Access and Success for Students with Disabilities

Professor Paul Harpur OAM is a dual Australian Paralympian, a lawyer and a university professor. A former Blind Australian of the Year, he is a recipient of a Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) for service to people with disabilities. Paul is a professor with the TC Beirne School of Law at The University of Queensland and an Associate with the Harvard Law School Project on Disability. His work is dedicated to advancing disability rights and inclusion. Paul holds a prestigious four-year ARC Future Fellowship, focused on supporting universities to become disability champions of change. He is a member of the Australian Centre for Student Equity and Success Advisory Board, chairs a sector-wide disability steering group Universities Enable, and is an Australian Human Rights Commission Include Ability Network ambassador. 

One of the leaders of health system reform in Australia over the past few decades, Professor Stephen Duckett AM, has worked to ensure healthcare is accessible and affordable for all Australians. He has held top operational and policy leadership positions, including Secretary of what is now the Commonwealth Department of Health and Chief Executive of the Queensland Health Centre for Health Improvement. Stephen brings expertise in public sector pricing to his role as a member of the Accord Implementation Advisory Committee Member. He holds a Diploma of Education (Tertiary) from the Darling Downs Institute of Advanced Education, UniSQ’s predecessor. He received a Member of the Order of Australia for significant service to public health policy and management and tertiary education.

Dr Sharon Boyce is an educator, author and advocate who lives with disability. She has over 30 years of experience across diverse disability community groups. Sharon is the current chair of the Queensland Disability Advisory Council, a member of the Independent Advisory Council to the National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA), a part-time lecturer at UniSQ and a consultant in disability awareness. Sharon was diagnosed with juvenile chronic arthritis at 11 and has used an electric wheelchair since she was a young adult. She has devoted her life to promoting a true understanding of disability and diversity.

Lisa Connolly is a current UniSQ student. She holds the Disability and Inclusion Representative role and Co-Chair position on the UniSQ Student Senate. Lisa is a late-diagnosed autistic adult with ADHD and advocates for acknowledgment and support in the intersectionality of gender, disability and sexuality. Her professional career comprises teaching, research and guidance and counselling. These passions have resulted in the completion of her masters thesis utilising a strengths-based, participatory approach with autistic parents.

Melissa Fanshawe is an Associate Professor in the School of Education at UniSQ. She has over 25 years of experience in Queensland schools as a teacher, advisory teacher, deputy and principal. She is a qualified and experienced teacher for students with vision impairment, gaining her masters at the Royal Institute for the Deaf and Blind. In the tertiary space, Melissa is passionate about student success and access to education. Her PhD explored participation in learning and preparation for employment for students with blindness and low vision in mainstream secondary schools. She enjoys her volunteer roles as Vision Australia’s education ambassador for the LEGO Foundation’s LEGO braille bricks, Melissa is co-president of the South Pacific Educators of Vision Impairment and an executive member of the Australian Braille Authority.