A DARRAWEIT Guim local has been awarded a Member of the Order of Australia (AM).
In recognition of her outstanding contribution to the social work profession, tertiary education, and community service, Dr Christine Craik will soon be honoured with the prestigious medal during a ceremony at Government House, adding a well-deserved distinction to her name.
Dr Craik’s dedication to the social justice field spans decades, having first graduated as a social worker over 30 years ago. Humbly, she will be accepting the award on behalf of all social workers and those who volunteer in their community, whom she believes deserve more recognition than ever before.
“My area of expertise is family violence and sexual offending,” she said.
“I’ve worked in that area for a long time, but I think the important part of it is that the award is for [social] work.
“I don’t think social work gets the gong that it deserves, because most social workers work over and above what they’re paid for and what their job description says.
“As a social worker, you’re there for what is often the worst day in someone’s life, but it is a privilege to do this work, and you see such resilience in people who generally conduct themselves which such grace at that time.
“To get this award is amazing, but all those who work in the community deserve recognition for the work that they do, so I just think it’s great to shine the light on [it].”
Now a senior lecturer at RMIT University, Dr Craik’s contributions to the Australian Association of Social Workers are notable achievements in their own right.
Her work and time as the national president of the association resulted in improved educational accreditation standards for social workers across the country, with the introduction of compulsory subjects on family violence and decolonising practices.
“It’s been an opportunity for me to change the way social workers are trained,” she said.
“And not just social workers, I have students and workers from different disciplines and professions who sign up for the courses.
“It’s been a real opportunity to make sure they get the information and training they need so that they can do what has to be done and do it well, for the people that need it in the community.
“[The changes ensure] that social workers and other human services workers understand that our systems are gendered and our systems are quite discriminatory, and they need to incorporate a knowledge of how perpetrators and other professionals weaponise that.”
In addition to her role as a senior lecturer, she is actively engaged in pro bono work, supporting women navigating the Federal Circuit and Family Court and Magistrates Courts in cases where their experiences of family violence have not been recognised.
While honoured by the award, Dr Craik emphasised that there was still much work to be done in the field.
“It’s been a real privilege, but it’s not finished yet,” she said.
“[The award] was a real surprise. I got an email saying I’d been nominated and at first I thought it was spam and trashed it. And then I got another email a week later saying, ‘We sent you an email and you really need to say yes or no if you’ll accept this.’
“It’s a real honour, and I’m hoping I can use it to raise the profile of [social work] and the work that still needs to be done in the family violence sector.
“There’s still a lot to do.”
