Chair Mr. Mark Coffey has announced Miss Lori Fogarty to be the recipient of the 2022 E.J. Connellan Award. s

Lori will receive $10,000 over the course of her degree.

Miss Lori Fogarty is a Territory local having grown up on Lucy Creek Station, northeast of Alice Springs. Following the completion of high school Lori completed a Bachelor of Agricultural Science at the University of Adelaide before taking a break to be a Governess at Phillip Creek station for twelve months.

Miss Fogarty resumed her studies in 2022 pursuing a Masters in Secondary Teaching, Majoring in Agriculture at the University of New England in Armidale. Lori is passionate about teaching students the importance of agriculture in a growing population.

“The deliverance of agriculture lessons as part of distance education has been missing for many years. My ambition is to educate our remote children in the importance of where our food comes from, whilst incorporating sustainable farming into curriculums.” Said Miss Fogarty.

“I’m looking forward to learning how to educate students, both from remote and populated areas to assist them in fully grasping the importance of agriculture and learning the sciences behind our most important resources. Agriculture is often forgotten about in the curriculum, especially in remote areas even though so many families are a working part of it. I aim to develop a program which enables all regional and remote students to be properly informed.”

Mr Coffey said “Lori has strong connections to the bush and has proven her dedication to the outback which is an important element of the E.J. Connellan Award. As remote and rural Australia undergoes rapid change, the need for rural and remote education progress is only increasing. We hope that in supporting Lori, she will continue contributing to the advancement of people in the outback.” 

The Award was established in 1988 by the Connellan Airways Trust in honour of founder, Northern Territory aviator and pastoralist pioneer Edward Connellan (known as E.J or Eddie). EJ was man of strong and passionate character, with special abilities attuned to trail blazing. He was a successful pastoralist and a visionary businessman and played a prominent role in Central Australian affairs.

The Connellan Airways Trust has been supporting outback people for nearly forty years through a variety of grants and scholarships. The Connellan Airways Trust’s purpose is to enable the advancement of people in the Outback, with a focus on education and wellbeing.