
An Easter Homily from Pope Francis
News 16 AprilAs we move towards the celebration of Easter, Pope Francis reminds us of the meaning and joy of the passion, death, and resurrection of Jesus.
17 February 2021
Share
Academic excellence is a core value at ACU. Together with a commitment to truth and service, the pursuit of excellence in teaching and research underpins all that we do – so equipping our graduates to go out and make the world a better place.
I emphasise this value not only because Semester 1 starts shortly, but also because yesterday was the Academic Board’s annual Governance Day. On this day, board members outline the academic agenda for the year ahead and engage with important issues in the higher education sector.
Governance Day 2021 was particularly significant. I am a new Vice-Chancellor and President, and this was the first meeting of the Academic Board for our new Provost, Professor Belinda Tynan, and newly appointed Chair of Academic Board, Professor Tim McKenry. Furthermore, our university has exciting new strategies to implement, and the higher education landscape is changing.
Academic excellence will be a real driving point for the year ahead, together with serving our mission, our students, and our professional stakeholders. How we define academic quality, how we monitor it, and how we articulate it will decide where ACU sits in Australia’s education landscape.
Academic Board is central to the healthy functioning of ACU. This forum acts as an end point for the entire academic governance structure of the university, from our faculty boards to our Learning and Teaching Committee to our Student Experience and Retention Committee. All these bodies work together to provide coverage for research and teaching activities.
The Board is vast in terms of the extent to which it influences and informs university life. It administers and implements ACU’s academic policies and programs, and it informs and advises the Senate and me on the progress and quality of all research- and teaching-related developments and initiatives. It is also a forum that allows us to interrogate ideas, evaluate what we’ve done, make evidence-based, data-driven decisions and monitor students’ performance.
As we head into a pivotal year, we were honoured to have two high-profile guests share their extensive experience and leadership with the Board yesterday.
The incoming Chief Commissioner of TEQSA, Emeritus Professor Peter Coaldrake, spoke about excellence in teaching, research and engagement in the 2020s and what constitutes a trend versus a fad in higher education. Professor Coaldrake has a distinguished record in higher education and his insights into how universities should focus their attention in a swiftly changing sector are important.
Associate Professor Tony Masters, Chair of the Academic Board at the University of Sydney, also spoke on the calibration of innovation with robust academic oversight. He offered valuable wisdom as one of the longest-serving Chairs of an Academic Board in Australia, and Chair of what may be the largest Academic Board in this country.
Kind regards,
Professor Zlatko Skrbis
Vice-Chancellor and President
Pictured above: Chair of the Academic Board at the University of Sydney, Associate Professor Tony Masters with ACU Vice-Chancellor and President, Professor Zlatko Skrbis.
As we move towards the celebration of Easter, Pope Francis reminds us of the meaning and joy of the passion, death, and resurrection of Jesus.
A message from the Chief Operating Officer, Patrick Woods.
Please be aware of the following changes to payroll processing dates next week.
The Digest from Academic Board meeting 01/2025, held on 19 February 2025, is now available.
All ACU staff and students are invited to a commemorative prayer service at your local campus ahead of Anzac Day. Please join us at your local campus to remember and honour our service men and women w...
Register to attend the first Aquero Lecture of 2025.
As ACU positions itself as a leading university in human flourishing, it is important to consider the value of community-engaged practices. The ACU and DePaul conference provides a perfect opportunity...
As reported in various news outlets, a recent cyber incident has impacted a number of Australian Superannuation funds. UniSuper has confirmed that they are not impacted by the incident but remain vigi...
Advance your career in teaching and learning with the Graduate Certificate in Higher Education. Enrol by 14 April 2025 to get started in Professional Term 4.
Applications for the 2025 Teaching Development Grants and Citations and Awards programs open soon. Register for an information session to learn how to be recognised for your contributions to teaching ...
ACU Library’s Research Engagement team is running their Research Essentials skills sessions again in 2025. Metrics Week 1 aims to introduce you to the types of metrics you can use in grant application...
A message from Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research and Enterprise) Professor Abid Khan: ACU is integrating our research excellence within a comprehensive framework focused on human flourishing.
Thank you to everyone within our ACU community who engaged with Respect at Uni Week 2025. This year we focused on Shining a Light on Respect.
The Student Administration teams have been extremely active during the first quarter of 2025.
ServiceNow will now be used for receiving and referring complaints, as well as communicating with stakeholders regarding complaints and feedback received. Learn more about this and the recent changes ...
Student Communications (MER) compiles, edits and sends a monthly Student News and Events bulletin. This bulletin is sent to all students, nationally, and includes a broad cross-section of news, announ...
Teaching staff are encouraged to check their units have been correctly linked to their names for the Student Evaluation of Learning and Teaching (SELT) surveys in upcoming teaching periods.
ACU is moving from Workplace to Viva Engage later this year. Attend an information session on 30 April to learn more about the transition.
ACU staff no longer need to submit requests to create IT accounts for their new starters, or when staff leave ACU (for all staff accounts onboarded through Aurion and CAASS/CES). Note: The process for...
ACU encourages you to participate in our annual flu vaccination program to help maintain your health and wellbeing. All staff, including casuals and sessional staff, are eligible to participate.
Visit Service Central to access Corporate Services.