News Archive

In a few days, our University will host the annual UWA Centenary Trust for Women lunch.

The Centenary Trust for Women was formed 10 years ago with the aim of raising $1 million by this year, the University's centenary. The fact that they have achieved this will make for a particularly celebratory occasion this year.

As before, copies of UWA News - this issue in fact - will be given to guests at the lunch. I hope many of these generous women will read this column and accept my personal thanks for their efforts and their loyalty to their alma mater.

It is wonderful that the guest speaker at the lunch is Dr Susan Gordon, AM. A graduate of UWA, Dr Gordon was the first Aboriginal person to head a government department in Western Australia. She was also the first Aboriginal magistrate in the State's history.

Dr Gordon is a shining example of an alumna who has done amazing things for society. She received the Order of Australia Award in 1993 for her work with Indigenous people and community affairs.

At UWA, we are committed to keeping in touch with as many of our alumni as possible. They are part of our University ‘family' and we welcome their ongoing contact with UWA in whatever capacity, from fundraising, to mentoring students, to becoming a member of one of the many ‘friends' groups that contribute so much while also gaining so much from continued friendship.

Our department of Development and Alumni Relations is integral to maintaining links to alumni around the world and is now harnessing social media to reach younger graduates, for example through Facebook.

Convocation is another means of staying connected to our graduates, all of whom are members of this group, created under the University Act of 1911.

Convocation's new Warden - the 32 ^nd in the history of the University - is graduate Warren Kerr, AM. Mr Kerr, who is national director of the Perth-based Hames Sharley health group that is part of the consortium designing the new $2 billion Fiona Stanley Hospital - hopes that Convocation will contribute to achieving our goal of being counted among the world's top 50 universities by 2050.

By helping to ensure that UWA continues to rise up the rankings - and held in high esteem by the local, national and international community - Convocation will help ensure that a UWA degree continues to be a superior degree.

Mr Kerr was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia in 2009 for his service to architecture and his contribution to the planning and design of major health facilities around the nation.

It is great that people such as Dr Gordon and Mr Kerr are willing to give up their time to ‘give back' to the University and we are very grateful that they do.

We warmly welcome all our alumni to stay in touch with us, whatever turns their lives have taken.

Paul Johnson
Vice-Chancellor