June 14, 2016

UOW congratulates its Queen’s Birthday Award recipients

University of Wollongong (UOW) Vice-Chancellor, Professor Paul Wellings CBE, today congratulated four associates whose service was recognised in the 2016 Queen’s Birthday Honours List in Australia and the United Kingdom.

Among those honoured in the Australian Queen’s Birthday 2016 Honours List were Dr Ian Watt AO and Mr Michael Mrdak, both members of UOW’s SMART Advisory Council, which guides the SMART Infrastructure Facility to deliver integrated infrastructure planning solutions for Australia and internationally.

Dr Watt was made a Companion (AC) in the General Division of the Order of Australia, recognised ‘for eminent service to the community through public sector leadership and administration, to innovative and effective governance, program delivery and policy reform, and to the promotion of workplace diversity’.

Mr Mrdak was made an Officer (AO) in the General Division of the Order of Australia, recognised ‘for distinguished service to public administration through executive roles in the infrastructure, transport and logistics sector, and through the development of policy reform initiatives’.

Leading UOW Early Start Research Institute academic Professor Edward Melhuish was awarded the prestigious Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) ‘for his services to Social Science’.

Professor Melhuish, an expert in research and policy in the area of early childhood, is a Research Professor at the Universities of Oxford, Birbeck (University of London) and UOW. His distinguished academic career has included contributing to discussions of social policy for children in more than 12 countries and working with the World Health Organisation (WHO), the European Commission and the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).

The 2016 list also honoured Mr Brian Gillett, a former UOW Science Centre volunteer, ‘for service to youth, and to the community of the Illawarra’.

Professor Wellings offered his deepest congratulations to recipients and thanked them for their contributions to the University and the wider society.

“We are fortunate as a University to have such dedicated and talented people leading and supporting our research and teaching endeavours,” Professor Wellings said.

“Through their work with UOW and other professional pursuits, these people have made unique and lasting contributions to society in Australia and globally and I congratulate them for receiving such prestigious and well-earned recognition.”

The Queen’s Birthday 2016 Honours List recognises a diverse range of contributions and services across all fields, including professional endeavours and community work.