Professor James Barber will become the 12th Vice-Chancellor of UNE when he takes up duties in February.

Prof Barber is currently Deputy Vice-Chancellor at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT), one of Australia’s largest universities.

He is also a company director on a number of national bodies, including Open Universities Australia (Australia’s leading provider of fee-paying online degree programs), Jesuit Social Services Australia and Graduate Careers Australia.

Prof Barber is a distinguished academic.

After completing his PhD in experimental psychology, his research shifted into the applied fields of drug addiction and child welfare, while he also served as Professor of Social Work.

He is a winner of North America’s Pro Humanitate Medal for his research in child welfare and a winner of the Vice-Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Teaching from Flinders University.

Prof Barber has worked in regional universities and has a commitment to their important contribution in providing access to education, and also in driving economic prosperity and enhancing the morale, culture and identity of their regions.

Prof Barber said he looked forward to his appointment.

“I have been impressed by the enthusiasm and vitality of this university during my brief visits,” he said.

“I look forward to meeting staff and students early in the new academic year, and with the community in the region and beyond.

“My wife Mary and I welcome the opportunity to be associated with UNE.”

UNE Chancellor, Richard Torbay, said Prof Barber’s experience and credentials were ‘precisely what this university needs at this time’.

“I have great confidence that he will provide astute leadership and direction - not just to the staff, students and management at UNE, but to the New England community more broadly,” Dr Torbay said.