Scholarship recipient announcement
Sam Crosby is the Executive Director of the St Vincent de Paul Society NSW where he oversees welfare distribution to tens of thousands of families and individuals each year, including during times of disaster recovery. Sam is the recipient of the 2023 Fulbright Professional Scholarship in Non-Profit Leadership (Fulbright Scholarship).
The Fulbright Scholarship in Non-Profit Leadership supports emerging leaders in the NFP sector to undertake research in the United States for up to four months. In 2023 it is supported by Fulbright Australia and the Australian Scholarships Foundation.
Sam will use the Fulbright scholarship to meet with prison reform experts, current and former prisoners, not-for-profit leaders, researchers and legislators. Ultimately Sam hopes to observe and understand programs that can be adapted to Australian environments.
“I am so honoured to be the recipient of the 2023 Fulbright Professional Scholarship in Non-Profit Leadership,” says Sam. “With Australian prison populations increasing at worrying rates, the cost to society in human and economic terms is an avoidable tragedy.
The United States has an enormous prison population but also has some interesting innovations that are leading to real results, and decreasing repeat offences. The Fulbright Scholarship is a chance to speak to the leaders in their fields and better understand programs that we can import back to Australia.”
Dr. Kerry M. B. Bennett, Executive Director of the Australian-American Fulbright Commission reiterated the importance of bilateral collaboration on prison reform initiatives:
“In Australia, recidivism is the single largest driver of prison numbers, yet there are many U.S. programs that have proven to have made significant headway towards addressing this issue. Having Sam investigate these programs with experts across the U.S. via the Fulbright Program will have countless benefits for criminal justice reform in both countries.” She said.
“We are very proud to announce Sam Crosby as the 2023 Fulbright Scholar in Non-Profit Leadership.”
Louisa Graham, CEO of the Australian Scholarships Foundation shares, “This is our eleventh year supporting NFP leaders through the Fulbright Scholarship. Our research on the impact of this scholarship found recipients not only increased access to opportunities and strengthened their leadership qualities; but leveraged these benefits into opportunities for their organisations including cultivating and influencing those around them. We know an extraordinary sector leader like Sam will benefit greatly from this opportunity to undertake research in the United States.”
The Fulbright Professional Scholarship in Non-Profit Leadership is valued up to $30,000. Applications are now open for the 13th year and will close on 5 July 2023. Australian Fulbright Scholarship candidates are interviewed and selected by panels of experts from academia, government, not-for-profit and professional organisations, and the United States Embassy.
For more information and to apply, visit https://scholarships.org.au/scholarship/fulbright-professional-scholarship-in-non-profit-leadership-2023/
The Fulbright Professional Scholarship in Non-Profit Leadership is now open, applications close on 5 July 2023. Apply now to be the 2024 winner.
