New leader appointed to drive Townsville forward
The future of CQUniversity’s Townsville campus is in the hands of Associate Vice-President Jodie Duignan-George, who has this week been appointed to drive the campus forward.
Ms Duignan-George is the current Associate Vice-President of the CQUniversity Cairns campus and takes on Townsville as part of her portfolio.
“The CQUniversity Townsville campus has enormous potential and I’m really looking forward to working with the Townsville campus team and the local community to help continue driving it forward,” Ms Duignan-George said.
“Townsville has an immense opportunity for us to explore innovative ways of not only supporting both our on-campus and online students and stimulating growth for CQU in this region, but through working closely with industry to connect them with our students and graduates,” she said.
“At a time where regions are in the grip of significant skills shortages across most professional and technical fields, it is important for us to be open to business-to-business partnerships including micro-credential opportunities. To that end we want the Townsville community to know we are here and ready to explore opportunities to strengthen workforce pipelines to make the Townsville North West region thrive.”
Ms Duignan-George has had a long career in higher education, with more than 20 years working within the sector.
She commenced with CQUniversity in 2014 to establish a campus in Cairns which, under her direction, has grown exponentially.
She was also instrumental in lobbying the Federal Government for new campus funding.
In addition to her role at CQU, Ms Duignan-George serves on a number of management committees and boards and is the Chair of the Cairns Regional Jobs Committee.
This year, Ms Duignan-George was listed at number eight in News Corp’s Far North Queensland Most Influential People list.
In her new role, Ms Duignan-George will develop and implement a refreshed strategic direction for the Townsville campus, and provide leadership for research, stakeholder management, student growth and network-building.
“The refreshed strategy will reflect our strengths as a modern, agile university that is a national leader in online education, catering to students who require a flexible but high-quality approach to their learning.”
In addition to the entire Townsville campus team supporting Ms Duignan-George in her role, a new Engagement and Partnerships Coordinator position has been created, with the appointee set to develop and renew community relationships and grow CQUniversity’s student enrolments and business-to-business partnerships, in collaboration with other CQUniversity business areas.
“The reinstatement of a dedicated local engagement resource and a refocused strategic direction will ensure we maximise our positive impact in Townsville and I am confident that this recommitment to the region will be an important milestone in CQU’s continuing journey.”
