CEO; Caroline Cox, BHP Chief Legal Governance and EA Officer and other BHP staff and supporters. "With a further commitment to support the scholarships for the next five years and valuable contribution to the John Monash Foundation Leadership Academy, BHP will continue playing a vital role in building a community of leaders who are shaping Australia," Ms Rolls said.
“Together, our aim is to foster leadership, expertise and international networks, as well as build Australia’s capabilities for the future,” Mr Henry said.
The next BHP John Monash Scholarship is expected to be awarded in November 2022.