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Professor Carol-Anne Upton taught drama and stage performance in higher education for more than three decades, and subsequently held leadership positions in UK schools, colleges and universities, and she remains passionate about academia. She said: “Universities are about people and ideas, and it is a great privilege to enable people to learn and be transformed by exposure to ideas.”
In June this year, Professor Upton took on a new challenge. Vice-Chancellor, James Cook University (JCU), Singapore.
Founded in 2003, James Cook University Singapore James Cook University Australia Ranked among the top 2% of universities worldwideJames Cook University is ranked among the best universities in Australia according to the Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2024 and the Shanghai Ranking of World Universities Academic Ranking 2023. In 2016, James Cook University became the only Australian institution in Singapore to be awarded university status under the Australia-Singapore Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.
Professor Upton, whose career has increasingly focused on international education, describes James Colorado University Singapore as a vibrant campus that excels in education, research, innovation and engagement with the public, business and community sectors.
“JCU-Singapore has been in Singapore for over 20 years and is a well-established institution with a truly international community,” she shared. “It’s full of creative minds!”
Shaping student development in the 21st century
Professor Upton noted that in an era of rapid technological, social and environmental change, educators are challenged to prepare students for a future that has yet to unfold. She believes that a problem-based, collaborative approach to education is essential to developing learners who can address pressing global challenges such as climate change, health and inequality, social and economic sustainability, and geopolitical conflict.
“Collaboration must occur at all levels — international, multicultural and interdisciplinary. No one discipline or group can solve the major problems facing us all,” she said, adding that educators must work closely with students to understand their needs and desires while maintaining a dialogue with employers to keep pace with the changing workforce landscape.
At James Cook University-Singapore, for example, researchers from a diverse range of international backgrounds are working with the aquaculture industry to improve the safety and sustainability of warm-water species. This work is in line with the university’s mission to create a better future for life in the tropics and beyond through impactful education and research.
“Universities are part of the rapid changes affecting society around the world,” said Professor Upton. “We must adapt to ensure we continue to serve individuals and society by producing graduates who are highly skilled, creative, curious, empathetic, confident, resilient and adaptable – the essential qualities that will enable them to succeed in the future.”
Providing skills for a changing future
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