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Greenham Dairy Scholarship winner passionate about people in dairying

Taking care of people is crucial to the future of the Australian dairy industry and a strong personal focus for this year’s winner of the $10,000 Greenham Dairy Scholarship.

Twenty-nine year old Clancy Burn was presented with the award by Minister for Agriculture, the Hon Joe Helper at a special event in Melbourne on Thursday.

Clancy and her husband, Mike Hayes, manage a large scale dairy operation milking 2200 Holstein cows at Mount Schank near Mount Gambier in South Australia and are in the process of purchasing a 25 percent share of the business. She is also completing a Bachelor of Business (Agricultural Management) via distance learning at Marcus Oldham, majoring in human resource management.

“Human resource management is of particular interest to me. I see it as an area which is crucial to the future of the dairy industry, but an area sometimes overlooked,” she said.

“The skills and knowledge I will gain from a business degree may be the difference in whether our business succeeds and continues to grow, or withers and maybe fails. I am committed to the dairy industry and feel really excited that I can help shape what the industry looks like in years to come.”

In presenting the award, Mr Helper congratulated Clancy and encouraged her to use the opportunity to help strengthen and improve the dairy industry.

“Small communities of people in rural areas provide the workforce and are managers of the natural resources that underpin the dairy industry.”

“It is encouraging to see an organisation like HW Greenham & Sons, who seeks to give something back into local communities.”

Grant Ryan, joint managing director of HW Greenham & Sons said that in the eighth year of the scholarship it is pleasing to see previous winners forging successful careers right across the dairy industry.

“Without the support offered by the Scholarship some of these people may not have been able to achieve what they have. Not only would that have been a loss to them personally, but also a loss for the dairy industry,” he said.

“At a time when we are reading about a lack of skills in agriculture it is more important than ever, that we provide every possible support to our young people.”

The scholarship was launched in 2001 to promote education within the dairy industry, and to encourage people to undertake further studies and make a commitment to the industry. It is open each year to people aged 17 to 45 years, who are immediate family, employees or sharefarmers working with suppliers of cattle to H W Greenham & Sons’ Tongala meat processing plant. Winners receive financial assistance for study in a dairy-related field of their choice.

Applications were assessed by a panel of independent judges: Victorian Farmers Federation chief executive officer, Wayne Harvey; Kyabram Primary School assistant principal, Helen Walsh; dairy farmer and manager, Dairy Production, National Centre for Dairy Education Australia, Peter Carkeek; and Dairy Australia’s manager for industry relations, John McKew.

Criteria considered were personal and academic achievements, the potential benefits and relevance of the chosen study area or career path to the Australian dairy industry, and how important the scholarship might be in helping the applicants to realise their ambitions.