Thank You, Tracy, and it is indeed a great pleasure to be at this wonderful dinner tonight,
It is a true celebration. I'd like to begin by acknowledging Mr Colin
Beckett, Chancellor, Curtin University and Mrs Sarah Beckett, the Honourable
Mark McGowan MLA, Premier of Western Australia, the Honourable Wayne Martin AC
Chief Justice of Western Australia and Mrs Margie Martin, State Cabinet Ministers,
the Honourable Malcolm McCusker AC CVO QC, Former Governor and Mrs Tonya McCusker AM.
The Honourable Colin Barnett MLA, Former Premier and Mrs Lyn Barnett.
Mr Sean L'Estrange MLA representing the Leader of the Opposition, Professor
Deborah Terry AO Vice-Chancellor Curtin University and Professor Ottmar Lipp.
Members of State Parliament, consul generals, consuls mayors, distinguished
guests, all. I would also like to acknowledge the traditional owners of
the land on which we meet, the Noongar people and pay my respects to their
elders past and present. And I'm very pleased to be speaking to you tonight,
both of the official visitor of four of the state's excellent universities,
including Curtin, and on a more personal level as someone with a passion for
continuous learning. Anniversaries give us reason to pause for a moment in busy lives,
we're encouraged to look back and consider what we have achieved, how this
has shaped us and what this means for our future. Tonight, Curtin is looking at its
achievements over the past five decades, and inspiring us with its plans for the future.
I have my own personal experience of Curtin's history, for example as a
government nominated member of the University Council in the late 1980's,
as a member of the Curtin Business School Advisory Board for more than five years,
and as Adjunct Professor within the Curtin Business School, an honorary
appointment for close to two years, prior to becoming Governor. Curtin University
has many reasons to be proud of its innovation,
its applied approach and its ranking of 22nd in the world in the QS Top
50 Under 50. My experience over the years has led me to the view that
accreditation is important and I'm pleased that the Curtin Business School
has also achieved the prestigious and internationally recognised accreditation
from AACSB international. The Autism Academy for Software Quality Assurance
based at Curtin, is also undertaking important work helping individuals on
the autism spectrum, find employment in the IT industry. I recently
became patron of his social initiative, which is the first of its kind in Australia.
To date, people on the autism spectrum have only had about one half of the
labor force participation rate of the remainder of the population, 42 percent
compared to 83 percent for those without disabilities. Yet individuals on the
autism spectrum are particularly valued for their strengths
including their ability to be systematic, with a high level of job focus and
attention to detail, which is ideal for software checking. This exciting
initiative helps them to identify and develop interests in stem, using coding
and robotics as the platform, and helps them to get internships and then jobs.
I've met some of those participating and it's truly a life-changing experience
for them. And I congratulate Curtin, Mr Jim Ellis and all involved on this
exciting initiative. On my regional visit to the Goldfields last year, I was
fortunate to visit the WA School of Mines and meet with students enjoying
the university experience in Kalgoorlie. The School of Mines has been the start
of many, an illustrious career in mining. And I note that this year Curtin was
ranked second in the world for mineral and mining engineering by the QS World
University Rankings.
[Audience applause]
Universities are incredibly important. I know that many of you will be university
graduates yourselves and will have your own particular memories of university life.
For some, attending university is not only the path to a better career but
can be groundbreaking and helped to break cycles of poverty. Curtin has
undertaken research to make higher education more accessible to the
disadvantaged. It is also the first host of the National Centre for Student
Equity in Higher Education, which is looking at ways of improving higher
education prospects, for marginalised and disadvantaged groups. I'm sure that there
are many things that universities can do to help close the education gap, but I'm
reminded tonight of the role we can all play in addressing these inequities
through our active support of universities. And especially through the
support of student scholarships which gives students from all backgrounds
and walks of life, the chance to realise their full potential.
Curtin University's strong international focus, has also provided many
opportunities for staff and students to learn side-by-side with those from other
countries. That adds a very valuable dimension to the learning experience.
Curtin is also very focused on collaboration as we heard from the
Vice-Chancellor, and the collaboration also includes
collaborating with our state's other excellent universities. And I'm pleased
to see increased collaboration which will make our university sector even stronger.
I think it is wonderful that Curtin is an inclusive and
welcoming university, strongly focusing on working with industry.
Curtin has continued to transform and adapt over time, to innovate and respond to the
community and the needs of industry. It had a good base to build
from as the West Australian Institute of Technology and it is appropriate to
celebrate the excellent university which is now 50 years old. I applaud the bold
thinkers and leaders of WAIT and Curtin and the students who have worked
together to shape the organisation over the past decades. I would like to end
with three quotes from a famous doctor, Dr Seuss, which I think are
useful for both students and universities to reflect on. Dr Seuss
said "Why fit in, when you were born to stand out?" And "You have brains in your
head, you have feet in your shoes, you can steer yourself in any direction you choose."
And the final quote, "The more that you read,
the more things you will know, the more that you learn, the more places
you'll go." We can all look forward with great enthusiasm to our leaders of the
future, who I hope will remember these messages when they graduate from Curtin University,
and act to make our world a better place.
Congratulations again to Curtin University on this significant
anniversary. Thank you.