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Scientist, scholar and award-winning author Lynley Hood
from Dunedin received a Fulbright New Zealand Travel Award in 1985 to
research her biography of New Zealand writer and educational pioneer Sylvia
Ashton-Warner. She now serves as the Otago-Southland Regional Coordinator
for the Fulbright New Zealand Alumni Association, and has been busy organising
unique events for the region’s alumni.
Your first Fulbright exchange to the US was in 1982 with your husband Jim, who was a Fulbrighter then. What impact did that have on you and your family? Jim’s time at the University of Michigan School of Dentistry was
an enriching experience for our whole family (Jim, me and our three young
children). In the course of living, learning, working and touring in the
US over a whole year we made lasting friendships and gained unforgettable
insights into the society, history and culture of the United States. While
living in Ann Arbor I read internationally acclaimed New Zealand writer
and educationalist Sylvia Ashton-Warner’s autobiography. The book
haunted me. Ashton-Warner’s own story of her life was full of gaps
and contradictions and unanswered questions. I became fired with a single-minded
ambition: I wanted to write her biography. What was your own Fulbright exchange in 1985 in aid of, and what did
you achieve? My Fulbright grant enabled me to spend six hectic weeks in the US researching
my biography of Sylvia Ashton-Warner, which was my first book. I conducted
face-to-face interviews with Ashton-Warner’s friends, enemies and
colleagues, and studied documents related to her life and work, in Aspen,
Atlanta, New York, Boston, Orlando, Phoenix and Olive Hill (Kentucky).
I conducted further phone interviews with contacts all over the US. Sylvia!
A Biography of Sylvia Ashton-Warner was published in 1988 and won several
awards including the Goodman Fielder Wattie Book Award (New Zealand’s
premier book award at that time). How important was your Fulbright award at the time? At the time of my Fulbright grant, I was a scientist by training and
a freelance writer by occupation. I had no background in journalism, teaching
or literary studies. Unsurprisingly, my initial applications to New Zealand
funding bodies were declined. But Fulbright New Zealand took a punt on
this unknown upstart. The financial support was vital, but that wasn’t
all. “Someone out there believes in my work enough to help finance
my future,” I wrote excitedly in my diary. It was a huge morale boost. What are you currently working on? I returned to my scientific roots following my husband’s death two
years ago from leukaemia. In his final weeks, Jim suffered the excruciating
pain of shingles. I was dismayed to learn that this relatively common
disorder has received almost no attention from New Zealand’s research
community. I am now researching the incidence and health burden of shingles
in New Zealand as an honorary research fellow at the Webster Centre for
Infectious Diseases at the University of Otago Medical School (shingles
is classified as an infectious disease because it is caused by the chickenpox
virus). My ultimate aim is to improve the outcome for people at risk of
shingles. I’m also planning to write a popular science book on the
disorder. What kind of activities has your Fulbright New Zealand Alumni Association
group been holding, and what have been some of the most positive experiences
for you so far? Because water goes down the plughole the other way and our seasons are reversed in the Southern Hemisphere, the Otago-Southland FNZAA group has put a New Zealand spin on our favourite US holidays. We held our inaugural “Thanksgiving on the Fourth of July” dinner on 4 July, and a Fourth of July-style BBQ for Thanksgiving. These events will be the focus of our ongoing activities. For me the FNZAA has provided a wonderful opportunity to enjoy the stimulating company of interesting people – New Zealanders and Americans – from a wide range of disciplines, and to return the hospitality afforded to our family during our terms as recipients of Fulbright grants.
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