Catherine O’Sullivan, Pro Vice-Chancellor, Pathways and Partnerships at Bond University, motivated and inspired guests with her change-oriented leadership at a sold-out St Margaret’s Professional Women’s Networking Breakfast held on Thursday 18 May.
In sharing her career journey, Catherine’s common conviction was to explore new and better ways of doing things and to uncover the hidden potential in situations.
“If you don’t think you could create a change, you need to look inside yourself and around you, because to me turning up to work every day, being the best you can, and treating people with dignity and respect can always enhance change,” Catherine imparted.
With a diverse career commencing with 20 years as a classroom teacher and later becoming the first female principal in Goondiwindi to serving as Executive Director of Schools for the Toowoomba region, Assistant Director General at the State’s Department of Primary Industries and Queensland State Manager of the Commonwealth Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations, Catherine has built her career on championing innovative education strategies to affect real change.
Catherine is passionate about rural and regional development and Indigenous education and employment issues, and has implemented several initiatives. These include the annual Yarning Up Tour, where a group of school principals and entrepreneurs visit remote Indigenous communities; the Australian Government’s ‘Learn Earn Legend!’ program, which supports Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders with education, training and employment; and the ‘Closing the Gap’ Indigenous initiative.
Catherine was also instrumental in establishing the Rural Technology and Training Centre in Goondiwindi, which opened in 2002.
Growing up in the small rural community of Stanthorpe and later spending 20 years in the Goondiwindi community, gave Catherine valuable insights for her future career pathways.
“My time spent in Gundi certainly incubated in me how I live and what I think is important in workplaces and communities. And it gave me a tremendous insight into not only the role of education and the value of education but how it can, in fact, develop communities,” Catherine said.
As Pro Vice-Chancellor, Pathways and Partnerships at Bond University, Catherine spearheads the university’s partnerships with schools, cultural organisations, peak bodies and leading organisations throughout Australia and the world. She leads Bond’s Indigenous program, schools and education partnerships, women’s agenda, community engagement program and Bond University College.
For Catherine, her career achievements have all come down to innovation and affecting change and she certainly left guests with the feeling you can achieve anything you set your mind to.
The next St Margaret’s Professional Women’s Networking Breakfast will be held on Wednesday 23 August 2017, with guest speaker Julie McKay, Gender Advisor to Chief of the Defence Force; Chair, The Women’s College within the University of Sydney; and Board Member, Diversity Advisory Board PwC Australia.
Listen to the audio of Catherine's presentation below.