Of the day

Iain Murray and Reza Nejabati are appointed interim co-chairs of the Curtin U – Cisco Centre for Networks. Murray is a Curtin U distinguished professor and Nejabati a visiting professor there.

Ambassador Thomas Dougherty is leaving the Australian-American Fulbright Commission where he is ED. He is moving to Boston to take up a chair in international relations at Simmons University.

The Victorian Government wants an mRNA vaccine manufacturing in the state and has asked for expert advice from; * Amanda Caples (Victoria’s Lead Scientist) * Sharon Lewin (Doherty Institute) * Barney Graham (US National Institutes of Health) * William Charman (Monash U) * Brendan Crabb (Burnet Institute) * Doug Hilton (the MRI formerly known as Walter and Eliza Hall) * Terry Nolan (Uni Melbourne) John Carroll (Monash U) * Andrew Steer (Murdoch Children’s Research Institute)

Of the week

At Edith Cowan U exercise scientist Chris Abbiss is confirmed as Graduate Research Dean. He has acted in the role since November.

The Australian Space Awards are announced, including,

Academic, Sascha Schediwy, UWA. Graduate, Clint Therakam, UNSW. Researcher, Saied Nahavandi, Deakin U. Scientist, Graziella Caprarelli, Uni Southern Queensland. Engineer, Andrin Tomaschett, UNSW. Woman leader, Anna Moore, ANU. Rising Star, Christopher Capon, UNSW. Excellence, Sascha Schediwy, UWA.

Jonathan Carapetis (Telecom Kids Institute) is WA 2021 Australian of the Year in the Professions Category.

Andrea Carson (La Trobe U) becomes a research fellow of the Women’s Leadership Institute Australia.

Bronwyn Fox is CSIRO’s new chief scientist. She will move from Swinburne U where she DVC Research and Enterprise

 Alexis Kallio becomes Deputy Director R at the Queensland Conservatorium, (Griffith U).

Stacey Mills will join Uni Adelaide as Chief Financial Officer, moving from the same role at UNSW.

There are two Australian based researchers among pharma company Johnson and Johnson’s six Women in Stem for 2021; Gayathri Naidu (UTS) and Shayanti Mukherjee (Hudson Institute of Medical Research).  They each have $150 000 in research funding from J&J.

The National Health and Medical Research Council has announced its awards, which were in CMM for Thursday,here.

At Murdoch U, Kylie Readman becomes DVC Education and Equity and Grant O’Neill, DVC Colleges. Both move-up from the PVC positions covering the same portfolios that were abolished last month (CMM May 13).

The one AC and AO’s awarded to members of the HE and research communities in the Queen’s Birthday Honours were in CMM on Tuesday, here.

Mike Ryan becomes interim PVC R at Monash U. He moves from Deputy Dean (Research & Research Infrastructure) in the Faculty of Medicine.

Wendy Wright is Federation U’s new Dean of Graduate Studies. She steps up from Associate Dean, Research Training.