Scholarships support

Left to right: Minh Ngoc Nhat Huynh, Dr Roger Riordan, Ezana Gessese

Report: Laura A’Bell

In 1983 Dr Roger Riordan AM decided that if he were ever in a position to do so he would try to change thinking in Australia from an emphasis on sporting prowess to an emphasis on academic success. Keeping true to his word, the generosity of this inspirational and modest man is quietly helping educate students at Monash University.

During 1989 whilst lecturing at Chisholm Institute of Technology (now the Caulfield campus of Monash University) Dr Riordan wrote an antiviral software program to rid the Institute’s computers of the Stoned virus. He later expanded this software program through his company Cybec, calling it VET, and sold it as shareware so computer owners could disinfect their home computers.

In 1995 when Cybec first became profitable, the Cybec Board resolved to set aside 10 per cent of the company’s profits to endow scholarships.  Four years later Dr Riordan retired. He sold Cybec giving about half of the proceeds to Cybec staff with the remainder set aside for charitable purposes. In 2002 Dr Riordan and his wife Pat set up the Cybec Foundation.

The Foundation supports a wide range of philanthropic causes including education, the arts, the environment and social welfare. In 2005, in response to the way the government was treating refugees, the Foundation set up two Newcomer's scholarships.

“The aim of our Foundation is to help young people achieve their capabilities,” said Dr Riordan.

“It’s better to give money away while I’m alive. I can see the joy and pleasure people get from the benefits.”

One of the first beneficiaries of the Foundation was Ezana Gessese, a son of Ethiopian refugees, who received a Cybec scholarship to attend St Leonard’s College in East Brighton followed by Monash University, where he is undertaking a Bachelor of Science.

Recently the Cybec Foundation supported a Monash Faculty of Information Technology student to go on an international exchange as part of the Monash Undergraduate Research Projects Abroad program (MURPA).

MURPA is a unique program that enables third year students to undertake research projects at US universities under the guidance of international experts in both computational thinking and the sciences.

While on his exchange Minh Ngoc Nhat Huynh developed his knowledge of cluster and cloud computing and is furthering this research by undertaking an Honours degree with the Faculty.