It provides widely supported immediate policy changes and contains many detailed policy proposals being debated and engaged with by various players and parts of the Australian higher education system.

It invites the sector to embrace long term experimentation and change with pointers to how changes in the future of work, stresses in the current model, and forthcoming technological change and a dynamic global geo-political landscape, require more differentiated future institutions with mission-based or intentional approaches to providing learning.

One could argue that there are major flaws with our current system and institutions, that require change in how universities operate.

These flaws are that graduates lack the skills for a fast-changing future of work in a complex world.

They are that study is too expensive and does not represent good value for money.

They are that study is long and difficult to complete, partly because of bad experiences. And they extend to access to completable study being inequitable for different groups in society.

Some of these flaws may be easier for universities to respond to by starting from scratch than by tweaking existing models.

Many employers are looking to alternatives to degree level education among their workforces as the only means of meeting their skills needs.

This is because of a combination of dissatisfaction with the product of many current educational programs and the realisation that the accelerating rate of technological and societal change means the skills needed for a future of work require greater flexibility and continuous updating.

The US student debt crisis, which is starting to be felt elsewhere, and the challenges of the growing costs of university study are also at play in the short term.

This lies alongside the growing realisation of long-term population declines, beyond short term demographic trends, caused by falling global birth rates.

The same phenomena are why international onshore student numbers and available graduate work forces, may not continue to grow or be maintained in the long term.

This is all added to by increasing data and other evidence that many learners are not enjoying the student experience or the support they are provided.

They are increasingly not attending campuses or completing studies, and some institutions are not doing enough to counter that.

There is evidence that short-term global softness in domestic university demand will not recover.

The US is ahead of the curve in declining total student numbers, increased attractiveness of online study, and learners and employers looking to alternatives to full degrees for school-leavers, and postgraduate degrees for mature learners.

These go beyond shorter and more continuous lifelong learning.

In the increases in softness in demand, there is a growing gap in this being more pronounced among time poor equity groups, than within more affluent and advantaged parts of societies.

Our system, the student experience, and the whole sector can be argued to be inequitable, unfit for purpose, outdated, and in urgent need of change.

There are few and scarce examples of how we could intentionally get to a different university model for the future by starting again and creating wholly new, differentiated, student focussed, globally relevant learning providers.

These would be intentional and driven by metrics of student engagement, completion rates and of what graduates go on to achieve in leadership and future study.

These go beyond immediate graduate employment rates and starting salaries.

Our measures of suitability for a changing future might be better served by status in innovation than historical reputation in research rankings and prestige.

One such innovator is the not-for-profit private provider Minerva University, which has been on the journey to build a different type of university that is intentionally global. 

After 10 years of helping students from 100 countries learn in a rotation in 7 global cities in North and South America, Europe and Asia, Minerva was named the world's most innovative university for the second year running by the World Universities with Real Impact rankings.

It does so with no campuses or owned buildings, no lab-based or funded research beyond the scholarship of teaching and learning, and no facilities or investments of resources of any kind that do not focus on the student experience.

It teaches global students to become leaders with cities as places of learning, and educational technology as a key enabler.

A university experience that is truly global, and skills focussed on foundational knowledge, inter-personal skills and inter-cultural competence and teamwork, is intentionally aimed at the future skills needs of global leaders.

The benefits of starting from scratch in responding to these existential challenges of global higher education has significant advantages over seeking to change a current model.

This is a model widespread among providers with legacy leadership, administration, curricula, processes, facilities, infrastructure and ancillary operations and activities.

The principles of taking learners from around the world to the most stimulating and dynamic global places to learn, through immersion in cities and their economies and culture, is unique.

Using advanced learning pedagogies and educational technology platforms to make that possible, is novel.

The combination is almost impossible for an existing legacy institution to emulate.

Any national higher education system undergoing review and strategizing a new vision for the future needs to look to such global exemplars of innovation and new ways of doing things for inspiration.

I discussed how Minerva presents that opportunity and is being studied and referenced as an educational innovation by leaders from around the world, in a recent episode of the HEDx podcast you can listen to here.

Graciela Metternicht has joined WSU as its new Dean of the School of Science.

Born and raised in Argentina, Metternicht will head west from UNSW Sydney where she is currently professor of Environmental Geography in the School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences.
Her research interests include environmental geography, with a focus on geospatial technologies and their application in environmental management and policy.

Metternicht said it is an exciting time to be joining WSU, particularly since it was named world’s best for sustainable development in the latest THE University Impact Rankings.

“WSU is uniquely positioned to create enduring impact at regional, national and international levels through its world-leading education, research and engagement with industry and community,” Metternicht said.

INDIGENOUS FOCUS AT TORRENS

Torrens has created two Indigenous-focus roles in its Health Sciences team.

Lesli Kirwan has been appointed Senior Learning Facilitator – First Nations Curriculum, and Ren Perkins as Learning Facilitator – First Nations Curriculum.

“These identified academic roles are the first of their kind at our university and an exciting step towards our Reconciliation Action Plan,” said Rochelle Morris, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Liaison Officer.

Kirwan, a proud Ngarabal Yugambal woman from the far north of NSW, said “engaging two Aboriginal academic staff in the health vertical to share knowledge and culture with staff and students is an exceptional move in the right direction”.

Perkins is a Quandamooka man with connections to the Wakka Wakka Nation, and has worked in Indigenous education for over two decades.

“I am most looking forward to working with the team at Torrens University to help promote the university as a place which embraces and celebrates Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures,” Perkins said.

SWINBURNE DOUBLES DOWN

After acting in their roles for several months Swinburne has now appointed Jim Ogloff AM (left) as Dean of the School of Health Sciences, and James Verdon as Dean of the School of Social Sciences, Media, Film and Education.

Ogloff has more than 35 years’ experience in clinical and academic positions and is Distinguished Professor of Forensic Behavioural Science and Director of the Centre for Forensic Behavioural Science at Swinburne.

“I am honoured to have been appointed as Dean to help lead the health expansion strategy and to realise the goals in the Horizon 2025 strategy,” Ogloff said.

Verdon has been at Swinburne since 1997, during which time he has held the positions of program coordinator of VET offerings in Screen and Media, course director of the Bachelor of Film and Television, and most recently, chair of Swinburne’s Department of Film, Games and Animation.

“I am energised and excited by the opportunity as Dean to lead a School firmly committed to fostering and supporting sustainable, just and creative futures through genuine innovation in our teaching, research and engagement,” Verdon said.

NEW DEPUTY VC AT MACQUARIE

Professor Rorden Wilkinson is Macquarie University’s new Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic).

The international trade, global governance and international development expert joins Macquarie from UNSW, where he is Pro Vice-Chancellor, Education & Student Experience and Professor of International Political Economy.

Wilkinson is a passionate advocate for increased access to higher education and a champion of the role universities play in transforming lives.

Macquarie’s VC and President Bruce Dowton added that Wilkinson’s “skill set and experience closely aligns with Macquarie’s goals of truly putting students first”.

Former UniMelb VC Glynn Davis has taken on the position of secretary of the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet.

Most recently the CEO of the Paul Ramsay Foundation, Davis has spent time at the head of Griffith University in addition to his 14 years at UniMelb.

Universities Australia President Catriona Jackson said: “As we emerge from challenging times, we look forward to working with Professor Davis to deliver the productivity gains that highly-skilled people and technological and social advances provide to the economy.”

CURTIN’S SUSTAINABLE FUTURE

Curtin University has appointed its first Dean of Sustainable Futures in its department of humanities.

Environmental scientist, researcher and author Professor Josh Byrne has a long-standing relationship with Curtin and is a regular presenter on ABC TV’s Gardening Australia program.

Since completing his PhD Byrne has run nationwide research projects with Curtin and the Cooperative Research Centre for Low Carbon Living.

Byrne said “Curtin has an excellent reputation in sustainability across research, teaching and outreach,” and added he was “honoured” to return to the university and take up the new role.

UOW DEAN OF MEDICINE

Prominent neonatologist and academic Professor Zsuzsoka Kecskes is UOW’s new Dean of Graduate Medicine.

Kecskes comes to the role from ANU where she served as Dean of its medical school.

“As a leader for Medicine at ANU for a few years I have worked with colleagues from UOW and have been impressed by their passion and dedication to medical education and research,” Professor Kecskes said.

She takes up the role in August.

GREEN CHAIR AT UOW

John Green has been appointed Chair of the UOW Global Enterprises Board.

Green is a company director, publisher and writer who has published five crime-thriller novels. He has previously worked in investment banking and law and is a noted philanthropist focused on literacy, education and the arts.

“I am excited to join the UOWGE Board as chair. Education is an important rung in the ladder of opportunity,” Green said.

“What UOWGE does to make higher education accessible to so many people across the globe is awe-inspiring.”

ANOTHER FIRST FOR CURTAIN

Yindjibarndi woman Mandy Downing has been appointed Curtin’s first Dean of Indigenous Futures in the Faculty of Humanities.

Downing was raised on Wadjuk Noongar Boodjar and has worked in various research management and institutional governance roles at Curtin for 10 years.

This year she was appointed the co-chair of the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies National Research Ethics Committee.

“I’m grateful to be part of a faculty that values Indigenous knowledge in education and research, and I look forward to building upon the existing foundations,” she said.

HOLMES OFF TO HARVARD

La Trobe’s Professor Katie Holmes has been appointed by Harvard University as the Gough Whitlam and Malcolm Fraser Visiting Professor of Australian Studies for the 2023–24 academic year.

The internationally renowned environmental historian and humanities scholar said: “I’m very honoured to have been given this wonderful opportunity to represent Australia in a global academic role and introduce Harvard students to Australia’s long and dramatic environmental history.

“I’m also looking forward to working with some of Harvard’s leading scholars to mutually enhance our understanding of our unique environmental legacies.”

Professor Aron O’Cass is the new Dean of La Trobe University’s Business School.

The world-renowned expert in marketing strategy, innovation and new product development, brand management and data analysis was previously head of the department of marketing at Macquarie University.

“I look forward to joining La Trobe and working at a university with such a vibrant culture and impactful strategic goals and values," O'Cass said.

“I am very positive about the Business School’s future as both a provider of high quality business education and research.”

CHIEF MARKETER STEPS UP
Also at La Trobe, Natalie Ellisdon has taken on the chief marketing officer position.

She steps up from the interim CMO role at La Trobe which she has held since March 2021 and brings senior leadership experience gained in the higher education, financial services and health sectors.

Ellisdon said she was “very excited to be a part of the La Trobe team”, adding “my experience leading transformations and implementing innovation in marketing and brand strategy that utilise insights and technology will support delivery of the university’s goals and commercial outcomes”.

INDIGENOUS FOCUS AT SWINBURNE

Swinburne University of Technology has appointed Professor John Evans as its inaugural Pro Vice-Chancellor Indigenous Engagement.

This newly created position will drive Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander nation-building agendas at Swinburne to embed knowledges across research, teaching and learning, student services and employment.

“I am looking forward to establishing and further strengthening relationships with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities and organisations, industry, higher education, vocational education, and governments to continue Swinburne’s national leadership,” Evans said.

FIRST FOR ACU
ACU has strengthened its commitment to improving opportunities for the defence community in higher education by appointing Andrew Condon as its first Industry Professor Veterans and Their Families.

“I am very excited to be joining ACU in this role given my interest and passion in ensuring veterans and their families successfully transition from a life in defence with dignity to being contributing and valued members of a flourishing society,” Mr Condon said.

Condon’s 27-year Australian Army career included active service in Iraq and several civil secondments.

CURTIN OPENS FOR MORONEY
Decorated registered nurse Professor Tracey Moroney is the new head of the Curtin School of Nursing.

Moroney has worked in higher education for the past 21 years and was most recently deputy dean of the Faculty of Science, Medicine and Health at the University of Wollongong.

“I am committed to the development of exceptional nurses who will lead the future workforce and be responsible for a more equitable and healthier future, and I’m so excited to be joining Curtin’s team,” Moroney said.

She takes over from John Curtin Distinguished Professor Phillip Della, who is retiring after 14 years at Curtin.

NEW VISION AT CDU

Charles Darwin University has appointed Karen Francis as the new Dean of its College of Nursing and Midwifery.

Francis, who has held senior leadership and research roles at JCU, Monash and ACU among others, said: “CDU’s new vision, position and initiatives will be really exciting for the NT and have a flow-on effect for the rest of Australia.

“Without nurses, there isn’t much of a health workforce based remotely. We need to work to improve the equity of access to healthcare for remote Territorians,” Francis added.

Former Nationals deputy leader Fiona Nash has been appointed Australia’s first Regional Education Commissioner.

A senator for NSW between 2004 and 2017, Nash will be tasked with overseeing the implementation of the strategy to improve regional, rural and remote tertiary education.

Since leaving politics, Nash has been the strategic adviser for regional engagement and government relations at Charles Sturt University, and this year became a director of the New South Wales Skills Board.

The role was formed as a recommendation of the Napthine Review.

“The Napthine Review identified country Australians are less than half as likely to obtain a university degree by the age of 35, compared to those in our cities,” Nash said.

MURDOCH DEEKS INTO THE FUTURE

Murdoch University has announced Professor Andrew Deeks as its new vice chancellor.

Deeks comes to Murdoch from University College Dublin, where he has served as president since 2014. He was the first Australian to lead an Irish university.

He replaces former VC Eeva Leinonen, who heads the opposite way to take up the role of president of the National University of Ireland, Maynooth.

Former Deakin VC and UWA interim VC Jane den Hollander will act as Interim vice chancellor until April.

SHERGOLD RETIRES

Professor Peter Shergold AC has announced that he will retire from his role as the Chancellor of Western Sydney University at the end of his term on 31 December 2022.

Shergold has served as WSU Chancellor for 12 years over three consecutive terms since his appointment in 2011.
WSU vice chancellor and president, Professor Barney Glover AO, thanked Shergold for his exemplary leadership of the university’s Board of Trustees.

“Professor Shergold’s decades of knowledge and wealth of experience have been indispensable,” Glover said.

“He has been one of the strongest and most passionate advocates for this university, our students, and the transformational power of higher education, as well as for the Western Sydney region and its diverse and vibrant communities.”

TORRENS TURNS TO VARGHESE

Torrens University has appointed Jim Varghese as its second chancellor.

Varghese will succeed Michael Mann who has been chancellor since the university’s inception in 2011, after successfully managing and overseeing the application for the university’s title.

Varghese comes to Torrens with a wealth of experience in both the public and private sector and Mann said that he is “proud” to be handing him the reins.

“Jim is a highly effective, respected and successful leader in both the private sector and public institutions.

“His reputation in the higher education sector is impeccable, with a commitment to the highest standards of governance, transparency, equity and stakeholder management.”

OUM NAMES NEW VC

Professor Frederick Anthony “Hugh” Bartholomeusz has been appointed vice chancellor at the Oceania University of Medicine.

He is a retired Air Vice-Marshal and former Surgeon General of the Australian Defence Force Reserves, as well as a military health practitioner and plastic surgeon.

Bartholomeusz joined OUM in 2020 as Dean of Health in 2020 and was promoted to Deputy Vice Chancellor (Clinical) in April 2021.

(HAP)GOOD FOR SWINBURNE

Deakin University’s Professor Karen Hapgood has been appointed Deputy Vice-Chancellor for Research at Swinburne University.

Hapgood has been at Deakin since 2017, when she head of the School of Engineering, before taking the role of executive Dean of the Faculty of Science, Engineering and Built Environment in July 2018.

Hapgood starts her new role in March.

Professor Joe Chicharo OM has announced his retirement after nearly four decades at the University of Wollongong.

Chicharo joined UOW in 1985 after a decade in the Illawarra steel industry as a trainee and then engineer.

He started as a lecturer in the then School of Electrical, Computer and Telecommunications Engineering, before holding several roles throughout his tenure, ending with his appointment as senior deputy vice chancellor in 2019.

“I am sad to be leaving the institution that has always been at the epicentre of my professional life, however, at the same time, I am looking forward to retirement,” Chicharo said.

CDU HONOURS ELDER

Respected elder and scholar Dr Otto Bulmaniya Campion (Gamarrang) has been awarded an honorary doctorate by Charles Darwin University.

Bulmaniya is a traditional owner of Malnyangarnak with strong family connections across Arnhem Land.

He is also a respected community leader, directing the Arafura Swamp Ranger Aboriginal Corporation and is one of the founding members of the Aboriginal Research Practitioners Network – hosted by CDU’s Research Institute for the Environment and Livelihoods.

“The recognition can help me move forward and work with more people in the community to find ways to get traditional owners connected with education, training and research,” Bulmaniya said.

RMIT PEGS O’NEAL

Peggy O’Neal AO will become RMIT’s new chancellor, replacing Dr Ziggy Switkowski AO.

O’Neal comes to the role after a long period as the president of AFL team Richmond, where she served since 2013.

“As a first in family university graduate, education has been life-changing for me and I look forward to contributing to RMIT in the years ahead as, like all of Australia, it moves to reinvigorate our communities in a post-pandemic environment,” she said.

O’Neal will assume the role from 1 January 2022. Janet Latchford, currently RMIT’s deputy chancellor, will act as chancellor until January.

USC APPOINTS PARSONS

Professor Stuart Parsons has been appointed dean of USC Australia’s School of Science, Technology and Engineering.

The leading zoologist, renowned globally for his research into bat acoustics, joins USC from QUT where he is currently Head of the School of Biology and Environment Science in Brisbane.

USC vice chancellor Professor Helen Bartlett said: “The dean of USC’s School of Science, Technology and Engineering is a new position that will support our strategic goals to drive student growth, build community partnerships and support the continued development of the university’s international reputation.”

RYAN JOINS ACU

Professor Mary Ryan will take up the role of executive dean of education and arts at Australian Catholic University, starting February 2022.

Ryan, the chair of the Education Research Council for Australian Independent Schools NSW, joins ACU from Macquarie University where she held the role of dean of education.

“I am looking forward to joining ACU’s new leadership team in shaping its exciting next phase. I am passionate about the role higher education plays in shaping a better future and this is particularly significant for disciplines across education and arts,” she said.

FIVE MORE FOR ZELINSKY

Professor Alex Zelinsky AO has renewed his contract with the University of Newcastle, meaning he will remain vice chancellor until at least 2026.

Zelinsky, formerly Australia’s Chief Defence Scientist and leader of Defence Science and Technology within the Department of Defence, is Newcastle’s eighth VC, taking the role in 2018.

“I remain fully committed to delivering an outstanding experience for our students and to continue to serve a region blazing a trail in innovation, technological advancement and research commercialisation,” he said.

Professor Sue Bennett is the University of Wollongong’s new executive dean of the Faculty of the Arts, Social Sciences and Humanities.

Bennett has been acting executive dean since May this year, and brings nearly 30 years’ experience in teaching, research and academic leadership in education, technology and the humanities.

UOW vice-chancellor Professor Patricia Davidson said Bennett was the right person at the right time for the university.

“With her impressive track record in teaching and academic leadership, combined with her research in the field of technology enhanced learning, Professor Bennett’s insights into the needs of today’s ‘digital natives’ and the importance of digital inclusion makes her the perfect choice for this role.”

MEREDITH STEPS UP

Flinders University has appointed Associate Professor Maree Meredith director of Poche SA+NT – an Aboriginal-led centre focused on improving health outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

Meredith, a Bidjara woman, joined Flinders in 2012 as an academic and student, and has been acting director of Poche SA+NT since August 2019.

She said the appointment “demonstrates a commitment to growing grassroots leadership at Flinders as I was the first Poche PhD graduate and now as the director, I can help to grow the next generation of leaders and scholars”.

FIRST NATIONS FOCUS

Charles Darwin University has appointed Professor Reuben Bolt as deputy vice-chancellor First Nations Leadership.

CDU becomes just the third Australian university to make such an appointment.

Bolt, a proud Yuin/Wandandian and Ngarigo man, joined CDU in January 2020 as the Pro Vice-Chancellor Indigenous Leadership and Regional Outreach.

“This appointment is significant for the country, and it tells the community that the university is serious about addressing issues that First Nations people experience around unemployment and addresses the lack of representation of First Nations peoples in senior leadership roles,” Bolt said.

BISHOP BACKS UP

ANU has voted to reappoint the Hon Julie Bishop as chancellor for a second four-year term, commencing in 2023.

“It is a privilege for ANU to have as its chancellor one of the nation’s most eminent leaders in Julie Bishop,” said vice chancellor Brian Schmidt.

“She has raised the university’s profile domestically and abroad, and has further extended the university’s global connections through a tireless program of engagement and advocacy, hindered, but not deterred, by the pandemic.”

Bishop is ANU’s first female chancellor, and was appointed to the role in August 2019, before beginning her first term on 1 January 2020.

NEW DEPUTY VC AT UOW

UOW has appointed Warwick Shanks as deputy chancellor, taking over from Dr Elizabeth Magassy who has held the position since 2017.

He was appointed to the UOW Council by the NSW Education Minister in 2018, and will serve alongside fellow deputy chancellor, Robert Ryan.

Shanks brings over 30 years’ experience in corporate governance, audit and risk management.

CHESWORTH NEW UA DEPUTY

Universities Australia has appointed Peter Chesworth as its new deputy chief executive, succeeding Anne-Marie Lansdown who retired in November.

UA chief executive Catriona Jackson said Chesworth’s policy expertise and wealth of experience in the public sector made him ideally qualified for the role.

“Peter has had a long and distinguished public service career, culminating in his most recent role with the Department of Defence,” she said.

“Peter brings a deep understanding of the operation of government and parliamentary processes, as well as broad policy experience and knowledge.”

In the role Lawrence, a proud Nyungar (Whadjuk and Ballardong) man, will help extend cultural understanding and open up career pathways for Indigenous students.

“Professor Lawrence has had tremendous success in developing programs that embed Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander culture and knowledge into the teaching of subjects across engineering and information technology, and we look forward to seeing that success continue at Curtin,” said pro vice-chancellor Science and Engineering, Professor Mark Ogden.

FLINDERS’ NEW DEPUTY VC

Professor Romy Lawson will take up the position of deputy vice-chancellor (Students) at Flinders University, beginning 10 January next year.

Lawson, who is currently interim vice-chancellor at Murdoch University, said she was “incredibly impressed by Flinders’ commitment to education as evidenced by its 2019 decision to invest an extra $100m a year to uplift teaching and learning – it’s the mark of a university that cares as deeply about student learning and the student experience as I do”.

Flinders University’s president and vice-chancellor Professor Colin Stirling said: “Professor Lawson is ideally equipped to take Flinders’ student-centred ethos to the next level.”

STREAMING FOR SUCCESS

Founder of video streaming service Kanopy, Olivia Humphrey, is taking up a new adjunct professor appointment with Curtin University’s Faculty of Business and Law.

In the role Humphrey will act as ambassador for Curtin’s entrepreneurship activities, and contribute to student and staff learning and research programs.

“I am thrilled and honoured to be able to work with the bright young minds at Curtin University to help nurture the bold ideas that may turn into the next great start-up of the future,” she said.

GOLDSWORTHY STEPS UP

Edith Cowan University’s deputy chancellor Denise Goldsworthy will become its fifth chancellor as of January 2022.

Goldsworthy has served on the council since 2013, and previously held leadership roles with Rio Tinto and BHP.

“I consider myself very fortunate to have been part of the evolution of ECU over the last eight years, and it is a real privilege to step up when ECU is in an exciting position," she said.

ALICI ACTING NO LONGER

The University of Wollongong has appointed Senior Professor Gursel Alici as executive dean of the Faculty of Engineering and Information Sciences, a role he has been acting in since June.

A graduate of Oxford University, Alici joined UOW in 2004 and has served as head of the University’s School of Mechanical, Materials, Mechatronic and Biomedical Engineering since 2011.

“Senior Professor Alici has been an effective academic leader within the Faculty for many years and is well-placed to take the reins at this crucial time for STEM disciplines,” said UOW vice chancellor, Professor Patricia Davidson.

SPARKS IN CANBERRA

Professor Emma Sparks has been appointed UNSW Canberra’s incoming Dean and Rector, as of January next year.
Sparks, a systems engineer with 20 years’ experience working across the higher education and defence sectors, is currently at Cranfield University in the UK.

“UNSW Canberra is leading the way not just in defence research, but also in areas such as bushfire dynamics, healthcare policy and gender equality,” Sparks said.

“I look forward as Dean and Rector to further fostering an environment where more ground-breaking discoveries emerge to help industry and government.”

University of Wollongong Senior Professor Simon Ville will take up the Australian Studies Chair at Harvard University for the 2022–23 academic year.

Ville said he was thrilled to learn he would take up the Chair, which has previously been held by, among others, Tim Flannery, Paul Kelly, Mick Dodson and Alison Bashford.

“I am delighted to be offered this very special career opportunity and equally pleased for what it means for the University of Wollongong,” he said.

“Spending a year at Harvard will enable me to understand more about our historic, as well as contemporary, relationship with America and to spread the message about how Australia fits into American perspectives.”

NEW VC AT RMIT

Following a global recruitment process Professor Alec Cameron has been announced as the new vice-chancellor and president of RMIT from early 2022.

He is currently vice-chancellor and chief executive at Aston University in the UK, a position he has held since 2016.
RMIT Chancellor Ziggy Switkowski said Cameron was a “perfect fit for RMIT’s needs and ambitions”.

“We expect he will work with the leadership team, staff and students at RMIT to deliver an enhanced education experience for our nearly 100,000 students in Australia and internationally,” Switkowski said.

ECU APPOINTS NEW EXECS

Professor Karen Strickland has been appointed Executive Dean of the School of Nursing and Midwifery at ECU.
She joins ECU from the University of Canberra where she is head of the School of Nursing Midwifery and Public Health.
Strickland is an experienced academic leader who has previously worked in the National Health Service (NHS), higher education and non-profit sectors in the UK and Australia.

Meanwhile, Professor Matthew Allen has been appointed Executive Dean of the School of Arts and Humanities.
Allen is currently an Adjunct Professor with the Institute for Social Change at the University of Tasmania and was previously head of the School of Communications and Creative Arts, and Professor of Internet Studies, at Deakin.
“ECU has gained two academic leaders with a wealth of experience that will be invaluable as ECU charts the course beyond our current Strategic Plan 2017-2021,” ECU vice chancellor Professor Steve Chapman said.

LEON NEW CSU VC

Renée Leon has been appointed as the fifth vice chancellor at Charles Sturt University.

Leon said she is honoured to lead Australia’s leading regional university.

“Regional universities contribute hugely to regional development and sustainability, and it is exciting to join Charles Sturt University at a time when regional Australia is growing and evolving.”

She has extensive experience in Commonwealth and State public administration, covering policy, program management and service delivery, and holds a Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Laws from ANU and a Master of Laws from the University of Cambridge.

REEF PIONEER RECOGNISED

SCU has honoured an internationally recognised leader in coral reproductive ecology and restoration with its highest academic honour. Peter Harrison will take on the title Distinguished Professor in recognition of his more than 40 years as a leading coral researcher on Australia’s Great Barrier Reef and other reef regions around the world.

“I look forward to building on the successes so far for the University and the Great Barrier Reef to ensure the legacy is enduring,” Harrison said.

“There are a lot of new and exciting projects and important research by research students and staff in my team, and we are constantly evolving the restoration techniques to be more successful for future larger scale reef trials.”

Professor Ross Young has joined USC as its new deputy vice-chancellor (Research and Innovation).
Young was previously the executive dean of the Faculty of Health at QUT.

He said he was keen to amplify the impact of USC’s key research in areas like forestry, oceans, human heath, sports science and sustainability.

One of the factors in him joining USC was its “eagerness to partner with industry and the community that we serve to create opportunities”.

“USC has really embraced this. It resonates with my values and is something that we must continue to advance.”

WEBB RUNS BACK

Alec Webb has been appointed the new executive director of the Regional Universities Network.

Webb is a graduate of QUT, ANU and UQ and comes to the position with extensive higher education experience, most recently as the head of policy and member engagement at London Higher.

“As someone who was schooled in regional Australia, I have a personal understanding of the importance of regional education, and the pivotal role regional universities have in their communities, and to the broader Australian economy and higher education landscape,” Webb said.

NEW EXECS AT UOW

The University of Wollongong (UOW) has appointed professor David Currow to the new portfolio of deputy vice-chancellor (Health and Sustainable Futures).

Currow has held senior positions as the foundation CEO of Cancer Australia and is currently the chief cancer officer and the chief executive officer of the Cancer Institute, NSW. He is also a former president of the Clinical Oncological Society of Australia.

“I look forward to realising the great opportunities and vision that will come from working with industry, government, and the people living in the Illawarra and beyond,” Currow said. He will join UOW in November.

Currow will follow professor Eileen McLaughlin who arrives at UOW from Western Sydney University in the role of executive dean, Science, Medicine and Health in September.

The reproductive and developmental biologist said she was “very pleased to be joining a community of world-class researchers and teachers in STEM and health … to support the education, employability, and wellbeing of people in the Illawarra and beyond”.

McLaughlin was previously executive dean, Science and Technology at the University of Canberra, and director of the School of Biological Sciences at University of Auckland.

CURTIN OPENS FOR MAGUIRE

Respiratory medicine physician and regional and remote health services researcher, Professor Graeme Maguire, has been appointed associate dean of Medicine at Curtin University.

“The school’s innovative undergraduate program and strong links with our community will ensure we are well positioned to provide the next generation of doctors for Western Australia and our region,” Maguire said.

Maguire comes to the role from Western Health in Melbourne where he was the head of General Internal Medicine.

CDU MAKES WRONSKI CALL

Charles Darwin University has appointed Emeritus Professor Ian Wronski AO to the newly created position of deputy vice-chancellor Northern Australia Medical and Health Development.

Wronski will be responsible for developing ways for CDU to take a bigger role in meeting the Territory’s health and medical workforce needs.

“In the Territory, the health system is strangulated by a lack of workforce supply … If you don’t build health workforce capacity it means that the health system can’t grow in size and quality,” he said.

Professor Wronski has 40 years’ experience in regional health and was previously deputy vice-chancellor of the Division of Tropical Health and Medicine at James Cook University.