Award Winner Announcement of the 2022 Monash-AKS Indigenous Award

Congratulations to Grace King for winning the 2022 Monash-Academy of Korean Studies (AKS) Indigenous Award ($5,000).

Monash University recognizes and creates opportunities to show respect to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and their culture. Following these values, MUKSRH introduced this award last year to encourage more Indigenous Australian students to pursue high-level academic performance in Korean Studies program at Monash University. Students receive a prize of $5,000 with the award recorded on their academic transcripts. This is the second time Grace has received this award, which showcases her love and dedication towards Korean Studies at Monash University.

Here’s what Grace has to say about receiving the award:

“I am extremely grateful to receive the Korean studies Indigenous award. But more so, I'm proud to be majoring in an area of study which shows genuine support for minority Indigenous students. For many, Indigenous students studying at university can create environments in which identifying as Indigenous can seem unnecessary or shameful.  For me, the offer of this award from the Korean studies department showed me that my major department genuinely cares for the support and acknowledgment of Indigenous students and encouraged a stronger sense of pride in my Aboriginality. I'm more than hopeful for the prospect of more Indigenous students considering studying Korean at Monash because of the culturally safe environment encouraged by the department through this award and consistent acknowledgment of the Country at special events (e.g., the Annual Korean Speech Contest).”

We hope this program will continue to motivate Indigenous Australian students by acknowledging and appreciating their commitments and academic achievements in Korean Studies. We would like to express our gratitude to the Core University Program for Korean Studies through the Ministry of Education of the Republic of Korea and the Korean Studies Promotion Service of the Academy of Korean Studies (AKS) for continually supporting this program.

If you have any queries, please contact Dr Lucien Brown at Lucien.brown@monash.edu