University of Sydney gets heritage status

The University of Sydney and some of its colleges are to go on the NSW Heritage Register.

The University of Sydney’s Anderson Stuart Building is part of the new heritage listing.

In today’s Higher Ed Daily Brief: university heritage, UC’s new DVC

Sydney gets listed

Australia’s oldest university, the University of Sydney, as well as some of its colleges and the adjacent Victoria Park, have been given the green light to be put on the NSW State Heritage Register. NSW Heritage Minister Gabrielle Upton said that the university’s main quadrangle building, the Anderson Stuart Building and the gate lodges, together with St Paul’s, St John’s and St Andrew’s Colleges, were the most important gothic and Tudor revival style buildings in NSW and possibly Australia.

Ms Upton said the land where the university stood had longstanding cultural heritage. Once it was used by the Aboriginal Cadigal people. Then in 1790 it was reserved by the first NSW governor, Arthur Phillip, for use by “Crown, church and school”. The university was established in 1850 and the adjacent Victoria Park was dedicated in 1870 as a grand entrance avenue and parkland for the university.

“In the intervening years, the university and its surrounds have seen student activism and protests, research breakthroughs, teaching, sporting and cultural excellence,” said Ms Upton. “This is a time to celebrate, to reflect on the history and the culture of this unique cultural landscape.”

Sullivan goes to Canberra

The University of Canberra has hired Leigh Sullivan from Federation University as its new deputy vice-chancellor research and innovation. Professor Sullivan, a geochemist with a notable research record in acid sulfate soils and carbon biosequestration, will be responsible for driving entrepreneurship at the university and strengthening its research capacity to solve real world problems. He has experience in this because, during his time at Federation University, Professor Sullivan was responsible for the university’s technology park which, with 65 enterprises, is the largest such regional park in Australia.