Dr Olga Bursian
Lecturer
| Phone: | +61 3 990 26330 or +61 3 512 26330 | |
| Fax: | +61 3 990 26359 or +61 3 512 26359 | |
| Office: | 1E 124, Gippsland Campus | |
| Email: | olga.bursian@monash.edu |
Biography
Qualifications
- Bachelor of Social Work (UNSW), Master of Social Work (Monash), PhD (RMIT).
Olga’s career has spanned the following areas:
- social research
- social policy development and advocacy
- community development
- management
- casework
- cross cultural training
has experience in working in:
- commonwealth and state government
- research institutes
- community based agencies
- universities
Olga taught social work at RMIT and currently teaches in the Bachelor of Community Welfare & Counselling and in the Masters of Regional & Community Development (co-ownership with Education Faculty Gippsland).
Research interests
- critical social work and social change
- community development and activism
- social inclusion and public funding
- participatory and deliberative democracy
- comparative welfare states
- multiculturalism
- post colonial & feminist standpoint theory
- de-colonising research methods
- critical pedagogy
- action learning
- youth labour market issues
PhD Thesis:
- Uncovering the Wellsprings of Migrant Women’s Agency: Connecting with Australian Public Infrastructure. In-depth interviews with women from 5 non-Western world regions. Exploring women's agency in creatively re-building life, including impact of contact with any publicly funded services and policies on self determination.
Master of Social Work Minor Thesis:
- “The Formation of the Youth Guarantee”, a Victorian Cain Labor Government education, employment and training initiative for young people
Current research projects
- Critical /transformative learning and teaching social policy
- Radical and critical social work global models
- Multicultural citizenship rights today: sequel to PhD thesis
- Youth transitions in Gippsland
Recent publications
- Bursian, O 2011: Migrant Women Act, Commonground Publishers, (forthcoming)
- Bursian, O 2010: "Patel, R. The value of nothing : how to reshape market society and redefine democracy: Book Review", Practice Reflexions, 5(1), 43-45
- Bursian, O 2007: “Public services as indispensable stepping stones to migrant women’s self determination”, Practice Reflexions, Volume 2, Number 1 (December)
- Bursian O 2005: “Diverse Worlds. Diverse Childhoods”, International Journal of Diversity in Organisations, Communities and Nations, Proceedings from The Diversity Conference UCLA 6-9 July 2004, Vol 4, pp 287-297
Conference presentations
- Bursian, O 2010, “Social Inclusion: Constructive & Destructive Notions’, paper presented to the Joint World Conference on Social Work and Social Development: The Agenda. Hong Kong 10-14 June
- Bursian, O 2009, “Australian State uses and misuses of globalization discourses in governing inequality “, paper presented to the 5th International Conference on Hierarchy & Power in the History of Civilisations, Russian State University for the Humanities, Moscow, June 29-3 July .
- Bursian, O & Lynn, M 2008, “The missing political dimension in the current social inclusion agenda”, paper presented at the AASW & AIWCW Conference, 10-12 November 2008, Sydney.
- Bursian, O 2008, “Teaching social policy in a neo-liberal country”, paper presented at the Inaugural World Universities Forum, 30 January-2 February, Davos, Switzerland.
- Bursian, O 2007, “Australian Multiculturalism: Policy & Practice Insights for the EU?” paper presented at the New Europe, New Governance, New Worlds? Conference 12-14 April 2007, Monash University European & EU Centre
Teaching
- SCW 1302 Governing Inequality, SCW 3310 Social Policy
- SCW 3306 Field Education ( team teaching)
- SCD 4301 Participatory Planning: Local, National and International Perspectives
- SCD 4303 Advocacy for Community Rights
Expert media commentary
Postgraduate supervision
- feminist standpoint and de-colonising theory and methods
- social policy and social justice
- community development and action research
- cross cultural issues
- labour market issues
- community services systems and advocacy
Grants
- Lynn, M, Bursian, O. Building family and Community Resilience in the Cardinia Growth Corridor: A case study of a New Estate Officer. (2008 - 2013) $60,000