Michael Boyd Challen
(1932- )
Over the past 30 years, the Brotherhood of St Laurence, one of Victoria's
oldest and most respected welfare organisations, has unde-gone a fundamental
change, although its first concern, enunciated by its founder, Father
Gerald Tucker, remains the same. In matters of social justice the Brotherhood
is committed to leading rather than following. Its first Research Officer
was appointed in 1943.
Michael Challen graduated from the University of Melbourne (BSc, ThL)
and was ordained in the Anglican Church in 1957. From 1959 to 1971,
a period of profound change in the inner city, he worked at the Melbourne
Diocesan Centre, for the last eight years as its Director. Twenty years
in Perth followed, as Director of the Home Mission Department and subsequently
as Executive Director of the Anglican Health and Welfare Service. In
1978 he was consecrated a Bishop and acted as Assistant Bishop in the
Perth Diocese from 1978 to 1980.
Challen returned to Melbourne in 1991, taking up the position of Executive
Director of the Brotherhood of St Laurence at a crucial time in its
development, including the transfer of responsibility for some activities
to other agencies and the opening of "retail mega-stores"
in Frankston, Dandenong and Croydon.
The Brotherhood of St Laurence is dedicated to the abolition of poverty,
and aims to achieve this through employment, care of the elderly, supporting
communities, early childhood programs and research and advocacy. The
titles of some publications of the organisation from 1995 to 2000 make
clear the research directions under Challen's leadership: Issues of
Childrearing and Poverty among Asian Immigrants (1995), Kooris at Work
(1997), "You Wonder What's Going to Happen Next: Older People's
Access to Services" (1999), and "Poverty in Australia: Measuring
Community Attitudes "(2000).
Michael Challen is the most recent Melbourne University alumnus to become
an Executive Director of the Brotherhood: Geoffrey Sambell, David Scott
and Peter Hollingworth preceded him. He is currently Adjunct Professor
in the Division of Humanities at Curtin University.
