From the Vice-Chancellor March 2022

Dear Deakin community,

On 23 March, the National Student Safety Survey (NSSS) was released – a crucially important survey that gathers data on the scale and nature of students’ perceptions of safety and experiences relating to sexual harm at Australian universities.

Of Deakin’s more than 66,000 students, about 10,000 were invited to participate in the survey’s qualitative component and 1166 students responded. In addition, current and former students enrolled within the past five years were given the opportunity to share their experiences on the NSSS website. I would like to sincerely thank all those in our community who took part.

While the data reflects that, for the vast majority of our students, Deakin is a safe place, even one instance of sexual harm is too many. Deakin has worked with our staff and students for many years to build a strong culture of safety, mutual respect and inclusion – but there is always more to do.

Together, we must continue to confront the scourge of sexual harm both at universities and across our broader communities. This behaviour has no place at Deakin, and with insights from the NSSS, we have strengthened our Respect and Sexual Harm programs to continue supporting our students and changing attitudes and behaviours.

Further information can be found via our media release, which includes links to all the relevant external references and resources.

Recently, we also participated in International Women’s Day. Deakin continues to advocate for gender equality through our education and research and many workplace initiatives. This endeavour extends to our international networks, and on 8 March I was proud to launch the Women Entrepreneurship Research Alliance (WERA), which is a Deakin partnership with Symbiosis International University aiming to help create the same participation and success rates in entrepreneurial activity for women as their male counterparts.

Our deepest sympathies continue to be with Ukrainian citizens and connections. This is an appalling, needless war which has already caused immense suffering. We are working with our partners to provide support wherever we can.

Here at home, 2022 continues to shape up as a year of renewed energy and engagement, and our students – both local and international – are at the centre of it all. In April, we will run our ‘Grads on the Green’ events, which will enable our graduating students to celebrate their achievements with family and friends.

On 11 March I attended the launch of our contender for the 2023 World Solar Challenge, codenamed ‘ASCEND’, a solar car that was developed by Deakin students with our partner ACCIONA Energia. I look forward to the event – good luck to everyone involved!

Please enjoy this month’s edition of dKin Times, which continues to showcase the best of Deakin University.

Best wishes,
Iain

Vice-Chancellor
Deakin University