The Past
Phyllis
Fry
BSc 1954, MSc 1957
I graduated BSc at the University of Sydney in 1954, majoring in Human Physiology. I then moved to Western Australia with my parents and joined the newly formed Department of Physiology at the University of Western Australia. After a year as a demonstrator I enrolled as a graduate student, graduating M.Sc in 1957. While I was pleased to be working as a Demonstrator at the University, I did not have any formulated ambitions, like many girls at that time, my expectation was that should I marry and have a family, this would be my full time occupation.
I did marry and immediately went to London with my husband who was planning
post graduate studies and professional experience. I sought work on our
arrival in order to help support my husband and myself, furthering my own
career was not part of my thinking. After a time in the Clinical Research Unit
at the Middlesex Hospital I joined the research team of Margaret and Robert
Harkness at University College London and stayed there for four stimulating
years. Working with Margaret and Robert, who had two children, opened my
thinking to the possibility of a woman having both a career and a family, and
my first child was born during my four years in this laboratory. My husband’s
career then took us away from London to a country area where there was no
possible employment for me. We then returned to Australia, settling in
Melbourne. After the birth of my second child I started part time teaching at
the Physiology Department of the University of Melbourne. When my third child
was one year old, the failure of my marriage placed me in a position where I
was seeking full time work. In retrospect, my very satisfying career in
Science developed in response to my personal circumstances rather than
ambition.
In 1959 I joined the research
laboratory of Dr Ray Bradley at the University of Melbourne and also greatly
increased my commitment to undergraduate teaching, in which I was particularly
interested. In 1974 I assumed responsibility for teaching the Physiotherapy,
Speech Therapy and Occupational Therapy students from Lincoln Institute of
Health Sciences. In 1975 it was decided to establish a School of Biological
Sciences at Lincoln Institute and I was appointed the first Head of the
School. During the next nine years Lincoln Institute expanded the range of
health science courses offered, developed post graduate courses and introduced
research in related areas. There was a concurrent increase in the range of
coursework offered in the Biological Sciences and a rapid growth of both
academic staff and student numbers and of supporting staff and facilities. At
the end of this nine year period, my role now included a large component of
administration and less hands on teaching and almost no research. This was
also the time when my children were moving towards independence. Lincoln
Institute was about to become the Faculty of Health Sciences of Latrobe
University. I felt it was time for me to move to something new.
During the next twelve years I was Principal of Janet Clarke Hall, a residential college of the University of Melbourne. In this position I had diverse responsibilities for the management of this residence for undergraduate and postgraduate men and women. The academic component of this position kept me in close touch with many areas of the University. The social programme aimed to give students a broader educational experience through activities offered in the college in addition to more recreational pursuits. Janet Clarke Hall, founded in 1886, was the first residential college for women in Australia. Its alumni includes many women who were pioneers in their professions, including scientists, some of these women maintained contact with the college, and the archives contained many records of the achievements of past students. It was clear that in the early days of the college, the support of fellow students and college tutors was important to those alumni who were breaking new ground in the employment of women. I have known and worked with a number of woman scientists who have been mentors and role models and I too value their support and influence during my satisfying working life.