Welcome to the April edition of the Noticeboard, a monthly update with news and opportunities from around the sector. If you have anything you’d like to share with members please contact our Policy and Communications Officer Rebekah Harms.

The DASSH Lounge

Join the DASSH Lounge, our exclusive LinkedIn group for DASSH Members where we share the latest news, jobs and opportunities from DASSH and around the sector.

The DASSH Lounge is reserved for members and is a great place to let people know you’re hiring, hosting an event or working on a collaborative project, so feel free to post any updates. You can also use it to simply engage with colleagues in conversation.

News from dassh

US perspectives interview series

In 2023, Executive Director Jane Ryan travelled to San Diego, California to take part in the Council of Colleges of Arts and Sciences Annual Meeting – a gathering of about 500 liberal arts Deans and Associate and Deputy Deans. She spoke to a number of them about the issues facing American university educators and how they are being addressed. Check out the following conversations:

• Helping women lead
• Improving access with technology
• Researching with Indigenous communities
• Employment focused degrees
• Innovation in teaching and learning

Getting the word out

Canberra meetings

In March DASSH President Nick Bisley travelled to Canberra to meet with several key figures accompanied by Executive Director Jane Ryan. They met with newly appointed Universities Australia CEO Luke Sheehy, Department of Education Deputy Secretary Ben Rimmer, Senator David Pocock’s Chief of Staff Fiona Scott, Congress of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences President Frank Bongiorno and ANU Humanities Research Centre Executive Director Kylie Messenger-Jones among others.

We’ve established a couple of new initiatives and we had important discussions about the available data on humanities, arts and social sciences enrolment and staffing numbers. This is an issue firmly on our radar which we will continue to raise with these and other stakeholders.

End to ministerial vetoes at ARC

The Australian Senate has passed a Bill amending the Australian Research Council Act, removing the minister’s ability to veto research projects except in cases of national security. DASSH has been calling for the abolition of ministerial vetoes for some time, including engaging directly with a number of key Senators urging them to support these changes. The passing of this legislation signals an end to the politicisation of humanities research and places Australia in line with global research funding standards.

Read our statement here.

Consultations

After making a submission on the National Skills Passport DASSH was invited to take part in a co-design workshop where we cemented our feedback and suggested solutions. The Departments of Education and Employment and Skills are trying to establish whether or not an NSP is viable and we will be able to fill you in as the process continues.

Get involved

Turning points: Changes academics make to shape their working lives

Researchers at the University of Melbourne want to explore what it’s like for academics who have been working in universities and other higher education settings over the last few years, and what kinds of changes you have made in your practices and approaches to your work. Academics are invited to take part in a 10-15 minute survey.

See here for more information.

Around the traps

Declining languages a threat to national security

Geoffrey Miller and Miriam Neigert have written in the Conversation about the national security implications of the decline in language study. They argue that our ability to respond to geopolitical tensions through diplomacy and intelligence operations is under threat if the decline in languages at universities continues.

Read the article here.

 Growing the Indigenous workforce

In an opinion piece in the Australian, Michelle Trudgett, Bronwyn Fredericks and Barry Judd welcome the Universities Accord’s call for First Nations people and culture to be at the heart of the higher education system. Yet they believe there is work to do for universities in fostering success among Indigenous academics. Growing the First Nations workforce and the pipeline of early career First Nations researchers must also be a top priority.

Read the article here.

Jobs board

Visiting Professorship in Australian Studies 2024-25

This senior position will be based in the Graduate School of International Studies, part of Seoul National University, and located at the Gwanak campus in Seoul, Republic of Korea (ROK). Applications are open to academics currently at Senior Lecturer, Associate Professor, and/or Professor level, or those who have held a similarly senior position within Australian Government. The Visiting Professor will conduct a research program in their area of speciality, with publications and presentations arising from that research. The appointment is expected to occur over ten to twelve months, beginning in January – February 2025 and ending in December 2025.

Applications are due by 15 April. See here for more details.

Events

Member gathering
Wednesday 10 April
Queensland University of Technology
Register here

Register now for our first member gathering for 2024. We’ll talk policy and give you the chance to talk to your colleagues from around Australia about the issues that matter most to you. We’ll also be hearing from Graeme Turner who will offer his perspective on current issues in the sector and will be sharing highlights from some high-level national data on student and staffing trends in the humanities, arts and social sciences.

Member gathering
Wednesday 24 July
Melbourne
Register here

Register now for our second member gathering for 2024. We will talk policy, provide professional development and give you the chance to talk to your colleagues from around Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand about the issues that matter most to you.

DASSH Conference
Wednesday to Friday, 18-20 September
Adelaide
More information

Join with colleagues from across Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand in Adelaide as we explore issues such as interdisciplinarity in teaching and research, partnering on policy, and the importance of community. This year’s Conference will focus on connecting – connecting with other disciplines, connecting with community, connecting with industry, and connecting with each other.

Member gathering
Wednesday 13 November
Sydney
Register here

Register now for our third member gathering for 2024. We will talk policy, provide professional development and give you the chance to talk to your colleagues from around Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand about the issues that matter most to you.