Recognition

TEACHING AWARDS

2022	National STARS Fellowship Award: One of six National Fellows recognised nationally by Student Transition, Achievement Retention and Success (STARS) for sustained contribution to student achievement across the HE sector.
2019	Life-time Achievement Award for Contribution to Equity: Awarded by the Equity Practitioners of Higher Education Australasia (EPHEA)
2017	Principal Fellow of the Higher Education Authority (PFHEA), AdvanceHE, (UK)
2016	National Australian Learning and Teaching Fellow, Office for Learning and Teaching (Australian Government) 
2012	Australian Award for University Teaching Citation for Outstanding Contribution to Student Learning, Australian Federal Government 
2011	University Citation for Outstanding Contribution to Student Learning, University of Wollongong 
2009	Vice Chancellor’s Citation for Outstanding Contributions to Student Learning, University of Newcastle 
2006	Vice Chancellor’s Citation for Outstanding Contributions to Student Learning, University of Newcastle 

RESEARCH AWARDS  

2022-23	Awarded an IAS Research Fellowship with University of Surrey (UK) to research 'sense of belonging' for students in the pandemic university .
2019		Equity Research Fellowship, (NCSEHE) researching the postgraduate outcomes for students who are the first in he family to attend university
2019		Best Research Article of the Year, explored the concept of 'student success' from the perspective of out equity cohorts: Higher Education Research and Development (HERD) Journal ($5,000)
2019		UOW Research Impact Award, in recognition of my work with first in family students University of Wollongong ($2,000)
2017-		Visiting Professor, Education Sciences Unit, Vienna University, Austria
2017		Churchill Fellowship Award,  funding to explore how first in family students are retained and supported across the UK, US, Canada and Ireland. The trust funded my travel and associated costs. 
2016		UOW Woman of Impact, University of Wollongong 
2015		Top 40 Research in 40 years, University of Wollongong 

LEADERSHIP  – Teaching 

I have held numerous leadership positions that span the higher education sector. Most recently I was the Director, National Centre for Student Equity in Higher Education (2020-2022)  a nationally focussed equity research, policy and practice Centre funded by the Australian Government Department of Education. Under my leadership, the Centre conducted a diverse range of activities which collectively focussed on strengthening Australia’s research quality, capability and capacity to build a robust evidence base within the broad field of educational access and participation.  I have also led activities within the broader university teaching and learning space, including being the Chair of an Academy for Tertiary Teaching and Learning Excellence (WATTLE: 2016-2019) as well as leading Research Higher Degree programs and spending a decade as a program convenor for a suite of postgraduate programs in Adult, Vocational and Higher Education. In previous roles at University of Newcastle (1997-2010), I was the Director of Academic Support Services and also, led the Student Support Services at regional campuses for a number of years.

LEADERSHIP – Research 

My leadership in the research field has been diverse and national in intent with a focus on leading equity initiatives across the sector. These have included being an invited expert on both national and international research projects including the Asia Europe Foundation’s (ASEF) Review of Inclusive and Diverse
Education in Asia and Europe. In 2022 I was invited to participate in the Productivity Commission Roundtable on Tertiary Education and provide critical feedback on their most recent report relating to lifelong learning. I am both a TEQSA Expert Panel member and was an ERA Peer Reviewer in the last ERA as well as being an invited member of the Equity in Higher Education Panel (EHEP), Australian Government  from 2020-2022.