Scotch College

Monash champion and 'a man of strength'

Emeritus Professor Peter Darvall.

Emeritus Professor Peter Darvall has rarely stood still. He has surveyed glaciers in Alaska, worked as a site engineer for an archaeological expedition in Egypt, earned a PhD at Princeton, and held leadership positions at Monash University, including one year as Vice-Chancellor and President of the University.

Peter ('58), who retired last August after 33 years at Monash, was described by the university's Chancellor Mr Jerry Ellis as 'a great friend of Monash … a man of wit used kindly, a man of wisdom used wisely [and] a man of strength'.

Peter's year as Vice-Chancellor certainly had its challenges. He agreed to take on the leadership of the university following the sudden resignation of his predecessor, until a longer-term appointment could be made. During the year, he had to cope with the implications of a tragic shooting at the Monash Clayton campus, in which two students were killed and others injured.

'The events surrounding the departure of my predecessor and the shooting brought the university together,' Peter told Great Scot. 'They actually helped to make it stronger, because institutions, like individuals, often show their best in adversity.'

Peter's academic career began in 1970, when he was appointed a Lecturer in Engineering at Monash, having graduated with honours as a Bachelor of Engineering at the University of Melbourne. His post-graduate studies included Master of Science from Ohio State University, Master of Structural Engineering, Master of Arts and Doctor of Philosophy from Princeton University, and Diploma of Education (Tertiary) from Monash.

At Monash, he successively served as Lecturer, Senior Lecturer, Reader and Dean of the Faculty of Engineering. He became Pro Vice-Chancellor in 1993, and was Deputy Vice-Chancellor from 1993 until his appointment as Vice-Chancellor in 2002.

Peter has written four books, edited two other books, and has published over 100 papers on structural engineering, engineering education and higher education. He has held visiting appointments at overseas universities, has served on many Monash academic councils and outside boards, and has acted as a consultant to industry and government.

He has a great devotion to and love for Monash, which reached its 40th birthday in the same year Scotch celebrated its 150th, 2001.

One achievement of which Peter is particularly proud is the renaming of Melbourne's South-Eastern Freeway. 'In 1998, we wrote to then Premier Jeff Kennett, suggesting that the road be renamed 'Monash Freeway',' Peter said. 'This was because the road itself is a good example of reinforced concrete engineering, which John Monash pioneered in Victoria; it starts near the Morell Bridge, for which Monash was a construction engineer during its construction in 1898; it passes Scotch, his old school; it goes through the City of Monash and past Monash University; and it leads to the Latrobe Valley, where he had links as the first Commissioner of the former State Electricity Commission. It was a compelling and successful case, and the freeway was renamed.'

He is also proud of his association with Monash University, and of the university itself. 'Monash people are making a contribution to public life very day,' he recently told the university's journal, Monash Magazine. 'I get a lift every time I see a Monash person on the TV, on the radio or in the papers. That's because I see yet another of my colleagues or former students presenting some expert opinion in the service of the community.'

In retirement, Peter is catching up on projects and hobbies which he had to put aside during his academic days. He now has more time to spend working and relaxing at the family's farm near Flinders on Westernport. Among many other activities, he is on the board of Melbourne Water, and (appropriately) chairs the Victorian panel for the General Sir John Monash Foundation Awards, an Australian equivalent of the Rhodes Scholarships.

Peter said his years at Scotch imbued in him a sense of appreciation of both scientific and humanistic studies, as well as extracurricular activities such as the Cadets, where he was a Company Sergeant. 'Up to the last couple of years at school I thought I'd go on to study law, which has been a tradition in my family, I changed to engineering almost at the last moment. But I've never regretted that decision.'

David Ashton