FIVE NEW ORDER OF AUSTRALIA ASSOCIATION FOUNDATION SCHOLARS ANNOUNCED
Left to right: Jennifer Corderoy; Ayman Miazi; The Governor-General, Her Excellency, the Hon. Sam Mostyn AC; Matthew Selkrig; Jade Harrison; Paris Lay-Yee and Dr Helen Nugent AC, Chairman of the Order of Australia Association Foundation
The Governor-General, Her Excellency, the Hon. Sam Mostyn AC, has announced five new Order of Australia Association Foundation Scholars following a Round Table Conference today at Admiralty House.
The five Scholars who are each in their second year of university study are:
- Jennifer Corderoy: University of New England, undertaking a Bachelor of Rural Science in Agriculture. The Scholarship was donated by Mr Tim Fairfax AC.
- Jade Harrison: University of Technology Sydney, undertaking a Bachelor of Midwifery. The Scholarship was donated by the NSW Branch of the Order of Australia Association.
- Paris Lay-Yee: University of Technology Sydney, undertaking a Bachelor of Communication (Strategic Communication), Bachelor of Laws. The Scholarship was donated by the Order of Australia Association.
- Ayman Miazi: Monash University, undertaking a Bachelor of Engineering (Hons) with a specialisation in Aerospace Engineering. The Scholarship was donated by the Victorian Branch of the Order of Australia Association.
- Matthew Selkrig: University of Sydney, undertaking a Bachelor of Commerce and a Bachelor of Advanced Studies. The Scholarship was donated by Mr Paul Wheelton AM KSJ, who is also a Director of the Order of Australia Association Foundation.
Further details in relation to each awardee is provided in the following three pages.
On behalf of the Board of the Order of Australia Association Foundation, the Chairman Dr Helen Nugent AC, said: “Each of these awardees is exceptional in their field of study; they have given back extensively to the community; and they can benefit from the financial and mentorship support provided by the Scholarship. Each awardee has a powerful individual story and dares to dream big for what they can contribute to the future of Australia. Valued at $40,000, the financial support provided to each Scholar will be life changing, as will the mentorship support provided by a member of the Order of Australia.
“We thank each University for their active participation in the rigorous assessment process that has occurred. We also acknowledge the wonderful support of each of the donors”.
This cohort of five worthy participants brings to 60 the number of Scholarships that the Order of Australia Association Foundation has awarded.
The Governor-General will present the Scholars to members of the Order of Australia at the Annual Dinner of the Order of Australia Association on May 3, 2025, which will be held in Sydney.
PROFILES OF ORDER OF AUSTRALIA ASSOCIATION FOUNDATION SCHOLARS
Jennifer Corderoy
Jennifer is undertaking a Bachelor of Rural Science in Agriculture at the University of New England (UNE).
Jennifer comes from rural Australia and is committed to giving back to it. With her family being mixed cropping and cattle farmers near Narromine, Jennifer wants to pursue a multifaceted career in agriculture. She recognizes the challenges facing the sector and the potential to improve sustainability, both through research and advocacy.
Jennifer has achieved extraordinary academic results, with a rare GPA of 7. She has been awarded the UNE Sir Earle Page Memorial Prize (highest aggregate award for the year in all subjects) and the UNE Judy Ewing Prize (highest GPA in the year for a student participating in the New England Award).
At the same time as achieving extraordinary academic results, Jennifer gives back to her community in a way that is deeply values based. She speaks with passion about how she is driven to make her community proud because they have provided her with support. That commitment has been demonstrated by her involvement from Narromine in the Sydney Royal Ag Shows, the Narromine Gorillas Rugby Union Football Club, both as a player and a leader, and in the Christian youth ministry.
It has also translated into significant involvement in university activities, where she has also played rugby. In 2023, she was recognized by St Albert’s—her College at that time—as the Women’s Player of the Year. She has also been involved with the UNE Sports Academy and has been an academic advisor, including as a Peer-Assisted Study Session leader at UNE. She has also been selected to represent UNE at the Moana Oceania National Soil Judging Competition in New Zealand.
With her outstanding academic performance, her natural leadership abilities and her sights clearly set on a defined career path, the Panel considered that Jennifer had the potential to make a true difference to rural Australia.
Jennifer’s Scholarship was donated by Mr Tim Fairfax AC.
Jade Harrison
Jade is undertaking a Bachelor of Midwifery at the University of Technology Sydney.
Jade has a long and deep family connection to community and women’s health, with both her grandmother and mother being midwives. Jade considers that she has inherited their commitment to women’s health, as well as their compassion, perseverance, resilience and connection to community.
Jade has evidenced that commitment with her volunteering at the Cerebral Palsy Alliance on the NSW Central Coast, which has continued beyond her initial high school involvement. She has also been involved, through Apex Tutoring, in helping remedial and advanced students build their confidence and academic performance. Jade has completed a Certificate II in Active Volunteering and was the recipient of the 2022 NSW Central Coast Young Volunteer of the Year Award.
Jade’s involvement with her midwifery course, particularly at the perinatal stage, has reinforced her awareness of the need to offer improved health and sexual awareness services to women in rural communities. She recognizes and is concerned by the disparities in health services for women in rural versus urban areas. Jade is keenly interested in research and wants to undertake honours/masters study, and potentially to train as a medical doctor, in the field of women’s health. Her exceptional academic performance reflects her commitment to making a difference for Australian women.
The Panel considered that Jade, with her unique blend of focus and commitment, along with her articulateness and consideration for others, will make a real difference to the future of Australia.
Jade’s Scholarship was donated by the NSW Branch of the Order of Australia Association.
Paris Lay-Yee
Paris is undertaking a Bachelor of Communication (Strategic Communication) and a Bachelor of Laws at the University of Technology Sydney.
Paris’s inspirational narrative and her aspirations for her career have been shaped by three main influences.
The first is her commitment to children’s health and well-being arising from her having a rare medical condition, called exercise induced anaphylaxis. She has been involved with raising funds for the SPARCle Foundation Ball for the past six years to increase awareness of allergic disease. She has been a member of the Sydney Children’s Hospital Network (SCHN) Youth Council, including helping with the design of appropriate spaces for adolescents in children’s hospitals; as well as being a peer mentor of Allergy 250k, which runs camps for children with allergies.
The second is her interest in public speaking and debating which arose from her experiences at Ravenswood School. She represented her school in the Independent Schools Debating Association (ISDA) competition; received a Diploma in Communication from the Australia Speech Communication Association (ASCA); and has been employed by St Andrew’s Cathedral School to design and roll out their public speaking syllabus. From 2019 to 2022, she also represented Australia in the World Individual Debating and Public Speaking Championships, being a finalist in 2021-2022, having previously topped the Australian selection process.
The third is her interest in social justice. In part, this has arisen from her grandparents’ decision to leave Timor for Australia to seek a better life. Equally, however, her debating prowess has led her to research climate related challenges, along with mental health and women’s disadvantage issues. She is a powerful advocate in all three areas.
These three formative influences are reflected in her career ambition, which is to pursue a career in human rights, with her long-term objective being to work for the United Nations in communications, thereby leveraging her degree, her powerful communication skills, and her interest in health and social justice. In essence, she wants to walk on a world stage to make a difference.
This Scholarship was donated by the Order of Australia Association.
Ayman Miazi
Ayman is undertaking a Bachelor of Engineering (Hons) at Monash University with a specialization in Aerospace Engineering.
Since he was a child, Ayman has been intrigued by space and fascinated by propulsion, in part influenced by stories of man landing on the moon. This led to his studying Aerospace Engineering at Monash, where he has an impeccable academic record, achieving straight high distinctions in his degree to date.
His interest in space has been backed up by his other university involvements. This includes his having been a member of the Monash High Powered Rocketry Dynamics Subteam, where he is tasked with dealing with the simulations of rockets that his team creates. He has also created a Blog called “Just in Space”, where—as writer and editor—he communicates to a broader audience about space in simple to read English. He has also participated in the National Youth Science Forum.
Over and above that, Ayman has a deep sense of community, which he describes as being based on the need to help others. This includes the Bangladeshi community in Geelong. (In 2005, Ayman’s parents moved from Dhaka to provide a better life for him and his elder brother). As a result, he has been actively involved in fundraising for activities in Bangladesh, including flood relief.
Post-graduation, Ayman wants to undertake a Doctor of Philosophy at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Boston. However, his bigger and more audacious goal is to start a successful company that develops reusable rocket systems for interplanetary missions.
Ayman’s Scholarship was donated by the Victorian Branch of the Order of Australia Association.
Matthew Selkrig
Matthew is undertaking a Bachelor of Commerce and a Bachelor of Advanced Studies at the University of Sydney.
Matthew brings an international perspective, having grown up in Hong Kong to an Australian father and a Korean mother, before boarding at St Ignatius’ College Riverview, where he played 1st XI football; received a Laureate award; and represented Australia in Mandarin at the International Chinese Bridge Language Competition. He was awarded a Dalyell Scholarship to attend Sydney University. He is also proficient in Korean.
His inclusive but disciplined leadership style, influenced by his international background, has been demonstrated at Sydney University. This includes his being President of Beta Alpha Psi (BAP), Alumni Director of the Sydney University Business Society (SUBS), and former Events Director for the Sydney University Impact Investing Society (SUIIS). He has assisted fellow students through supporting USYD FoodHub (providing essential items for students in need); helping organize case competitions with McKinsey & Company; supporting industry mentorship programs; and representing BAP and Sydney University at international competitions in Auckland and Orlando.
After undertaking an Honors year and postgraduate business qualifications at a leading USA University, Matthew aspires to a career in finance, potentially reflecting his interest in alternative investments and sustainability. His stated objective is to make a difference in the green energy transition. To this end, he has interned as a Product Analyst at Longreach Alternatives, where their collaboration with indigenous communities on fishery initiatives strongly resonated. He has broadened his skill base by internships at KPMG (where he audited a global alternative asset manager) and at Macquarie Group.
Matthew’s Scholarship was donated by Mr Paul Wheelton AM KSJ.