Gardiner Foundation 2025 scholarships: Scarlett Southern

Dairy dollars are helping Scarlett Southern run through her uni studies. And she’s encouraging other farming families to follow her lead.

Being on the front foot and keeping a cracking pace comes naturally to dairy farmer’s daughter Scarlett Southern

The day before her 18th birthday in February, Scarlett packed her bags and left her family’s Leitchville farm to study at Deakin University’s Waurn Ponds campus.

One of eight recipients of a 2025 Gardiner Foundation scholarship, Scarlett is studying a double degree in exercise, sports and nutrition science.

She’s also a state and national level athlete, taking part in several championships nationwide.

“In the one week, I moved to Geelong, got my driving licence, started uni and had the Victorian track and field championships. So it was a hectic start,” she said.

“Nutrition science is a big part of my studies. Growing up on a dairy farm, you understand it’s not just calcium that you get from milk but a range of vitamins and minerals that are important when you’re growing up and then into adulthood and older age.”

Scarlett encouraged other dairy farming families to check out the Gardiner Foundation website and apply for a scholarship in the 2026 round.

“When you’re from a farm, it’s pretty expensive to move out of home and relocate somewhere three or four hours’ drive away. The scholarship really helped with that move and the other expenses at uni.”

Gardiner Foundation scholarship Scarlett Southern grew up on a dairy farm and recently started at Deakin. Photo: Zoe Phillips.

Gardiner Foundation chief executive Allan Cameron said apart from Scarlett, the other 2025 scholars Gardiner scholars are Anna Dickson, Chris Dwyer, Ella Harwood, Georgia Anderson, Ryan Smith, Sage Anderson and Shaye Brown.

“We had a record number of applications this year, which really shows the talent and ambition in Victoria’s dairy regions,” Mr Cameron said.

“In response, we were able to support an extra student, which is a great outcome.

“For 25 years, Gardiner has helped young people from dairy communities get the education they need to build their futures. It’s always rewarding to see them bring their skills back to the industry and their local regions.”