Research and Innovation Portfolio Staff Awards
The annual Research and Innovation Portfolio Staff Awards celebrate the outstanding achievements and contributions of colleagues who exemplify UQ’s values. Recognising our colleagues in this way reflects the culture we value and aspire to cultivate within the Research and Innovation Portfolio and beyond. Learn more about the award categories and eligibility criteria.
Enquiries: odvcri.admin@uq.edu.au
Research and Innovation Portfolio Staff Awards - 2025 Winners and Nominees
Congratulations to the winners and nominees recognised at the Research and Innovation Portfolio Staff Awards ceremony on 11 December 2025.
INDIVIDUAL AWARDS
Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research and Innovation)'s Award For Excellence
WINNER: Rylie Moran, Senior Manager, Research Administration and Management, Research Office
Nominees:
Dr Christian Fercher (Commendation)
Ella Risati (Commendation)
Alison Morgan
Amelie Wilkinson
Andrew Kneynsberg
Ashlea Wong
Cristina Sanchez de la Rosa
Huey Lee
Jannah Bauer
Janyne Schlipalius
Josh Sweeney
Katarina Kotze
Kerri Ullrich
Laura Pareezer
Matthew Williams
Mimi Hoang
Oscar Bird
Taina Lloyd
Wai Cheng Thang
Wellbeing and Inclusion Award
WINNER: Adrienne Tetteroo, Senior Research Contracts Officer, Research Office
WINNER: Philip Bennet, Senior Consultant, UQ Materials Performance, Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Research Infrastructure)
Nominees:
Annette Shewan
Arian Ploeg
Huey Lee
Katarina Kotze
Melissa Lyons
Rodrick Rupan
Sebastian Nguon
Leadership Award
WINNER: Amelie Wilkinson, Senior Manager (Awards), Research Office [collected by Kirsten Lawrie, Executive Director, Research Office]
Nominees:
Dr Noni Creasey (Commendation)
Huey Lee (Commendation)
Adrian Arndt
Arian Ploeg
Ben Hogan
Dr Christian Fercher
Cristina Sanchez de la Rosa
Josh Sweeney
Karen Knox
Katarina Kotze
Laura Pareezer
Lauren Gates
Maria Adly Attallah Soliman
Mark Witham
Philip Bennet
Will Farmer
New Talent Award
WINNER: Dr Jen Rumbell, Senior Manager, Research Environment, Research Environment, Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Research)
Nominees:
Josh Sweeney (Commendation)
Robbie Peel (Commendation)
An Otsubo
Kerri Ullrich
Lily Baker
Louise O'Neil
Phoenix Smith
Ryan Aitken
Sendi Wings
Shelly Harris
Sinta Frere
Victoria Lopez Vaquero
Vincent Chen
Wei Luan
Trusted Partner Award
WINNER: Ainsley Appel, Content Designer, Marketing, Marketing and Communications
Nominees:
Jo Maxwell
Manjula Soysa
Martina Jones
Rebecca Edmund
Amplifying Research Impact Award
WINNER: Dr Annette Shewan, Senior Manager, Major Initiatives, Research Office
Nominees:
Taina Lloyd
Sue's Shout Out Award
RECIPIENTS:
David Waters
Kevin Jack
Kirsten Lawrie
Jean McBain
Sarah Brown
TEAM AWARDS
Innovation Award
WINNER: Research Commercial Managers, Research Office
Team members: Adam Stoneley, Alison Morgan, Amanda Smith, Camille Smith-Watkins, Carthika Luxmanan, Catherine Sweeney, Christine Nguyen, Claire Dover, Janyne Schlipalius, Jen Sodziak, Nyree Divitini, Phillip Smit, Sarah Wainwright, Simon Cashion, Victoria Myatt.
Nominees:
Australian Research Council Discovery Team, Research Office
Australian Research Council Linkage Team, Research Office
Collaboration Achievement Award
WINNER: Drones Collaborative Research Platform, Research Infrastructure; in collaboration with the Earth Observation Research Centre, School of Environment
Team members: Craig Jarvis, Dr Daniel Harris, Gillian Rowan, Kathryn Markey, Meredith Roe, Reilly Williamson, A/Prof Steven Micklethwaite.
Nominees:
AdvanCell AMTAR Staff / Protein Expression Facility
International & Qld State Government Team, Research Office
Marketing and Communication, Web channel team & Brand Creative Studio
Research Commercial Managers, Science, Research Office & Legal Services (Research and IP), Legal Services
Transgenic Animal Services Queensland, Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research and Innovation)/Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Research Infrastructure)/UQ Biological Resources
UQ Materials Performance, Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Research Infrastructure)-UQ Materials Performance
Service Excellence Award
WINNER: Data Science Collaborative Research Platform, Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Research Infrastructure)
Team members: Aria Liu, Justin Scott, Mark Hoffmann, Pravesh Kumar, Robert Armstrong, Sebastian Lopez Marcano, Valentine Murigneux, Varun Ranganath, Vitaly Gnyubkin, Wai Cheng Thang.
Nominees:
Admissions and Scholarships Team, Graduate School (Commendation)
Contracts, Tenders and Consultancy Management Office, Research Office (Commendation)
Contracts, Tenders and Consultancy Management Office Health, Medicine and Behavioural Sciences, Research Office
Engineering, Architecture and Information Technology Contracts, Tenders and Consultancy Management Office Team, Research Office
Health, Medicine and Behavioural Sciences Research Commercial Managers, Research Office
Medical Research Future Fund Awards, Research Office
Medical Research Future Fund Post Award Team, Research Office
Pre-award - Health, Targeted, Research Office
Precinct 1 Contracts, Tenders and Consultancy Management Office Team, Research Office
Research Commercial Management, Research Office
Research Identified Opportunities Team, Research Office
Research Operations Team, Research Office
Science-Institute for Molecular Bioscience Team, Research Office
University of Queensland Biological Resources-Institute for Molecular Bioscience, Queensland Biosciences Precinct, University of Queensland Biological Resources
Commitment to Excellence Award
WINNER: Office of the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research and Innovation) Strategy & Policy Team, Office of the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research and Innovation)
Team members: Jean McBain, Reshika Chand, Tayo Adeniyi.
Nominees:
HDR Liaison Officer Team Leaders, Graduate School (Commendation)
Protein Expression Facility, Protein Expression Facility (Commendation)
Contracts, Tenders and Consultancy Management Office Engineering, Architecture and Information Technology/Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology, Research Office
Contracts, Tenders and Consultancy Management Office Health, Medicine and Behavioural Sciences, Research Office
Contracts, Tenders and Consultancy Management Office, Research Office
Defence, Space & National Security, Strategic Government and Industry Partnerships
Gnotobiotics, University of Queensland Biological Resources
Health, Medicine and Behavioural Sciences Research Commercial Managers Team, Research Office
MyResearch Project Team, Research Management Systems
Research Commercial Managers Team Engineering, Architecture and Information Technology/Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology, Research Office
Research Grants Unit - Awards National Health and Medical Research Council, Health, Medicine and Behavioural Sciences (St Lucia), Institute for Molecular Bioscience, Research Office
Research and Innovation Portfolio Staff Awards - 2024 Winners and Nominees
Congratulations to the winners and nominees recognised at the Research and Innovation Portfolio Staff Awards ceremony on 6 December 2024.
INDIVIDUAL AWARDS
Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research and Innovation)'s Award For Excellence
WINNER: Gemma Smith, Animal Technical Assistant TRI, UQ Biological Resources (collected by Tanya Lennane, Senior Manager Research Facilities and Infrastructure, UQ Biological Resources)
WINNER: Milena Arsenijevic, Senior Manager, Major Initiatives, Research Office
Nominees:
Amanda Carozzi
Beverley Cottle
Karen Hendrickson
Karen Knox
Liane Spencer
Megan Craig
Morgan Leigh
Tahnee Davenport
Taina Lloyd
Tom Mason
Wellbeing and Inclusion Award
WINNER: Davina Bonner, Former Senior Manager, Pre-Award, Research Office
Nominees:
Brad Ryan
Huey Lee
Leadership Award
WINNER: Lauren Gates, Senior Manager, Research Contracts RCMU, Research Office
WINNER: Marly Dein, Team Leader, HDR Administration, Graduate School
Nominees:
Christie Viggers
Georgina Hockings
Josh Sweeney
Kate Cooper
Laura Pareezer
Maya Patrick
Michelle Spraggon
Samantha Smith
Suzi Cheshire
New Talent Award
WINNER: Megan Cross, Manager Pre-Award, Research Office
Nominees:
Laura Pareezer (Commendation)
Annabelle Freeman
Annette Shewan
Cassie Speed
Christine Nguyen
Gemma Smith
Tanya Lennane
Tiffany Tian
Trusted Partner Award
WINNER: Erica Ward, Manager, Policy, Governance and Compliance Unit
Nominees:
Ainsley Appel
Donna Leavitt
Ivy Lee
Jo Maxwell
Julie McWilliams
Zoe Zhang
DVCRI Bravo Award
WINNER: Karen Hendrickson, Senior Manager, Operations, Office of Research Infrastructure (collected by Associate Professor Kevin Jack, Office of the Pro-Vice-Chancellor Research Infrastructure)
WINNER: Taina Lloyd, Senior Manager, Major Initiatives, Research Office
TEAM AWARDS
Innovation Award
WINNER: Research Commercial Management Unit, Research Office
Team members: Adrienne Tetteroo, Amelie Wilkinson, Camille Smith-Watkins, Chamonix Birrer, Christine Nguyen, Claire Dover, Janyne Schlipalius, Jennifer Luu, Jocelyn Aboud, Katrina Elliott, Lauren Gates, Marion Carrett, Pelin Durali, Sharmila Mangalamkat, Tony Wang.
Nominees:
International and Industry Post Award, Research Office
The Transgenic Animal Service of Queensland (TASQ), UQ Biological Resources
UQBR Risk Assessment Working Group, UQ Biological Resources
Collaboration Achievement Award
WINNER: Consulting and Research Expertise (CoRE) and MyResearch, Research Office; in collaboration with the Office of the Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Research)
Team members: Anil Naidu, Ben Hogan, Bridget McPherson, Chamonix Birrer, David Waters, Huey Lee, Josh Sweeny, Kellie Wooderson, Liane Spencer, Paul Bailey, Xenia Aitken-Smith.
Nominees:
Research Office Post-Award Team, Research Office & Contract and Grants Accounting, Finance and Business Services
Service Excellence Award
WINNER: Government and Industry Operations and Projects, Strategic Partnerships - Government and Industry
Team members: Ally Harradine, Ella Risati, Hayley Benton-Hilder, Lachlan Inch, Lucy Merritt, Margaret de Silva, Michelle Claxton, Sam Lemons, Tiffany Tian.
Nominees:
Pre-Award Discovery, Research Office (Commendation)
UQBR Administration, UQ Biological Resources (Commendation)
HDR Liaison Officer (HLO), Graduate School
MyResearch, Research Management Systems, Office of the Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Research)
oDVCRI Executive Assistant, Office of the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research and Innovation)
Pre-award Industry and International, Research Office
Research Analytics, Research Strategy & Performance, Office of the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research and Innovation)
Research Contracts Officers, Research Commercial Management Unit, Research Office
Research Partnership Managers, Research Commercial Management Unit, Research Office
UQBR Trainers, UQ Biological Resources
UQBR TRI Experimental, Translational Research Institute, UQ Biological Resources
Commitment to Excellence Award
WINNER: Genetic Research Services, UQ Biological Resources
Team members: Chris Smith, Helen Hargreaves, Leanne Clarke, Natsumi Nishikawa, Tiana McLaren.
Nominees:
Operations, Research Office (Commendation)
Strategy & Policy, Research Strategy & Performance, Office of the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research and Innovation)
UQBR Vets, UQ Biological Resources
DVCRI Bravo Award
WINNER: HDR Liaison Officer, UQ Biological Resources
Team members: Alannah Filer, Angie Kahler, Charmaine Jensen, Christina Zhou, Churan Dai, Diana Marsh, Kelsey Park, Laurie Sendra-Brown, Ligi George, Lindsey Muller, Luna Xing, Nicholas Archer, Ollie Sterling, Penny Storey, Phani Kumari Paritala, Quinn Zhao, Rebecca Argent, Saffron Riyat, Sarah Lewis, Tracey Miller, Yuxin Yang, Yvette Machulka.
WINNER: UQBR Vets, UQ Biological Resources
Team members: Christina Cho, Cora Lau, Nishma Bakrania.
Research and Innovation Portfolio Staff Awards - 2023 Winners and Nominees
Congratulations to the winners and nominees recognised at the Research and Innovation Portfolio Staff Awards ceremony on 6 December 2023.
INDIVIDUAL AWARDS
Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research and Innovation)'s Award For Excellence
WINNER: Sam Ferguson, Senior Business Analyst, Graduate School
Nominees:
Andrew Kneynsberg
Christian Long
Elizabeth Williams
Huey Lee
Kate Cooper
Meaghan Douglas
Wendy Whittington
Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Award
WINNER: Ky Lane, Senior UX Developer, Research Management Systems
Leadership Award
WINNER: Mary Waria, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander HDR Liaison, Graduate School
Nominees:
Carina Walpole (Commendation)
Simon Pengilly (Commendation)
Barb Arnts
Ben Hogan
Bridget Kane
Camille Smith-Watkins
Chris Rose'Meyer,
Karen Hendrickson
Kristina Basic
Merce Salla-Martret
Michelle Spraggon
Natalie Noriega
Sam Lemons
Stacey Groves
New Talent Award
WINNER: Chamonix Birrer, Administration Officer, Research Commercial Management
Nominees:
Natalie Noriega (Commendation)
Aimee Sisley
Claire Dover
Isobella Scott
Kristina Basic
Lucy Heap
Mellissa Stephan
Reshika Chand
Sam Lemons
Sue Allen
Thomas Sayaxang
Megan Craig
Trusted Partner Award
WINNER: Lisa Hinchy, Senior Events Officer, Alumni and Community Engagement, OMC
Nominees:
Maree Mason (Commendation)
David Holmes
David Sternes
Fei Yu and Susan Wilson
Wellness and Safety Champion Award
WINNER: Danielle Lefebvre, Executive Coordinator, UQ Graduate School
Nominees:
Brad Ryan
Danielle Kendrick
Dr Charlotte Pettit
TEAM AWARDS
Innovation Award
WINNER: Research Infrastructure Management System (RIMS) Project, RIMS
Team members: Caron Batty, Thom Sayaxang, Geoff Timmerman.
Nominees:
UQBR-PACE, UQ Biological Resources (Commendation)
Major Initiatives, Research Office
Candidature Progression, Graduate School
Post-award Team, Research Office
Collaboration Achievement Award
WINNER: HDR Intranet Project Team, ITS; in collaboration with the Graduate School
Team members: Bridget Cashin, Jessica Yeoh, Jeann Campillo, Anneliese Berglind, Andrew Schnell, Kate Swanson.
Nominees:
2023 R&I Week Design and Coordination team, OMC, oDVCRI
UQ Spark, Research Partnerships, DVC R&I, Research Office
Service Excellence Award
WINNER: Research Commercial Management, UQ CoRE
Team members: Bridget McPherson, Camille Smith-Watkins, Chamonix Birrer, Christine Nguyen, Huey Lee, Janyne Schlipalius, Jocelyn Aboud, Kellie Wooderson, Lauren Gates, Phoebe Coulon-McIntosh.
Nominees:
Research Analytics, Research Strategy & Performance (Commendation)
Protein Expression Facility, Research Infrastructure
RO Sustainability Champions, Research Office
Research Contracts, Research Commercial Management Unit
UQBR Gnotobiotics, UQ Biological Resources
Genetic Research Services (GRS), UQ Biological Resources
Office of the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research & Innovation), DVCRI
HDR Liaison Officers and Team Leaders, Graduate School
Integrity Award
WINNER: Animal Ethics team, Animal Ethics
Team members: Virginia Sheppard, Karen Stewart, Bronwyn Kilgour, Justine McEvoy, Liesbeth Weijs, Brighid O'Neill.
Nominees:
Research Strategy and Policy, Research Strategy & Performance (Commendation)