Presenters
Dr Jessica Ison, La Trobe
Dr Jessica Ison (she/her) is a Senior Lecturer and the Deputy Director of the Reducing Gender-Based Violence Research Group at the Violet Vines Marshman Centre for Rural Health Research in the La Trobe Rural Health School.
Dr Ison specialises in sexual violence prevention and is leading a body of research on 'drink spiking' and alcohol and other drug-facilitated sexual violence. Ison's sexual violence research also includes a focus on LGBTQ+ sexual violence and safety on public transport and university campuses. She is currently co-lead of the Partners in Prevention of Sexual Violence project, which received $7.45mil funding from the federal government to evaluate community-led primary and secondary prevention of sexual violence interventions.
Dr Samantha Marshall, La Trobe
Dr Samantha Marshall (she/her) is a research officer at the Violet Vines Marshman Centre for Rural Health Research in the La Trobe Rural Health School.
She has a PhD on the structural and organisational barriers to women in all roles and levels of competition in Australian sport and now researches gender-based violence prevention in male-dominated settings including universities and sport.
Kellie Maxwell, University of Sydney
Kellie (she/her) is a Preventative Education Coordinator at University of Sydney. Kellie brings over 2 decades of experience in the tertiary education sector, where she has successfully led university-wide initiatives aimed at enhancing the student experience. Her diverse expertise spans sport, leadership development, student welfare, gender-based violence prevention, and response. Kellie is deeply committed to fostering inclusive and supportive environments that promote student wellbeing, health, and meaningful social connections.
Professor Louise Sharpe, University of Sydney
Professor Louise Sharpe (she/her) is a clinical psychologist with a PhD in health psychology from the University of London.
She is a Professor of Clinical Psychology and the Pro-Vice Chancellor (Researcher Training) at The University of Sydney. Louise researches the interface between clinical and health psychology, focused on the development of clinically significant psychological problems in people with chronic health conditions. She has awards from the Australian Psychological Society and Australian Association for Cognitive Behavioural Therapy for her contribution to clinical psychology and cognitive behaviour therapy. Louise is a Fellow of the Australian Association for Cognitive and Behaviour Therapy and the Association for Social Science in Australia.
Professor Penny Jane Burke, University of Newcastle
Professor Penny Jane Burke (she/her) is UNESCO Chair in Equity, Social Justice and Higher Education; Global Innovation Chair of Equity; and Director of the Centre of Excellence in Equity in Higher Education at the University of Newcastle.
She is passionately committed to mobilising higher education as a force for equity, social and gender justice, developing new frameworks to open time, space and critical resources for creating communities of praxis, collective advocacy and constellations of impact. She is currently an associate of the Centre for Higher Education Transformations at the University of Bristol, co-editor of the Bloomsbury Gender and Education book series, and has published widely including her new book Equity in Higher Education: Time for Social Justice Praxis. Committed to research for equity transformation, Penny has acted as a policy advisor including as an expert member of the Australian government’s Equity in Higher Education Panel (2020-2021) and Equity Research & Innovation Panel (2018-2020). Recently she has shared a personal essay about her own experience of escaping violence and the transformative role higher education played in her life in the anthology Women of a Certain Courage.