John Monash Scholars
Recipients of the John Monash Scholarships are recognised as John Monash Scholars. 215 Scholars have been selected to date, all of whom possess significant leadership potential, are outstanding in their chosen fields and aspire to make the world a better place. John Monash Scholars are already demonstrating their value by contributing to Australia’s future as scientists, academics and business people, as well as contributors to policy in key areas such as water, health and Indigenous affairs.
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2021 John Monash Scholars
Captain Amrinder Singh Ghuman
ANZAC Centenary
John Monash Scholar
Master of Business Administration
at London Business School
Captain Amrinder Singh Ghuman is a Royal Australian Engineer officer in the Australian Army. He has a Bachelor in Civil Engineering and a Master in Project Management from the University of New South Wales. Over the past six years, Amrinder has led soldiers on Operation Fiji Assist in the wake of Tropical Cyclone Winston, Operation Accordion/Okra in Iraq, as well as managed a broad range of infrastructure projects from regional Australia to Papua New Guinea. Amrinder is also passionate about working with Sikh Youth Australia, where he helps teenagers navigate the challenges of growing up a visible minority. He is also an avid hockey player, having represented the Australian Defence Force. With his John Monash Scholarship, Amrinder intends to pursue a Master of Business Administration with a focus on how the Australian Government can improve infrastructure delivery. He is particularly interested in leading resilient and sustainable infrastructure projects throughout the Indo-Pacific.
Dr Brett Shannon
Australian Universities’
John Monash Scholar
PhD in the Division of Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences
University of Illinois
Brett Shannon is an Occupational and Environmental Registrar (Royal Australasian College of Physicians), receiving his Bachelor of Medicine/Bachelor of Surgery from the University of Queensland. He also completed a Master of Applied Epidemiology at the Australian National University and is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors course. He is a proud Ngugi/Quandamooka descendant and in 2020 will complete his term as Chairperson of the Brisbane Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Community Health Service. With his John Monash Scholarship, Brett intends to undertake a PhD at the University of Illinois – Chicago, on the topic of Occupational Injuries, to review occupational injury management and prevention strategies in Indigenous and vulnerable populations.
Holli Sargeant
BHP John Monash Scholar
PhD in Law
University of Cambridge
Holli Sargeant is a solicitor committed to the lawful design and deployment of emergent technologies, such as artificial intelligence in corporate and government decision-making. Holli is particularly passionate about ensuring that artificial intelligence does not entrench discrimination or bias. Holli holds a Bachelor of Laws with first class Honours and a Bachelor of International Relations from Bond University. She has previously studied at the National University of Singapore and worked at the Singapore Academy of Law as a New Colombo Plan Scholar. Since graduating, she has worked at Herbert Smith Freehills as a founding member of its Digital Law Group and undertaken a secondment to the Australian Human Rights Commission’s Human Rights and Technology project. With her John Monash Scholarship, Holli intends to pursue a PhD in Law at the University of Cambridge where her research will focus on the legal and ethical design and governance of artificial intelligence. Holli plays cello and flute, performing in musicals, jazz bands and orchestras.
Alice Crawford
Bob Hawke John Monash Scholar
Master of Public Administration
Harvard University
Alice completed a Bachelor of Arts and a Bachelor of Laws at the Australian National University, where she graduated with first class honours. Alice is a policy adviser and lawyer who is passionate about the protection of vulnerable workers. Alice currently works for the Leader of the Federal Opposition and helped develop the first policy on countering modern slavery to be adopted by a major Australian political party. Prior to this, Alice worked as a commercial litigator at Allens where she helped companies improve human rights in their supply chains and as a lawyer at the Refugee Advice and Casework Service (RACS) Sydney. With her John Monash Scholarship, Alice intends to study a Master of Public Administration at Harvard University, specialising in the regulation of business supply chains and social policy. Her goal is to continue her advocacy in this area and help lead policy reform to counter modern slavery. Upon returning to Australia, Alice plans to focus on the interaction of business and government, looking at how both sectors can work together to solve complex policy problems.
Dr Mark Chia
Commonwealth Bank
John Monash Scholar
PhD in Ophthalmology
University College London
Mark Chia is an eye doctor with a passion for improving health equity amongst rural and Indigenous communities. He was awarded a Group of Eight Scholarship to study medicine at the University of Western Australia where he graduated with Honours. He completed a Master of Medicine (Clinical Epidemiology) at the University of Sydney, graduating as the top-scoring student. After working for two years as a junior doctor, Mark was excited to be offered his dream job – travelling outback WA delivering outreach eye care on the Lions Outback Vision Van. Away from his clinical work, Mark has held several health leadership positions, advocating for junior doctor wellbeing and mentoring junior medical graduates. He enjoys the challenge of competing in endurance events, including ultramarathons and Ironman triathlons. With his John Monash Scholarship, Mark intends to undertake a PhD in Ophthalmology at University College London, working in collaboration with Moorfields Eye Hospital and the Lions Eye Institute. His research seeks to apply artificial intelligence to advanced eye scans to improve the early diagnosis and prevention of diabetes in rural Australia.
Lieutenant Hannah Phelps
Chairman's Circle
John Monash Scholar
PhD in Atmospheric Science
University of British Columbia
Hannah Phelps is a Lieutenant in the Royal Australian Navy (RAN), currently working as a meteorologist at HMAS Albatross. She joined the RAN in 2010 after graduating high School in Darwin, going on to graduate from UNSW ADFA at the end of 2014 with a Bachelor of Science (Hons) and the University Medal in mathematics and statistics. Since then, she has served onboard HMA Ships Childers and Success as a Maritime Warfare Officer. After specialising as a meteorologist, she deployed to Antarctica for the 19/20 summer season, providing forecasting support for the Australian Antarctic Division. With her John Monash Scholarship, Hannah intends to undertake her PhD at the University of British Columbia, focussing on modelling glaciers and their response to climate change. Hannah believes that the development of practical solutions to combat climate change requires accurate predictions of the climate response decades into the future. Hannah will focus her PhD research on a critical subsection of climate modelling with the aim to improve the robustness of our global climate models (GCMs).
Bronte Gosper
Gandel Philanthropy John Monash Scholar (Arts)
Oral History Master of Arts
Columbia University
Bronte Gosper is a filmmaker, writer and a historian. She is also a proud Wiradjuri woman who is passionate about making lasting change for Indigenous communities through creating publicly accessible oral historical documentaries. She graduated with First Class Honours from the University of Melbourne with a Bachelor of Arts majoring in History and is currently completing her honours year. Bronte has interned with Killer Films/Moxie Pictures in New York, completed a semester of exchange at Barnard College and has had her creative works published in the Cordite Poetry review and Ratrock magazine. In 2020, Bronte interned with the Federal Minister for Indigenous Australians, where she led a community engagement project that informed a research paper investigating the unique challenges faced by indigenous women. With her John Monash Scholarship, Bronte plans to undertake an Oral History Master of Arts at Columbia University, the only professional qualification in her field at the leading institute for oral historical work in the world. This study will give Bronte the opportunity to make a documentary that elevates Indigenous womens' voices at home and in the US. Through recording the histories of Indigenous women involved in advocacy work in the late 20th Century, Bronte hopes to strengthen ties between Native American women and Indigenous Australian women's organisations. She hopes that this documentary will create an archive for future advocates and policy makers while informing the Australian public about issues that are often told for Indigenous women, rather than by them. Bronte speaks fluent Mandarin, conversation French and is studying her mob’s language. She plays the violin and clarinet.
Dr Ashray Gunjur
Helen and Michael Gannon John Monash Scholar
PhD in Medicine (Cancer immunotherapy)
University of Cambridge
Ashray Gunjur is a doctor specialising in medical oncology, raised and educated in Melbourne, Australia. He completed his undergraduate medical studies (with honours) at the University of Melbourne, and has since completed a Master of Public Health & Tropical Medicine (for which he was honoured with an academic medal) as well as an editorial internship with the prestigious medical journal ‘The Lancet’ (London, UK). He intends to use his John Monash Scholarship to undertake a PhD at the Wellcome Sanger Institute (University of Cambridge), exploring tumour, host and gut microbiome determinants that predict response and side-effects from cancer immunotherapy. He will return to Australia to contribute as a cancer clinician-scientist, helping to bridge the gap between rapidly advancing basic sciences, and the patients that need it the most.
Emily Ragus
Judith Neilson Foundation
John Monash Scholar 'Cross Sectoral'
PhD in Public Health, Humanities
and Gender equity
University of Amsterdam
Emily Ragus has dedicated her career to work towards a more equitable future. She has a Bachelor of Nursing from Queensland University of Technology, an International Diploma in Humanitarian Assistance from Fordham University in New York City and is currently completing a Masters of Global Development at Griffith University in Brisbane. Her professional background includes 15 years emergency nursing, as well as previously working as a remote area nurse, a helicopter trauma retrieval nurse and the coordinator for the Queensland Australian Medical Assistance Team (AUSMAT). Currently based in South East Asia with the International Committee of the Red Cross, Emily teaches first aid and pandemic control measures to vulnerable groups as a Pre-Hospital Health Delegate. In 2016, Emily was part of the health response that was activated for a mass casualty event that occurred in the Indo-Pacific in which she noted the need for improved aeromedical cohesion with other responding agencies within a disaster. This led Emily to pursue, and subsequently awarded, the 2018 Winston Churchill fellowship. The research from her fellowship demonstrated to her the vulnerabilities that women face during a disaster. These same vulnerabilities have been witnessed throughout 2020, a year synonymous with health disasters which includes significant surges in domestic violence in Australia. With her John Monash Scholarship, Emily intends to complete a PhD in utilisation of gender empowerment theory within disasters promoting equality as a health diplomacy tool for Australia.
Peter Clark
Judith Neilson Foundation
John Monash Scholar
‘Social Innovation and Cohesion’
Doctor of Musical Arts
City University of New York
Violinist Peter Clark first performed in New York’s Carnegie Hall with the Australian Chamber Orchestra at the age of twenty. As a passionate and celebrated leader in the arts, Peter has a deep commitment to arts access which has led him to perform in more than 120 regional towns and cities across Australia. He has represented Australia whilst in residence at Lincoln Center Education (New York), and at the annual ‘Americans for the Arts Convention’. Close to his heart is a beloved music program he developed at Melbourne’s Royal Children’s Hospital, now in its fifth year. Peter has a steadfast belief in the importance of new Australian music and has been engaged as concertmaster for such significant premieres as ‘Oscar and Lucinda’ (Sydney Chamber Opera) and ‘Lorelei’ (Victorian Opera). He has also appeared as concertmaster with New Zealand Opera and the Darwin Symphony Orchestra. Peter studied at the University of Melbourne, ANAM, and the Sibelius Academy (Finland).
Lauren Bennett
Judith Neilson Foundation
John Monash Scholar
‘Sustainable Futures’
Cross-disciplinary PhD in the
Ecological Brain Program
University College London
As a Chancellor’s Scholar, Lauren Bennett studied for a Bachelor of Biomedicine in Neuroscience and a Bachelor of Commerce in Economics at the University of Melbourne. With the support of the Rae and Edith Bennett Scholarship, Lauren subsequently undertook an MPhil in Economics at the University of Oxford, where she developed mathematical models of group behaviour under stress. With her John Monash Scholarship, Lauren intends to join the cross-disciplinary Ecological Brain PhD program at University College London. At UCL Lauren’s research will combine neuroscience, statistical modelling and engineering to create machine-learning models of population dynamics within the built environment. Lauren is passionate about using these models to design smart Australian cities by studying the effect of ageing demographics and pandemics on the behaviour and cognition of populations.
Daniel Yore
Tim Fischer John Monash Scholar
Master of Public Administration (MPA): Innovation, Public Policy and Public Value
University College London
Daniel Yore holds a Bachelor of Medicine/Bachelor of Surgery, Bachelor of Medical Science (Global Health) from Monash University and a Graduate Diploma in Teaching from Melbourne University. He currently works as the Senior Teacher for Secondary at Yirrkala School in North East Arnhem Land. Dan was a finalist in the NT Young Australian of the Year Awards and was recently named the 2020 NT Secondary Teacher of the Year. With his John Monash Scholarship, he intends to study for an MPA in Innovation, Public Policy and Public Value at University College London. He hopes to gain the knowledge to transform policies that affect educational opportunities for young people across Australia and especially those from remote communities.
Jessica Coldrey
Victorian Government
John Monash Scholar
Master of Humanitarian Engineering with Management
Warwick University
Jessica is completing a Bachelor of Arts (Human Geography) and Bachelor of Visual Arts at Monash University. With her John Monash Scholarship, she plans to study a Master of Humanitarian Engineering with Management at Warwick University, focusing on sustainable infrastructure. Through her work, she aims to harness the underutilised potential of infrastructure to address social and environmental needs. Through her innovative research, Jessica bridged gaps in Australia’s recycled plastic roads sector to drive progress across Victoria. She has presented at the National Transport Research Centre, Society of Plastics Engineers and International Conference of Undergraduate Research. Jessica also worked on sustainability and creative strategy for the Metro Tunnel Project and Regional Rail Revival in Victoria. Jessica enjoys volunteering with youth, sustainability and creative arts organisations, currently serving on the Youth Advisory Board at Melbourne Science Gallery and holding a Monash Community Leaders Scholarship. Furthermore, she is a widely exhibited technology artist with an upcoming 3D printing residency in France.