Central Queensland University has announced new leaders for its campuses in Bundaberg, Mackay and Gladstone.

Two of the new Heads of Campus are coming from similar positions overseas, while the other is already a Head of Campus within the CQU network.

Vice-Chancellor Professor John Rickard said he was glad the University had taken the time and effort to find people with perfect track records to fill these campus leadership positions.

He also thanked Dr Helen Huntly (Bundaberg) and Dr Andrew Wallace (Gladstone) for filling the Acting Head roles during the selection process.

Professor Phillip Clift, who has been Head of Campus at CQU Mackay for 6 years, will take up the CQU Bundaberg position. The CQU Mackay vacancy will be filled by a United Arab Emirates (UAE) College Dean, Dr Trevor Davison. Meanwhile, Dr Jozua Viljoen, currently a Campus Director in South Africa, will take up the CQU Gladstone position.

Professor Clift said his extensive community engagement experience and knowledge of the CQU system would help him with the new Bundaberg role. The former agricultural economist went on to lecture in economics and quantitative methods at several universities before becoming Dean/Principal at Edith Cowan University's Bunbury Campus in the 1990s. In his CQU Mackay role, he provided leadership for a wide range of regional economic and education initiatives, including the Mackay Whitsunday Regional Economic Development Corporation and the Mackay International Education and Training Consortium. Professor Clift also Chaired the Australian Institute of Management Regional Council and was convenor for the fledgling Australian Regional Campuses Group.

Dr Davison started his working life as a heavy equipment mechanic and aircraft technician in the United Kingdom before heading to Ohio State University to further his academic career, focusing on the Philosophy of Education. He first joined CQU in the mid-1990s to help implement a degree in Professional, Adult and Vocational Education. The CQU position and a subsequent period as an education consultant led to curriculum projects in Malaysia, PNG and Indonesia. Dr Davison moved into the educational management field in the UAE in 1998 and is currently Dean of Instruction for the Fujairah Colleges system, with responsibilities including learning environments, quality assurance and strategic planning.

Dr Viljoen was an instructor, personnel officer and adjutant with the South African Defence Force in the 1980s, before moving into an academic career in Economic and Management Sciences, specialising in Industrial Psychology. For the past 3 years, he has been Campus Director for the 2500 students at the Witbank Campus of the Tshwane University of Technology. As well as his affiliations in South Africa, Dr Viljoen is registered with the Psychologists Board of Queensland and the Australian Psychological Society.