Brennan Justice and Leadership Program - General questions about the Brennan Justice and Leadership Program
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General questions about the Brennan
Justice and Leadership Program
Brennan Justice and
Leadership Program
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
2019
UTS CRICOS PROVIDER CODE 00099F
1General questions about the Brennan Justice and Leadership Program Q. What is the Brennan Program? A. The Brennan Program is a volunteer program for UTS Law students which provides opportunities for you to engage in justice issues and to volunteer in the not for profit community in a legal or non-legal capacity. If you complete all components of the program during your law degree, you receive the Brennan Award. The Award will appear on your academic transcript and Australian Higher Education Graduation (AHEG) Statement. There is no other Award of this nature at any other Australian law school. Q. What are the components of the program? A. The Program has two core elements: Reflections on Justice (ROJ) and Leadership Through Service (LTS). The ROJ component is where you engage with themes of justice and its social contexts. We host a range of activities including: seminars, films screenings, discussion groups, a book program, a photography competition and short film competition for you to reflect on these themes in a variety of ways. Each activity has a point value, and you require 100 ROJ points to complete this component. The LTS component is where you contribute service (both legal and non-legal in nature) by volunteering your time at a non-profit organisation. These activities develop your capacity for initiative and leadership. LTS requirements are based upon the length of your degree. Degree length LTS hours required 5 year Degree 200 hours 4 year Degree 160 hours 3 year Degree 120 hours Minimum 120 hours Q. How do I register? Is it free? A. To register for the Program, log into Career Hub at https://careerhub.uts.edu.au.Click on “Dashboard; as a current law student, you should be able to see the ‘Brennan Justice and Leadership Program’ on the left- hand side of your screen. Fill out the registration form and you will gain access to the program. It is free to join, and registering also signs you up to our regular email, full of volunteering opportunities and events! Q. Who is the Program named after? A. The Program and Award are named for Sir Gerard Brennan AC KBE, former Chief Justice of the High Court of Australia and UTS Chancellor. His life and career exemplify the qualities of professional leadership, service and excellence that the Program seeks to nurture. 30 January 2019 1
Q. Does registration for the Program involve any commitment to proceed to the
Brennan Justice and Leadership Award?
A. No.
We recognise that much will depend upon your other commitments and that these will vary from session to
session. Feel free to continually vary your level of activity, participation in and engagement with the Program
and accumulate points as you are able.
Q. Do I have to re-register for the Program and the Brennan Program Forum each
session or each year?
A. No. Registration continues while you are enrolled in a law program at UTS.
Q. I am registered for the Program but have been unable to attend any of the
events and activities lately. Should I withdraw from the Program for now and re-
register at a later date?
A. No, feel free to stay in the program as it is offered each session. Your enrolment automatically continues
until you graduate, at which point you will be de-registered. Attend what and when you can and accrue points
and hours when you are able to do so.
Q. Where do I find out more about what is involved in the Program and what I can
do?
A.
• A thorough outline of the Program is available in the Brennan Program Handbook published on the
Brennan Program webpage.
• You can keep up to date by reading the Brennan Program newsletter (this automatically gets sent
to your UTS email account after you register for the Program),
• Follow us on Facebook,
• Read about upcoming events and initiatives on the UTS Law website,
• Log onto UTSOnline to access The Brennan Program forum.
• We also hold Information Sessions twice a year for new and continuing students.
Q. If I have a question about the Program, or a problem, who do I contact?
A. Contact the Program Administrator at brennanprogram@uts.edu.au
Q. How do I record ROJ points?
A. Via Career Hub! Simply look under the relevant heading and follow the instructions.
Q. How do I record LTS hours?
Also on Career Hub. Please make sure that you and your supervisor have completed the Confirmation of
Service Form before you fill out the online form on Career Hub.
If you need help, contact the Program Administrator for assistance.
30 January 2019 2Q. Can I complete my ROJ points and LTS hours in one year? A. No. You cannot accrue 100 ROJ points in one year, and you can only accrue 75% of your LTS hours in one year as it is encouraged that you develop your insights and experiences throughout the progression of your degree. Reflections on Justice Q. What must I do to satisfy the reflections component to qualify for the Brennan Justice and Leadership Award? A. To be eligible for the Award, you must complete 100 points of reflective activities from the indicative list contained in the Program Handbook. Different points apply to each form of activity and all are optional. Q. I want to attend a lecture or conference on a justice topic offered outside UTS. Will it accrue points towards the Brennan Award? A. Yes, if it meets the criteria for external lectures in the Handbook. Generally, if there is a justice dimension to the lecture, you may assume that it will be credited towards the program. If in doubt, please contact the Program Administrator for approval. Many external lectures that have been approved will be promoted via the Brennan newsletter, Facebook page or on UTSOnline. Q.I have attended an event organised by the Brennan Program. Do I need to log this in my ROJ blog? A. You must RSVP for any Brennan Program events in the Career Hub “Brennan Program Events” section. Click on the “Book into ‘Brennan Events’ link and you will be taken to a screen where you can see the current events available. Attendance at each event accrues a standard five (5) points under the Program, however, you must make sure that your name is marked off at the event in order to claim the points. Discussion Groups Q. What do discussion groups do in their meetings? A. Discussion groups can focus on any aspect of justice, including issues that are topical or in the public domain. One meeting of the discussion group will be dedicated to the current book in the Brennan Book Program. The Book Program invites all students and staff to read the same book in order to come to the Brennan Program with something in common. For 2019, we’ve chosen a variety of non-fiction and fiction options which you are welcome to choose from. NOTE: Within one year there is a cap of two book reflections. Non-fiction: ‘This House of Grief’ by Helen Garner: A deeply thoughtful, reflective account of a distressing murder trial. One reviewer likened it to Dostoyevsky’s Crime and Punishment; the Chief Justice of Victoria called it “utterly riveting”. Garner has written that she “thought of the law as a vast poem about the terribleness and beauty of life, like religion or philosophy”: Bernadette Brennan, A Writing Life: Helen Garner and Her Work, Text, 2017, p 276. Looking to reflect on ‘This House of Grief’? Here are a collection of thought starters to help you on your way. 30 January 2019 3
‘Dark Emu, Black Seeds: Agriculture or Accident?’ by Bruce Pascoe: A remarkable story, on Aboriginal land use and agricultural practice before European intrusion. A real page-turner, it has recently been adapted for dance by Bangarra. Fiction: ‘The Children Act’ by Ian McEwan: A 17-year-old boy refuses a life-saving blood transfusion on religious grounds; the judge confronts the consequences of her decision to order the transfusion. The novel has recently been made into a film with Emma Thompson as the judge. ‘We are All Completely Beside Ourselves’ by Karen Joy Fowler: In her review of this book in the New York Times, Barbara Kingsolver begins: “To experience this novel exactly as the author intended, a reader should avoid the flap copy and everything else written about it. Including this review.” We urge you to respect that advice; your reward is a decisive plot twist. It is a remarkable read dealing with animal rights and welfare; it also has something to say about family life. ‘Never Let Me Go’ by Kazuo Ishiguro: A beautiful, challenging book about the question of whose lives matter, and how. It was made into an acclaimed film in 2010 starring Carey Mulligan and Keira Knightley. When Ishiguro received the Nobel Prize in literature in 2017, the citation described him as a writer "who, in novels of great emotional force, has uncovered the abyss beneath our illusory sense of connection with the world.” Writing a reflection on ‘Never Let Me Go’? Here are a few notes and points for discussion to help you get started. ‘Exit West’ by Mohsin Hamid: A remarkable book that deals with the plight of two refugee lovers and those whom they leave behind. We are keen for you to read as many of these books as possible. And in depth. So, we invite you to write a 1,000-word reflection on one of these books for 20 ROJ points. You might get a group together to discuss the book to sharpen your reflection. And you might want to write a reflection on more than one book. However, to ensure that you enjoy the richness of ROJ offerings under the program, there is a cap on the number of books you can acquire ROJ points for over a period of one year—two books and 40 ROJ points Feel free to write a reflection on our past books including: ‘East West Street” by Philippe Sands, ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ by Margaret Atwood, 'The Tall Man' by Chloe Hooper, 'This Changes Everything' by Naomi Klein, and 'Talking To My Country', by Stan Grant. Q. How do I join a discussion group? A. We send a call out to students at the beginning of the session via our newsletter, UTSOnline forum, and social media channels advertising discussion group participation and openings for group leaders. You will be allocated a group, or if you have a group of friends who would like to form a group you can contact the LSS Brennan Director at brennan.program@utslss.com. Q. When is my discussion group supposed to meet? A: This is at the discretion of each group. So long as your group logs five meetings by the end of Week 11 of the session, you are free to schedule your meetings at your group's convenience. Q. What happens if someone in our group cannot make a meeting? A. If there is a legitimate excuse for someone missing a group meeting, this should be noted in your Meeting minutes, and in that week’s reflection on Career Hub. Q. What do we do if someone in our group isn't responding to emails, or isn't participating in our group? A. The onus to participate in the Brennan Program is on each individual. It is not your responsibility to carry those students who are not taking the initiative to engage with this component of the Program. If a member, 30 January 2019 4
or members, of your group, are not actively participating to the extent that it is hindering your group's
progress, please notify the Program Administrator at brennanprogram@uts.edu.au.
Similarly, if you feel that your group's successful completion of this component of the Program can only be
achieved if you push forward without a member who isn't actively participating, please contact the Program
Administrator once every reasonable effort to contact that person has been made.
Q. What happens if my entire group is unresponsive, and I want to switch groups?
A. Contact the Program Administrator with a request to switch groups ONLY if you have made a reasonable
attempt to communicate with the members of your original group.
Leadership Through Service
Q. What voluntary work qualifies under the Program? What are the criteria for
credit towards the Award?
A. In brief, the service must be voluntary and, ordinarily, for a non-profit organisation; it should not attract
academic credit of financial reward.
Q. Does the service be for a legal organisation?
A. No.
Q. Can the service be with more than one organisation?
A. Yes.
In most cases, it will be with several organisations, across your time at law school, with different time
commitments for each. You will create a portfolio of work, a network of engagement with different
experiences and community groups.
Q. What is the leadership element of service? What must I do?
A. The Program aims to assist students to develop their capacity for social leadership and personal
responsibility. Students are encouraged to seek out opportunities to demonstrate these qualities. For
example, a student might develop a fundraising initiative, lead an awareness-raising campaign, take on
higher organisational responsibility, or advocate for the needs of their host organisation.
Q. What are some examples of service that counts under the Brennan Program?
A.
• Work in agencies that have a service provision function or ethic of care, advocacy and social
concern (for example, providing services for homeless people, working with Indigenous
organisations, as a teacher of English literacy to child refugees, and advocacy and advice for
disadvantaged groups)
• Volunteering as an intern or research assistant at a Faculty Centre (Anti-Slavery Australia, or the
Australasian Legal Information Institute (AustLII))
• Volunteering or interning with legal clinics, community legal centres and other agencies that have
a justice, public interest or service dimension to their work (e.g.Refugee Advice and Casework
Service RACS)
• Exercising leadership in student and university activities, for example, as an executive member of
a UTS student club or society or a peer networker with the UTS Student Services Unit
• Community service that involves the exercise of initiative and the development of leadership
capacity, such as a facilitator/organiser of a community sports program.
30 January 2019 5Q. I don’t know where to start for my leadership through service hours. Where can I learn about opportunities available to me? A: The Brennan Program frequently advertises opportunities via our newsletter, social media channels and the Forum on UTSOnline. If you go to websites like govolunteer.com.au or volunteering.nsw.gov.au you can search for opportunities with a range of not-for-profit organisations. You can also search for volunteer opportunities via Career Hub. Voluntary work in these projects and roles will normally satisfy the service criteria for the Program – if in any doubt, please contact the Program Administrator. Q. I’m in the Beyond UTS International Leadership Development (BUiLD) and/or the Social Leadership at UTS (SOUL) program. Can activity for BUiLD or SOUL that also meets the Brennan criteria be counted for all programs? A. Most definitely, both the BUiLD and SOUL programs are valuable and complementary. 30 January 2019 6
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