Anne Stephens

Download my most recent publication. Inclusive Systemic Evaluation for Gender equality, Environments and Marginalized voices (ISE4GEMs): A new approach for the SDG era

Dr Anne Stephens (BA, BEd (GE), PhD) is a Lecturer and Senior Researcher in Education in the College of Arts, Education and Society at JCU.

Anne has a PhD in Sociology looking at the intersection between systems thinking, gender equality and the environment. Described here in a keynote plenary address she gave in Washington D.C., Anne's work formed the basis of the ISE4GEMs methodology now in use to evaluate the gender mainstreaming, equity and empowerment programmes of United Nations agencies and NGOs in international development.

Anne had a three-year Post-Doctoral appointment with the Northern Futures Collaborative Research Network where she was lead researcher in the field of economic and workforce development through Vocational Education and Training for Northern Australia. She has ongoing collaborations with Universities across the north, including CDU, the Nulungu Research Institute and the Batchelor Institute in Darwin.

Anne now teaches Education Sociology in the JCU Bachelor of Education programs and is integrating her love of teaching and research to investigate the effect of major education policy reforms of the last ten years. As a former teacher and public servant in the Queensland education department, she has a personal interest in re-examining major reforms including the National Curriculum from a post-implementation perspective, drawing on several of Australia’s most influential education academics in the process. The outcomes feed into course content to improve the subjects for JCU pre-service teachers.

Recent Awards

Anne received a 2016 Endeavour Fellowship and was Visiting Scholar at Columbia University's, School of International and Public Affairs in New York.

Research

Anne is an Adjunct Senior Research Fellow at the Cairns Institute. With collaborators in Australia and internationally, she works across four thematic areas:

· Australian education policy;

· Indigenous vocational education;

· Community & capacity development evaluation, and

· Violence prevention.

Current projects include:

Methodological trial and practitioner experience with Inclusive Systemic Thinking and the GEMs Framework (UN Women; University of Hull; Deakin University)

Health workforce training and capacity development (Indigenous RTOs, the Primary Health Network)

Community Violence Prevention and resource development (Primary Care Professionals and the Queensland Rural Doctors Association Foundation)

Australia’s Education Revolution: In conversation with Education Leaders on Ten years of Education Reform (UQ, Melbourne University, global education consultants)

Anne is a reviewer for the Australian Research Council, and international and Australian journals including the Journal of Australian Indigenous Education; Journal of Australian Public Administration and Systems Research and Behavioural Science.

Professional Memberships

Anne is a registered teacher with the Queensland College of Teachers. She is a member of The Australian and International Sociological Associations; American, European and Australian Evaluation Associations and Societies, and has been an active member of the International Society for the Systems Sciences, since 2006.

Community Engagement

Anne regularly convenes events with staff and colleagues such as the #MeToo – A Hypothetical Journey at The Cairns Institute. She was co-convenor of the 2015 Australian Sociological Association Annual Conference. She conducts training workshops in Systemic Evaluation methodology in Australia and overseas. Anne has been on the inaugural boards of three not for profit organisations: Food Connect (2002 – 2006); FoodSwell (2013 – 2015) and currently, Violence Prevention Australia (website under construction).