17 December 2014
Australian Research Council Executive Director for Humanities and Creative Arts, and Deputy Pro Vice Chancellor for Research at RMIT, Professor Denise Meredyth will join the University of South Australia in 2015 as Pro Vice Chancellor for Education, Arts and Social Sciences.
Prof Meredyth has broad experience across the higher education sector, working in leadership roles in research and research management and has strong personal research interests in education and education policy, social policy, culture and history.
UniSA Vice Chancellor Prof David Lloyd says Prof Meredyth will bring a great breadth, insight and experience to the role.
“There are important goals to achieve as we look forward to the development of the Magill campus education precinct and to building on our already strong research base in arts, education and the social sciences,” Prof Lloyd says.
“Denise brings a unique perspective to UniSA, having been a researcher herself, then moving into the business end of research in the ARC to develop research grant processes and policies and administer Linkage Projects and Australian Laureate Fellowships. She has a keen and experienced understanding of the research environment.
“I know the University will benefit from her expertise, experience and enthusiasm.”
Prof Meredyth says she is delighted to be joining UniSA and to have the opportunity to be part of a young, dynamic organisation that is making its mark.
“UniSA has developed a very creative learning environment, building new community, government and industry partnerships, and I’m impressed by the way the university has brought to life the ideal of practice-based learning, challenging students to build experience outside the classroom,” Prof Meredyth says.
“My formative years, professionally, were as a teacher in ACT schools and as an education historian, and I’ve always been passionate about educational opportunity, so I am looking forward to helping to build the new Magill education and creative precinct.
“The Magill education precinct presents a unique opportunity to build links between education, urban planning, digital communications, information-seeking and community consultation and design.
“I also want to build my own understanding of Indigenous knowledge and culture. At UniSA I know I’ll be part of new learning and research dynamics in which Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people can thrive.”
She says she believes UniSA is well positioned to explore interdisciplinary insights and new approaches to thorny problems.
“My role will be to help people realise their best ideas and enhance their professional practice, and I am looking forward to working with my colleagues to develop our teaching and research within an international frame, reaching out to the Asia-Pacific region and to emerging regions and enterprises,” she says.
Across her career, Prof Meredyth has been awarded 14 ARC grants totalling $4.8 million and has worked as a chief investigator and node leader for an ARC Centre of Excellence. She has an international research reputation in cultural, media and education policy studies.
Her roots however are in teaching and education and in her early career she worked as a history, English and social sciences teacher.
She has a Bachelor of Arts in English and History from Australian National University, a Diploma in Education, and a PhD from Griffith University focussing on aspects of education policy and social policy analysis.
In her leadership roles at RMIT and Swinburne University she has built a track record for increasing research income, improving research degree completions and building research and teaching quality.
The Division of Education, Arts and Social Sciences has more than 10,000 students studying in a broad range of disciplines, including art, architecture, communications, education, Indigenous cultures, international relations, history, languages, psychology, social work and human services, across all UniSA campuses and offshore in Hong Kong and Singapore.
Media contact: Michèle Nardelli office: +61 8 8302 0966 mobile: 0418 823 673 email: michele.nardelli@unisa.edu.au
