The Senate is the Board of Directors of Australian Catholic University Limited and is the governing body of the university. Learn more about the Senate, its terms of reference and current members.

Purpose and Terms of Reference

The Senate is the governing authority of Australian Catholic University Limited. It comprises 18 Senators, each of whom are ex-officio (a holder of another office position), nomination or elected.

The Senate's composition, authority and processes are described in Clause 13 of the Australian Catholic University Constitution.

The broad remit of Senate includes the following:

  • review and endorse strategic directions and priorities; and monitor progress against agreed goals
  • oversee the establishment and effective operation of key policies
  • ensure adequate risk management procedures and associated internal controls are established and effectively maintained
  • oversee the effective and prudential operation of the university, including approval and monitoring of budgets and financial plans
  • require and monitor compliance with statutory and regulatory obligations
  • ensure the university's assets and resources are properly managed
  • effectively manage its own operations, with due concern for proper and appropriate accountability
    appointment of the Vice-Chancellor
  • ensure a clear definition of Senate's role and the delegated responsibilities and authorities it assigns to the Vice-Chancellor, other officers, the Senate Committees and the Academic Board.

Meeting Schedule: See Governance Committee Calendar.

Committee Templates: See Governance Committee Meeting Templates.

Chair: Chancellor, The Hon. Martin Daubney AM KC.

Governance Support: Georgia Hugen, Governance Officer.

For general Senate enquiries, please contact Senate@acu.edu.au.

Composition and Membership

Learn more about the 18 members of the Senate, including nominated, ex-officio and elected members. The current members of Senate are detailed below.

 Mr Martin Daubney AM

The Honourable Martin Daubney AM KC

DTS (YTU), BA LLB (UQ)

Chancellor appointed under Clause 20.1 of the ACU Constitution

Member and Chair of Honorary Awards Committee and Senate Standing Committee

The Honourable Martin Daubney AM KC served as a judge of the Supreme Court of Queensland from 13 July 2007 to 31 December 2021. He was also President of the Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal from October 2017 until November 2021.

His appointment as Chancellor of Australian Catholic University took effect on 1 January 2022.

Daubney was educated at Downlands College, Toowoomba. He initially undertook studies at the Yarra Theological Union (Diploma of Theological Studies) before attending the University of Queensland from which he graduated with a Bachelor of Arts and a Bachelor of Laws. After 18 months practising as a solicitor, he was admitted to the Bar in 1988. In 2000 he was appointed Senior Counsel. In addition to an extensive practice as a commercial barrister, Daubney became prominent as a mediator, particularly in commercial disputes. From 1994, he was also admitted to practise in Fiji, and appeared in numerous trials and appeals in that jurisdiction. In 2005, he chaired a Commission of Inquiry into the Queensland thoroughbred racing industry. Before his appointment to the bench, Daubney served on the Council of the Bar Association of Queensland for more than 10 years in various roles, including as President from July 2006 until his appointment to the Supreme Court.

He has served on a wide range of community and philanthropic boards, including two terms on the Senate of the University of Queensland and his current appointment as a member of the Queensland Art Gallery Board of Trustees.

Among his awards and honours are the prestigious Australian Insurance Law Association Prize awarded in 2017 and the 2019 Colleges' UQ Alumni Award. He is a Fellow of King's College UQ. In 2018 Daubney was appointed as a Member of the Order of Australia for significant service to the law, and to the judiciary, to education, and to the community.

Daubney has served the Catholic Archdiocese of Brisbane on the Archdiocesan Finance Council (since 2011; Chair since 2018). He was National Vice-President and Queensland Chair of the Australian Association of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta (2009-2014; 2016-2017).

As Chancellor of ACU Daubney is committed to ensuring effective corporate governance practices and strategic management in leading the ACU Senate and supporting the Vice-Chancellor and President and senior university management. He looks forward to representing ACU across industry and the broader community to strengthen ties and create awareness of opportunities, and working closely with the Catholic Church to ensure that ACU stays true to its mission, strong sense of identity, and distinctive Catholic vision.


Virginia Bourke

Virginia Bourke

BA LLB(Hons) MA FAICD

Pro-Chancellor appointed under Clause 20.2 of the ACU Constitution Member of Senate Standing Committee and Finance and Resources Commitee (Chair)

As Pro-Chancellor of ACU, Virginia Bourke brings experience as a lawyer and Non-Executive Director across a range of sectors including health, aged care, community services, education, training and publishing. She has particular expertise in the governance of charitable not-for-profit organisations. Among her Board roles, Virginia is the Chair of Mercy Health, a national health and aged care provider employing more than 10,000 people. She is also a Director of the Mater Group, Catholic Health Australia and Caritas Australia. Virginia was formerly Chair of St John Ambulance Victoria and a director of its national body, St John Ambulance Australia.  She holds an advisory role with the Institute of Sisters of Mercy of Australia and Papua New Guinea (ISMAPNG).

Virginia’s Non-Executive Director career has been complemented by her work as a lawyer and consultant in private practice and senior in-house counsel positions for over 30 years. She is currently a consultant with the national health and aged care industry team at MinterEllison Lawyers.   Through that work she has developed a breadth of commercial experience, business development skill and a deep knowledge of corporate governance law.


Professor Zlatko Skrbis

Professor Zlatko Skrbis

BPhil (Hons) (Ljubljana), BSocCult (Hons) (Ljubljana), PhD(Flinders), PFHEA

Vice-Chancellor and President appointed under Clause 21 of the ACU Constitution 

Member of Senate Standing Committee, Finance and Resources Committee, Honorary Awards Committee and Audit and Risk Committee

Professor Zlatko Skrbis is the fourth Vice-Chancellor and President of Australian Catholic University, a position he has held since January 2021. He joined ACU in 2018 and has also served as Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Education and Innovation) and Interim Provost. He previously held senior leadership positions at Monash University and The University of Queensland.

Professor Skrbis holds a PhD in sociology from Flinders University and undergraduate degrees in sociology and philosophy from the University of Ljubljana, Slovenia. As an accomplished sociologist and an active researcher, he maintains an internationally recognised research profile and has made significant contributions in the areas of migration, cosmopolitanism, and life-course studies.

He is the lead investigator on the multi-wave ‘Social Futures and Life Pathways of Young People in Queensland’ research project. Also known as ‘Our Lives’, this large-scale, longitudinal study follows the life pathways of a single age cohort of young people from Queensland as they transition from adolescence into adulthood. The aim of this study is to assess how economic and social changes shape an individual’s educational, employment, family, and housing transitions during young adulthood.

Since arriving at ACU, Professor Skrbis has led an ambitious program of transformational change across the university, while displaying an unwavering commitment to ACU’s traditions, values, and Catholic mission.

As Vice-Chancellor and President of ACU, it is Professor Skrbis’s ambition to ensure that ACU is globally recognised as an institution that adheres to its strong Catholic principles and makes a tangible improvement to the lives of others through excellence in education, research and engagement.


Archbishop Fisher  

Most Reverend Anthony Fisher OP

BA/LLB (USyd)

Archbishop of Sydney

Cleric nominated by the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference under Clause 13.2 (e) of the ACU Constitution

Archbishop Fisher received degrees in history and law from the University of Sydney, before joining the Dominican Order in 1985, and becoming a priest in 1991. Later, Archbishop Fisher achieved a doctorate from Oxford and lectured at several universities including ACU, the University of Notre Dame, Australia, and the John-Paul II Institute in Melbourne, Australia, where he was founding Director.

Archbishop Fisher was appointed Auxiliary Bishop of Sydney in 2003, Bishop of Parramatta in 2010 and in 2014, became the Archbishop of Sydney.

In 2018, Archbishop Fisher participated in the worldwide Synod of Bishops on Youth, Faith and Vocational Discernment and was elected Vice-President of the Australian Bishops and Chair of the Bishops Commission for Catholic Education. Until late 2018, Archbishop Fisher was Chair of the Bishops Commission for Family, Youth and Life and as Bishops’ Delegate for Youth.

Currently, Archbishop Fisher is Chancellor of the Catholic Institute of Sydney, a Corporation Member of ACU Ltd, a Member of the Congregation of the Doctrine of the Faith and an ordinary Member of the Pontifical Academy for Life.

Archbishop Fisher has published extensively on ethical, bioethical, legal and theological subjects. He has also published nine books on topics ranging from A History of Solicitors in NSW (1984) to My Dear Young Friend (2018), which is a collection of letters to young people. Archbishop Fisher’s interests include cooking, reading, watching movies, and tennis.


Professor Tim McKenr

Professor Timothy McKenry

PhD (Melb), MMus, BMus(Hons), AMusA

Chair of Academic Board appointed under Clause 13.2 (d) of the ACU Constitution

Member of Senate Standing Committee, Finance and Resources Committee and Audit and Risk Committee

On staff at ACU since 2009, Timothy McKenry is professor of music with expertise in music composition, music theory and musicology. Prior to joining ACU he lectured in music at the University of Melbourne for 10 years. At ACU he has undertaken a range of leadership roles including Deputy Head of the National School of Arts and Humanities and acting Associate Dean (Learning, Teaching and Governance) in the Faculty of Education and Arts. He has served on multiple Faculty- and University-level committees, led the development and review of courses, supervised and mentored staff and helped implement a range of new initiatives in ACU’s academic programs. In 2014 he was awarded an Office of Learning and Teaching Citation for Excellence in Teaching and in 2015 he won the ACU Vice Chancellor’s Teaching Award for Teaching Excellence. In addition to his scholarly and teaching work, he is a composer and organist whose work has been performed internationally.

Marita Winters

Marita Winters

State Chapter member, appointed under Clause 13.2 (f) of the ACU Constitution (NSW)

Current term to AGM May 2024

Member of Finance and Resources Committee

Marita Winters has 18 years of governance and leadership experience in the Church in the areas of mission and communications. From 2006 until 2015 she directed the National Office for Evangelisation (NOE)-Catholic Enquiry Centre (CEC) which is the primary agency of outreach for the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference. In this role Marita was also Executive Secretary of the Bishops Commission for Mission and Faith Formation (presently the Bishops Commission for Evangelisation), working closely with the Chair to coordinate meeting dates and agendas, record minutes of meetings, follow up and implement agreed actions between meetings and liaise with other senior staff reporting to the Commission. Prior to that she directed Catholic Communications in the Archdiocese of Sydney for nine years, providing communications advice and support to two Archbishops and many of the leaders of Archdiocesan agencies. As well as dealing with crisis situations, there was a strong focus on telling good news stories.

Marita was a member of the Board of The Catholic Weekly from 1998 until 2016, including serving as Company Secretary from 2000-2006. During this time, she worked very closely with the Chair of the Board to ensure that this Company wholly-owned by the Catholic Archdiocese of Sydney met its governance and statutory reporting obligations. 

Since 2014 Marita has been a member of the Identity and Mission Committee, a sub-committee of the Sydney Archdiocesan Catholic Schools (SACS) Board. This Committee is concerned with promoting the Christian story in Catholic schools, and understanding how to make this come alive for students, families and staff.

Marita’s academic history demonstrates a life-long commitment to learning and professional development. She has just completed a Masters of Philosophy (Theology) by thesis considering communication and mission in the post-Vatican II Church. Her other qualifications are a Graduate Diploma in Marriage and Family Studies and a Bachelor of Arts in Communications, majoring in public relations and marketing.


Alice Bailey

BCom/BEcon (UQ) and GDipAppLaw (UQ)

State Chapter member appointed under Clause 13.2 (f) of the ACU Constitution (Victoria)

Current term to AGM May 2026

Member of Audit and Risk Committee

An economist by training, Alice Bailey is an established economist and public policy professional with experience that traverses federal and state politics and independent consultancies. Her generalist governance skills stem from her time in parliamentary contexts, where she is well-regarded for her attention to detail and analysis. Alice has worked with leading public and private sector organisations and advised State and Federal Members of Parliament on economic and financial issues.

Alice is now a senior economist providing advice and analysis on wide-ranging issues including the labour market, housing market and competition policy. 


Dr Peter Steer

GAICD, FAAP (AAP), FRCPC (Paediatrics), FRACP (Paediatrics), MB BS (UQ)

State Chapter member, appointed under Clause 13.2 (f) of the ACU Constitution (Queensland)

Current term to AGM May 2025

Member of Finance and Resources Committee

Dr Steer was appointed Mater Chief Executive Officer in January 2019. Dr Steer has a wealth of healthcare administration experience and clinical expertise.  

In September 2019 Peter was appointed as Group CEO of Mater’s services across Queensland to manage the development of a shared strategy to sustain the Mission of Mater’s ministries in health, education and research. 
 
Dr Steer’s previous appointment was as Chief Executive of Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children (GOSH) in London from January 2015 to December 2018.
 
He commenced his medical career at Mater Brisbane in 1982 after graduating from The University of Queensland and worked at Mater until 1987. 
 
After four years of further training in Neonatology in New Zealand and Canada, Dr Steer returned to the Mater Mothers’ and Children’s Hospitals in 1991 and continued as Neonatologist and subsequently also as Executive Director of Mater Children’s Hospital from 1995 until 2002.
 
Peter then spent 6 years at McMaster University and Hamilton Health Sciences in Canada as President and Chief of Paediatrics at McMaster Children’s Hospital and Professor and Chair, Department of Paediatrics at McMaster University. On return to Brisbane he was charged with the merger of Royal Children’s and Mater Children’s Hospitals and the delivery of the $1.4 billion Queensland Children’s Hospital as CEO of Children’s Health Queensland.


Mr Ross Fox

Ross Fox

BE (Mining) Hons (UNSW), BA (PPE) Hons (Oxon)

Chapter member appointed under Clause 13.2(f) of the ACU Constitution (ACT)

Current term to AGM May 2025

Member of Honorary Awards Committee and Audit and Risk Committee

Fox was appointed as Director of Catholic Education, Archdiocese of Canberra and Goulburn in December 2016. He is responsible for 56 Catholic schools across NSW and ACT with 21,000 students and more than 2,000 staff. He has held senior positions in Catholic education across Australia, including Executive Director of the National Catholic Education Commission and Director of Policy, Research and Communications in the Catholic Education Office Melbourne. Since 2013, he has been a member of the National Catholic Education Commission and was appointed as an independent director of the Australian Council for Educational Leaders in 2016.

Fox grew up in country Victoria and studied engineering at the University of NSW. Later, he studied philosophy, politics and economics at Oxford University. He is inspired by the great contribution that Catholic schools and educators have made to Australia and shares a passion for seeing every child benefit from quality teaching and learning.

Francine Pirola

Francine Pirola

BSc(UNSW), MA (Fordham)

Elected by the Members of ACU Limited from a panel of persons nominated by Senate, appointed under Clause 13.2(g) of the ACU Constitution (NSW)

Current term to AGM May 2025

Member of Audit and Risk Committee

Francine works in a volunteer capacity serving the mission of the Catholic Church in marriage and family life. Together with her husband Byron, they are the directors of the Marriage Resource Centre and cofounders of SmartLoving – a Catholic marriage formation apostolate that serves thousands of couples each year globally through courses (online and in person), coaching and other resources. In this capacity she has served on several national and diocesan bodies to discern and advance the role of marriage in the mission of evangelisation. As convenor of the Renaissance of Marriage conference series and of the Life Marriage and Family Network she brings together leaders in marriage and family ministry across Australia and beyond. In 2007, Francine authored ‘My Faith Diary’ (formerly My School Diary) – a Catholic student planner that grew to serve a hundred thousand students and teachers annually. Francine is the principal author and founder of CathFamily (an online database of resources celebrating Catholic culture) used by parents, teachers and catechists to enrich faith in the home, school and parish. Mother of five and ‘Nonnina’ to three, Francine is passionate about bringing Christ into the hearts and homes of those she serves.


justice-douglas

The Honourable James Douglas KC

BA (UQ), LLB (UQ), LLB (Cambridge)

Elected by the Members of ACU Limited from a panel of persons nominated by Senate, appointed under Clause 13.2 (g) of the ACU Constitution (Queensland)

Current term to AGM May 2025

Member of Honorary Awards Committee and Audit and Risk Committee

A Queensland Supreme Court judge from 2003 to February 2020, Douglas became a King’s Counsel in 1989, was President of the Bar Association of Queensland 1999-2001 and Editor of the Queensland Reports 1986-1991. Extra judicial positions include memberships of the International Academy of Comparative Law and the American Law Institute. He has also been active in the arts, serving as Chairman, Queensland Theatre Company 1990-1996 and Chairman, Queensland Symphony Orchestra Advisory Board 1989-1996. From 2005-2010 he was President of Alliance Française de Brisbane Inc. Since September 2019 he has been President of the Order of Malta in Australia. In July 2021, Douglas was appointed as a Royal Commissioner for the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide.


Julian Widdup

BEc, MBA, FAICD, FIA, FIAA

Elected by the Members of ACU Limited from a panel of persons nominated by Senate, appointed under Clause 13.2(g) of the ACU Constitution (ACT)

Current term to AGM May 2026

Member of Finance and Resources Committee

Julian Widdup is an experienced company director having served on the boards of major international, ASX and NSX listed entities. Julian’s current directorships include Rural Funds Group, Screen Canberra and Catholic Schools NSW. He was previously a director of large financial, airport, power utility, government, healthcare and educational corporations. He has served as a Member of ACU Corporation since 2017.

Julian is an economist and fully qualified actuary. During his career, Julian held executive roles with Palisade Investment Partners, Access Economics, Towers Perrin, and the Insurance and Superannuation Commission (now APRA). He has strong business acumen and capabilities in corporate strategy, finance, investment, risk management and governance. Julian is a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Company Directors and a Fellow of the Actuaries Institute. He has completed the Senior Executive Leadership Program at Harvard Business School, has a Bachelor of Economics and Master of Business Administration from the Australian National University and was a recipient of the ANU University Medal.


Helen Cooney

BA Hons (UniMelb); M Gov+Comm Law (ANU); Grad Cert Org Coaching (Swinburne); GAICD; GAIST

Elected by the Members of ACU Limited from a panel of persons nominated by Senate, appointed under Clause 13.2 (g) of the ACU Constitution (Victoria)

Current term to AGM May 2026

Member of Finance and Resources Committee

Helen Cooney is a highly regarded governance, policy and organisational adviser who put the theory into practice spending a decade as a leader in the child and family services sector. Helen is now a non-executive director, a governance and organisational coach and a principal policy adviser on the topics of superannuation and retail industry training.

Helen’s expertise is in supporting leaders in values-based organisations drive policy and strategy in a way that helps them to achieve measurable outcomes. She has a particular skill in supporting CEOs of entities with limited in-house support and senior administrators working with Boards of large and small government and non-government organisations.

Over the last 20 years, Helen has advised State Governments and Federal Members of Parliament, Vice-Chancellors, and boards across a range of specialisations including early childhood education and care, school education, vocational education and training, and higher education.

Associate Professor Richard Colledge

PhD (UQ), MA Philosophy (Leuven), M.Theol (BCT), Grad Dip Couns (QUT), Grad Dip Teach, Sec (ACU), BA (UQ)
Elected academic staff senator, appointed under Clause 13.2(h) of the ACU Constitution

Current term to 30 April 2025

Member of Finance and Resources Committee

Richard Colledge is Associate Dean (Learning and Teaching) for the Faculty of Theology & Philosophy (since 2020), having previously served as National Head of ACU’s School of Philosophy (2011-2019), and as an elected member of ACU’s Academic Board (2017-21). As a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy, he has a strong focus on collegial academic leadership and quality coursework design, with a cross-faculty focus. A philosopher, with expertise in post-Kantian Continental philosophy, the philosophy of religion, and the history of philosophy, he is past Chair of the Australasian Society for Continental Philosophy (2017-19). He combines extensive experience in academic administration with ongoing dedication to teaching, research and public intellectual engagement. Prior to commencing at ACU in 2010, Associate Professor Colledge taught philosophy for five years at St Paul’s Theological College (then a member School of the Brisbane College of Theology), where he also served as Academic Dean. In a previous lifetime he taught senior secondary History, Economics and English. He has a particular interest in the role of the Catholic university not only to train the next generation of professionals, but to provide students with an authentic higher education experience which opens them to new perspectives that enrich both lives and vocational studies. 


Elspeth Froude

Professor Elspeth Froude

PhD (La Trobe University), Graduate Diploma (neuroscience) (La Trobe University), Bachelor of Applied Science (Occupational Therapy) (USyd), Graduate of Australian Institute of Corporate Directors (Company Directors Course). 

Elected academic staff senator, appointed under Clause 13.2 (h) of the ACU Constitution

Current term to 30 April 2025

Member of Audit and Risk Committee

Professor Froude is the National Head of School Allied Health and Professor of Occupational Therapy. Professor Froude is responsible for the four disciplines of Occupational Therapy, Physiotherapy, Social Work and Speech Pathology across 6 campuses. Professor Froude is the Current Scientific Chair of the World Federation of Occupational Therapists Congress (Bangkok 2026) and is an international member of ICAN (International Cognitive Approaches Network) which governs the CO-OP Approach of which Professor Froude is also a certified Instructor. Professor Froude is also a committee member of Developmental Coordination Disorder Australia. Her research interests include childhood disability, and knowledge translation.


Vacant

photo of Ms Sarah Beltrame

Sarah Beltrame

MInfoStud(Lib) BCreativePrac(Phtg)(Hons) AssocDegMultimedia

Elected professional staff senator, appointed under Clause 13.2(i) of the ACU Constitution

Current term to 30 April 2026

Member of Audit and Risk Committee

Sarah Beltrame is the National Manager, Library Learning & Teaching and the Library Manager, Canberra Campus. With over a decade of experience working at dispersed, multi-campus universities across Australia, Sarah understands how to balance local and university-wide matters. As an academic librarian, Sarah collaborates with professional and academic staff to enhance curriculum and develop services for student learning. She is passionate about the impact of digital competence on university teaching and learning and has extensive experience in designing and delivering online education. Sarah has served as a panel member on the EDUCAUSE 2023 Teaching and Learning Horizon Report and founded an academic library learning and teaching leadership network, bringing together participants from over twenty Australian universities.

 Brianna Knox

Brianna Knox

Elected student senator, appointed under clause 13.2 (j) of the ACU Constitution

Current term to 31 December 2024

Brianna Knox is in her second year of a Bachelor of Paramedicine/ Bachelor of Nursing at ACU’s Canberra Campus.

From 2021 to 2022, Brianna completed an Assistant in Nursing Traineeship at a regional hospital in Central West NSW. Among the first cohort to undertake the vocational course, she worked closely with multidisciplinary teams whilst assisting a large demographic of patients in various clinical environments.

In semester two 2023, Brianna was employed by ACU in the IT support assistant role. This gave her greater insight into daily university operations, particularly the challenges and advantages of practically applying policies, procedures, and technological systems.

Brianna has also participated in many campus and student-resident events as well as ACU Canberra’s multisport team.

Compiling all these experiences gives Brianna an informed perspective of the student experience. Students should be confident that they can approach Brianna to convey their needs and concerns due to her desire to ensure all students have access to opportunities that enhance their academic and recreational university experience.

Dr Diane Barker

Dr Diane Barker FGIA

BA (Hons) (Syd), LLB (Hons) (Syd), GDipLegPrac (Collaw), PhD (Syd)

Company Secretary appointed under Clause Clause 18 of the ACU Constitution

Appointed 1 January 2024

Dr Diane Barker is a legal practitioner admitted to practise in the Supreme Court of NSW and the High Court of Australia. She has over 20 years’ experience as a lawyer in private practice and in-house, having acted for a range of Catholic Church agencies throughout her career.

Dr Barker commenced at ACU in 2011 as the University’s inaugural General Counsel. Since that time, she has assumed responsibility for ACU’s Governance and Assurance functions. Dr Barker’s appointment as company secretary of ACU Ltd aligns with her role as the Director of the Legal, Assurance and Governance Directorate which was formed in December 2023.

Dr Barker has been recognised with various awards including a Vice-Chancellor’s Staff Excellence Award in 2019 in the category of ‘Excellence in Student Experience’ for the Pro Bono Student Placement Program. She was a finalist in the category of ‘General Counsel of the Year’ in the 2020 Association of Corporate Counsel Awards and was listed in the 2021 Australasian Lawyer ‘Elite Women’ list. In 2022, Dr Barker was recognised as Corporate Governance Leader of the Year by Lawyers Monthly.

Dr Barker obtained a PhD (Near Eastern Archaeology) from the University of Sydney in 2018 and was admitted as a Fellow of the Governance Institute of Australia in 2022. Dr Barker is also a Director and the company secretary of the Society of University Lawyers Limited, an industry body formed to support the interests of university lawyers across the sector.

Senate Digest

Read the non-confidential Senate Digest for recent Senate meetings.

Senate Committees

According to Clause 16.1 of the university Constitution, the Senate can appoint committees and delegate many of its powers to them.

At least a third of a committee's members must be made up of Senators, and any power exercised by a committee is deemed exercised by the Senate.

Current Committees of the Senate include:

Senator Induction

The university recognises the need for senators to be informed of their responsibilities, and senators also have legal obligations that need to be completed as part of the onboarding process. Senator induction therefore comprises two significant elements: education and information collection. For more detail, see Senator Induction.

You might also like

The Academic Board

Learn about the Academic Board, a standing committee that reports to the Australian Catholic University Senate.

Find out more

ACU leadership team

Learn more about the Vice-Chancellor and President and senior leadership team, and understand our leadership structure.

Meet key leaders

The ACU mission

Understand the mission that informs our commitment to the pursuit of knowledge, the dignity of the human person, and the common good.

Read our mission

Vision 2033

Guided by our mission and values, Vision 2033 is the highest-level plan for the university.

See our plan

Have a question?

We're available 9am–5pm AEDT,
Monday to Friday

If you’ve got a question, our AskACU team has you covered. You can search FAQs, text us, email, live chat, call – whatever works for you.

Live chat with us now

Chat to our team for real-time
answers to your questions.

Launch live chat

Visit our FAQs page

Find answers to some commonly
asked questions.

See our FAQs