Monash University Welcomes The Hon Jill Hennessy and Dr Christine Nixon As Vice-Chancellor’s Professorial Fellows
Former Victorian Government Minister and Attorney General the Hon Jill Hennessy and former Chief Commissioner of Victorian Police Dr Christine Nixon AO APM have been appointed Vice-Chancellor’s Professorial Fellows of Monash University.
The Honourable Jill Hennessy
The Hon Jill Hennessy is a distinguished former Victorian Attorney General and Minister for Health, with more than a decade of Parliamentary and Cabinet experience until she stepped down from her Ministerial role in December 2022. During the course of her career, she has forged a reputation for strong strategic leadership, an innovative approach, and a commitment to positive change for the Victorian community.
Following her election to the Victorian Parliament in 2010 as the Labor member for Altona, Jill was appointed Shadow Minister for a number of portfolios and became Coordinating Minister for Health and Human Services in 2014. In this portfolio, Jill oversaw numerous reforms, such as improving the health and safety regulation of hospitals and establishing the Health Complaints Commission. During this period, Jill also secured funding approvals for significant new infrastructure projects, including the Victorian Heart Hospital. Some of the reforms she instigated have become benchmarks for other governments, most notably the groundbreaking Voluntary Assisted Dying legislation.
As Coordinating Minister for the Department of Justice and Community Safety and Attorney General, Jill introduced a suite of criminal justice reforms to improve the efficiency of the justice system, as well as significant occupational safety and workplace manslaughter reforms. She established and led the Government response to the Royal Commission on police informants and ensured appropriate administrative interventions to keep the justice system running during the pandemic.
Jill is a Monash alumna with a Bachelor of Laws and Bachelor of Arts, and holds a Master of Laws from The University of Melbourne. With extensive experience in all facets of government and business, she has held numerous government appointments and is currently Non-Executive Director on a number of Boards, including Scope (Aust) Ltd and the Western Bulldogs Foundation. In 2021, Jill published a monograph on ‘Respect’ as part of Monash University Publishing’s In the National Interest book series.
As a Vice-Chancellor’s Professorial Fellow, Jill’s role will involve consultation with Monash’s Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences regarding future plans and strategy for its hospital network, and providing strategic advice to the Faculty of Art, Design and Architecture with regard to the design of a multidisciplinary ‘Future Health’ initiative.
Dr Christine Nixon AO APM
Dr Christine Nixon AO is a former member of the Monash University Council, on which she served from January 2009 until December 2020, including as Deputy Chancellor from 2014 to 2020. She was also Chair of the Monash College Board from 2011-2020.
Christine has made numerous contributions to public life in Victoria since commencing as the first female Chief Commissioner of Victoria Police in 2001. Eight years later, she was appointed Chair of the Victorian Bushfire Reconstruction and Recovery Authority, which was established to oversee and coordinate the recovery and rebuilding program following the Black Saturday bushfires.
Christine has since been actively involved in leadership roles across numerous organisations, including as Chair of the Good Shepherd Microfinance, a Board member and Chair of The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners, and Deputy Chair of the Castlemaine State Festival in 2021. She has also received awards for leadership from the Save the Children Foundation, Business Review Weekly and the Committee for Melbourne. In 2022, Christine was appointed Chair of Leadership Victoria, and in January 2023 she was commissioned by the Minister for Home Affairs to investigate abuse of the Australian visa system.
Christine is known for her insights into the challenges of leadership in today’s society. An advocate and mentor to women and young people, Christine teaches on leadership and is frequently called upon for public speaking engagements by diverse organisations. In addition to her academic qualifications – a Bachelor of Arts from Macquarie University in Sydney and a Master of Public Administration from Harvard University in the US – Christine has been awarded four Honorary Doctorates as well as numerous awards by community groups.
In 2021, Christine was appointed an Officer of the Order of Australia for distinguished service to law enforcement, women in policing, and tertiary education.
Christine’s role as a Vice-Chancellor’s Professorial Fellow will involve partnerships with the portfolios of the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research) in supporting the University’s Fire to Flourish program, and the Chief Operating Officer in mentoring leaders among Monash staff. She will also provide strategic support to the Faculty of Arts in relation to criminology and family violence, continuing her vital role as an adviser to the Monash Gender and Family Violence Prevention Centre.