60 seconds with Michael Sankey

As the Director of Learning Transformations I lead a great team of academic and professional staff who are working with academic (teaching) staff across the university to help them become better teachers, and to provide them with opportunities to enhance their Units, and more broadly the curriculum. This is done within the context of a research led agenda. So it’s not just about sharing good ideas, it’s about promoting successful (proven) ideas and extending the opportunities for our students through the application of a transformative learning agenda. This involves the realignment of our curriculum to contemporary learning methodologies, providing students with work integrated and authentic assessment opportunities and fully engaging with our institution's focus on sustainability.

One of the projects my team has been working on is the 2017 Learning Showcase coming up on the 28 November. This is open to all university staff and provides a fantastic opportunity to see the teaching innovations and curriculum designs here at Western.

How long have you worked at Western and what’s the best thing about working here?

I have worked here for seven months, but in higher education for 27 years, in a range of roles, both as professional staff member (12 years) and as an academic (15 years). The thing I like about Western Sydney is that it seems to have a clear mandate/vision around where it is going and everybody seems to be on-board with that.

Which campus are you based on?

I am based on the Penrith (Kingswood) campus in building ‘O’, so come and visit us and we will show you around.

What is your favourite place on one of the Western campuses and why?

I quite like poking around the old buildings on the Parramatta campus and enjoying the distinctive character they have.

When you’re not at work, what will we find you doing?

My wife (Kim) and I love going on little adventures in the bush or poking around country towns on our bikes. And you will usually find me taking pictures and spamming Instagram with them. https://www.instagram.com/michael_sankey/

As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?

Initially I wanted to be an Architect, but year 11 Physics got in the way of that idea (I sucked at it). But at the heart of that, it was design that really intrigued me. So in the meantime I had also fallen in love with photography and so from a reasonably young age, with my Kodak instamatic in hand, I ventured out, and have just kept going since.

What was your first job?

My first job, apart from selling newspapers outside the MCG, was while I was at Art College, I was working in a Mexican restaurant (Taco Bills, in Russell Street, Melbourne). I started as a dish washer, then became a kitchen hand, then a cook, and finally a manager.

What has been your greatest success

Well the greatest success has been (with my wife’s help of course) raising four great children, all of whom are now married themselves and are beginning to ply us with grandchildren. All four of our children have been to Uni and all have their master’s degrees in various disciplines.

On the work front, my greatest success has come in the work I have been doing across the sector around institutional benchmarking of technology enhanced learning (TEL), using the ACODE Benchmarks for TEL, which I helped restructure in 2014.

If you could go to just one country in the world for a vacation, which country would it be and why?

We are looking to spend a couple of weeks in Tuscany (Italy) in the next year or so. I went there for a day as an 18 year old while touring Europe and have always wanted to go back and spend some quality time in that region soaking up the culture.

What is your favourite book, movie and/or album?

The Chronicles of Narnia, and particularly the allegory of the Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe is my all-time favourite book. My dad read it to me as a kid, I read it to myself, when I could read, and I read it to my children, and hopefully one day will read it to my grandchildren.

If you could invite anyone to dinner who would it be and why?

I think I would like to invite Wayne Bennet for dinner and try and glean some of his wisdom about how to engage and encourage people to achieve above what they believe they can do.