2005 winners

 

(Please note: This is archival information and may not reflect current profiles)

Mark Henry

Faculty of Built Environment & Engineering Award Winner

Before gaining his double degree in Engineering (Manufacturing Systems) and Business (Marketing), Mark was a fitter and turner, but he was also a man with a plan. Utilising his trade and degree studies, Mark turned a long-term interest in knife technology into a multi-million dollar export business. During his studies, Mark observed chefs at work, researched blades and the history of knife making. He then developed an improved knife with a fatigue grip reducing handle and commenced commercialising his product with a mere $7,000 in start-up capital. The only Australian designer of such products, Mark has been able to build brand acceptance in a conservative market traditionally dominated by European manufacturers. Today his company, Furitechnics Pty Ltd, markets a unique range of knives and sharpening systems around the globe and enjoys the endorsement of high profile chefs like Britain's Nigella Lawson and America's Rachael Ray. In 1999, Mark received the Telstra and Queensland Government Small Business Award. With rapidly growing sales in the US, Mark recently relocated to San Francisco to open the offices of Furitechnics USA Inc in August 2005.

Paul Taaffe

Faculty of Business Award Winner

In 1985, Paul resigned his position at Unilever Australia in order to travel throughout Europe . Settling in London , he resumed his career at consultancy Reginald Watts Associates before moving up to joint Managing Director for Shandwick. In 1992, at 31 years of age, he joined Hill & Knowlton to become the youngest ever CEO of the firm's UK company. He shortly was promoted to President and CEO of Hill & Knowlton Europe, Middle East, Africa, one of the firm's five regions, and subsequently moved to New York to become president of the company. In 2002, he was named Chairman and Chief Executive. Paul is acknowledged in the public relations industry for his expert strategic counsel and management communications for a broad range or multinational and local clients, with a particular focus on companies under duress. Career highlights include his involvement in the re-emergence from bankruptcy of WorldCom (now MCI), the Compaq/Hewlett Packard merger, and Athens ' successful bid for the 2004 Olympics. Paul has a Bachelor of Business (Communications).

Yolande Brown

Creative Industries Faculty Award Winner

Yolande is a Senior Artist with the acclaimed Bangarra Dance Theatre and one of Australia's outstanding contemporary dancers. She has toured internationally with the company and contributed to the choreographic development of several productions including Skin, Walkabout, Corroboree, Clan and Bush (in which she had leading roles); and Rites (a collaboration with the Australian Ballet). Yolande also performed in the Indigenous section of the Opening and Closing Ceremonies of the 2000 Olympics. This year, she has been working on Boomerang which opened at the Playhouse in June. A multi-faceted performer, Yolande is not only adept at various forms of dance, but is also a talented pianist, actor and vocal artist. She delighted Australian audiences, in the principal role of Susan in the musical adaptation of C.S. Lewis', The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe and is currently producing an EP of self-composed songs funded by the Australian Arts Council. Last year, she was nominated in two categories for a Dance Australia, Critic's Choice Award. Yolande holds a Bachelor of Arts in Dance.

Sharon Galleguillos

Faculty of Education Award Winner

In 1976, Sharon was one of only two Indigenous graduates of the Certificate of Teaching program at Kedron Park Teachers' College . Since then, she has accumulated considerable experience in Indigenous education, as a practitioner and policy developer. Today, Sharon is Lecturer and Course Convener in Indigenous Studies at the Koori Centre of the University of Sydney . She is also President of the Wunanbiri Pre-school , recognised in Redfern for providing excellent educational outcomes for Indigenous children, and vocational opportunities for parents and the community. Sharon serves on the Advisory Committee of the Books in Homes Australia program, which benefits thousands of disadvantaged and remote area children annually. She is also a board member of the Primary English Teaching Association and a director of the Fred Hollows Foundation. Recently, Sharon was awarded a University of Sydney Excellence in Teaching Award in recognition of her commitment to Indigenous education. Sharon also holds a Bachelor of Education (Primary) from the University of Sydney.

Jennifer Muller

Faculty of Health Award Winner

For fourteen years, Jennifer has been Director of Queensland Health's Cancer Screening Services Unit, where she has been responsible for population screening and early detection programs that have significantly reduced the impact of cancer in our community. She helped to establish the National Cervical Screening Program and BreastScreen Australia Program, which she also implemented in Queensland . Jennifer pioneered the Rural and Remote Women's Health Program; the Mobile Women's Health Nurse Service and led the development of the Queensland Indigenous Women's Cervical Screening Strategy. To complement these programs she developed and implemented Queensland Health's Pap Smear Registry and the BreastScreen Queensland Registry database systems. Currently, Jennifer is working to develop the state component of the National Bowel Cancer Screening Program, recently announced in the Federal Budget. In 1999, Jennifer was awarded an Australia Day Achievement Medallion for her outstanding contribution to the work of Queensland Health. Jennifer gained a Graduate Diploma in Health Science (Health Education) from BCAE in 1986. She also has a Diploma in Diagnostic Radiography and a Masters in Environmental and Community Health.

Dr Stephen Lawrence

Chancellor's Outstanding Alumnus

Faculty of Information Technology Award Winner

If you've ever searched the web using Google, your life has been made easier by the work of Dr Stephen Lawrence. Steve is an outstanding young scientist who has already made a major impact on the world stage. He graduated in 1992 with First Class Honours in a Bachelor of Engineering, a Bachelor of Applied Science (Electronic Systems and Computing) with Distinction and a University Medal. He completed a PhD and accepted a position as a research scientist with NEC Research Institute, Princeton , USA . Within four years, his outstanding individual and collaborative research achievements propelled him to the role of Senior Research Scientist. Currently, he is Senior Staff Research Scientist at Google , California . Steve created the top-ranked search application Google Desktop Search and CiteSeer, a digital library for scientific literature. CiteSeer is ranked in the top 0.5% of all websites by traffic (servicing over thirty million requests per month) and is the largest free full-text index of scientific literature in the world. Steve currently has over fifty patents granted or pending, and also has to his credit four refereed book chapters, nineteen journal articles and fifty-nine conference papers. He is also a reviewer for numerous journals including Science and Nature. There are over five thousand citations to his published work. Steve's academic achievements have been recognised with a Technology NJ Internet Innovator Award and NEC Research Institute awards for Impact, Excellence and Best Patent. In 2002, Steve was made AAAS Fellow in recognition of his fundamental research on the structure of the World Wide Web, characterisation of web search engines, and the role of the web in changing scholarly communication.

Neil Laurie

Faculty of Law Award Winner

Neil began his career with the Queensland Parliamentary Service as a Senior Research Officer for parliamentary committees. Later, as Deputy Clerk and Research Director, he was involved in drafting consultation drafts of the Constitution of Queensland Bill and the Parliament of Queensland Bill. In 2004, Neil became Queensland Clerk of the Parliament, the highest ranking, permanent non-political officer in the Parliament. In this role, Neil is the Principal Officer of the Legislative Assembly, providing expert advice and guidance to the Speaker, the Chairman of Committees and Members of Parliament on the rules and practices of Parliament. He also supervises around four hundred parliamentary staff. Aided by studies in Business and Law, he has transformed the role of Clerk and the responsibilities of the Parliamentary Service, developing and implementing updated systems and fostering exemplary standards of conduct, performance and ethics. Neil also Chairs the Education Committee of the Australia and New Zealand Association of Clerks at the Table (ANZACATT) and is the Honorary Secretary of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (QLD). Neil gained his Bachelor of Laws, Master of Laws (Hons) and MBA from QUT.

Bill Taylor

Faculty of Science Award Winner

Bill is Group Technical Director and Chief Brewer of Lion Nathan Limited, but started working life as a chemist with Castlemaine Perkins. He has been a key figure in the advancement of the brewing industry in Australia and internationally. For the past two years, Bill has served as Worldwide President of the Institute of Brewing and Distilling headquartered in London , and also serves on its Board of Examiners. Bill is also a member of the Supervisory Board of Brewing Research International which provides scientific and research services to the brewing industry globally. Bill has developed TAFE and university courses for the hospitality and brewing industries and authored the book Beer and Food, a Celebration of Flavours. He has written for the Courier-Mail, Australian Good Taste Magazine and presented a six-part documentary series on beer for television. Last year, he was admitted to the Worshipful Company of Brewers at Guildhall, London , in recognition of his service to the industry. Bill holds a Bachelor of Applied Science (Applied Chemistry) and a Graduate Diploma in Business (Admin) from QIT.

Beverley Watkinson

Humanities and Human Services Award Winner

Formerly an enrolled nurse, Bev gained a Bachelor of Social Science and for the past five years has been Director of Centacare - Community Support Services. The service arm of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Brisbane, Centacare runs eighty-five community-based programs for the aged, frail aged, young disabled and their carers, at thirty-eight locations in south-east Queensland . With twenty years experience in the sector, Bev has been able to change the face of respite and community care. She has developed and implemented a range of programs tailored to the needs of carers and designed to encourage independence in clients. Bev is also Chair of Rosies, an NGO devoted to helping homeless people and those in detention or in prison - working from the premise that homelessness is an emotional condition requiring a human response as opposed to "houselessness" requiring the provision of shelter and other physical necessities. This year, Bev has also been volunteering in Laho, a village in East Timor where an Australian funded silk farming project has been established.

Aaron Chippendale

Outstanding Young Alumni Award Winner

Aaron graduated in 2000 with First Class honours in the Bachelor of Engineering (Aerospace Avionics). During his studies, Aaron's interest in space led him to co-found the Australian Students' Space Association and the Queensland Youth Space Forum. He also represented Australia on the UN Space Generation Advisory Council. For the past four years, Aaron has been involved in the early design phase of the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) Project at the CSIRO Australia Telescope National Facility. This enormous next-generation radio telescope is expected to be one hundred times more sensitive than the best in the world currently, allowing scientists to see back to the very early universe and the formation of the first stars. During his short career Aaron has received more than twenty prestigious prizes, scholarships and awards, including a QUT University Medal, Golden Key Scholarship, Nu-Lec Scholarship, CSIRO ATNF Graduate Research Scholarship, International Union of Radio Science Young Scientist Award and Gold Duke of Edinburgh award. He is currently completing a PhD in Astrophysics at the University of Sydney .