On the Move | November 2016

PhD researches FOOTBALL, and plays it A PhD student from the Monash Biomedicine Discovery Institute, whose work could benefit football players, has been selected to play for Carlton in the first AFL Women’s League draft. Kate Gillespie-Jones was picked 14th among the 145 women chosen by the eight clubs in the historic draft held recently in Sydney. Her PhD study is focused on traumatic brain injury caused by blows to the head in car accidents or on the sporting field. Gillespie-Jones said she hopes to keep up her research while training, playing and travelling for games, but may consider part-time research during the season.
USQ names interim VC John Dornbusch, chancellor of the University of Southern Queensland, announced that professor Janet Verbyla will be USQ interim vice-chancellor following the resignation of Jan Thomas. Prior to commencing in her present role as senior deputy vice-chancellor, Verbyla held a range of roles at USQ, including dean of faculty of sciences, pro-vice-chancellor (student management), and acting deputy vice-chancellor (global learning). Verbyla previously held multiple senior roles at Flinders University. Her background is in software and information engineering. She will be acting vice-chancellor until January 20, then interim VC, until USQ Council appoints Thomas’s replacement.
Thomas heading for Massey U University of Southern Queensland vice-chancellor professor Jan Thomas will step down to lead New Zealand’s Massey University. Thomas is the second woman to be appointed vice-chancellor of Massey. The first was professor Judith Kinnear, who headed the institution from 2003 to 2008. Thomas succeeds Steve Maharey, who steps down after eight years. Thomas, who has led USQ since 2012, will finish up her current role on December 16. USQ chancellor John Dornbusch said Thomas left “an indelible mark on our university”, and praised her for long-term strategy, increasing research impact, improving teaching quality, and her commitment to equity.
U of A prof named health fellow The University of Adelaide’s professor Roger Byard has been named a fellow of the Australian Academy of Health and Medical Sciences. Byard was admitted to the academy during a recent event in Brisbane. Byard holds the George Richard Marks professorship of pathology at the University of Adelaide (School of Medical Sciences) and is senior specialist forensic pathologist with Forensic Science SA. Most of Byard’s career has been spent examining, investigating and researching people’s deaths. He has developed recommendations and policy proposals to prevent accidental deaths. He also has a major interest in developing the field of paediatric forensic pathology.
UNSW academic NAMED cyber guardian A UNSW Canberra academic at the Australian Centre for Cyber Security has become one of only 35 people in the world to achieve the highest and most recognised information security qualification. Dr Gideon Creech is now a Cyber Guardian, the elite title bestowed by the System Administration, Networking, and Security Institute (SANS), which has a reputation for being the most trusted and largest source for information security training and certification in the world. The institute has issued 86,000 such certifications to professionals, of which only 35 are Guardians. Creech will commence teaching the first Bitcoin and Fintech Security course in Australia in March 2017.
Swinburne picks STEM research chief Renowned engineering education researcher professor David Radcliffe has been appointed director of the future STEM Research Innovation Centre at Swinburne University of Technology. Radcliffe comes to Swinburne from Purdue University in the US, where he has been the Kamyar Haghighi Head of the School of Engineering Education for the past seven years and a foundation epistemology professor of engineering education since 2007. Radcliffe will work with staff and the university to develop Swinburne’s research centre focused on driving STEM innovation, both through education and professional practice.

 

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