The Faculty of Business and Economics acknowledges the passing of Professor Carl Boris Schedvin on Monday, July 15, 2024, at the age of 88.
Professor Schedvin received his Bachelor of Economics and PhD from the University of Sydney and was appointed as Professor in the University of Melbourne’s Department of Economic History in 1979. His research streams spanned Australian and international economic history in the 20th century, particularly during the Great Depression, WWI and WWII.
During his time as Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic Management) from 1991 to 2000, he championed the reform of academic units and improved academic performance across the University. He played a key leadership role in the early development of the Bio21 Molecular Science and Biotechnology Institute and was integral to the incorporation of former Colleges of Advanced Education, the Victorian College of the Arts, and Victorian College of Agriculture and Horticulture into the University.
Professor Schedvin was an exceptional scholar who provided outstanding service and leadership to the University. He served as an agent of change with a reputation for being both highly respected and respectful to all and was conferred by the University with the degree of Doctor of Commerce Honoris Causa in 2001.
Alongside his appointments at the University of Melbourne, he also held positions in economic history at the University of Sydney, London School of Economics and Monash University.
Professor Schedvin was co-editor of the Australian Economic History Review (now Asia-Pacific Economic History Review) between 1966 and 1972, served on the editorial boards of Business History and Historical Studies, and was President of the Economic History Society of Australia and New Zealand from 1986 to 1992. He became a Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences (FASSA) in 1987.
He held various external positions such as Official War Historian, CSIRO Historian, Member of the Reserve Bank of Australia Bicentennial Advisory Panel, and Official Historian of the Reserve Bank of Australia.
Many of Professor Schedvin’s books and journal articles are available in the University’s libraries, including Australia and the Great Depression (1970), War Economy 1942-45 (1977), Shaping Science and Industry: A History of Australia's Council for Scientific and Industrial Research 1926-49 (1987), Australian Financiers (1988), and In Reserve: Central Banking in Australia, 1945-75 (1992).
The Faculty of Business and Economics would like to extend its sincerest sympathies to Boris’ children, Sven and Natasha. Professor Schedvin will be remembered as a dear colleague, a dedicated educator and an eminent Australian economic historian.