Sport at
Monash
University
2015 Annual Report
2015 At A Glance
Last year’s big statistics...
OVER $1.3 MILLION in discounts
were provided to students and student
groups.
4,202 Sporting Club Members.
96% of students surveyed indicated
that their involvement with Monash
Sport enhanced their mental health
(n=966).
973 TeamMONASH Volunteers.
We hosted over 1.3 million participant
visits to our facilities and programs.
97% of students surveyed agreed
Monash Sport positively influenced their
campus experience (n=966).
1,222 Varsity Sport participants.
576 teams (over 5,000 students)
participated in social sport
competitions.
97% of students surveyed told us
their involvement with Monash Sport
enhanced their wellbeing and happiness
(n=966).
96% of students surveyed would
recommend Monash Sport to new
students (n=966).
*Data is combined from a number of sources, including a student survey, direct feedback gained from
fitness assessments and programs, and Monash Sport usage metrics.
Contents
2 From the Directors: Monash Sport and TeamMONASH
4 Statistics and Metrics 2015
10 Awards and Achievements
• Monash Sport Industry Recognition
• Monash Sport Stellar Service Rating
• Recognising the Talent at Monash
• New Member for Sport Hall of Fame
• Female Athlete of the Year
• Male Athlete of the Year
17 Participation Events
• Friday Night Freeze an Icy Success
• Play On / College Clash
• Footy Flavoured Fun
• Mega $$$ Raised at Mega Swim
• Monash Games
• Chancellor’s Cup Golf Day
• Melbourne Marathon
• Around the Bay
• Mother’s Day Classic
• Emer Casey Fun Run
25 Sport highlights (competitive & social)
• Monash Blues 1000th Senior Game
• 50th Anniversary Celebration - Monash University
Soccer Club
• Australian University Games
• Southern University Games
• Varsity Challenge
• Making Sport Social
32 Built Spaces (capital, refurbs, use of spaces)
• Caulfield Campus Green Opening
• Refurbished Doug Ellis Swimming Pool
• Enhancing Our Fitness Centres
• Improvements to Chisholm Hall
• Recreation Hall Refurbishments
• Tennis Court Refurbishments
37 The People On Our Team
• Innovative Uses of Our Spaces
• Our Human Capital
• Monash Sport Culture
• Staff Recognition at Monash Sport
• Helping Students Learn to Swim
• Staff Wellbeing at Monash
• Let’s Chat About Australian Sport & Culture
• World University Games
From the Directors
A Year of Engagement, Growth and Innovation
What an action packed and innovative year 2015 was in the sport space at Monash University. In 2015, Sport at Monash
played a larger role in student and campus life at Monash than ever before. To provide these opportunities to the Monash
Community, two departments at Monash University (Monash Sport & TeamMONASH, both a part of the Campus Community
Division) work collaboratively with students to enhance the campus experience. What follows is our inaugural ‘2015 Sport at
Monash University Annual Report’.
Our facilities, services, programs, activities and events again hosted over 1.3 million visitations, for the fourth year in succession,
despite significant facility refurbishments to the Doug Ellis Swimming Pool and indoor sports facilities at Caulfield and Clayton
campuses.
We also introduced new initiatives such as the Water Wise program, new major events such as Friday Night Freeze and a large
number and wide range of innovative student and staff engagement experiences provided across Monash campuses. We
passionately believe that active bodies complement active minds and endeavour to facilitate more students and staff involved in
being active, more often.
This publication summarizes some of the key achievements, challenges and deliverables that were realized in 2015 there are
many highlights contained herein, and we invite you to read the detail in the following pages. Participation levels continued to be
strong in 2015 with growth in many services and programs especially social sport programs, Staff Wellness Activity Programs
(SWAP) and student fitness and swimming participation. There were substantial program and service refinements again in
2015, continuing the trends of recent years.
Monash Sport won a peer-judged, external award for the Aquatics and Recreation Victoria, 2015 Health Club of the Year for the
Clayton Fitness Centre. The focus on high quality service provision continues to be a priority with Monash Sport achieving the
University’s highest ever Service Delivery rating of 95%, assessed externally by a CSBA mystery shopping process. This result
was underpinned by a continuing commitment to facilitate staff training and development initiatives.
Sport participation options at Monash University have diversified significantly over recent years to incorporate not only formal
sport, representation and social sport opportunities for students and staff, but also informal sport and play, student engagement
activities, learning activities and broader social activities that bring students, staff and our broader community together. We also
partner with many student engagement and learning initiatives and stakeholders such as the Let’s Chat program, Orientation
and welcome activities and social inclusion events such as One World Festival.
Sports facilities also hosted major University events such as Examinations, Graduation activities and the Chancellor’s
Distinguished Alumni Awards ceremonies. We are proud of our progress in developing effective partnerships and relationships
with a range of University stakeholders and the broad appeal of the services and partnering initiatives provided are captured in
this report.
Monash University continued to perform exceedingly well across varsity and community engagement events. With the
support of 973 volunteers, TeamMONASH assisted 6,065 individuals to represent the University in a range of sporting, artistic
and community engagement activities. This places Monash as the number one ranked university in Australia for student
representation in Varsity Sport. In addition to this the formalisation of a number of community relationships based on actions
led to a closer connection between local, national and international not for profit organisations, local Government and the
University. Importantly, Monash University is home to a diverse and thriving array of competitive sporting clubs with 4,202
members and 652 club volunteers administering and supporting these clubs.
Developing, advocating and informing sustainable master planning strategies is a key strategic priority to ensure the many
forms of sport, representation, recreation, play and engagement events continue to play an important role in campus life for
years to come. Our key operational focus will remain delivering high quality student experiences that add value to the overall
campus experience.
This report highlights some of the key success and achievements from what was a bold, chellenging and exciting year serving
the university community.
Brett Lavale
Director, Monash Sport
2
Martin Doulton
Director, TeamMONASH
Fitness Programs
SWAP (staff health programs)
Student Engagement
Memberships
Participation Events
Major University Events
Sport Facilities
Aquatic Programs
Memberships
Water Wise
Water Wise
Free Play
Free Play
Social Sport Programs
“Active bodies, vibrant minds”
Sports Facilities
Social Sport
SWAP (staff) Programs
Student Engagement
Sport Clubs
Major University Events
Varsity Sport
Varsity Sport
Volunteering
Representation
Community Fitness Events
Sport Clubs
Elite Student Performer Support
Volunteering
Representation
Events
Sport Hall of Fame
3
4
MONASH SPORT
“Active bodies, vibrant minds”
“Our mission is to provide Monash students and staff
with engaging, innovative, and high quality experiences
that enhance the wellbeing and vitality of the University
community, making it a better place to live, learn, work and play.”
9,260
The total amount of
Monash students that
took out a membership
with us in 2015.
22,397
The total amount of
Monash students that
engaged with us in a
service, program or
membership during
2015.
Monash Sport employs
126 Monash students,
a proportianally higher
number of students
when compared to
other GO8 universities.
Monash students that
are also members
of Monash Sport
have a higher course
progression rate,
when compared to the
overall Monash cohort.
Monash Sport facilities
are open;
351 days per year,
110 hours per week,
and see 1.3 million
visits per year.
5
Metrics - 2015
1% 0.3%
Over 1,302,000
total visits in 2015
Satisfaction with Monash Sport customer service
(N = 1324)
3.03%
1.56%
85%*
81%*
2.02%
7.63%
11.21%
3.89%
9.86%
13.58%
29.04%
45.50%
The extent that students felt
Monash Sport improved their wellbeing and
happiness (N = 966)
1.45%
1.45%
Net Promoter Score (N = 1324)
3.55%
2.25%
To what degree was the range and quality of
sports, aquatic and fitness facilities a decision
factor in choosing Monash University? (N = 966)
82%*
63%*
4.01%
9.48%
16.95%
7.16%
11.38%
13.97%
32.78%
33.89%
18.78%
6.22%
Rating = Average rating on seven point likert scale (1-7), converted to a percentage
*
6
28.55%
38.32%
22.89%
19.60%
Metrics - 2015
7
Metrics - 2015
1% 2.7%
2.5% 2.5%
8
9
Awards & Achievements
2015 was full of sporting achievements, with Monash
Sport receiving critically acclaimed awards in the health
and fitness industry. The 2015 Health Club of the Year
was awarded to the Monash Sport Clayton Fitness Centre
at the Aquatics and Recreation Victoria Industry Awards.
While the Doug Ellis Swimming Pool was commended for
outstanding water safety standards with the Lifesaving
Victoria Platinum Pool Award.
Customer service ratings were at a consistently high level
yet again, identifying Monash Sport as a leader in customer
service across Caulfield, Clayton and Peninsula campuses.
The 52nd TeamMONASH Awards were held in November,
with 31 students being awarded Blues, the highest sporting
honour an individual student athlete can attain at this
University. These students follow in the footsteps of 1,454
Blues receipeints before them, being recognised by a
tradition which commenced in 1963.
At the Vice Chancellor’s Elite Athlete Welcome Dinner
held in May, Triple Olympian and World Champion Rower
Sam Patten (Bachelor of Science, 1991) became the 23rd
inductee into the Monash University Sport Hall of Fame.
After fantastic performances for Monash University and
Australia, Nneka Okpala (Triple Jump) and Thomas Sinclair
(Hockey) were awarded the male and female Athlete of the
Year Awards.
10
Monash Sport Industry Recognition
We are proud to announce that Monash Sport has won the Health Club of the Year
Award at the 2015 Aquatics & Recreation Victoria Awards.
Aquatics & Recreation Victoria (ARV) is the peak body for aquatic and recreation in the
state. Every year the ARV awards acknowledges people and organisations that have
achieved outstanding results through their awards night.
Monash Sport applied and was shortlisted for both the Health Club of the year Award
and the Facility Management Award for the Doug Ellis Pool.
The Health Club of the Year award recognises innovative and effective management
practices to achieve excellence in health club operations. It focuses on programming,
human resources, customer service, risk management, community involvement and
partnerships.
The application for this award required Monash Sport to submit a written application
outlining what sets us apart from the other health clubs within the industry. It allowed
a maximum of 2200 words and required referencing to customer survey results, programming initiatives, member
usage and features such as accessibility and enhancements to the centre. It also required a video submission (links
to these are below).
Monash Sport won the Health Club of the Year award in large part to their overall commitment to providing excellent
services and features to members.
Despite not being the overall winner of the Facility Management award, the Doug Ellis Swimming Pool being
shortlisted was a testament to the commitment of the Pool staff to continually improve operations and development
of the facility, leading to better community outcomes.
You can view our video applications online via these links:
• Health Club Award - bit.ly/arv-health-club
• Facility Management Award - bit.ly/arv-facility-mgmt
In addition to our honour at the ARV Awards, Monash University’s Doug Ellis Swimming Pool has been rated one of
the best pools in Victoria, achieving Platinum Pool accreditation from Life Saving Victoria for outstanding levels of
safety at an aquatic facility.
In a similar fashion to the accreditation of a lifesaver, pools undergo a thorough assessment of their skills and
performance and must maintain a consistently high standard to meet the criteria for Platinum Pool accreditation.
The award recognises facilities which have
met the highest safety requirements in the
aquatic industry and gives a 5 star rating.
11
Monash Sport Stellar Service Rating
As a part of an ongoing commitment to providing high quality service,
between April and June, Monash University engaged independent customer
service consulting agency CSBA to assess the service levels throughout
the University, by mystery shopping a number of University departments,
including Monash Sport.
Acting as “Mystery Shoppers”, CSBA assessors made 226 general enquiry
calls to multiple departments throughout the University. A total 70 of
these calls were made to Monash Sport across the Caulfield, Clayton and
Peninsula campuses, including the aquatics, health and fitness and venues
service desks.
Monash University scored well above the GO8 University sector average
in their overall telephone service scores, both in “getting through” and the
quality of the services delivered.
Monash Sport received the University’s top Service Delivery score of 95%
and in particular were highly accoladed for offering consistent greetings to
customers, the warmth, attentiveness and interest of the staff, staff skill in
resolving customer enquiries as well as their sound communication skills.
Customer service levels are a continuing focus of Monash Sport, last year
approximately 60 staff members undertook a comprehensive customer
service training program in a range of online and in person service
enhancement workshops. We are proud to see that our service level reflects
the emphasis and effort Monash Sport place on customer service.
Staff are presently about to embark on another series of training modules
in communicating effectively with customers from various backgrounds and
cultures to create positive experiences for students who may experience
language and cultural barriers.
12
Recognising the Talent at Monash
The 2015 TeamMONASH Awards recognized the outstanding contribution of student athletes and volunteers from
the Monash community in sport and community service. In it’s 52nd year, the TeamMONASH Awards honoured
over 40 students whose extra curricular achievements showcased the contribution that the university makes to the
global community.
Throughout the night 31 students athletes’ achievements were recognized with Blues Awards. The Blues Awards
are the University’s highest sporting awards.
The prestigious Male and Female Athlete of the Year Award, was awarded respectively to Thomas Sinclair and
Nneka Okpala.
Nneka represented Monash University at the World University Games in Gwangju, South Korea, where she placed
8th in the women’s triple jump. She is the current New Zealand Women’s Triple Jump National Record Holder, as
well as the reigning Victorian, New Zealand and Australian Athletics Championships Triple Jump Gold Medalist. With
her eyes set firmly on the 2016 Rio Olympics, we want to congratulate Nneka on her many achievements this year
and wish her all the best during the next 6 months of Olympic qualification.
Tom represented Australia at the World Indoor Hockey Championships held in Germany this year, before returning
to represent Monash University at the Southern and Australian University Games where he helped the Men’s
Hockey team win Gold at both events. He also received Green and Gold honours at the Australian University
Games for the third consecutive year. The Monash Community would like to congratulate Tom on his many
successes this year.
The Varsity Team of the Year was awarded to the Men’s Hockey team. The 2015 Men’s Hockey Team defeated
Melbourne University at the Annual Varsity Games, before being crowned Champions of both the Southern
University Games and the Australian University Games.
The Club of the Year award went to the Monash University Boardriders Club for the second consecutive year. With
over 500 members, the camps and training sessions held by the club helped the Monash Women’s Surfing team
come second at the Australian University Championships this year. The Monash Boardriders Club also participated
in the Australian Disabled Surfers Initiative this year helping people with physical and mental disabilities enjoy getting
in the water and surfing their first waves.
Fiona Canny won The Monash University Oaktree Foundation Volunteer Recognition Award. As a recent graduate
of Monash University and the Deputy CEO of the Oaktree Foundation, Fiona led the foundations End Poverty
Campaign.
The Service to the Community Award was won by the President of the Monash University Outdoors Club, Stefan
Smith. Stefan has been a clear catalyst in MUOC’s metamorphosis over the last two years that has seen it improve
its services to the Monash Community.
TeamMONASH Director Martin Doulton said of
the event, “It is a great privilege for the University
community to recognise the achievements
of our student sports stars, performers and
volunteers during the TeamMONASH awards
night. Each individual makes a great contribution
to the success of the University across so many
fields of extra curricular activity and celebrates
the positive impact that Monash students make
to the community in which they live, work, study
and play.”
13
New Member For Sport Hall of Fame
The Vice Chancellor’s Athlete Welcome Dinner saw the induction
of Sam Patten into the Monash University Sport Hall of Fame. The
Hall of Fame acknowledges graduates of Monash University whose
endeavours in their chosen sports have taken them to the highest
level.
A graduate of the Faculty of Medicine, Sam Patten is now an
accomplished orthopaedic surgeon.
As a rower, triple Olympian and World Champion, Sam’s sporting
achievements are also outstanding.
As the 23rd inductee into this illustrious group of elite athletes,
Sam’s induction adds another distinguished name to the group, his
achievements are listed below:
SAMUEL PATTEN - ROWING
Bachelor of Science (Medicine) 1991
Selected in Australian Squad – 1983
World Championships Men’s Eight, Bronze Medal – 1983
Men’s Eight, Fourth – 1987
Men’s Coxless Four, Gold Medal – 1990
National Champion
Men Pair, Men’s Coxed Four, King’s Cup – 1987
Men’s Coxless Pair, Men’s Coxless Four, King’s Cup – 1988
Los Angeles Olympic Rowing Team, Men’s Eight, Bronze Medal – 1984
Seoul Olympic Rowing Team, Coxless Pair – 1988
Barcelona Olympic Rowing Team, Men’s Eight, Fifth - 1992
A.B.C Sports Awards – Team of the Year (Men’s Eight), Fifth – 1992
Appointed Australian Olympic Committee – Athletes Commission – 1993
Delegate – International Olympic Committee – Centenary Congress – 1994
14
Female Athlete of the Year
Nneka Okpala
Nneka has had a fantastic year in 2015. She represented Monash University
and New Zealand at the World University Games in Gwangju, South Korea,
where she placed 8th in the women’s triple jump with a jump of 13.15m’s.
Nneka is the current New Zealand Women’s National Triple Jump Record
Holder. As well as the reigning Victorian, New Zealand and Australian Athletics
Triple Jump Gold Medallist.
This year she was also named Essendon Athletics Club Athlete of the Year.
After starting athletics at the age of 6 and specialising in Triple Jump at 15,
Nneka’s current ambitions are to qualify for the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.
She is definitely making her mark on the triple jump circuit and we are all very proud of her achievements.
Congratulations Nneka.
15
Male Athlete of the Year
Thomas Sinclair
Tom represented Australia at the World Indoor Hockey Championships held this year
in Germany. As one of the youngest players in the Australian team, Tom finished the
World Cup as one of its most valuable.
At a club level, Tom played in the Bundesliga for Berliner HC while he was on a direct
exchange with Monash Abroad to Freie Universität Berlin.
This year Tom represented Monash University at the Varsity Challenge, the Southern
University Games and the Australian University Games, where the Men’s Hockey
Team won Gold Medals at all three tournaments. Tom received Green and Gold
honours at AUG for the third consecutive year, he also scored all of the goals in the
final.
Tom has also given back to the sport as the coach of the First Team at Scotch
College and the Victorian Under 18 Girls Indoor team this year.
Tom encapsulates the Monash spirit and we congratulate him on his many successes this year.
16
Participation Events
Participation events encouraged staff and students to enjoy
campus life, and engage with peers beyond the classroom.
Events such as the Play On! Festival was held, to encourage
students to acknowledge the importance of a healthy
and active lifestyle. As part of the inaugural Winterfest,
Friday Night Freeze brought toboggans, food trucks and
a nighttime AFL match together to ultimately raise over
$12,000 for the Cure MND Foundation.
Monash University was also commended for entering
the largest Tertirary Team in the Mother’s Day Classic for
the second year running. Staff and students could also
participate in a range of events such as the Melbourne
Marathon and Emer Casey Fun Run representing Monash
University.
17
Friday Night Freeze an Icy Success
On Friday 7 August, 2015 the Monash community
came together to raise over $12,000 for the Cure MND
Foundation at Monash Sport’s Friday Night Freeze
event, part of Monash University’s 2015 Winter Festival.
In an evening which attracted approximately 4,500 staff,
students and families, the Friday Night Freeze included
snow activities such as tobogganing and snow-dodge
ball, as well as a Monash Blues Football Club amateur
AFL football match and Melbourne Victory player zone.
The evening included demonstrations from the Monash
University Snow Sports Club, live DJ music and a NonResidential Colleges snow-dodge ball competition and
was concluded with a colourful fireworks display.
The focal point of the evening was raising money for the Cure MND Foundation. Participants registered to ride down
an ice slide into a pool of freezing cold water, gathering donations in the weeks beforehand. This followed the ‘Big
Freeze at the ‘G’ in Round 10 of the AFL Premiership Season, which saw 11 football personalities ride down an ice
slide in front of a packed house at the MCG before the Collingwood vs Melbourne match.
A number of senior University staff went down the ice slide, commencing with Martin Doulton, Director of Team
MONASH. He was soon followed by Vladimir Prpich, Executive Director of Campus Community Division, and Trisha
Prpich, Director of Monash Residential Services. Bradley Williamson, the Executive Director of the Buildings and
Properties Division and Wayne Brundell, who is one of the Senior Managers at the Buildings and Properties Division
also braved the icy water to raise funds.
Several Monash Sport staff also participated including, Tanya Hetherington, Caroline Lawrence, Melanie Elston and
Maria Barres, as well as current and past players of the Monash Blues Football Club.
Fresh from their 2014-2015 Hyundai A League Premiership and Championship success, Melbourne Victory players
Fahid Ben Khalfallah, Kosta Barbarouses and Rashid Mahazi were signing autographs and taking photos with fans
beside a Victory shootout zone.
Positioned adjacent to the Freeze MND Ice Slide, the Melbourne Victory players had the perfect view of the ice slide
throughout the night. Many commented on their amazement of the number of participants braving the icy water to
contribute to such a valuable cause.
Cure MND is a charity close to the Monash Blues Amateur Football Club. Mick Rodger was popular around the
club well beyond his playing days, and was working to fight MND right up until his passing due to the disease. The
Monash Blues supported Mick all the way, and his legacy proves to be very strong today, as Senior Coach Paul
Groves, and players Sam Baring, Andrew McGregor and Maddison Hardiman took the plunge down the ice slide at
halftime. Much to the enjoyment of their fellow team mates watching on.
Monash University students particularly enjoyed playing bubble and watching the roving fire twirlers performing
throughout the evening. In the AFL football match under lights between the Monash Blues and De La Salle Old
Collegians Under 19 teams, the Monash Blues ran over the top of De La to win by 71 points in a resounding win, in
front of an excited crowd of over 250 people.
Director of Monash Sport, Brett Lavale, was excited by the success of the Friday Night Freeze in its first year. “This
event was a great example of how we can create interactive events that engage the Monash University and broader
communities with innovative and fun activities”, he said.
18
Play On / College Clash
Monash Sport’s Play On! Festival encouraged students to get active with fun events and activities whilst raising
awareness of Monash Sport and it’s facilities to students.
Held over 16-19 March at Clayton Campus, the festival
combined existing events such as College Clash and the
beginning of the Social Sport season with a variety of
fun, social and sporting activities. Highlights included an
outdoor cinema night, Bubble Soccer, free blend your own
smoothie (via Bike Blender) and Food Trucks dispensing
cheap tasty treats, all set to a background of tunes
provided by our on scene DJ.
The Clayton Play On Festival brought together over 1,000
students from a diverse range of backgrounds, including
450 residential students who participated in the annual
College Clash, and even some staff members. The event
offered residential students and those students in nonresidential colleges the chance to compete against each other in alternative activities such as tug of war, bubble
soccer, paper plane crafting (and ability to land said plane in a bucket), bowling, along with traditional activities
such as basketball competitions, and regular soccer utilising the inflatable pitch. Farrer took the win in 2015 with
Peninsula coming in as a close second, winning prizes and more importantly year-long boasting rights for 2015.
Play On! Festival hit Caulfield campus in week 11
of semester one. Despite the difficulties accessing
the sports precinct during the Caulfield Green
refurbishments, the festival saw a fantastic turnout with
over 350 students in attendance. A special mention and
thanks must go towards Professor David Copolov for
formally opening the event and kick-starting the bubble
soccer competition on the day.
The festival mixed Social Sport competitions and free
group fitness classes with fun activities like bike blender
and bubble soccer and musical entertainment provided
by the on site DJ. Instead of food trucks the Caulfield event offered $1 sushi options from the sushi stand in the
sports precinct.
We captured some incredibly positive feedback at these events, with over 70% of students indicating that they
remained on campus longer than they would normally to the event and more than 65% indicating that Bubble
Soccer was their favourite part of the event.
19
Footy Flavoured Fun
Each year, Monash Sport supports the Fight Cancer Foundation which asks
Australians to don their favourite football teams colours, unite and help support
the fight against cancer. For the second year in a row Monash Sport held the all
inclusive Footy Colours Day to support the Fight Cancer Foundation.
Staff and students ventured out to Monash Sport in spite of the week 8 overload
to sample some tasty fares from food trucks, listen to the tunes from our DJ, test
their accuracy at hand balling or kicking a footy and check out how high they could
jump in the vertical jump test.
Ever the fan favourite, students also spent some time bouncing off each other, the
walls, and even off the ground in friendly games of bubble soccer. Events were also
held at Caulfield and Peninsula campus.
The Clayton campus event also offered the perfect opportunity to announce the
Winners of our inaugural Footy Tipping Competition. With nearly 1000 people
registered the competition from diverse areas of the University, the final draw came down to six participants equally
tied for first place, the winner of which was ultimately determined by the margin score.
• First place went to Professor Chrishan Samuel from
the Pharmacology faculty and was accepted by
Dr Barbara Kemp-Harper on his behalf as he was
overseas at the time. Professor Chrishan not only
became the winner of the first place prize - a 50 inch
Full HD Smart LCD TV, but also came first in their
faculty’s private competition consisting of around 20
people.
• Second place went to Saul Block - a Bachelor of
Engineering/Bachelor of Commerce student currently
completing his penultimate year. Saul won a one year
Fitness and Aquatics membership at Monash Sport.
• Third prize was won by biochemical Post-Doctoral
researcher Dr Laurent Lermusiaux who got to take
home a Playstation 4 and a couple of games.
• Fourth place went to first year Psychology student Deandra de Krester who was unable to attend and collect
her Fitbit Charge HR as she was in a tutorial during the presentations.
• Fifth place and winner of a Fitbit Flex went to Monash Blues football player Taylor Cameron.
A special mention should be made for Professor Edwina Cornish - Provost and Senior
Vice-President of Monash University, who was the last to hold an equal tie for first
place in points however missed out on a prize by margin.
Well done to all of our nearly 1000 Footy Tipping participants and thanks to all who
got involved in our Footy Colours Day celebrations!
20
Mega $$$ Raised at Mega Swim
The 24 Hour Mega Swim, Stride and Spin was held over the
weekend at Monash Sport’s Doug Ellis Swimming Pool, with
over $9,000 raised for people affected by Multiple Sclerosis.
From 10am on Saturday morning to the following Sunday,
five teams contributed to raising money for Multiple Sclerosis
Australia. There were many tired faces when 10am Sunday
arrived, as many participants elected to sleep at the pool
overnight. However all 52 participants were proud of their
achievements while raising money for an excellent cause.
The money raised will go towards financially helping people
unable to achieve their goals and dreams due to Multiple
Sclerosis, in what MS Australia call Go for Gold scholarships.
Spokesperson for MS Australia Shara Gillahan was thrilled with the efforts shown from all the teams.
“So for the 2015 Monash 24 Hour Mega Swim, Spin and Cycle, you guys have been able to raise over $8,700 and
still counting. That’s an amazing effort and will help so many recipients of Go for Gold scholarships,” she said.
“The MS 24 Hour Mega Swim is to help raise funds to support people with
MS to achieve their dream by granting them Go for Gold scholarships.
Which is a financial scholarship to help them achieve their dreams, whether
it be in education or employment, anything like that. Just to make it a little
bit easier for them to achieve their dreams.”
Shara herself was diagnosed with MS five years ago, and after being
supported by MS Australia she has joined the organisation to give
something back.
“I was diagnosed with MS in 2010, and I was fortunate enough to be a
recipient of a Go for Gold scholarship in 2012. And through that it allowed
me to achieve my dream of traveling over to Ireland and UK and the US to learn millinery from some of the world’s
best milliners,” she said.
The Mega Spin and Mega Stride were two new additions to the Mega
Swim event this year, to give flexibility for those wanting to contribute
out of the pool. The Mega Stride consisted of walking or running on a
treadmill, while the Mega Spin gave participants the task of riding on a
spin bike for 24 hours.
Mega Swim team Team Minky took out the overall winning team award,
raising $3,840 and swimming 87.6km. Sally Fyfield won the award for
highest fundraising for an individual, raising $1,485.
Georgia Abott took out the youth award and Mega Spin team the Knight
Riders won the award for best dressed team.
Monash Sport has held five Mega Swim events over recent years, with over $100,000 raised in total.
21
Monash Games
The Monash Games for 2015 certainly lived up to the
expectations of previous years, and then some. Healthy and
high quality competition was evident, in what was a great
display of numerous sports over three days.
Teams who have previously represented Monash University
at the Australian University Games competed, as well as
teams made up of friendship groups and workplaces.
Basketball team the High Flyers, consisted of players who
wanted to play in the games, but didn’t have a team to
play in. They met via online social media site Facebook and
registered a team, despite knowing they would only meet
each other in person for the first time on day one of Monash
Games. Given the strong competition from the other Monash Uni teams, the High Flyers unfortunately didn’t win
a game, however their average loss margin was only four points, much to the admiration of their competitors and
newly found supporters.
Ronald McDonald House (RMH) Clayton was again (for the ninth year) the chosen charity for this year’s Monash
Games, supporting sick children and their families in tough times. Each team registered in Monash Games was
given an account to raise money for RMH Clayton, with a total of nearly $500 raised.
Over the three day event of tournaments, a total of 17 volunteers helped out in scoring, results recording and
general assistance. Volunteers are always a pivotal element to Monash Games running smoothly, free healthy
lunches over the Games and a Monash Sport scarf were provided to them as a gesture of appreciation for their
time.
Overall 52 teams competed in the Monash Games for 2015, featuring over 400 staff and students. Other highlights
from the Monash Games were the netball shootout, three point shootout and slam dunk competitions. The winners
and runners-up for each competition are listed below.
Student Competitions:
Staff Competitions:
Specialty Competitions:
Basketball Open:
Winners: Monash Blues
Runners Up: Lob City
Basketball Open:
Winners: Peanut Butter Delly Time
Runners Up: eDribblers
Slam Dunk Competition:
Winner: Alex Cameron
Dodgeball:
Winners: Uni Battles Unite
Runners Up: Monash AUG Mixed
Indoor Soccer Open:
Winners: eSolutions-TGI Friday
Runners Up: Golden Oldies
Indoor Soccer Mixed:
Winners: Team Melli
Runners Up: eSolutions Lightwood United
Mixed Netball:
Winners: eSolutions-dotnetters
Runners Up: Psyched
Indoor Soccer Open:
Winners: The Salty Dawgs
Runners Up: Los Desperados
Volleyball Open:
Winners: Persian Gulf
Runners Up: eSolutions and One
Womens Netball
Winners: Monash AUG Womens
Runners Up: Honey Badgers
22
Netball Shootout:
Winner: Kathleen Wisbey
Three-point Shootout:
Winner: Michael Chev
Chancellor’s Cup Golf Day
Held on the 13th of November at the prestigious Sandhurst Golf
Club, the 2015 Chancellor’s Cup Golf Day was one to remember. The
occasionally windy but nonetheless lovely day provided great
conditions for the competition.
The first year team from Yamaha City of David Jones, Erin Geraghty,
Ashley Nugawela and Michael Pettingill set an exceptionally high
standard this year. The team clinched the win on their final hole, after
besting the second placed team and last years winners, Harris HMC,
by one shot.
In it’s 18th year, the popular event attracted 63 golfers from throughout
the Monash University community.
TeamMONASH Programs Coordinator Simon Dart said the golf day
was an outstanding success. The feedback from participants about
the golf day itself as well as the opportunities it provided for networking
was fantastic. The event raised funds for Monash University’s Talented
Student Support Program and it’s affiliated sporting clubs.
Melbourne Marathon
Since it’s inception in 1978 the 42.195km Melbourne Marathon and it’s half, 10km, 5.7km and 3km running and
walking events have drawn numerous participants.
189 runners represented Monash University in either the full marathon, half marathon, 10km, 5.7km or 3km walk
event at this year’s Melbourne Marathon, a substantial increase on the 65 runners from last year, making us the
largest Tertiary Team at the event. 14 Volunteers also attended
the event, providing support to our athletes.
Our participants managed to raise 903,000 for the Cerebral
Palsy Education Centre.
Around the Bay
Currently in it’s 23rd year, Around the Bay- Ride for a Child In
Need is Australia’s largest bike ride, uniting Melbourne cyclists.
The event caters to all levels and styles of riding and offered
participants options from 20km routes up to 250km routes.
The event raised valuable funds for the Smith Family to support primary school children in need with educational
essentials such as school books, bags, uniforms and shoes for a whole year. This year Monash University had 22
athletes participating in the event along with 10 volunteers offering their time to support them.
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Mother’s Day Classic
The Mother’s Day Classic is an annual fun run or walk that helps to both raise funds and awareness for Breast
Cancer. It brings together people from all walks of life and all ages in a festive atmosphere that allows them to do
something fun and active while remembering those that have been affected by Breast Cancer.
The Mother’s Day Classic is organised and established by Women in Super with the knowledge that all research is
gradually improving the survival rates of women diagnosed with Breast Cancer. With one in nine Australian women
affected it’s seen as an important investment in securing the future health of women. Since it’s conception in 1998
the Mother’s Day Classic has raised $24.3 million dollars for breast cancer research.
TeamMONASH are proud to say that we have won the award for the Largest Tertiary Team for the second year in a
row due to the dedication of our staff and students.
Emer Casey Fun Run
The Emer Casey Foundation aims to raise much needed funds for Ovarian Cancer research. In its 8th year, the
Emer Casey Fun Run and its participants braved inclement weather and ran either the 5 or 10 kilometre course. In
the process raising over $30,000 for the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre.
The event was a resounding success with over 75 Monash students, alumni and staff participants joining the 400
strong group. It was great to see the university community rally around such a worthwhile cause. Monash University
has a long history with the Emer Casey fun run, with 2015 marking our 7th year of involvement. Unlike previous
years the run was unable to be held at the Clayton Campus due to major construction work. However it was great
to see that its relocation just down the road at Wheelers Hill did not hinder its success.
Emer Casey was a young Irish woman who died of Ovarian Cancer. Her death had such an impact on her family
and friends that they set up the Emer Casey Foundation, which is dedicated to raising money for research into
Ovarian Cancer. Every year in Australia around 1500 women are diagnosed with Ovarian Cancer and more than 850
women will die from the disease. All funds raised are donated to the Peter Mac Centre.
Funding from the Emer Casey Fun Run has been instrumental in helping the Peter Mac Centre conduct vital pilot
studies that then allow them to apply for additional funding to further their research.
The MC for the morning was Team MONASH’s own, Martin Doulton, who said of the event - “we are pleased to
continue to be so heavily involved in supporting such a worthy cause. We are looking forward to 2016.”
It was great to see so many Monash students, staff and alumni getting involved in such a worthwhile cause.
24
Sporting Highlights
Monash University sent its largest team ever to the
Australian Uni Games last year on the Gold Coast, bringing
home a plethora of bronze, silver and gold medals.
The Southern Uni Games and Varsity Challenge also
showed strong Monash representation across numerous
sports.
Sporting Clubs provide a friendly, safe place to meet, while
also offerring leadership, volunteering opportunities and a
sense of place for their members. They also represent the
University with pride, and every week of semester at least
100 teams take the field or court against community teams.
2015 included a major milestone for the Monash Blues AFL
Club, with the senior team taking the field for their 1000th
senior game. The Monash University Soccer Club also
celebrated the 50th year since their formation.
On a more recreational level, Monash Sport’s lunchtime and
weeknight Social Sport competitions continued to grow in
size, with mixed competitions proving to be most popular.
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Monash Blues 1000th Senior Game
On Saturday 20 June 2015, the Monash Blues senior team took to the field for the 1000th time in the VAFA.
Fittingly, the game was against Old Haileyburians, our opponents in the grand final in our debut season, 1962.
A luncheon was held during the reserves game and was attended by 100 past players (including some from the
inaugural season), supporters and sponsors. While many stories of past glory were told, it is not believed that any of
them involved any level of embellishment (despite some suspicion, no claim of exaggeration could be conclusively
proven on the day).
The major pre-luncheon activity was past players attempting to
locate their name on the banner listing the 3060 players who
have pulled on the Turquoise and Silver Monash jumper since
1962. The generation gap was apparent post game with the
current playing group preferring to take “selfies” in front of the
banner.
Club President Julian Smith’s speech paid tribute to Doug Ellis,
Keith Frearson (and their modern day equivalents) for creating
and maintaining a Club culture that is inclusive of players from a
broad range of backgrounds and abilities.
The Club statistician prepared for the day by preparing a
combined list of B&F votes across the history of the Club. With
three of the top five Monash Players (George Smyth, Andrew McGregor, Andrew Hickey, Jamie Sturgess and Greg
Hipwell) also having won a league medal, VAFA umpires can maintain confidence in their ability to award B&F votes.
Given the tendency of modern players to be more likely to play beyond their years as a student, a list of the average
number of votes per game was developed to enable a comparison of players across the years.
Two time Club B&F winner Sam McGee was the leader with an impressive average of 8.6 votes per game (just
under half the 18 vote maximum able to be awarded to a single player). Peter Robinson was found to be the
supreme player from the 60s, with Ant Quin and Jamie Sturgess being stars of the 80s.
Following the function, the assembly moved to the hill adjacent to the Frearson Oval, to watch the milestone Senior
game.
An even first quarter had some Monash supporters
concerned that Haileybury could be about to spoil
the post game celebrations (and avenge their loss
in the 1962 E-grade grand final).
Thankfully Paul Groves’ quarter time address
inspired the Monash backline (led by Joe Cosgriff
at centre half back) who got on top and provide a
basis for Nick Petering, Damien Hatch and Sam
Le Lievre to claim the glory up forward and see the
Ashes record a strong 91 point win over a fellow
finals contender.
26
50th Anniversary Celebration - Monash University Soccer Club
Andrew Patterson
To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the formation of the Monash University Soccer Club, the 2015 committee
organised a cocktail evening held on the 21st of August 2015 in the Green Room at Clayton campus. Many thanks
to the staff at Monash Sport who helped us with the use of this facility.
Over 70 past players, coaches and partners attended the event with speeches from club founder Emmery
Bihary, and past presidents Tim Smurthwaite and Jess Gibson. Delicious food was prepared by catering wizard
Jill Pettigrew and she was ably assisted on the night by the committee members Rachel Yeo, Ed Tasker, Kenny
Kannalingham, Harry Osmond, Mel Ooi and Ned Rocke.
Club founder Emmery Bihary gave the opening speech, discussing the club’s beginning, intervarsity and the club’s
first strip.
It is quite unbelievable. There were NO sporting facilities, other than an Aussie Rules ground. We put up a notice in
the Union Building requesting anyone interested in soccer to come to a meeting. Doug Ellis assigned a room for our
meeting and told me that if I get 20 people to turn up he would do whatever he could to help us. The room he had
assigned us was rather small and could not accommodate the 60 or more who turned up.
The final speech of the night was given by the first female president of the club Jess Gibson. Here are some
excerpts from her very moving speech.
A few aspects of the club have changed over the last ten years: Club governance has improved, largely thanks to
Rich Huysmans and Mike Pogrebnoy. Most significantly though, the men’s and women’s clubs have united. The
official merger occurred just before I came along, but it took a few years for the two entities to truly integrate into
one club. Two marriages and an engagement are testament to how successful it has been!
Some people may define a club’s success by how many trophies it’s won, how impressive its facilities are or how
much free gear the players are given, but to me all of that is irrelevant unless you have good people to share it with.
Monash is far from playing at the highest level of football and, although results are nice, they’re not enough to get
players coming back year after year. Players, coaches and supporters come to Monash and stay here because
we know how to have fun and we welcome them with open arms. We make them feel like they belong. And that’s
what Monash is for me - somewhere I feel like I belong.
Which brings me to final, and most
important point for the evening. On
behalf of the current generation, those
of us who have been here for one year,
or ten or 20, I want to thank each and
every one of you who came before us.
This club means so much to so many
people. Probably more than you’ll ever
know. And it wouldn’t be what it is
today without all of you. So, from the
very bottom of my heart, thank you.
Photo: Morgan Kirk-Eaton
27
Australian University Games
After 12 months of planning recruiting and organising, the 2015 Australian University Games went down in the
history books as the largest team in our University’s 57 year history. Over 700 student athletes, coaches and
support crew across 37 sports donned their uniforms in pursuit of taking out the title of Australia’s University
Sporting Champion.
Monash University finished 3rd overall in this year’s Australian University Games, with a total medal tally of 5 Gold
Medals, 9 Silver Medals and 7 Bronze Medals! Over half of our teams finished with a medal, and 27 of our 40 teams
made it to the semi-finals of their sport. These amazing results capped off a fantastic week in the Gold Coast.
Monash University are now the reigning 2015 Australian Champions in Men’s Hockey, Men’s Taekwondo, Women’s
Taekwondo, Men’s Tennis and Men’s Squash.
A huge thank you and congratulations must go to our team captains, Amanda Fung and Craig Dent. Amanda and
Craig represented the 764 strong Monash cohort speaking with passion and pride at functions and media events
throughout the week. It was a pleasure to have Amanda and Craig as the face of Monash for the week.
Monash also had 43 athletes
selected to be members of the
Green and Gold team at this years
AUG. The Green and Gold awards
are given to athletes for each sport
who are chosen in the all-star team
for the competition.
A special mention should be given
to our cheerleaders, who competed
at the Australian University
Games as well. The cheerleading
championship is an individual sport
championship and does not count
towards the overall medal tally
for AUG, however Monash was
crowned the overall Cheerleading
Champions and won this pennant.
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Southern University Games
From 5-9 July more than 1800 students athletes across Victoria,
Tasmania and South Australia headed down to Adelaide to compete
in the Southern University Games (SUG). Since it’s inception in 1991
the SUGs have been renowned for providing a friendly but competitive
environment for student athletes from all over Victoria, South Australia
and Tasmania.
Despite the dreary weather, students turned up ready to play and had
some fantastic results in the Southern Uni Games taking home one of
the top three spots in nearly every sport we participated in.
Monash took home first place spots in their men’s hockey team and
men’s cross country. We also took second place wins in men’s Futsal,
men’s Squash, women’s Futsal, Mixed Touch as well as Ultimate
Frisbee and ranked third in Lawn Bowls.
The Southern University Games were a fantastic start to the University
Games calendar for 2015.
Varsity Challenge
For the second year in a row, Monash University
competed against Melbourne University in the
Varsity Challenge. The event offers two days of
head to head sporting competition held across
two weeks at each University.
Participants played off against one another in
Men’s and Women’s Soccer, Hockey, Basketball
and Volleyball as well as Men’s AFL and Mixed
Touch Football.
Monash took home the trophy in 2014, winning
5 matches to 4, while this year they drew against
Melbourne University.
Free transport was offered to the away campuses events for all who wished to spectate and support our athletes.
29
Making Sport Social
Social Sport competitions are held at the Caulfield, Clayton and Peninsula campuses at Monash and feature a wide
variety of opportunities at every level for Monash students and staff to participate in some friendly competitions.
2015 saw incredible growth across all of our competitions thanks to a more efficient approach to use of the court
spaces we have across all campuses. Our nine basketball sized courts (over five stadiums at three campuses) can
all be reconfigured to suit a variety of sports, allowing us to adapt to the demand for any sport at a given time.
We see great variety in our competitions, and we are welcoming and happy to cater for all levels of experience from those students who have never played dodgeball before, or teams that have just met online (via our Facebook
group) to create a team, all the way through to some competitive teams in higher grades, many of these students
also feature in the Varsity Sport competitions also highlighted in this report.
30
31
Built Spaces
Tennis Court resurfacing, Recreation Hall floor replacements
and refurbishing the Doug Ellis Swimming Pool were
only some of the improvements applied to sporting and
recreational facilities on campus in 2015.
Monash is one of the leading Universities in Australia,
therefore it is appropriate to ensure its sporting facilities are
state-of-the-art, and in line with student expectations.
Whether it be a fresh coat of paint or an entire fitness
centre upgrade, improvements are applied to Monash’s
sporting assets with the intention to accommodate
the growing number of students studying and living on
campus.
32
Caulfield Campus Green Opening
After months of construction and limited access, the external
Campus Green and Sound shell project was finalised in August.
Monash Sport will assist in the managing of the informal sports
and recreation areas in the front of building H, which includes
a half-court basketball and half-court soccer area, Shared
Volleyball/Badminton court, 4 Table Tennis tables and 2 foosball
tables.
The space will be ideal for all campus faculties, business units,
student associations and clubs to undertake any outdoor
activities such as team building activities to assist in ensuring a
real inclusive community feel on campus. The new areas also give
an additional space for Monash Sport to undertake more outdoor
training groups and programs, enhancing the pre-existing outdoor exercise area between buildings K and N.
The Caulfield Green and Sound Shell was officially opened by President and
Vice Chancellor Margaret Gardner AO, at Twilight on the Green on the 12th of
October.
Around 1000 students, alumni and staff came together to attend the event
despite the chilly evening, which offered a range of spring festivities as well as
live musical performances.
Participants got to challenge themselves in sporting competitions, enjoy some
tasty treats from an assortment of food and drinks stalls and trucks or get a
new look from face painters all whilst being entertained by musicians
and roving performers.
Live music was provided from Kilter, E^ST, Tara Dowler and
Monash’s own Papa G and the Starcats, as well as tunes from DJ
Mona Gene.
The event was a success, with students and staff excited about the
newly developed space and the potential future events and activities
to be held at Caulfield Campus. Since its opening the space is has
been used informally by around 100 students a day with the most
popular uses being basketball, volleyball and table tennis.
33
Refurbished Doug Ellis Swimming Pool
Throughout 2014 and 2015 the Doug Ellis Swimming Pool at Monash Sport, Clayton was refurbsihed to achieve a
total transformation of its internal, and external features.
Built in 1982 and named after the late doug Ellis, former visionary
Director of Sport and Recreation Association the swimming center
has gone through several transformations including the addition of a
second 25 meter pool and continues to be an important community
asset.
In early 2014 the pool concourse and change room facilities were
refurbished. Later than year the essential refurbishment works
replaced the roof structure, upgraded the air-handling systems and
installed acoustic wall panelling to create a greatly improved aquatic
environment and ensure future use.
Refurbishments of the Variable Swimming Pool began in 2014 but
due to a number of unforeseen factors works were unable to be
completed with the rest of the facility refurbishments.
The pool was closed once more in mid 2015 for a period of two months to allow the variable pool to finish being
retiled, signifying the end of the vital refurbishment works to the Doug Ellis Pool. Timetabling of open access to the
pool was adjusted during this period to lessen the impact on lack of accessibility for members. During this period
Monash Sport also took the opportunity to refurbish the sauna and steam rooms.
The final refurbishments to the pool implemented changes to:
• Replacement of the variable floor panels, which had been
significantly reducing buoyancy, and providing a fully operational
variable pool floor to allow for varying depths for a variety of
programming
• Upgrades and modernisation of the control panel and digital
depth signage
• Refurbishment and resealing of the steam room
• Replacement of the wood panelling seating and improved
lighting in the sauna
Operating one of the largest learn to swim programs in Victoria, the
Monash Sport taught over 1,500 Monash students to swim in 2015,
as well as imparting essential water safety knowledge and skills.
34
Enhancing Our Fitness Centres
Throughout 2015, our Fitness Centres underwent significant changes. Members got to start the year with new and
improved training environments and services.
At our Clayton Facility, the Cycle Studio was relocated from the Health and Fitness Centre to its own designated
training space. The free space created by this relocation, has been used to enhance and improve the existing
dedicated functional training space, providing state of teh art equipment and effective performance and movement
based training options for members.
The expanded functional training area now includes a sled track and push sled, lifting platform, additional weights,
battling ropes, aqua bags, Olympic rings, skipping ropes and more.
Additionally the upstairs area was improved with the relocation of equipment and reconfiguration of the layout for an
optimal training environment for all members.
All Monash Sport facilities were closed for a short time over the Christmas and New Years break. During this period
there were a number of renovations completed to enhance member experience.
Listed below are some additional improvements completed at your Monash Sport facilities:
Caulfield
• New resistance bands, foam rollers, slam balls, aqua bag, plyometric
box and additional weight kettlebells.
Clayton
• Installation of additional TV above TRX units, to display latest
Monash Sport news.
• Window frosting has been installed on the bottom row windows in
the upstairs training area, to block out sun glare.
• Foam rollers have a new storage area which is more central to the
functional training area.
• The Matrix Cell has been extended to enhance functional training
options. With additional rings, more space for chin ups (hanging leg
raises, muscle ups etc) and the introduction of ball targets.
• Replacement of rubber flooring for the second level of Fitness
Centre.
• Upgrade of all TV Units and adding a new speaker to the functional
training area in the Fitness Centre.
Peninsula
• Resealed basketball courts and group fitness studio floors.
• Dual adjustable pulley to be replaced with the new model, and a
platform to be installed into the power rack.
• New foam rollers, speed ropes, bumper plates, barbell lock jaw
collars, parallettes, trap bar, Bulgarian bag and new kettlebell set.
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Improvements to Chisholm Hall
Installation of tiered seating in Chisholm Hall was completed a week ahead of
schedule in early 2015.
Spectators and hall users are now be able to watch the halls activities in comfort.
One big issue that had always been present in the hall was a lack of spectator
viewing. The new space will also create another meeting place where students can
engage one another whilst on campus.
In the beginning of February, plans were implemented and monies made available for the dismantling of the stage
area in Chisholm hall. A tiered seating area replaced the stage, allowing viewing of all of our sports and user
activities to be much more accessible, not to mention more enjoyable and safer.
Recreation Hall Floor Refurbishments
At the completion of the Semester One examination period, the Recreation Hall was closed to allow replacement
of the floor. As the oldest building at Monash Sport, the floor was in dire need of replacements having undergone a
number of patch up jobs in recent years before finally reaching its end of life.
The project took approximately a month to complete and was ready in time to usher in the new Semester of
Social Sporting Competitions. The high quality new floor gives the Recreation Hall a new lease on life with the floor
guaranteed for a 15 year lifespan.
Tennis Court Refurbishments
During the latter part of 2015, the eight tennis courts
at Clayton campus were closed so that essential
maintenance works to replace the court surface could
be undertaken.
The project aimed to address ongoing maintenance
defects associated with depressions and cracking in
the tennis court surface. And to resurface the court
pavement with a new Plexipave system including
repainting of the courts and court lines.
Monash Sport is committed to providing a safe
environment for all leisure and aquatic centre users and this essential maintenance formed part of this commitment.
36
The People On Our Team
A large proportion of staff are studying at Monash while
working at Monash Sport and TeamMONASH, giving staff a
constant insight into the mind frame of a student.
Maintaing positive and enjoyable culture around Monash
is held in the highest regard, in conjunction with delivering
quality customer service to all Monash Sport members.This
is reflected in initiatives such as the Game Changer award,
where staff are recognised by their peers for outstanding
service and going above and beyond, to assist our
community.
The wider Monash University staff cohort are also
constantly in contact with Monash Sport, with over 150
SWAP classes conducted in 2015. These classes are held
in conjunction with Wellbeing at Monash to ensure all staff
have the opportunity to keep a healthy and active lifestyle.
TeamMONASH is responsible for the University’s second
overall ranking in the Group of Eight, in terms of supporting
Australia’s next top level athletes with the Elite Student
Performer Scheme.
37
Innovative Uses Of Our Spaces
During 2015, Monash Sport facilities also hosted major University events such as Examinations, Graduation
activities and the Chancellor’s Distinguished Alumni Awards ceremonies. The exams and graduations saw students
(and their families) in the thousands visit our spaces, which were meticulously dressed up and customised for the
events. The Distinguished Alumni Awards ceremony was a particular highlight for those involved. Monash University
President and Vice-Chancellor Professor Margaret Gardner AO commended the award winners on their exceptional
achievements.
“This year’s Distinguished Alumni highlight the depth and breadth of our alumni community,” Professor Gardner said.
“Our award recipients have made an exceptional contribution to their field. Their significant achievements,
community leadership and career success provides inspiration to students and their peers and encourages others
to strive for excellence.”
Ii was great to see just how versatile our spaces can be when great event managers and strategic planning is put in
place. We look forward to hosting events like this, plus many others in 2016.
38
Our Human Capital
We regard our people as the most important aspect of our capability to deliver experiences to Monash students and
staff. Our philosophy is that engaged staff provide excellent service. In 2015 Monash Sport and TeamMONASH
employed approximately 35 permanent staff and 265 casual staff, primarily across the Caulfield, Clayton and
Peninsula campuses, however our staff also facilitated participation programs and activities at Berwick and Parkville
campuses, as well as Monash Medical Centre and the Alfred Hospital.
A total of 125 students were employed by Monash Sport in many and varied roles such as customer service,
lifeguarding, swimming instruction, fitness instruction, refereeing/umpiring and delivering events and activities.
Local training and development programs were successfully implemented at each campus and in each service
area focussing on customer service and specialised role deliverables of each service area. Staff communication
opportunities are many and varied and positively attended.
In aspiring to be “the centre of healthy lifestyles” on Monash campuses, our staff mantra is all about consistently
delivering effective service to students and staff to help more of the Monash community be more active, more often.
Monash Sport staff have been recognised for their responsiveness and service through annual survey results
(n=1,324) which found that 93.38% of people responded positively when asked the question “How satisfied are you
with Monash Sport staff customer service?”
A total of 1,025 volunteers helped behind the scenes to deliver successful events and programs throught 2015.
This consisted of 652 people volunteering for sport clubs, 123 people assisting with Varsity Sport programs, and
250 volunteers at events.
In recognising Monash has a number of elite performers across many platforms, the University expanded its Elite
Student Performer Scheme to include performing artists and musicians in 2015. This program is the reason behind
Monash’s top two ranking in the Group of Eight Universities supporting elite athletes, which has attracted an influx
of students in 2015. 193 current students have been recognised under the Elite Student Performer Scheme,
including 11 who are vying for spots in the Rio Olympics teams and four dancers competing at the world level.
In its third year, the Elite Student Performer Scheme, under the tutelage of Honourary Profressor Paul McNamee
asisted 12 student athletes in Golf, Tennis and Soccer towards achieving their dream of playing professional
sport while combining tertiary study. The success of this program has been phenomenal, with one golfer turning
professional, four tennis players playing on the Australian PTA/LTA circuit and two soccer players securing
W-League contracts, all while completing their studies at Monash University.
39
Monash Sport Culture
In late 2014, Monash Sport engaged Leading Teams to review and facilitate the development of a new set of
cultural values and behaviours with the objectives of clearly defining ‘what we stand for’ and ‘how we do things
around here’. This resulted in a staff workshop which included over 40 Monash Sport staff from across the
Caulfield, Clayton and Peninsula campuses and from within all areas and levels of the Monash Sport organisational
structure.
Rather than being ‘pushed down’ from Monash Sport leadership,
the cultural values and endorsed behaviours were developed and
validated by the Monash Sport staff who attended the workshop
in an inclusive and ‘bottom up approach’. All Monash Sport
staff, including senior leadership and all casual staff teams, have
subsequently adopted the workplace values and the endorsed
behaviours that underpin these values and bring them to life.
The Monash Sport cultural values and behaviours are
summarised in the poster (right), found in all Monash Sport staff
room areas.
Following the establishment of these cultural drivers several nonhierarchal project teams were formed, consisting of permanent
and casual Monash Staff employees. These project teams were
charged with bringing the cultural values and behaviours to life
and featured specific objectives to:
• Improve Monash Sport staff induction procedures and
processes
• Refine and enhance the Monash Sport staff intranet
• Enhance staff engagement activities
• Develop a new Monash Sport staff recognition process
These initiatives became a key focus and led to several notable
deliverables being executed to improve communication and
engagement with all Monash Sport staff.
Below is an example of the Monash Sport intranet communication strategy.
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Staff Recognition at Monash Sport
The new Monash Sport recognition framework was prioritised and titled the “Game
Changer” program. It was developed by the project team and approved by the Sport
Executive team, prior to being launched in September/October 2014. The program
features an on-line peer nomination process which is driven by Monash Sport staff at
all levels. A monthly evaluation and award panel, evolved from the project team, meets
to determine the monthly game changer award winner against specific criteria, which
reinforce the cultural behaviours established.
The 2015 monthly game changer award winners were:
Naz Karezi
•
January
Kris McCarthy
•
February
Maria Barres
•
March
Sarah Smith
•
April
Leslie Feigen
•
May
Alicia Stack
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June
Caroline Lawrence
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July
Erin Wicks
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August
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September Andrew Turton
Phoebe Robinson
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October
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November Patrizio Briganti
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December Clarissa Au
The annual Game Changer award for 2015 winner was Maria Barres who displayed great
team ethic, initiative, effective communication with staff and customers; and generated
increased participation at the Doug Ellis Swimming Pool.
The Game Changer award project was developed to be aligned with the annual Vice
Chancellors Awards for Exceptional Staff Performance and in August 2015 the Clayton
Fitness Centre team of Adam Howes, Shane Adams, Caroline Lawrence, Bill Gorgen, Phoebe Robinson were
nominated for the category of “improvement in service provision and/or contributing to seamless University
operations”, recognising the service improvements and the operational transformation of the fitness centre at
Clayton campus. The staff received a Special Commendation.
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Helping Students Learn to Swim
At the beginning of 2015 the Water Wise program was launched as a fully funded learn to swim program available
to all current Monash University students.
The initiative was designed to increase the water safety and swimming ability of Monash students. Last year alone
266 people drowned within Australia. The age group most at risk was 25-34 year olds. Monash recognised that
whilst many domestic students may have been brought up learning how to swim, some may have come from
remote areas or overseas without access to swimming facilities or programs.
The water wise program was designed to teach any current student who would like to participate, how to swim at a
beginner level. We believe that by increasing the number of students who know how to swim, we can help reduce
the incidence of drowning.
Funded by the Student Services and Amenities Fee, since it’s launch date in January more than 1,500 students
have participated in this valuable program, with numbers expected to significantly grow in 2016.
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Staff Wellbeing at Monash
Monash Sport, in partnership with Wellbeing at Monash facilitiate the Staff Wellbeing and Activity Program. Since
it’s inception in 2011, the program (affectionately known as SWAP) has seen almost exponential growth and is now
Monash Sports most popular program for staff.
SWAP provides opportunities for staff groups to get active in a group activity, including yoga, pilates, boxing, and
much more. Programs can be held locally within departments or at Monash Sport. Our aim is to help you improve
staff wellbeing, productivity and morale through low-cost programs targeted at all ages and fitness levels. SWAP
mindfulness and essence programs along with nutrition, diabetes and health and information sessions can also be
arranged on request. These programs are conducted at many Monash staff locations including:
• Caulfield and Clayton campus
• The Alfred Centre
• HR (Wellington Road)
• The BASE site at Notting Hill
• Monash Medical Centre
• Box Hill Public Hospital
• Nanofabrication Centre (Australian Synchrotron)
In 2015, we hosted just over 150 SWAP classes, each consisting of a ten week program, tailored to (on average)
ten staff members at Monash. This equates to seeing 15,000 visits from Monash staff to health and wellbeing
programs for the year.
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Let’s Chat About Australian Sport & Culture
Monash Sport was privileged to help run Australian Sport sessions for the
Conversational English Program’s “Let’s Chat” on the Clayton and Caulfield
campuses.
Around 60 participants spent 45 minutes learning AFL and cricket activities,
with instructors teaching them rules, techniques and method of play traditional
Australian Sports. For the majority of these students it was their first time trying
these sports. All students got involved and thoroughly enjoyed themselves with
many excited that they could now share what they knew with their friends.
The night concluded with participants getting to enjoy an Australian BBQ catered by Sir John’s Bar. Most students had never experienced an Australian
BBQ and there was some confusion over what certain foods were (and whether
lamingtons were meant to top a salad).
Fantastic feedback was received from students including the following
comments:
• Two Iranian PhD engineering students said Let’s Chat was the only hour each
week when they spoke English and met people
• A Cantonese commerce student said that in the first year of being at Monash
she learnt to speak Mandarin but hardly used her English but after having
joined Let’s Chat finally feels she has made a step forward with her English
• A female undergraduate student mentioned that she now feels confident that
she can actually talk to her Australian classmates and choose the right words for most occasions.
• A postgraduate Business student confessed that he’d been attending Let’s Chat classes at both Clayton and
Caulfield every week (despite it being against the rules) as he found the classes so invaluable.
• A second year science student from Malaysia said that she had previously paid for private English lessons and
also attended an external course but found the Let’s Chat program more valuable and that she learnt more.
Overall, the program received a lot of positive responses, all students were excited to come back in the second
semester and to bring friends with them. Monash Sport is thrilled to have been a part of such a useful program.
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World University Games
From 3-14 July students from across Australia have been competing in the World University Games in Gwanju,
Korea.
The World University Games is the second biggest multi-sporting event behind the Olympic Games and it is a
massive achievement to be selected to compete. Three Monash students were selected to represent Australia, and
one to represent New Zealand at the World University Games.
Nneka Okpala competed in the Women’s Triple Jump and came 8th overall after
qualifying 6th for the final.
Aimee Clydesdale was in the Women’s Basketball team that came
5th. The team only lost one of their six games throughout the entire
tournament to Japan in the Quarter Finals.
Christopher Perrot was in the Men’s Water Polo team who ranked
7th in the World University Games.
Ann-Louise Slee represented Australia in the Badminton team and
competed in mixed doubles, women’s doubles and the individual
Australian teams. The Australian team ranked 21st, while her
partnership of Slee/Tam in the Women’s doubles came 27th and her
partnership of Slee/Vuong in the mixed doubles came 24th.
An additional mention has to be made for Edward Denis - the coach of the Australian
Women’s Water Polo team that won one of the four Gold Medals Australia received in
the tournament. Edward is a Monash graduate and inductee in Monash University’s
Sport Hall of Fame.
We’re incredibly proud of all of our student athletes achievements from World University
Games and are excited to see their progression!
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Disclaimer: While the information in this brochure was correct at the time of publishing,
Monash University reserves the right to alter procedures, fees and regulations should the
need arise.