It is with great pleasure the Association honours Frank Scrimgeour with the award of Life Membership of the New Zealand Association of Economists.
From his farming origins in Golden Bay, Frank commenced his academic career at Lincoln University where he gained First Class Honours and was awarded the Sir Malcolm Burns Prize for outstanding student contributions to Lincoln College. This dedication to wider communities was to become a hallmark of Frank’s subsequent career. He went on to complete a PhD at the University of Hawaii. Many may not know he also holds a Bachelor of Divinity from the Melbourne College of Divinity.
His professional career began at the Meat and Wool Boards’ Economic Service, but this was soon followed by over five years in development work with the Christian Leaders’ Training College in Mt Hagen, Papua New Guinea.
Frank has spent more than two decades at the University of Waikato, first as an active member of the Economics Department, then Chair of several departments and finally as current Dean of the Waikato Management School. In addition to a heavy administrative load, he has maintained his highly productive career as an economist publishing widely in international journals and generating an extensive number of research papers, conference proceedings and consulting reports.
In making this award we wish to honour Frank for his service to the profession, the academic community, the wider New Zealand community and the Association, in particular. His contribution to all of these groups has been outstanding.
Notably Frank has
- Provided numerous acts of high quality service to the Association. He has frequently refereed journal articles of New Zealand Economic Papers, and he has undertaken many functions on behalf of the Association.
- Played a major role in the leadership of the Association serving as a Councillor (1998-2005), Editor (1998-2001), Vice President (2005-2007) and President (2007-2009). In addition he served as President of the New Zealand Agricultural Economics Society (1993-94 and 2004-05) and as a Councillor of the Australian Agricultural and Resource Economics Society (1992 and 2003-05).
- Chaired the largest economics gathering ever held in New Zealand – the 2008 NZAE/ESAM Conference in honour of AW Phillips.
- Contributed to the broader community through his church, and as a member of the Trust Board of World Vision.
In all these endeavours he has shown genuine human understanding, concern for the
wellbeing of others, always tempered with a quiet sense of humility.
The Association honours Frank for his broad economic citizenship and has pleasure in
awarding him Life Membership of the Association.