Pictured: Prof Donna Cross and Prof Catherine Elliott.
The Kids Research Institute Australia congratulates pioneering anti-bullying researcher Emeritus Professor Donna Cross OAM, who was last night announced as the latest inductee into the Western Australian Science Hall of Fame in recognition of her significant contributions to improving the social and emotional wellbeing of children and young people.
Minister for Science, the Hon. Stephen Dawson, made the announcement as part of the 2023 Premier’s Science Awards, held last night at the Ritz-Carlton, Perth.
Professor Cross is Australia’s leading expert on the prevention of bullying – one of the most severe and highly prevalent threats to children’s mental health, learning, development and wellbeing – and one of the world’s most recognised and respected researchers in bullying and cyber-bulling.
Prior to her retirement in 2022, she was Head of the Health Promotion and Education research program at The Kids Research Institute Australia, Senior Honorary Fellow at The University of Western Australia, and the Western Australian Node Director for the ARC Centre of Excellence for Children and Families Over the Life Course – a seven-year, $32 million project focused on improving life-course outcomes for children and families experiencing deep and persistent disadvantage.
Her schools- and community-based research, carried out over a 35-year career, has provided unique insights into the complexity of bullying, its prevalence, determinants, and the best ways to reduce both bullying and the associated long-term harm.
The results have led to significant change in the way bullying is understood, prevented and managed in schools across Australia and internationally, with Professor Cross’s work having driven or influenced every major school bullying prevention policy and most school wellbeing policies and curricula in Australia over the past few decades, including the National Safe Schools Framework.
Among other achievements, she founded and comprehensively tested Friendly Schools – a schools-based program based on 23 studies involving more than 40,000 Australian children, adolescents, families and school staff, which has been used in thousands of schools across Australia, the USA, Canada, the UK, New Zealand and Singapore.
In a related, world-first tranche of research – Cyber Friendly Schools, co-developed with young people – she and her team evaluated cutting edge bio-psychosocial and behavioural interventions that prevented and reduced harm from cyberbullying among school-age students.
Professor Cross’s broader research and advocacy has encompassed drug use, cigarette smoking, child abuse, mental health, and road and sun safety, with her work informing child-focused public health policies including ‘no hat, no play’ rules and covered school assembly areas, and the establishment of 40kmh school zones.
The Kids Research Institute Australia Acting Director, Professor Catherine Elliott, said Professor Cross’s career was a model in how to ensure research could make a tangible difference.
“As a tireless advocate for the health and socio-emotional wellbeing of children, young people and their families, Professor Cross has not only taken a highly rigorous approach to research but championed the translation of research findings into policies and programs that strengthen children’s development, learning and wellbeing,” Professor Elliott said.
In addition to her research impact, Professor Cross has contributed significantly to the development of the Institute as a force in child health research and advocacy, not only helping to build our reputation, but playing a critical role in the leadership team for many years. We are enormously pleased to see her recognised in this way.
Among a string of other awards and honours, Professor Cross was named WA’s Australian of the Year in 2012, made a fellow of the prestigious Australian Academy of Health and Medical Sciences in 2015, and in 2022 was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia and inducted into the WA Women’s Hall of Fame.
Professor Cross said she was deeply honoured to be inducted into the WA Science Hall of Fame alongside other great female scientists including The Kids Research Institute Australia Founding Director Professor Fiona Stanley AC, and founding researcher Emeritus Professor Carol Bower AC.
“I’m grateful to have been able to pioneer research that not only found ways to prevent bullying, but also improved the mental health and wellbeing of children, including those who are marginalised,” Professor Cross said.
She said she had been privileged to grow an outstanding team of early and mid-career researchers passionate about finding ways to help children and their families lead their best lives now and into the future. Together, they had been fortunate to build many state, national and international partnerships and alliances to maximise the reach and impact of their research.
“Children and young people, and their families and their teachers have been actively involved in all aspects of our research process, ensuring that our research findings are relevant, meaningful, and impactful,” Professor Cross said.
“It is my hope that our research continues to contribute to an effective community health care system that is measured not only by the diseases cured, but also by those prevented.”
Professor Cross continues to contribute her expertise in wellbeing and bullying prevention as Chief Behavioural Advisor to the NSW Government.
Three other outstanding The Kids Research Institute Australia researchers were recognised at the awards: Professor Britta Regli-von Ungern-Sternberg (Mid-Career Scientist of the Year, joint winner); Denby Evans (Student Scientist of the Year); and Rebecca Famlonga (Aboriginal STEM Student of the Year).
Read more about them here, and to find out about all of this year’s Premier’s Science Awards winners and finalists, see the Minister’s media release here.