Introducing our 2025 Learning and Teaching Award Winners

In December, 2025, we gathered together for our annual Learning and Teaching Showcase. The Showcase is an opportunity to celebrate learning and teaching at Western, and also to recognise our excellent teachers.

There are three categories of Learning and Teaching Awards:

1. Citations for Outstanding Contributions to Student Learning
2. Indigenous-Focused Citations for Outstanding Contributions to Student Learning
3. Excellence in Teaching

The Vice-Chancellor's Teacher of the Year Award is drawn from amongst the winners of the Excellence in Teaching Awards.

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Citations for Outstanding Contributions to Student Learning Winners

In our first category, Citations for Outstanding Contributions to Student Learning, there were five award winners.

Sera Harris and Polly Chester
Centre for Community Research Collaboration (CCRC)

Dr Sera Harris (left) and Polly Chester (right)

for an impressive innovative model of placement education that supports student practical learning, teamwork skills and community need

Dr Sera Harris and Polly Chester transformed a critical social work placement shortage into pedagogical innovation through the Centre for Community Research Collaboration (CCRC). Their model creating cooperative learning teams has enabled 458 placement opportunities across 68 projects with 29 community partners during three cycles. By synthesising studio and partnership pedagogies, they developed a sustainable, scalable solution that positions students as knowledge creators delivering real-world outputs to community organisations. The CCRC addresses placement scarcity while enhancing educational quality, earning institutional recognition including the 2024 Deputy Dean's Award for Innovative Learning. Their leadership fundamentally reimagines field education for contemporary practice.

Helen Black
School of Business

Dr Helen Black, holding her award

for excellent initiatives incorporating UDL and the transformation of the two subjects, improving pass rates

Dr Helen Black led a transformational curriculum redesign for the two largest undergraduate accounting subjects. Grounded in Universal Design for Learning (UDL) principles, an inclusive, engaging, and interactive curriculum provides students with a supportive learning experience that fosters belonging, well-being, and learner confidence. The impact on student outcomes in both subjects was a progressive reduction in fail grades generated by increased participation across all subject offerings including face to face at WSU main campuses and third- party providers at Sydney City Campus and Western Sydney Online (OES), demonstrating sustained outstanding contributions to student learning and student success in multiple domains.

Amer Hijazi
School of Engineering, Design and Build Environment

Dr Amer Hijazi

for high-impact learning and teaching initiatives and impressive work building positive and transformative team-based experiences for students

Dr. Amer Hijazi is an early career academic whose innovative and student-centred teaching has transformed learning across disciplines at Western Sydney University. He has led nationally recognised initiatives such as the Autodesk Challenge Cup, expanding it into multidisciplinary teams that achieved first in NSW, third nationally, and the People’s Choice Award. His leadership extends from first-year to final-year units, embedding startupstyle learning, industry collaboration, and digital innovation. Recognised by NATSPEC and featured on the BIM Education Global Map, his work has enhanced student belonging, retention, and progression while elevating the university’s national and international reputation.

Sam Lane
School of Social Sciences

Dr Sam Lane, holding his award

for excellent work responding to student needs and supporting their transition to professional settings

Dr Sam Lane has demonstrated sustained excellence and innovation in social work education through the development of practice-based psychosocial pedagogy, driving transformative curriculum design and classroom practice across core social work subjects. His teaching focuses on creating relational and psychologically safe learning environments that enable students to develop the competence, confidence, and reflective capacity required to succeed as learners and future practitioners. Over his eight-year tenure, the impact of Dr Lane’s teaching has been recognised through exemplary student feedback, multiple institutional teaching awards, impactful community outreach initiatives, and notable contributions to the scholarship of teaching and learning.

Daniel Thomson
School of Health Sciences

Dr Daniel Thomson, holding his award

for impact on student experience across the program, incorporating peer-led teaching, partnership pedagogy, and appropriate application of theory

This citation focuses on Daniel's student-centred teaching approach and initiatives he has led in promoting student partnerships and staff-led social events targeting student belonging in the Bachelor of Physiotherapy. It also focuses on his work alongside Indigenous Western physiotherapy alumni in leading Indigenisation of the physiotherapy program. These initiatives have resulted in sustained impacts on student learning and performance, and improved student experience with a focus on transitioning to a university learning environment.

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We also recognised three highly commended recipients in this category:

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Indigenous-Focused Citations for Outstanding Contributions to Student Learning Winners

In our second category, Indigenous-Focused Citations for Outstanding Contributions to Student Learning, there were two award winners.

Cameron McAuliffe and Stephen Healy
School of Social Sciences

Dr Cameron McAuliffe holding his award

for exemplary practice by non-Indigenous academics collaborating respectfully with Indigenous colleagues, communities, and knowledge systems while maintaining appropriate positioning and avoiding appropriation

Dr Cameron McAuliffe and Associate Professor Stephen Healy collaboratively redesigned the Managing Cities curriculum to foreground Indigenous and decolonial scholarship, critically interrogating planning’s colonial legacies. Central to their innovation is the Bradfield City Project, an authentic assessment co-designed with students to evaluate the NSW Government Architect’s Connecting with Country Framework against the Bradfield City Centre Master Plan. Integrating ethical use of generative AI, they scaffold reflexive and relational learning, enabling students to grapple with Indigenous knowledge, professional ethics, and climate-responsive planning. Their initiative has improved student outcomes, influenced curriculum reform, and been recognised through teaching awards and inter-institutional dialogue.

Donna James
School of Social Sciences

Dr Donna James

for excellence in Indigenous-focused teaching with substantial, sustained impact on student learning and broad recognition of innovative practices and respectfully collaboration with and centering Indigenous perspectives throughout her curriculum redesign

Dr Donna James, Lecturer in Heritage and Tourism Studies, has transformed Indigenous learning in the Bachelor of Tourism and Event Management. Since 2022 she has redeveloped core and elective subjects to centre Indigenous voices, embed industry-relevant case studies, and apply innovative field- and place-based pedagogies. Her curriculum motivates students to learn, to critically reflect on colonial legacies, and to develop professional skills for allyship, supporting the Indigenous Graduate Attribute. Widely recognised by her peers and disciplinary colleagues, her initiatives demonstrate creativity, leadership, and impact. Dr James’ teaching inspires students, including internationally, to value Indigenous knowledges and perspectives in professional practice.

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Excellence in Teaching Winners

In our third category, Excellence in Teaching, there were four award winners.

High Achieving Teachers
School of Education

Zana Jabir (left), Associate Professor Kay Caroll (centre) and Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Maryanne Dever (right)

Lead: Kay Carroll
Team: Michele Simons, David Cole, Jose Hanham, Nathan Berger, Pegah Marandi, William Nketsia and Zana Jabir

The High Achieving Teachers (HAT) Program has made a significant impact on educational equity by supporting culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) students from migrant and refugee backgrounds to become qualified teachers in NSW. Co-designed in 2020 with the NSW Department of Education, Community Language Schools, and the Sydney Institute for Community Languages Education (SICLE), the program has produced 49 CALD teachers who now enrich classrooms with their multilingual skills and cultural knowledge. These educators serve as role models, foster inclusive learning environments, and help bridge cultural gaps in schools. The HAT Program has gained widespread recognition across Western Sydney schools and is now recognised as a critical component of Australia’s National Teacher Workforce Strategy. The HAT Program is a powerful example of how targeted support and collaboration can diversify the teaching workforce and positively transform student outcomes.

WSU-Stride Online Art Therapy Clinic Partnership
School of Social Sciences

Associate Professor Sheridan Linnell holding her and her teams' (not pictured) awards

Lead: Sheridan Linnell
Team: Emma Gentle and Martin Roberts

The Western Sydney University (WSU)-Stride Online Art Therapy Clinic is an artful exemplar of partnership pedagogies and Work Integrated Learning (WIL) flourishing together in virtual space. The partnership trains student art therapists to provide online services to isolated carers of people with major mental health issues in their homes. The nominated team is comprised of a discipline leader, early career academic and professional colleague working together with industry, staff and student partners to foster the skills, sensitivity and cultural humility needed to offer safe, effective online art therapy, extending knowledge of its benefits to the discipline, profession, industry and community.

Ireni Farag
School of Social Sciences

Ireni Farag holding her trophy

Ireni Farag is a counselling educator whose work is transforming the preparation of future practitioners for the complex realities of therapeutic practice. Through empathy-driven, ethically grounded pedagogy, Ireni has designed curricula and assessments that are both professionally authentic and socially responsive. Her innovations deliver clear student outcomes: the AI Acknowledgement Tool fosters academic integrity and ethical decision-making in the era of generative technologies; the Objective Observer model builds reflexive capacities essential for effective therapeutic practice; and her experiential, research-led teaching strategies enhance confidence, critical skills, and professional identity formation. Collectively, these approaches strengthen students’ ability to navigate diverse cultural contexts and real-world clinical environments with rigour and compassion.

Gabriel Perrone
School of Science

Dr Gabriel Perrone

Dr Gabriel Perrone is a Senior Lecturer in the School of Science whose teaching blends innovation, care, and scholarly impact. For over a decade, he has transformed learning for thousands of students, achieving engagement and satisfaction far above School averages. Committed to equity and belonging, he pioneered the co-host teaching model, created the world-first Minecraft Mitochondrial World, and designed AI-mediated ecosystems that foster critical thinking and metacognition. Grounded in ethics-approved research, his leadership inspires colleagues and shapes practice across the University. With creativity and resilience, Dr Perrone builds student-centred, future-focused environments that motivate success and cultivate enduring skills.

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We also recognised one highly commended recipient in this category:

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Vice-Chancellor's Teacher of the Year

This award is drawn from amongst the Excellence in Teaching winners, and this year it was jointly awarded to two winners.

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Congratulations to all our winners and highly commended recipients. We are extremely proud of our teachers!

Many of our outstanding teachers go on to receive national recognition for their innovation and excellence. In 2025, four of our educators – and former internal Learning and Teaching award winners – were recognised in the Australian Awards for University Teaching (AAUT). These highly competitive national awards celebrate university educators who demonstrate outstanding teaching practice, leadership and sustained commitment to improving student learning experiences across Australian higher education. Read more about Dr Rocco Cavaleri, Dr Ana Rodas, Dr Michelle O'Shea and Dr Jess Richards, our 2025 AAUT Winners.

Are you interested in applying for a learning and teaching award? We'll let you know when applications open on our 2026 Learning and Teaching Showcase page. We'll also announce it in our Learning and Teaching Newsletter. Subscribe to stay in the loop.