2023 is an extraordinary year for the University of Tasmania alumni community, with twenty-two of its members represented in the King’s Birthday Honours list. We are proud of the achievements of these alumni and congratulate the following 2023 recipients:
Senior Sergeant Dermot Avon APM (BAProfHons(Specialisation) 2018) has been recognised with an Australian Police Medal. A member of Victoria Police for 42 years, for the last 30 years he has played an integral part in developing and implementing peer support and mental health training programs for Victoria Police and nationwide.
Mr Chris Binks OAM (BA 1959, BA(Hons) 1961, Dip.Ed. 1964) has been recognised for service to secondary education, and to literature. He has taught in a number of schools across Tasmania, including in senior leadership positions. He is also the author of several books about the history and landscapes of Tasmania.
Mr Roderick Bryant-King ASM (BParamedPrac(Conv) 2014) has been awarded the Ambulance Service Medal in recognition of his ongoing 44 year career with NSW Ambulance across fleet, control, rescue, intensive care, front line management and education. The award recognises his outstanding service during the COVID-19 pandemic and in numerous traumatic incidents that he has attended, as well as his exemplary support of colleagues.
Dr Keith Corbett OAM (B.Sc. 1963, B.Sc.(Hons) 1964, PhD 1971, MSc 2001) has been honoured for service to conservation and the environment. During his 60-year career as a geologist, he has been author and co-author of over 50 peer-reviewed scientific papers on Tasmanian geology. He has also led numerous teams in a voluntary capacity, working to protect and understand the Tasmanian natural environment.
Mrs Elizabeth Corbett OAM (B.Sc. 1963, B.Sc.(Hons) 1964) has been recognised for service to conservation and the environment. A volunteer Botanist and Vegetation Mapper, with the Tasmanian Government for 40 years, she has also authored and co-authored publications about Tasmanian flora. She has also occupied multiple volunteer positions to understand and protect the Tasmanian natural environment.
Mr Philip Endersbee OAM (B.Bus(BusAdmin) 1980) has been recognised for his service to the community through charitable organisations. He has held numerous directorships and board appointments supporting children’s welfare and professional sports and also aided individuals and communities in need, both in Australia and overseas, through his many volunteer and team member positions.
Ms Rosalind Escott AM DipFamHist 2017 is honoured for her significant service to women's health, and to the community. Rosalind has occupied leadership positions in international and domestic organisations which promote best practice for mothers in their breastfeeding journeys, leading to better infant health and nutrition outcomes. She has also held voluntary positions furthering knowledge about family and female convict history in Tasmania, as well as in emergency support training services for Tasmanian bushwalkers.
Commander Peter Harriss APM (GradCertPoliceSt 2004, GradDipPoliceSt 2006, MPoliceSt 2009, MBA 2018) has been honoured with an Australian Police Medal for his exemplary leadership, resilience, professionalism and dedication to duty. He has made a significant contribution towards quality policing and emergency services to the Tasmania community.
Mr Roger Hodgman AM (BA 1965 (Hons) 1971) has been recognised for significant service to the performing arts as a director. Since 2000, he has been a freelance director working with prominent Australian theatre and opera companies, as well as directing many hit television shows. He has also held senior positions as a teacher, board member, judge, and governance leader in the sector, both in Australia and overseas, accruing numerous prominent awards and accolades along his journey.
Ms Rosemary Huxtable AO, PSM (BA 1978 (Hons) 1979) has been honoured for distinguished service to public administration through leadership roles in the areas of health and finance, and to strategic policy reform. She was the Secretary of the Department of Finance from December 2016 to August 2022 and prior to that a Deputy Secretary in the Department of Health and Ageing. She has played a key role developing several Australian federal budgets.
The Hon Judith Jackson AM (BA 1968, Dip.Ed. 1968, LL.B. 1980) is honoured for significant service to the people and Parliament of Tasmania. She has held numerous ministerial positions in the Parliament of Tasmania since 1989, was Member for Dennison for twenty years, and occupied the position of Attorney-General from 2002-2006.
Mrs Joan Kelly OAM (BAdVocEd 2001) has been recognised for services to the visual arts. In addition to a career as an artist which has resulted in hundreds of exhibitions, Joan has also held numerous leadership positions in the arts sector to promote and co-ordinate artistic endeavours both in Australia and internationally. She has also worked as a teacher, curator and illustrator over many years.
Mr Daniel Lalor PSM (MBA (Health Management) 2010) has been recognised for outstanding public service to public health as the Director of Pharmacy at Canberra Health Services. His work supporting the clinical COVID-19 response contributed to the ACT’s pandemic outcomes, which include being the fastest, most vaccinated city in the world, with notably low hospitalisation and death rates.
Ms Jennifer Logie OAM (BBus 1992) has been honoured for services to the community of Bicheno. In addition to a career holding numerous senior executive positions in the human resources sector, she has also made a substantial contribution to her community as a senior leader contributing to community and child welfare, tourism, and regional corporate governance.
Mrs Jennifer McDuff OAM (GradDipFineArts 1993) has been recognised for service to the arts, particularly in the Bundaberg area. Alongside her own career as an artist, she has held positions as a teacher and lecturer in both the secondary and tertiary sectors. She has also occupied many senior board and committee positions, promoting and organising community or arts-based projects for the benefit of regional constituents.
Dr Frank Meumann OAM (B.Med.Sc.(Hons) 1971, M.B.,B.S 1974, GradCertArts(Spec) 2012) has been honoured for services to medicine. He was a general practitioner in Claremont for 21 years and is now a specialist medical practitioner with the Persistent Pain Program at Royal Hobart Hospital. He is also former District Medical Officer, Aboriginal Health in the NT. He was a founding member of the Balint Society of Australia and New Zealand, including being its president from 2012-2016. Dr Meumann was also Tasmania’s State Director of the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners from 2005-2011.
Miss Lucy Oatley ASM (GradDipAdvParamed(Spec) 2017, MAdvParamed(Specialisation) 2018) has been awarded the Ambulance Service Medal. During her time working within Ambulance Tasmania’s Clinical Services team, Ms Oatley notably developed and implemented the Ambulance Tasmania Thrombolysis Project which resulted in significant improvements to clinical care provided to Tasmanians suffering an acute myocardial infarction.
Ms Terry O'Brien OAM (DipFamHist 2018) has been recognised for services to education. In addition to her teaching career of nearly four decades, she also held many senior governance positions within the New South Wales Department of Education and the New South Wales Secondary Principals' Council.
Mr Simon Pennington OAM (MEd 2019) has been awarded the OAM for services to rowing. As well as his own achievements as an athlete, his coaching career has encompassed numerous high schools in New South Wales, and the leadership of teams competing in the New South Wales Youth Olympics in 2007 and on the international stage, with the Australian Under 23 Lightweight Four in 1997 and 1999.
Ms Natalie Shiel OAM (GradDipN 2008, MCN 2009) has been recognised for service to nursing. She has held senior leadership positions at Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, Sydney Local Health District, and New South Wales Health, including Director of Nursing for the COVID-19 Vaccination and Screening Program, and Nurse Manager, COVID Operations, both since 2021. Her accolades include being the 2020 recipient of the Australasian College of Health Service Management’s Health Management Leadership Award,
Mrs Hayley Turner ASM (BParamedPrac(Conv) 2013) has been awarded the Ambulance Service Medal. As the Acting Director of the NSW Ambulance Public Health Unit during the peak of the delta variant wave mid-2021, Ms Turner worked tirelessly to develop processes to ensure timely, reliable and consistent advice, reporting and messaging to support staff safety and wellbeing, and ensure stakeholder confidence in advice and actions of the unit.
Ms Amanda Wojtowicz AM (B.ED. 1986) has been recognised for significant service to performing arts administration, and to tertiary education. Starting her career as a music teacher in the ACT in the late 1960s, she went on to build a career as a senior arts-sector and tertiary education administrator. She has notably held multiple senior board, committee, and advisory positions both in Tasmania and nationally with the Australia Council for the Arts and has also held several senior academic positions and directorships at the University of Tasmania.
For the full list of recipients, see here.
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