2012 winners

• Excellence in Teaching
• Excellence in Professional Service
• Excellence in Postgraduate Research, Training and Supervision
• Excellence in University Engagement
• Excellence in University Sustainability
• Excellence in Leadership
• UWSCollege Award for Excellence

Spirit of UWS

Mr John Bonanno, Director, Capital Works and Facilities

John was awarded the Spirit of UWS award for his passionate and unswerving commitment to creating the highest quality facilities and campus environment for staff and students. John and his team have transformed the campuses of the University in recent years, contributing greatly to our identity and sense of place in Greater Western Sydney. 

Sister Valerie Powidzki, Chaplain, Student Support Services

Sister Val was awarded the Spirit of UWS award for the very important ministry she carries out at UWS. The support that Sister Val offers to staff and students, along with the ways in which she encourages a diverse spiritual life within the University, helps to create the tolerant and empathetic community we are so very fortunate to have.

Excellence in Teaching  

Winner – Individual

Dr Margaret Clarke, Senior Lecturer, School of Education

Margaret’s achievements demonstrate teaching excellence that has generated organisational and professional change to support enhanced student learning. When Margaret assumed her leadership role and developed strategies to address the School’s performance, student satisfaction improved dramatically. It was Margaret’s personal capacity as a teacher, her knowledge of teaching as demonstrated in her scholarship track record, and her capacity to engage with and support course teaching teams, which has enabled this improvement to occur.

Margaret continues to also exercise influence more broadly in her various roles within UWS and through her roles within the Australian Teacher Education Association.

Winner – Team

Academic Literacy Strategies Implementation Team: School of Nursing and Midwifery and Student Learning Unit, UWS 2010-2013

Dr Sharon Hillege, Senior Lecturer, School of Nursing and Midwifery
Ms Barbara Beale, Lecturer, School of Nursing and Midwifery
Ms Lyn Stewart, Lecturer, School of Nursing and Midwifery
Dr Paul Glew, Senior Lecturer, School of Nursing and Midwifery
Ms Erst Carmichael, Lecturer, Student Learning Unit
Ms Lauren Ross, Associate Lecturer, Student Learning Unit
Mrs Frances Williamson, Associate Lecturer, Student Learning Unit
Dr Janice Catterall, Director, Student Learning Unit
Mr Frank Allatt, Associate Lecturer, School of Nursing and Midwifery
Ms Rosalind Allatt, Assistance Lecturer, School of Nursing and Midwifery
Ms Heidi Creed, Professional Communication Academic Literacy Skills support staff, School of Nursing and Midwifery
Ms Marian Martin, Associate Lecturer,School of Nursing and Midwifery
Mr Colin Helmstedt, Associate Lecturer,School of Nursing and Midwifery
Ms Janet Starr, Professional Communication Academic Literacy Skills support staff, School of Nursing and Midwifery
Ms Suzanne De Souza,Professional Communication Academic Literacy Skills support staff, School of Nursing and Midwifery
Dr Annabelle Solomon, Associate Lecturer, School of Nursing and Midwifery
Ms Maria Calabro,Professional Communication Academic Literacy Skills support staff, School of Nursing and Midwifery
Ms Laurine Fitzpatrick, Associate Lecturer, School of Nursing and Midwifery

This cross-disciplinary teaching team has been an effective community of practice that has built quality teaching and learning programs through the exchange of disciplinary knowledge concerned with nursing and with academic literacy pedagogies. These approaches have led to measurable improvements in student learning and contributed to the overall focus of the School of Nursing and Midwifery on the development of academic literacies and on retention and student satisfaction. 

Highly Commended – Individuals

Dr Elfriede Sangkuhl, Lecturer, School of Law

Dr Ludmilla Robinson, Lecturer, School of Law

Highly Commended - Team 

UWS School of Law - First Year Law Initiative

Mr Simon Kozlina, Lecturer, School of Law
Ms Jane Lindsay, First Year Administrator, School of Law
Dr Michelle Sanson, Senior Lecturer, School of Law
Dr Susan Armstrong, Senior Lecturer, School of Law

Excellence in Professional Service

Winner – Individual

Mrs Christine Booth, Assessment and Graduation Manager, Student Administration - Services, Academic Registrar's Office

As the manager of the Assessment and Graduation team Christine displays a consistent and high level of focus to ensure that the experiences of those who engage with her team are extremely positive. At all times her focus is on ensuring the experience is a high quality one for all involved, be it during examinations or graduation.
Christine ensures a reliable and efficient system underpins delivery of all services. There is a focus on being responsive and results-oriented with Christine ensuring continual assessment processes are in place after all events as well as undertaking benchmarking across the sector. 

Winner – Team

Capital Works and Facilities Directorate 

Office of the Director
Mr John Bonanno, Director
Ms Lyn Matthias, Executive Assistant

Finance and Business Support Services
Mrs Mary Byrne, Senior Manager
Ms Maree Cauchi, Management Accountant
Mrs Caroline Shannon, Management Accountant
Miss Alicia Bain, Administrative Officer
Ms Maree Brown, Support Services Coordinator
Ms Robyn Coyte, Team Leader Contract Review/Closure
Ms Carole Ford, Contract Review/Closure Officer
Mrs Cherrie Griffo, Administrative Officer
Mrs Lee Herlings, Team Leader, Contract Variations
Mrs Ann Ballard, Accounts and Systems Coordinator
Ms Oriana Bontempo, Administrative Support Officer
Mrs Samantha Owens, HR Advisor
Mrs Lorna Pineda, Procurement, Invoicing and Accounts Payable Officer
Mr Richard Trost, Logistics Supervisor
Mr Frank Anderson, Logistics Officer
Mr Ian Broadbent, Logistics Officer
Mr Adrian Curtain, Logistics Officer
Mr Patrick Maucort, Logistics Officer
Mr Alan McCann, Logistics Officer
Mr Shane Metcalfe, Logistics Officer
Mr Chris Pickham, Logistics Officer
Mr Peter Primorac, Logistics Officer
Mr Phil Tanner, Logistics Officer

Major Projects
Mr Neil Hogan, Senior Manager
Mrs Geraldine Richardson, Major Projects Administrator
Mr John Malone, Contractor – Senior Project Manager
Mr Jason Moradi, Contractor – Senior Project Manager
Mr Talak Nanayakkara, Senior Project Manager – Uni Infrastructure Support
Ms Caroline Skene, Senior Project Manager
Mr Geoff Dobble, Project Manager, Major Capital Works
Mr Eddie Naffah, Project Manager
Miss Louise Norton, Project Manager
Dr Andrew Wheeler, Contractor – Project Manager

Minor Capital Works
Mr Alex Grochowski, Senior Manager
Mr Franz Sugar, Campus Manager, Entities and Commercial
Mr Len Salani, Technical Specialist, Hawkesbury, Werrington and Kingswood Campus
Mr Robert Lockie, Campus Manager, Campbelltown/Bankstown Campus Team
Mr Les Cubitt, Technical Specialist, Campbelltown/Bankstown Campus Team
Mr Walter Brown, Project Manager, Campbelltown/Bankstown Campus Team
Mr Damian Corbett, Project Manager, Campbelltown/Bankstown Campus Team
Mr Bert Gonzalez, Project Manager, Campbelltown/Bankstown Campus Team
Mr Warren Jameison, Project Manager, Campbelltown/Bankstown Campus Team
Mr Aswant Prasad, Campus Manager, Parramatta/Blacktown Campus Team
Mr Karthik Gunasekaran, Project Engineer, Parramatta/Blacktown Campus Team
Mr Glen Holder, Campus Maintenance Specialist, Mechanical, Parramatta/Blacktown Campus Team
Mr Steve Norris-Smith, Campus Manager, Penrith/Hawkesbury Campus Team
Mr Bob Fowler, Project Manager, Penrith/Hawkesbury Campus Team
Mr Dean Monaghan, Projects Manager, Penrith/Hawkesbury Campus Team
Mr Roy Attard, Technical Coordinator, School of Medicine

Environment and Risk Management
Dr Roger Attwater, Senior Manager
Mr Andrew Hawke, Manager, Grounds and Landscaping
Mr Graham Edwards, Manager, Campus Operations
Mr John Poulos, Manager, Cleaning, Recycling and Waste Management
Dr Lynette Anderson, Environmental Supervisor
Mr Michael Rowe, Quality Assurance
Ms Kate Burton, Grounds Supervisor

Programming, Technical Systems and Services
Ms Jo Ballard, Senior Manager
Mrs Jodi Clark, Project Planning Coordination Officer
Mrs Evita Ryan, Internal Communications Coordinator
Ms Tereza Behrens, Project Officer
Mr Joseph Chow, Mechanical Engineer
Mr Bona Kim, Electrical Engineer
Mr Zoran Petkovic, Contractor – Project Manager
Ms Yuen Yuen Yip, Manager, Project Planning Services
Mrs Ingrid Pearson, Senior Design Architect
Ms Gloria Pan, Signage Officer
Mr Chris Chen, Contractor Architect
Mr Adil Georgis, Contractor Architect
Mr Ihab Ghali, Contractor Architect
Mr Rob Richards, Contractor Architect
Mr Darcy Weber, Interior Architectural Designer
Mr Annapurna Satyanarayana Mandalika, Project Engineer
Mr Glenn Rulli, Hydraulic Engineer
Mrs Magdalena Vasilovska, Contractor – Mechanical Engineer
Mr Peter Guilfoyle, Procurement Tendering and Legal Officer
Mr Peter Helene, Procurement Tendering and Legal Officer
Mrs Angela Mahoney, Space Data Officer
Ms Natalie Malnar, Project Officer
Mr Kameswara Rao Mandalika, Project Officer
Ms Louise Webeck, Senior Building Data and Signage Designer
Mr John Wagland, Contractor – CAD Operator
Mr Kurt Scott, Manager Technical Systems
Mr Philip Wong, Business Systems Coordinator
Ms Rachael Mullinger, Quality Systems Manager
Mr Grant Delandro, Geographic Information Systems Operator
Mr Brett Simkin, CAP Operator

Strategic Asset Planning
Mr Charles Vella, Senior Manager
Mr Sunimal Fernando, Architectural Designer
Mr David Howe, Senior Architect
Mr Philip Nobis, Senior Architect
Ms Janet Canlas, Client Relationships, Heritage and Space Management Officer
Mr Todd Whyte, Strategic Maintenance Planning Officer
Mrs Kelly Salas, Administrative Assistant
Mrs Kim Crawford, Strategic Maintenance Planning Analyst
Mr Liam Dawson, Manager Maintenance Planning
Mr Erik Schaffarczyk, Strategic Operations Planning and Business Continuity Officer
Ms Denise Au, Asset Bar Coding Officer
Mr Steve Bass, Asset Bar Coding Officer
Mr George Jetis, Senior Architect
Mr Alex Shuttleworth, Contractor – Procurement Support
 
CW&F’s commitment and dedication is highlighted through the positive feedback received regarding the University’s facilities across the six campuses. The strong leadership and very positive culture throughout the unit of CW&F is paramount to their success. The strength and commitment of the whole team is brought to bear, under outstanding leadership, in order to find a solution. They work cohesively in situations that show facilitation in what might otherwise simply not be possible.

Capital Works and Facilities’ commitment, planning and ability to re-prioritise is supported by a highly skilled, client-focused and experienced team. Its aim is to continually improve asset reliability and performance and to upgrade infrastructure in line with campus growth. 

Highly Commended – Individual

Mr Rob McPaul-Browne, Senior Business Analyst, Academic Registrar's Office

Highly Commended – Teams

Office of Organisational Development

Ms Aggie Lim, Director, Office of Organisational Development
Ms Carolyn Bennett, Project Coordinator, Office of Organisational Development
Ms Leone Cripps, Consultant, Leadership Development, Office of Organisational Development
Ms Kathy Adam-Cross, Program Coordinator, Office of Organisational Development
Mrs Deann Gilliver, Program Coordinator, Office of Organisational Development
Mr Gordon Grant, Consultant, Organisational Development, IT Training, Office of Organisational Development
Mrs Beverley McSpadyen, Consultant, Organisational Development, Office of Organisational Development
Mr Phillip Marler, Consultant, Organisational Development, Office of Organisational Development
Mrs Dearne Richards, Coordinator, Organisational Development, Office of Organisational Development
Mr Ted Webber, eLearning Consultant, Office of Organisational Development

Student Amenities Fee Implementation Team

Ms Leonie Cribbin, Student Systems Manager, Academic Registrar’s Office
Ms Deborah Manns, Senior Business Analyst, Academic Registrar’s Office
Mrs Kerry Harris, Senior Business Analyst, Academic Registrar’s Office
Mr Scott White, Business Analyst, Academic Registrar’s Office
Ms Joann Flack, Manager, Fees and Student Finance, Academic Registrar’s Office
Mr Larry Walls, Fees and Student Finance Coordinator, Academic Registrar’s Office
Mr Leslie Cowles, Student Operations Analyst, Academic Registrar’s Office
Ms Katrina White, Enrolments Manager, Academic Registrar’s Office
Mrs Allyson McDonald, Communications Coordinator, Academic Registrar’s Office
Miss Chantelle Gent, Communications Coordinator, Office of Marketing and Communication
Miss Bethany Geeves, Communications Officer, Academic Registrar’s Office
Ms Leanne Findlay, Internal Communications Manager, Acting, Office of Marketing and Communication
Mr Oswald Fernando, Computer Systems Officer, Information Technology Services
Mr Anil Sequeira, Computer Systems Officer, Information Technology Services

Excellence in Postgraduate Research, Training and Supervision

Winners

Professor Catherine Stevens, Professor, The MARCS Institute and School of Social Sciences and Psychology 

Beyond individuals Catherine has championed postgraduate research. Catherine first provided the pre-conditions for the MARCS Centre’s (now Institute) existence. She then set to work to provide an excellent research environment for academics and postgraduate students and then populated that environment with excellent research students.

Catherine has shown clear excellence in research training and supervision and is a strong advocate of postgraduate training. MARCS researchers and past and present students have benefited greatly from Catherine’s caring diligence and strong adherence to excellent and principled research.

Professor Rhonda Craven, Director, Centre for Positive Psychology and Education, School of Education 

Rhonda has a long and established record of outstanding research supervision. A feature of her approach to supervision is the pedagogical model she employs, which takes her students through a defined program of engagement in research methods, and particularly high level qualitative research methodology, grant writing and preparation for conference presentations and refereed publications.

Rhonda is able to maintain high levels of performance in both her personal research profile and that of her Research Centre while also maintaining high performance in postgraduate research training and supervision.  

Excellence in University Engagement

Winner – Staff Individual

Ms Anne McLean, Manager, Schools Engagement Unit

Anne has made an outstanding contribution to the development of the Indigenous Schools Mentoring Program. Anne has developed very strong stakeholder relations with Schools and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Elders in the management of the program and in evaluation and improvement processes, and has been very effective within this role showing passion and professionalism. The positive effects of the program are widespread both in the University and the participating schools and the Greater Western Sydney community.  

Winner – Staff Team

Men's Health Information and Resources Centre

Professor John Macdonald, Director, Men’s Health Information and Resources Centre, School of Science and Health
Mr David Thompson, Digital Information, Communication Officer, Men’s Health Information and Resource Centre
Mr Anthony Brown, Project Officer, Men’s Health Information and Resource Centre
Mrs Joycelyn Applebee, Administrative Officer, Men’s Health Information and Resource Centre
Mr Rick Welsh, Project Officer, Men’s Health Information and Resource Centre
Mr Doug Cochrane, Aboriginal Cultural Worker, Men’s Health Information and Resource Centre  

The Men’s Health Information and Resource Centre has had continuous and an increased record of funding since 1999. It has firmly established a unique position in the field of male health in Australia and has achieved successes in a range of projects. All of these projects have contributed greatly to UWS and its work within the wider community. The Centre is a great example of community engagement.  

Highly Commended – Staff Individual

Mr Iqbal Barkat, Associate Lecturer, School of Humanities and Communication Arts

Highly Commended – Staff Teams

Paediatric Community Program

Professor John Whitehall, Foundation Professor, Paediatrics and Child Health, School of Medicine
Mrs Dawn Douglas, Senior Administrative Officer, Paediatrics, School of Medicine 

UWS Riverfarm - A Collaborative Learning Space

Mrs Helen Angelakis, Executive Officer, Office of Sustainability
Ms Jen Dollin, Sustainability Coordinator, Office of Sustainability    

Excellence in University Sustainability

Winner – Student Individual

Mrs Tessa McGavock, Student, Masters of Education (Leadership) 

Tessa is working towards a Masters of Education (Leadership) and is committed to excellence in child care through developing and guiding our children from an early age in the fundamentals of everyday life. Tessa is very dedicated to her sustainability project and has been successful in obtaining a SERF grant to further implement her sustainability objectives. Tessa is instrumental in sharing her ideas and expertise with others. The Project is also well regarded by parents of the Centre which enhances the reputation of UWS Early Learning Limited and the University as a whole.   

Winner – Staff Team

Youth Eco Summit UWS Team  

Dr Beatriz Cardona, Engagement Facilitator, Communities and Sustainability, Office of the Pro Vice-Chancellor (Engagement and International)
Dr Brenda Dobia, Academic Course Advisor, School of Education  

This team’s contribution was in developing a ticketing system for registrations to the Youth Eco-Summit. This project incorporates engaged learning, engaged research and community engagement. It illustrates how various Schools and Office can work together to advance the University’s mission and strategic objective. It has strengthened links with partners within Western Sydney.  

Winner – Student Team 

UWS Hawkesbury Sustainability Collective  

Ms Alicia Kasbarian, Student, Doctor of Philosophy
Ms Siobhan Fury, Student, Bachelor of Natural Science
Miss Cathy Xiao Chen, Student, Bachelor of Natural Science
Miss Julie Wright, Student, Bachelor of Natural Science
Miss Rebecca Sullivan, Student, Bachelor of Science
Mrs Michelle Mak, Student, Bachelor of Natural Science   

The UWS Hawkesbury Sustainability Collective has a key student leadership role in promotion of sustainability on the Hawkesbury campus and into the local community. It delivers a range of sustainability activities such as advocacy, volunteering, fund raising and peer support. They are involved in a public schools peer support and mentoring program in conjunction with various partners. The Collective is a successful demonstration of the role that a UWS club can play creating a more collegiate environment with a focus on suitability that meets the Universities core values.
This is an excellent initiative and shows passion and commitment from the students involved.  

Highly Commended – Individual

Dr Ali Hellany, Senior Lecturer, School of Computing, Engineering and Mathematics

Highly Commended – Staff Teams

Sustainability in Food Science - Technical Staff 

Ms Jennie Nelson, Technical Team Leader, School of Science and Health
Mrs Mahnaz Shahnaseri, Technical Officer, School of Science and Health
Ms Kelly Strachan, Technical Officer, School of Science and Health   

Jay Huxley Love Food Hate Waste Cooking Demonstrations 

Ms Jennifer Kensey, Manager, Student Welfare Service
Mrs Melissa Ursino, Student Welfare Officer, Student Welfare Service
Ms Lisa Linford, Programs Officer, Student Support Services
Mrs Linda Telisman, Campus Manager, UWS Residential Colleges
Ms Carmel Votano, Student Welfare Officer, Student Welfare Service
Ms Katherine Bland, Student Welfare Officer, Student Welfare Service
Ms Danielle Holmes, Disability Advisor, Student Support Services     

Excellence in Leadership

Winner – Professional Staff

Dr Shane Griffin, Technical Manager, School of Science and Health 

Shane has performed exceptionally in the four years since his appointment at UWS. Within a very short period of time Shane gained the respect and cooperation of staff, and a commitment from staff to work with him to create a well respected technical support structure and service.

The structures and processes that Shane has implemented have been highly professional, and have been praised by areas around the University that he interacts with. He has shown a very high level of leadership both within his team and also more broadly at School level and beyond.   

Highly Commended – Professional Staff

Mrs Christine Booth, Assessment and Graduation Manager, Student Administration - Services, Academic Registrar's Office

UWSCollege Award for Excellence

Winner– Individual

Mr Ray Sirisatien, IT Services Administrator, UWSCollege Pty Ltd

Ray has consistently performed at a high level in his role as IT Services Administrator. The attribute that makes him a standout employee is his willingness to be involved in all operational and project based tasks that he is assigned. Ray goes above and beyond what he is asked to do.

On his own initiative, Ray produced a video for new student induction which has been extraordinarily successful with students and hence he has been asked to produce more videos for the College.  

Highly Commended – Individual

Mr David White, Manager e-Learning, UWSCollege Pty Ltd

Highly Commended – Team

Student Services Nirimba and Westmead  

 Ms Susan Channells, UWSCollege Registrar, UWSCollege Pty Ltd
Mrs Elizabeth Na, Manager, System and Compliance, UWSCollege Pty Ltd
Mr Michael Casey, Manager, Education Administration, UWSCollege Pty Ltd
Mr Richard William Joseph, Student Services Manager, UWSCollege Pty Ltd
Ms Maria Dhaliwal, Data Analyst, UWSCollege Pty Ltd
Mr Kevin Chen, Timetable Coordinator, UWSCollege Pty Ltd
Mr Jeff Dunn, Indigenous Project Officer, Academic Programs, UWSCollege Pty Ltd
Mr Sean O’Hanlon, Student Advisor, UWSCollege Pty Ltd
Ms Diane Gile, Student Advisor, UWSCollege Pty Ltd
Mrs Charlie Goodman, Student Centre Team Leader, UWSCollege Pty Ltd
Miss Katherine Reynolds-Addo, Student Activities Officer, UWSCollege Pty Ltd
Ms Sophia Cassimatis, Fees and Enrolment Officer, UWSCollege Pty Ltd
Ms Tam Nguyen, Enrolment Officer, UWSCollege Pty Ltd
Ms Frances Carbonaro, Student Services Officer, UWSCollege Pty Ltd
Mrs Arati Medhekar, Student Services Officer, UWSCollege Pty Ltd
Mrs Yumiko Ogawa, Student Services Officer, UWSCollege Pty Ltd
Mrs Cassy Magnoli, Student Services Officer, UWSCollege Pty Ltd