Ceremony: 6 May 2019, 10:30am - Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences
About the Speaker
Ms Laurie Cowled grew up on a farm near the small village of Bethungra in the South West Slopes region of New South Wales. She started her long banking and finance career at the age of 16 in the local branch of the Commonwealth Bank of Australia. Following the death of her husband, Mr Ron MacNamara, Ms Cowled established the Cowled Foundation.
Since establishing the Cowled Foundation, Ms Cowled has become a prominent philanthropist. The aim of the Cowled Foundation is to assist with the education of gifted, underprivileged, rural or regional girls or young women who will make an outstanding difference to the future of Australia.
In 2007, through a chance connection with a friend’s daughter who worked at UTS, Ms Cowled established a scholarship for undergraduate Indigenous women. So far, nine Indigenous women have received the Laurie Cowled Scholarship. Three students have also received the Laurie Cowled PhD bursary for Indigenous female students.
In 2008, Ms Cowled founded the Cootamundra and District Country Education Fund which has given away well in excess of $100,000 to more than 60 young people.
Further demonstrating Ms Cowled’s philanthropic commitment, in 2009, she committed a significant gift to UTS and established an endowment fund that supports the Laurie Cowled Scholarship for undergraduate Indigenous women in perpetuity.
In 2011, Ms Cowled made a significant pledge to the Queensland University of Technology (QUT) by establishing the Laurie Cowled Women in Leadership Scholarship, which supports a QUT business graduate to attend an international leadership event or experience.
Previous to this, Ms Cowled established the Laurie Cowled Indigenous Scholarships for Business Students as well as scholarships for six underprivileged undergraduate students at QUT.
Ms Cowled has also supported the National Institute of Dramatic Art through the Ruth Cowled Memorial Scholarship (in memory of her sister, Ruth), the Ruth Cowled Design Fund and the Laurie Cowled International Scholarship for Costume. Ms Cowled is a donor to the Australian Ballet, the Queensland Ballet and the Art Gallery of NSW. She was a nominee for the 2017 Queensland Senior Australian of the Year.
Ms Cowled derives personal satisfaction from helping others. She is pleased to have formed long-lasting relationships with many of her scholarship recipients, including attending graduations and final year shows. In turn, recipients are exposed to the meaningful impact philanthropy can have on others’ lives.
Ms Cowled’s generosity, has had a transformative impact and continues to add to UTS’s culture of inclusion. This commitment to social justice and diversity is at the heart of what keeps UTS distinct from other universities. UTS’s reputation, nationally and internationally, is enhanced by her dedication to supporting Indigenous students.