Chancellor’s awards celebrate UOW’s connection with community

The University of Wollongong hosted its third annual Celebrating Community event on Friday night (9 October) to recognise connections between the University and the community.

Chancellor Jillian Broadbent announced the winners of the Chancellor’s Awards for Achievement in Community Service, recognising both University of Wollongong graduates and community members.

Ms Broadbent said UOW deeply values its community partnerships, and said the awards were one way it could demonstrate its appreciation for that support and trust.

More than 100 UOW and community representatives attended the function, where the University recognised its volunteers and celebrated its collaboration with its communities. Thirty two groups and individuals were nominated for the awards’ four categories.

The 2009 winners included a community group helping refugees in the Illawarra, an organisation supporting local communities in the developing world and individuals who have significantly contributed in the disability sector and in assisting young people at risk. Each winner received $5000, donated to the registered charity or non-profit group of the winner’s choice.

Vice-Chancellor Professor Gerard Sutton congratulated the winners and praised the high standard of the nominees: “This has been a great evening, full of great stories. We had 32 nominees but only four award winners … in reality we could have these four awards to any of those 32.”

The winners were:

Alumni Category

Mr Alfred (Neil) Preston OAM

Neil’s advocacy for the rights of marginalised members in the Illawarra community culminated in his appointment to one of Wollongong’s oldest community organisations as Chief Executive Officer – Greenacres Disability Services.

Community Category

Ms Kathleen Davis

Kathleen has been involved in the Nowra Circle Sentencing Court since 2002. This program represents a mechanism by which Indigenous people can manage their own issues in an appropriate way.

Ms Sally Stevenson

Sally is the founding and current Chair of Indigo Foundation (IF) — supporting local communities in the developing world. The organisation provides public health and education support to communities in eight countries.

SCARF Inc

SCARF (Strategic Community Assistance to Refugee Families) introduces newly arrived refugees to the established community through a range of programs, including a home tutor program, computers for the community, employment advocacy and assistance with obtaining a drivers licence.

Last reviewed: 12 October, 2009