Annual Wynne Costley Research Scholarship explores women, past and present, in New Zealand

Rochelle Lowe (left) and Abigail Sewell from Whanganui High School excelled in the senior category of the annual Wynne Costley Research Scholarship. Photo / Lucy Drake

Girls from Whanganui secondary schools were recently encouraged to submit a piece of academia for the annual Wynne Costley Research Scholarship.

And Whanganui High School students Abigail Sewell and Rochelle Lowe came out on top in the senior section of the literary research competition.

Abigail placed first, receiving $250 and a trophy plus an additional $300 for the most outstanding contribution.

Rochelle was second and received $125 for her piece.

The awards, which started 13 years ago, honour the memory of Wynne Costley who taught English, Latin and French and was head of the English department at Wanganui Girls' College in the 1950s and 1960s.

She was also involved with the National Council of Women and the Whanganui branch remembers her today by using some of the money left from her bequest for the annual scholarship.

Students had to submit a 1500 word essay exploring a specific New Zealand woman or women who had contributed to society, past, present, living or dead.

Abigail said her essay explored women's involvement in World War I.

"Although it gave women the opportunity to show they were capable, it wasn't really much of a push for women's rights," Abigail said.

She discussed the different jobs women held in agriculture, farming, how they formed fundraisers and knitting groups and the nurses who travelled abroad to support soldiers.

"It was inspiring but it was also frustrating how they were proving they were capable and it was ignored as soon as the war was over."

Rochelle focused her essay more on specific women in New Zealand government, such as Kate Sheppard, Elizabeth McCombs and Dame Jenny Shipley.

She said reading historical articles to do her research on the women was challenging at times.

"It was frustrating how you've got these strong women role models advocating their opinions and then you've got these males saying you can't do this."

All students who entered the scholarship had to read their essays aloud in front of the Whanganui branch of the National Council of Women before the winners were decided.

Whanganui High School history teacher Jemma de Smidt said when Abigail read her essay aloud "it came across very strongly that although women had the vote it didn't mean very much for quite a long time".

Both students enjoy studying history and English with Abigail intending to study to become a history teacher.

Rochelle will put her NCEA history credits towards studying a conjoint degree of law and science at Victoria University next year.