Women's Community Governance Scholarship Program

The Minister for Women’s Affairs, the Hon Mary Wooldridge MP, announced the 34 successful recipients of the Victorian Women’s Governance Scholarship program on 10 May 2012.

The scholarship program is a joint initiative of the Victorian Coalition Government and the Australian Institute of Company Directors to provide 34 women with training in corporate governance through participation in the organisation’s highly respected Company Directors Course.

Ms Wooldridge said the Coalition Government’s $180,000 investment aimed to provide practical tools and experience to Victorian women serving as directors of not-for-profit boards that currently receive state government funding.

“This initiative acknowledges the important roles that women play in leading and supporting their communities and will help further develop each of the 34 scholarship recipients’ individual skills, confidence and experience,” Ms Wooldridge said.

The successful recipients work in a broad range of areas, including the disability, environment, health and ageing sectors. The women will also receive a one year membership of the Australian Institute of Company Directors as part of their scholarship.

Australian Institute of Company Directors Victorian State Manager, Paul Geyer, said that the Victorian Women’s Scholarship Program recognised the value of board diversity for enhancing organisational performance.

“Recent research from the US-based Catalyst group, the Australian Reibey Institute and others have shown that organisations that have a broad mix of skills and backgrounds on their boards and among their executives benefit from improved performance,” Mr Geyer said.