New PhD Scholarship with Scope

Stephanie Weir from Scope has begun a new PhD at the University of Melbourne through the Melbourne Social Equity Institute.

Each year the Melbourne Social Equity Institute gives Australian Government Research Training Program Scholarships and other scholarships to students whose interest in social equity issues aligns closely to our research agenda.  In 2019, we are delighted to welcome Stephanie Weir from Scope to our PhD program through a unique scholarship and research collaboration, made possible by the partnership between Scope and the University of Melbourne.

Stephanie is a speech pathologist with Scope’s Communication and Inclusion Resource Centre. Her doctoral research is focused on the relationship between communication autonomy, behaviours of concern and restrictive interventions in children who have little to no functional speech.

Stephanie’s research is being supervised by Dr Shiralee Poed, from the Melbourne Graduate School of Education and Professor Keith McVilly, the Chair of Disability and Inclusion, a shared position between Scope and the Faculty of Arts at the University.

Scope is one of Australia’s largest disability services providers. Since 2014 Scope and the University of Melbourne have had a formal partnership which brings together the expertise of both organisations to produce applied research, develop policy, promote advocacy and to deliver education programs focusing on disability.

Previously, Melissa Murphy completed a PhD through the Melbourne Social Equity Institute under the joint supervision of Dr Nick Hagiliassis, a clinical psychologist with Scope, and Professor Katrina Skewes McFerran from the Melbourne Conservatorium of Music. Melissa’s research centred on the opportunities and barriers to accessing music for young people with disability.

Stephanie’s doctoral research is supported by a Strategic Research Scholarship through the Melbourne Social Equity Institute and has been made possible through the support of the Jack Hogan Family Foundation.

Stephanie says she is excited and grateful for this opportunity, to undertake this research:

I'm truly grateful to the Jack Hogan Family Foundation and the University of Melbourne for providing me with this opportunity to invest time to explore and expand my expertise, and gain knowledge so that potential can be realised for children of all abilities.