Country Universities Centre appoints new CEO

Dr Conway brings extensive experience in regional innovation, higher education and community-led infrastructure, with a career dedicated to expanding opportunity in regional Australia. She joins the CUC after eight years as the founding Director of the UNE SMART Region Incubator, where she led, designed and delivered programs supporting young people and founders from diverse backgrounds to build businesses across the region.

CUC Chair Dean Lynch welcomed Dr Conway’s appointment.

“Dr Conway’s track record in building community-led infrastructure and translating local ambition into lasting impact makes her exceptionally well placed to lead the next phase of the CUC.”

“Dr Conway will bring a renewed focus on our Centres strengthening the value of the national network and ensuring CUC continues to grow in a way that is driven by communities and responsive to their needs.”

Dr Conway said she was delighted to be joining the CUC having seen first-hand the influence Centres have had on students’ lives and in growing capability within regional communities.

“The CUC has proven itself as a genuine game-changer for regional access to higher education. The model is impressive. It is strongly supported by communities and governments, each Centre is locally led and meets a real need. That combination is rare, and it’s critical to the success of the network.”

Dr Conway said her immediate priority would be connecting with Centres and their communities across the CUC network.

“I’m looking forward to meeting with each Centre to understand what they value, what’s working well, and how CUC Central and the network can do more to support them,” she said.

“Regional, rural and remote communities are navigating both pressures and opportunities on many fronts, and higher education is a powerful lever that build capability and allows locals to shape their own futures.”

Dr Conway also noted the strong alignment between the CUC and the Accord’s priorities.

“The Australian Universities Accord has made clear that regional, rural and remote Australians must be central to our national efforts to grow participation in higher education,” she said.

“The CUC model is exactly the kind of community-led infrastructure the Accord calls for and I am excited to help ensure students can remain in their own communities while gaining the qualifications of their choice.”

“I’m committed to ensuring continued growth, that the CUC network brings genuine value to Centres and that together we build something bigger than any one of us could deliver alone.”

Dr Conway grew up on a family farm in country Queensland before studying Occupational Therapy at the University of Queensland. She has since completed an MBA and a PhD in Regional Development Governance. She lived and worked in Tasmania and for the last 35 years has called the NSW’s New England home.