From the Chancellor

Views: 1,795 views. Comments: No Comment.
Tags: Chancellor, John Story, winter-2012

UQ Chancellor Mr John Story

Welcome to the Winter 2012 edition of Contact magazine.

In her Strategic Moves column, Vice-Chancellor Professor Debbie Terry reflects on the challenges of the past six months, and how UQ moved quickly to implement improved policies and processes that underwrite our ongoing commitment to integrity.

Looking forward, this edition introduces Professor Peter Høj, who will become UQ’s ninth full-time Vice-Chancellor in October. A noted biochemist, Peter is currently Vice-Chancellor at the University of South Australia, and was previously the Chief Executive Officer of the Australian Research Council. I am sure our international network of alumni, friends and partners will join with me in warmly welcoming Peter to his new role in Queensland.

Building relationships with external stakeholders is a key part of UQ business, as I was reminded at a recent event at Customs House. The function formally introduced the new Head of the TC Beirne School of School, Professor Gerard Carney, to the legal and UQ communities, and highlighted the mutual benefits of the school’s engagement with the profession.

Linking higher education outputs to the bigger picture is the focus of a special piece on pages 8–9 by former Queensland Premier Peter Beattie, who shares his experiences designing the Smart State policies. UQ has been a beneficiary of forward-looking government and private funding which has made possible several landmark projects, including the Translational Research Institute, which is currently under construction and has Professor Ian Frazer as its CEO.

Pages 22–23 celebrate an outcome of a different kind, with the opening of the new UQ Anthropology Museum following extensive renovations to the Michie Building. The museum’s director, Dr Diana Young, says the collection is a “hidden gem” – an apt description. The collection holds some 26,000 treasures, including many that have been donated as gifts, and the renovated museum will enable a greater number to be appreciated by a wider public.

I invite the extended UQ community to the museum’s first exhibition in the new space, which is on show until the end of the year. For a virtual tour, a video feature on the Contact website offers a behind-the-scenes look at this unique UQ teaching and research resource.
Happy reading.

John Story, Chancellor

• Home
• Graduate Contact
• Alumni Profiles
• Global Education: Divining world trends