The passion, dedication and expertise of staff at UTS was once again on display at the 2026 Vice-Chancellor’s Learning and Teaching Ceremony on Thursday 2 April. Deputy Vice-Chancellor Professor and Vice-President (Education and Students) Kylie Readman shared opening remarks that highlighted the critical work done by those who support learning and teaching, whilst Vice-Chancellor Professor Andrew Parfitt acknowledged the hard work and contributions that make a lasting difference to students and alumni, many years after they complete their studies.
Chancellor Michael Rose AM similarly reflected on the long-term impacts of meaningful learning experiences, supported by educators who encourage students’ curiosity, a desire to keep learning and the skills to keep learning for a lifetime.
What you do is awesome and powerful, and plays out through people’s lives for the rest of their lives. I know that you get how important your work is. I would like you to understand that I get it, too.
Chancellor Michael Rose AM
Award winners
Contribution to Social Impact and Learning and Teaching Award
Jack Cornish, Jessica Durant, Sarah Ellis, Steffi Dourado, Regan Gauci, Nema Madnani, Joe Tedeschi, Zoe Vassallo (Faculty of Health)
Enhancing social impact, inclusion and belonging for Health undergraduates
Course Innovation and Enhancement
Amir Armanious (Business School)
Micro-learning, macro impact: transforming business education through interactive vodcasts
Course Innovation and Enhancement
Gerhard Van de Venter, David Michayluk, Hardy Hulley, Richard Ingold, Alexandra Sloane (Business School)
Virtue by design: a research-informed ethics transformation
Course Innovation and Enhancement
Shankar Sankaran (Faculty of Design & Society)
Empowering postgraduate students to apply systems thinking in practice
Student Experience Award
Kenneth Wu, Amanda White, Tracey Walmsley, Suying Zhao, Rina Dhillon, Nathan Wiltshire (Business School)
Empowering first-year Business student success through peer mentorship
Academic Support Award
Kathy Egea, Akriti Akriti, Gavin Paul, Amara Atif, Sonia Matiuk, Chris Girdler (Education Portfolio, and professional and academic staff collaboration)
Empowering academics to lead inclusive, data-informed teaching
Teaching by a Casual or Sessional Staff Member
Paulina Larocca (TD School)
Creative and embodied learning for ethical leadership in transdisciplinary education
Early Career Teaching Award
Biyanka Ekanayake (Faculty of Design & Society)
Equipping construction and property students to lead industry tech innovation
Early Career Teaching Award
Milena Bojovic (Faculty of Design & Society)
Innovating for student impact: ethical and collaborative approaches to Generative AI
Team Teaching Award
Vanessa Scarf, Rachel Reid, Jennifer Fenwick, Kathleen Baird (Faculty of Health)
Leading child and family health education that shapes the first 2000 days
Team Teaching Award
Christine Giles, Timothy Cook, Tom Foran, Fadi Kotob, Antonious Nehme, Fiona O’Sullivan, Andrea Stutz (Faculty of Law)
Achieving real-world transformative outcomes for Migration Law students
Team Teaching Award (Highly Commended)
Samuel Yu, Susanne Pratt, Scott Matter, Jarnae Leslie, Kevin Millingham (TD School & Education Portfolio)
Empowering TD students to navigate uncertain futures
Citation recipients
2025 Australian Awards for University Teaching
Read more about 2025 AAUT citation winners, including a Q&A with Anna Lidfors Lindquist and Shannon Lin on building student confidence and professional identity.
Image credits: Oscar Colman