Former Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard appointed as Visiting Professor
The Hon Julia Gillard, who served as Prime Minister of Australia from June 2010 to June 2013, has joined King’s College London as a Visiting Professor. She will work closely with the Policy Institute and the Menzies Centre for Australian Studies at King’s.
Ms Gillard was the 27th Prime Minister of Australia and the first and only woman to hold the position, following earlier terms as Deputy Prime Minister, Minister for Education, Employment and Workplace Relations, and Minister for Social Inclusion.
She gained a Federal seat in Parliament in 1998 and following the Australian Labor Party’s Federal Election victory in 2007, she was sworn in as Deputy Prime Minister before becoming Prime Minister in 2010.
The Hon Julia Gillard, said:
‘I am very honoured to be appointed by King's College as a Visiting Professor in 2016. I look forward with great enthusiasm to substantive academic engagement with the students and faculty at King's, and to contributing to meaningful discussion of issues of importance to society and the world.’
Professor Ed Byrne, President and Principal at King’s College London, said:
‘We are delighted and honoured to welcome Julia as a Visiting Professor to the Policy Institute and Menzies Centre at King’s College London. On a more personal note it’s a pleasure to see a fellow British born Australian – Julia was born in Wales – join us here at this world leading university. Julia brings the most incredible wealth of experience, as well as important insights of the education systems both here and in Australia. She is a great champion for equal opportunity and excellent education, an ethos we share here at King’s.’
Professor Jonathan Grant, Director of the Policy Institute at King’s, and Dr Ian Henderson, Director of the Menzies Centre for Australian Studies, said:
‘Ms Gillard brings an unrivalled breadth of experience of being at the forefront of politics. There is no doubt that King's College London and its students will benefit hugely from her appointment, enhancing the university’s reputation as a centre of international excellence, pertinent policy research and stimulating political debate. We are delighted to be working with her.’
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Notes to Editors
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Julia Gillard Biography
Julia Gillard was sworn in as the 27th Prime Minister of Australia on 24 June 2010 and served in that office until June 2013.
As Prime Minister and in her previous role as Deputy Prime Minister, Ms Gillard was central to the successful management of Australia’s economy, the 12th biggest economy in the world, during the Global Financial Crisis and as Australia positioned to seize the benefits of Asia’s rise. Ms Gillard developed Australia’s guiding policy paper, Australia in the Asian Century. Ms Gillard delivered nation-changing policies including reforming Australia education at every level from early childhood to university education, creating an emissions trading scheme, improving the provision and sustainability of health care, aged care and dental care, commencing the nation’s first ever national scheme to care for people with disabilities and restructuring the telecommunications sector as well as advancing a national broadband network. In foreign policy, Ms Gillard strengthened Australia’s alliance with the United States, secured stronger architecture for the relationship with China, upgraded Australia’s ties with India, and deepened ties with Japan, Indonesia and South Korea. Ms Gillard has represented Australia at the G20, including winning Australia’s right to host the 2014 meeting, the East Asia Summit, APEC, NATO-ISAF and chaired CHOGM. Under Ms Gillard’s leadership, Australia was elected to serve on the United Nations Security Council.
Ms Gillard is the first woman to ever serve as Australia’s Prime Minister or Deputy Prime Minister. In October 2012, Ms Gillard received worldwide attention for her speech in Parliament on the treatment of women in professional and public life.
Ms Gillard is a non-resident Distinguished Senior Fellow with the Center for Universal Education at the Brookings Institution in Washington. In February 2014, Ms Gillard was appointed chair of the Global Partnership for Education, a leading organization dedicated to expanding access and quality education worldwide.
In February 2015, Ms Gillard was appointed Chancellor of Dūcere, an Australian-based online education provider offering courses in business and management. Ms Gillard also serves as an Honorary Professor at the University of Adelaide, and is Patron of the John Curtin Prime Ministerial Library in Perth, Western Australia. Ms Gillard is a member of the board of directors of Beyond Blue, which is committed to helping Australians understand and manage anxiety and depression. Ms Gillard serves on the Board of Governors of the Committee for the Economic Development of Australia. Ms Gillard is Patron of Camfed, the Campaign for Female Education, dedicated to the advancement of girls’ education in Africa.
Ms Gillard’s memoirs, My Story, were published by Random House in September 2014. The second edition of her book was published in July 2015.