Appointments to the National Museum of Australia Council

The Albanese Labor Government has today announced the appointment of Professor Clare Wright OAM as Chair of the Council of the National Museum of Australia for a three-year term.

Professor Ann McGrath AM, Professor Megan Davis and Ms Janine Freeman have also been appointed as members to the Council for three years. 

The National Museum of Australia is dedicated to safeguarding and sharing Australia’s rich and diverse stories through researching, collecting, preserving and exhibiting the country’s historical material. 

Minister for the Arts, Tony Burke, said the new appointees’ experience would help guide the Museum to deliver on its vision for the future. 

“The National Museum of Australia houses a truly impressive collection of eclectic historical materials which showcase the countless stories and identities that make up our nation.  

“It’s fantastic to welcome Clare as the new Council Chair, as well as Ann, Megan and Janine as members – four extremely distinguished women in their respective fields.

“Their vast depth of shared knowledge ranges from history, sociology, and governance to so much more – all of which will be of great value to the Council.”

Professor Clare Wright OAM has been a member of the Council since October 2022. She is a Professor of History and the inaugural Professor of Public Engagement at La Trobe University. In 2023, she was the Chair of the Statues Advisory Panel, City of Melbourne, a Consultant on History Salons at Government House in Victoria, and a Judge of the Prime Minister’s Literary Awards in the Australian History Category. She was on the National Cultural Policy Expert Advisory Panel in 2022, and co-authored the Vision Statement for Revive - a place for every story, a story for every place. 

In 2020, Professor Wright was awarded an Order of Australia Medal in recognition of her service to literature and to historical research and in 2014 won the Stella Prize for her second book The Forgotten Rebels of Eureka. Professor Wright has worked as a speechwriter, university lecturer, historical consultant, radio and television broadcaster and podcaster.

Professor Ann McGrath AM is the W.K. Hancock Distinguished Professor of History and the Director of the Research Centre for Deep History at the Australian National University (ANU), and holds a Kathleen Fitzpatrick Laureate Fellowship until 2025. At the ANU, she was the founding Director of the Australian Centre for Indigenous History in 2003, and in 2019 she became Director of the Research Centre for Deep History. 

She was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia in 2007 and the John Douglas Kerr Medal for Distinction in Research and Writing Australian History in 2016. In 2018, she was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia for significant service to the social sciences as an academic and researcher in the field of Indigenous history, and to tertiary education. 

Professor Megan Davis is a leading Constitutional Lawyer and public law expert, specialising in Indigenous Peoples and the law, the constitutional recognition of First Nations Peoples and democracy. She is the Pro Vice-Chancellor Society and Balnaves Chair in Constitutional Law at UNSW Sydney. Professor Davis also holds the Harvard University Whitlam and Fraser Chair in Australian Studies and is a Visiting Professor at Harvard Law School. 

Professor Davis is a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Law, the Australian Academy of Social Sciences, and the Australian Academy of the Humanities. She is also Acting Commissioner of the NSW Land and Environment Court and Co-Chair of the Uluru Dialogue. Professor Davis is a Sydney Peace Prize Laureate for the Uluru Statement from the Heart, and was awarded a 2024 PeaceWomen Award by the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom.

Ms Janine Freeman is currently the Independent Chair of Fair Food Western Australia, a Director at the Water Corporation of WA Board, and a Director of the WA Government Employees Superannuation Board. She was elected as a member of the Western Australia House of Assembly seat of Mirrabooka in 2008, and served in the Assembly until retiring from politics in 2021. During that time, she acted as the Speaker of the House and sat on various committees, including as Chair of the Education and Health Standing Committee and a member of the Delegated Legislation Committee.

Ms Freeman brings a 30-year history as a volunteer on boards, including currently on AnglicareWA where she adds her knowledge on governance, accountability and strategy. She was also the Assistant Secretary of UnionsWA representing working people in various forums and running the State Minimum Wage Case. In early 2020, Ms freeman helped deliver the WA Multicultural Policy Framework as a key negotiator and member of the Ministerial Multicultural Advisory Committee.