Amplifying the value of Arts as key to community recovery and future success

It’s certainly something of a cliché that 2020 was a ‘challenging’ year.  Across all walks of life and fields of endeavour, our community was confronted by difficulties that required new responses, new ideas and new forms of support.

Dean of Arts, Reverend Professor Russell Goulbourne (Image: David Hannah)

In the latter half of the year, however, staff in Humanities and Social Sciences (HASS) disciplines found themselves concerned not only about the impact of uncertain times and anxiety among current students but also about challenges to future students posed by the Jobs Ready Graduate Package.

Responding to proposed legislation, the Faculty focused on the misplaced undervaluing of HASS disciplines underpinning the package. We noted also that in many of the areas in which global opportunities are likely in the future, the study of people, places and society would be key to preparation for an active, engaged life in our interconnected world.

In addition, we underlined our concern that those influenced by the steep fee rises could be students who are the first in their family to attend a university and/or from lower SES backgrounds.

And therein lay a particular challenge: how could we take steps to ensure that all in our community are encouraged to develop, alongside technological and data literacy, human literacy skills: understanding, empathy, cultural agility? How could we ensure that we amplify the value of an Arts degree as key to our communities’ recovery and future success?

Support from a foundation that aims to amplify Arts

With thanks to the Melbourne Humanities Foundation, the Faculty of Arts has now taken steps towards achieving these goals, awarding four new scholarships that support students from disadvantaged backgrounds to study across the full 3 years of their BA degree.

Proposed at an extraordinary meeting of the Foundation called in late 2020 to address the Jobs Ready Package, the scholarships are just one step towards a broader plan to ‘amplify arts’ championed by the Foundation in partnership with the Faculty, and continuing work that the Foundation has been doing for almost a decade.

Established in 2012 to ensure that an education in the arts and humanities continues to thrive at the University of Melbourne, the Foundation has overseen the creation of six new endowed chairs, eight new trusts that provide support for specific disciplines, eighteen new student scholarships or awards, targeted support for research in areas such as Australian Indigenous Languages, Early Modern Literature, and Asian-Australian Public Leadership, as well as public events such as the Being Human Festival.

At a recent event held to celebrate these achievements – and focus community support on new ways to ‘amplify arts’ – the Dean of Arts, Reverend Professor Russell Goulbourne, acknowledged in particular the transformative leadership of some founding members of the Foundation Board, including founding Chair, Chancellor Allan Myers and also the Hon Susan Crennan AC QC and Sir James Gobbo – all of whom retired from the Board in late 2020.

Mr Peter Jopling AM QC, Chair of the Melbourne Humanities Foundation Board (Image: David Hannah)

The powers of the imagination always entail transformation

The occasion also saw the announcement of three transformative initiatives in the Faculty, each supported by retiring Board members, other members of the Foundation and supporters in the broader community.

The Chancellor announced the creation of the Sir James Gobbo Scholarship in Italian Studies, honouring the life and achievements of a champion of multiculturalism, immigration reform and Italian history, culture and language (among much else), and supporting high achievers from disadvantaged backgrounds to pursue ‘Italian as an asset’.

The evening also saw the announcement of a poet in residence in the Faculty of Arts: a new three-year position to foster creativity as well as encourage staff, students and members of the wider public to consider the value and ‘mystery’ of the presence of poetry in our lives. Recognising work led by the Hon Susan Crennan AC QC to establish the Peter Steele Poetry Trust in 2017, guests were reminded that poet Peter Steele realised that ‘good poetry braves the elements at once of life and of art’ and places us in the presence of ‘the powers of the imagination’ and of ‘mystery’ – and that this is what we might hope for from a poet amongst us.

Finally the evening also saw the announcement by incoming Chair of the Melbourne Humanities Foundation Board, Peter Jopling AM QC, of an initiative to support learning in ancient literature and languages in honour of the Chancellor Allan Myers as the inaugural Chair of the Melbourne Humanities Foundation.

Noting the Chancellor’s long-held passion and care for the presence of the past and of the ancient world in particular – its language, literature, history and myth – the new Chair of the Foundation underlined the broadly transformative powers of humanities study, noting that at the heart of any great university, city or society worthy of that name, lie the skills, aptitudes and abilities that arise from a rich and deep education in the arts and humanities – and hence will continue to be key to our community’s recovery from the various ‘challenges’ of 2020.

The Faculty of Arts looks forward to sharing more information about the ‘Amplifying Arts’ campaign in future editions of Articulation, including how alumni can share their experiences of ‘Arts@Work’.

For more information on the work of the Melbourne Humanities Foundation and/or to support any of the initiatives mentioned above visit the Melbourne Humanities Foundation webpage.