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Media Release

July 24 2009

UniSA's commitment to student learning shines

Ieva StupansAssociate Professor Ieva Stupans joins 12 other UniSA staff members who have been acknowledged for their exceptional work by the Australian Learning and Teaching Council (ALTC) this month.

Prof Stupans has been awarded a Fellowship by the Council which includes a $99,000 grant towards to her curriculum development program Supporting student transition to futures orientated professional identity.

The School of Pharmacy and Medical Sciences professor says she is thrilled with the Fellowship, given only to programs the ALTC recognises as having significant national benefit.

“Fellowships encourage recognition of the fundamental importance of teaching in higher education institutions and in the general community and validate role of the scholarship of teaching and learning,” Prof Stupans said.

“The grant allows me to undertake a significant piece of work around the health sciences curriculum and potentially enable graduates to contribute more effectively to health outcomes for the community”

Earlier in the month twelve staff members from UniSA were awarded citations in seven projects in this year’s ALTC Awards for Outstanding Contributions to Student Learning. Citation winners receive up to $10,000 in prize money.

Irene Doskatsch, Jan Heath, Julie Hockey, Bronte Cerny and Carole Gibbs from Academic Library Services were acknowledged for their long term commitment to the improvement of information literacy programs for students.

Olga Sankey and Steven Carson from the School of Art, Architecture & Design won attention for their innovative Honours curriculum that incorporates one-on-one learning and fosters individual student creativity.

Individual citations were awarded to Associate Professor Kazem Abhary from the School of Advanced Manufacturing and Mechanical Engineering for his innovative teaching approach and efforts to raise awareness of humanitarian applications of technology among students; Gregory Donovan from the School of Art, Architecture and Design for his visual arts/design industry mentorship scheme; Dr Freya Higgins-Desbiolles from the School of Management for her command of the Indigenous tourism field and inclusion of this in the curriculum; Stefan Hornlund from the School of Natural and Built Environments for his enhanced structural analysis teaching methods and Dr Karma Pearce from the School of Pharmacy and Medical Sciences for her curriculum that develops independent students who are work ready.

UniSA Vice Chancellor Professor Peter Høj says the success at the 2009 awards is a source of pride for the UniSA community.

“This is a fantastic achievement and an acknowledgement of our staff’s dedication to high-quality teaching,” he says. “ALTC Citations are prestigious awards and with its many citations over the past three years, UniSA has done particularly well and is ranked among the best.”

A formal ceremony for the Adelaide winners will be held at the Bob Hawke Prime Ministerial Centre on the 3rd of August.


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