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Adelaide’ s CIO pushes IT focus
The appointment of Mark Gregory as chief information officer at the University of Adelaide is part of an overall ten-year plan to strengthen the university’ s focus on IT and e-learning.
“ Mr Gregory will be pivotal in guiding our IT planning and investment to ensure the University captures the best of the digital revolution in the higher education sector,” said vicepresident for services and resources Paul Duldig.
Gregory, who holds a degree in computer science and mathematics from the University of Illinois, is the current associate vice-president( finance and administration) at Portland State University, where he received his MBA.
Duldig said, in December 2012, the university launched its strategic plan which outlines the need to enhance e-learning and IT capacity to meet the changing needs of students and research.
“ Over the coming decade, the university plans to treble its investment on IT learning support and e-learning. We are committed to an organisational transformation that will see our institution recognised as Australia’ s most distinctive university,” he said.
Gregory said he is looking forward to relocating to South Australia and joining the University of Adelaide, which will shortly celebrate its 150th anniversary.
“ I am honoured to have been selected as CIO and I am eager to get to work with the faculty, staff, students and the broader Adelaide community,” Gregory said.
“ The new 10-year strategic plan acknowledges the significant changes underway in higher education globally and the key role of technology,” he said.
“ World-class technology will be essential to remain competitive, enhance student learning and grow research collaboration opportunities. It is an ideal time for the technology team to make a transformative contribution to a great institution,” he said.
In 1998, Gregory joined Portland State University as director / manager of computing and networking services before taking on the role of CIO from 2000 to 2006.
He has also held senior IT roles at the then-Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory and Applied Systems( now Education Northwest). He also founded Renaissance Technologies Inc, an IT implementation and software development company servicing secondary schools, law offices, banks, state agencies and non-profit entities.
He will commence at the University of Adelaide in July. n
How high school on
impacts higher learning
According to the latest research, a student’ s school is an important determining factor in tertiary entrance rankings and university enrolment.
Above the defining factors of a student’ s individual circumstances and background, there is also considerable evidence that the academic ethos of their school has a major impact on student outcomes.
The study, published by the National Centre for Vocational Education Research, found that a school’ s sector, its co-educational status and a focus on academic achievement have the most influence on entrance rankings.
The study also revealed that in the probability of a student going on to further education, the greatest influencers are the proportion of students from a non-English speaking background, as well as the socio-economic status of the student body.
NCVER’ s managing director Tom Karmel said the study provided“ invaluable insights” into categorising how a school community can influence student outcomes.“ It is interesting to note that most of the influential school characteristics identified in the study are linked to the‘ culture’ of the school,” Karmel said.
“ For many students, parents and schools, there is no doubt that rankings and university enrolment are of high importance.”
The research is based on the Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth, and tracks young people aged 15-25, as they transition from school into further study, full-time work and“ other destinations”. n
14 | April 2013