On Sir Charles Court Promenade outside Building 103 is a large information whiteboard. You can only read what’s on it if you speak Mandarin.
For the large number of Mandarin speaking students on campus, it’s a little piece of home, something that is welcoming and has even developed a following of its own in China.
Curtin staff member, Andrew McDonald from Student Support Services, is responsible for the whiteboard and the creation of Curtin’s first Chinese social media channel running on the Weibo platform. Earlier this week, Curtin recognised his efforts at creating a sense of community on campus by awarding him a Vice-Chancellor Award for Excellence and Innovation.
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Andrew McDonald isn’t alone. The Vice-Chancellor Awards have been awarded every year since their inception in 2010 to members of the academic and general staff at Curtin for their corporate excellence and achievements. This year 38 teams and individuals were nominated across all the faculties, schools and departments.
This year, Professor Dawn Bennett won a Vice-Chancellor Award for providing inspirational leadership for her capacity to inspire others to success in both research and learning and teaching. She also challenges and invites other Humanities academics to think of new ways to engage their students in research.
“I feel honoured,” said Professor Bennett. “To be an inspirational leader one has first to be inspired.”
“At Curtin there is so much quality teaching and research, and so many great ideas, that inspiration comes frequently,” she said.
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The Electron Microscopy Facility’s Team also joins Professor Bennett and Mr McDonald. The team won a Vice-Chancellor’s Award for providing exceptional service. The University recognised the fact that the team supported a lot of research both internal and external across several disciplines that made it possible for Curtin’s academic staff to continue to be innovative, attract research funding and discover new things.
“We were surprised and, naturally, pleased to receive this award, particularly when the competition was so laudable,” said Elaine Miller, Laboratory Manager for the Electron Microscope Facility.
“It will give our facility a broader profile than it has had to date and has been a much-needed morale booster for the team.”
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Curtin’s Business School won a Vice-Chancellor’s Award for fostering partnerships with their four-week long collaboration with the West Australian newspaper to produce eight double page spreads. The Business Outlook Series as it was named showcased experts from the CBS Adjunct Professor Network and the community discussing major financial and business topics.
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The four winners were chosen from ten finalists. Runners up received $3,750 for individuals or $7,500 for a team in prize money while the winners received $7,500 for an individual or $15,000 for a team. All finalists were filmed for short videos about their achievements, one of whom was Curtin’s own video team.
For further information:
Vice-Chancellor Awards
Playlist of 2013 winners and finalists
Curtin’s Weibo channel
