From the VC's desk
March 2023
Welcome to my March blog. As the Chancellor announced last Monday, I’ll be concluding my term as La Trobe’s VC early next year. Warmest thanks to those of you who have sent or posted messages following the announcement – it means a great deal to me. It’s been an incredible privilege to lead La Trobe over the last 11 years, but there’s a lot more I want to achieve over the next 10 months.
February 2023
Welcome to my first blog for the year. I hope you had a great break over summer and enjoyed the chance to spend time with friends and family, read a good book, or indulge in your favourite pastime.
December 2022
Welcome to my final blog for the year, in which it has become customary to reflect on our collective achievements during the year. 2022 was the year in which we consolidated our comeback from the pandemic. Looking back, it’s hard to believe how far we have come in addressing the challenges thrown at us, and I am amazed and very proud of how the whole University community has pulled together to produce some extraordinary results, many of which are detailed below.
November 2022
Welcome to my November blog. As if bushfires, COVID and the occasional earthquake weren’t enough, many members of our community have been dealing with the consequences of the recent flooding in central and northern Victoria, especially at our Shepparton campus.I was in Shepparton last Friday and was touched to hear staff talk about the way in which the Shepparton community has pulled together to support those most in need. Everyone I spoke to has been affected in some way or knows someone who has been. One staff member I chatted with lost a canola crop, while everyone was volunteering or helping their neighbours with supplies of food and medicine.
October 2022
Welcome to my October blog. It was great to be in Bendigo last week for our ‘In Conversation’ webinar. Thanks to Julie Rudner for doing such an excellent job in moderating it. Thanks also to all the staff that took the time to talk with us about their work. I’ve really enjoyed the new format for the webinars this year and it was terrific to take the show on the road to Bendigo.
September 2022
Welcome to my September blog. After the long dark cloud of a Victorian winter, we are starting to see brighter days again – especially so at last weekend’s Bendigo Open Day, conducted under a cloudless sky. It saw one of our highest ever turnouts of prospective students and their families and follows the pattern set by Bundoora and all our other regional campuses. My warmest congratulations and thanks to all the staff and students involved in making our Open Days such a roaring success.
August 2022
Welcome to my August blog. This month sees the return of on-campus Open Days for the first time since 2019. Things kick off this weekend at the Melbourne campus, followed by Mildura and Shepparton next week and Albury-Wodonga and Bendigo later in August. Thank you in advance to all the staff who have volunteered their time to help prospective students and their families learn more about the great things La Trobe has to offer. I can’t wait to feel the buzz of a busy campus once again. And it will be busy – registrations have already far exceeded those in 2019.
July 2022
Welcome to my July blog. Congratulations to all our teaching and support staff on successfully delivering another semester of hybrid teaching and learning activity. I know it’s school holidays now, so I hope those of you with school-aged children have been able to have some time off from the University or at least manage the challenges of juggling work and school holiday activities.
June 2022
After a long lead-in to the 2022 Federal Election, Australians cast their ballots on 21 May and elected a new Labor Government, with Anthony Albanese as Australia’s 31st Prime Minister. This week the Hon Jason Clare has been appointed as Minister for Education in the new Albanese Government’s Ministry.
May 2022
Welcome to this special edition of the Vice-Chancellor’s monthly blog. I am Acting VC this week while Professor Dewar is having a well-deserved break from work, so I thought I’d share some of our recent achievements this month.
April 2022
I hope you enjoyed the new ‘In Conversation’ format of our first All Staff webinar of the year. We have had an overwhelmingly positive response from staff through comments and feedback. My warmest thanks to Professor Clare Wright, who was our fantastic host, and to the other guests who appeared with Clare on camera or on video.