Mr Graeme Innes AM
Chancellor of CQUniversity
Graeme is a lawyer, author and company director. He was Australia's Disability Discrimination Commissioner from 2005 to 2014, and also Race and Human Rights Commissioner for periods during that time. He is a lifelong advocate, leading public inquiries on same sex: same entitlements, work on making buildings and public transport accessible for people with disabilities, and inspections of Australia's Immigration Detention Centres.
University Profile
CQUniversity Australia has been on a phenomenal trajectory in recent years, and its remarkable growth in student numbers, new courses, new campuses, infrastructure and reputation has seen it emerge as one of Australia’s truly great universities.
Originally founded in Rockhampton in 1967, as the Queensland Institute of Technology (QIT) Capricornia, it was granted full University status in 1992 and was named the University of Central Queensland. The University rebranded to CQUniversity in 2009 and now has more than 30,000 students and has firmly established itself as one of the largest universities based in regional Australia, with campuses in Adelaide, Brisbane, Bundaberg, Cairns, Emerald, Gladstone, Mackay, Melbourne, Perth, Rockhampton, Sydney and Townsville. Along with these campuses, the University also operates study centres in Broome, Busselton and Karratha, and delivers programs in Cooma, Geraldton, and Port Pirie, thanks to partnerships with the respective university centres in those communities.
In 2014, the University merged with CQ TAFE bringing together more than 175 years of combined experience in the delivery of education and training and establishing Queensland’s first comprehensive, dual sector university. As a result, CQUniversity now delivers more than 300 education and training offerings, from short courses and certificates, through to undergraduate, postgraduate and research degrees. Study areas include Apprenticeships, Trades and Training, Business, Accounting and Law, Creative, Performing and Visual Arts, Education and Humanities, Engineering and Built Environment, Health, Information Technology and Digital Media, Psychology, Social Work and Community Services, Science and Environment, and Work and Study Preparation. As a pioneer in the delivery of distance education, CQUniversity also continues to be a leader in this area with almost half of the current student cohort made up of students studying off-campus, many of whom are based in rural and remote areas.
After more than half a century working with stakeholders in regional Australia, CQUniversity is now a renowned research institution in several key disciplines, and the benchmark leader for how universities should engage and collaborate with communities and industry. Its applied research focus is oriented towards real-world outcomes, with the purpose of providing solutions to challenges and identifying new opportunities for advancement in our regions and beyond.
In 2018, this research focus saw CQUniversity achieve Excellence in Research Australia (ERA) results of ‘above’ or ‘well above’ world standard in 13 different categories of research including Mathematical Sciences, Applied Mathematics, Horticultural Production, Engineering, Psychological and Cognitive Sciences, Psychology, Agriculture and Vet Sciences, Agricultural, Land and Farm Management, Public Health and Health Services and Nursing.
CQUniversity is proud to be recognised as Australia’s most inclusive university with some of the highest ratios of students from disadvantaged, mature age, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander, and first-in-family backgrounds. This inclusive approach and commitment to access and participation means the University defines itself by who it embraces, rather than who it excludes.
Graduates from CQUniversity also have some of the best employment outcomes, with recent data released by Graduate Careers Australia (GCA) indicating that 79.9 per cent of domestic undergraduate students find full-time employment within four months of graduation, compared to the national average of 71.9 per cent. Data released by the Quality Indicators for Learning and Teaching (QILT) website also shows that CQUniversity out performs the majority of Australian universities when it comes to the overall student experience and graduate salary outcomes.
CQUniversity places a strong emphasis on social innovation and global outreach and fosters a number of key partnerships with communities, industry and government, both in Australia and overseas. This commitment to engagement and social advancement has led to CQUniversity being recognised as Australia’s first and only Changemaker Campus by Ashoka U , an exclusive global social innovation group made up of only 40 education institutions across the world.
CQUniversity’s unique vision for diversity, outreach, engagement, research, learning and teaching, and inclusiveness, combined with its growth aspirations and continued expansion of student success, research excellence, social innovation and community engagement, has led to it being recognised within the top 600 universities in the world by the prestigious Times Higher Education World Rankings , and among the world’s best ‘young universities’ by both the Times Higher education and QS World University Rankings .
To find out more, visit the CQUniversity website www.cqu.edu.au
Governance
CQUniversity Council
The Council’s primary responsibilities are to:
appoint the Vice-Chancellor and President as the Chief Executive Officer of the University and to monitor their performance;
approve the values, mission and strategic direction of the University as well as the annual budget and University operational plan, and monitoring the implementation of the University’s mission statement and strategic plan;
oversee and review the management of the University and to encourage its efficient and effective performance;
establish policy and procedural principles, consistent with legal requirements and community expectations, including remuneration policies for the Vice-Chancellor and senior officers;
approve and monitor systems of control and accountability, including general overview of any controlled entities. A controlled entity is one that satisfies the test of control in s50AA of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth);
oversee and monitor the assessment and management of risk across the University, including commercial undertakings;
oversee and monitor the academic governance and activities of the University to support high quality academic outcomes;
take all reasonable steps to ensure compliance with legal and government policy requirements;
approve the establishment and dis-establishment of subsidiary companies; and
approve significant commercial activities of the University.
For more information, please refer to the Council’s charter.
Membership of CQUniversity’s Council is as follows:
Ex-Officio Members
Mr Graeme Innes AM – Chancellor
Professor Nick Klomp – Vice-Chancellor and President
Associate Professor Paul Neilsen – Acting President of Academic Board (to 29 February 2024)
Appointed Members – Governor-in-Council
Mr Steven Boxall (to 26 May 2026)
Mr Wayne Denning (to 26 May 2026)
Mrs Sandra Lawrence (to 26 May 2026)
Mr Ian McPhee AO PSM (to 26 May 2026)
Dr Robyn Minchinton (to 26 May 2026)
Additional Members
Mr Benjamin Brown (to 30 June 2024)
Mr Joel Buchholz (to 9 November 2024)
Ms Shelia Houston (to 30 June 2025)
Mr Mark Peters (to 12 May 2024)
Elected Members
Professor Kate Ames – Academic Staff (to 31 January 2026)
Mr Bruce Young – Professional Staff (to 5 January 2025)
Mr Abhinav Agrawal – Student (to 31 Janaury 2025)
Council Sub-Committees
The Council is supported by the following sub-committees:
Academic Board
Chair – Associate Professor Paul Neilsen
Audit, Risk and Finance Committee
Chair – Mr Ian McPhee AO PSM
Ceremonial and Honorary Awards Committee
Chair – Mr Graeme Innes AM, Chancellor
Chancellor’s Committee
Chair – Mr Graeme Innes AM, Chancellor
Strategic Planning and Projects Committee
Chair – Mr Mark Peters