VC's staff update - Announcement regarding ANU realignment: Renew ANU
Dear colleagues,
Thank you to those who were able to join me and the senior leadership on Zoom this morning. For those that were unable to attend, a recording is available here.
As Australia’s national university, our purpose is to serve the nation through transformational research and education. For us to continue to fulfil this mission, we must ensure our foundations are strong, and our structure and resourcing are in line with our priorities, expertise, financial reality, and prevailing policy environment.
Reform is necessary – we must be operationally sustainable in order to continue to deliver on our national mission
Like many universities globally, ANU is facing a substantial financial challenge. This is not a new challenge. During the pandemic, we made a series of choices to prioritise the security and wellbeing of our community. However, since 2019, our expenses have steadily climbed, and our revenue has not kept pace. This means we have been operating at a deficit for a number of years. Current economic and policy circumstances mean that the growth strategy previously agreed by the ANU Council is no longer viable, and our current trajectory is not sustainable without structural intervention.
Throughout 2024, we have been working to tackle our financial situation, including implementing a number of operational controls and efficiencies in our corporate and procurement arrangements, together with changes to how we deliver professional services in Finance, HR and IT. Simultaneously, the Expenditure Taskforce, led by our Chief Operating Officer, has been considering options for non-salary cost savings across the University.
The ANU Council has now directed us to make the changes necessary to ensure the long-term sustainability and financial viability of ANU as a high quality, world-leading institution. This includes reducing our recuring operating costs by $250 million over the next 15 months. This will be achieved through reductions in salary and non-salary costs. This decision has not been taken lightly. All attempts are being made to minimise the number of redundancies; however some job losses will be unavoidable.
Renew ANU: our structure should match our priorities and expertise
Our Academic College structure is relatively young and still evolving. Through a targeted reorganisation, we will continue to ensure that our expertise and resources enable us to deliver on our national mission. This means maximising efficiency and impact, whilst ensuring our graduates are well-prepared to meet the challenges of a fast-evolving global environment.
Under the proposed changes, we would move to a six College structure from 1 January 2025. All 42 existing schools, centres, and institutes within our current Academic College structure would be retained, but some would move to new College homes. Our proposed changes include:
Reducing the number of Academic Colleges from seven (7) to six (6) by dis-establishing the ANU College of Health and Medicine.
We are continuing to invest in medical research and the enduring legacy built over seven decades at ANU by moving the existing Schools and Centre to new Academic college homes (see below);
Realigning five (5) Schools, two (2) Centres and one (1) Institute (see below); and
Renaming three (3) of the current ANU Colleges, bringing together key schools with complementary expertise, creating new centres of gravity and purpose, to deliver an ambitious education and research agenda serving our national mission.
The ANU College of Law would be renamed the ANU College of Law, Governance, and Policy. It would include the Crawford School of Public Policy, the School of Regulation and Global Governance, and the National Centre for Epidemiology and Population Health.
The ANU College of Science would be renamed the ANU College of Science and Medicine. It would include the John Curtin School of Medical Research, and the School of Medicine and Psychology.
The ANU College of Engineering, Computing and Cybernetics would be renamed the ANU College of Systems and Society. It would include the Fenner School of Environment and Society, the Mathematical Sciences Institute, and the Centre for Public Awareness of Science.
The ANU College of Asia and the Pacific would remain focused on its founding mandate to advance our understanding of the Asia-Pacific region.
There are no proposed changes to the ANU College of Business and Economics, or the ANU College of Arts and Social Sciences. These Colleges would remain as established Colleges with their existing Schools.
Further information about the proposed new structure and consultation process is available at the Renew ANU microsite.
The 2024 class schedule for teaching will be unaffected by these changes.
This is the start of a 15-month reset to get us on a sustainable footing by 2026
This is not a one-off correction like we went through under the ANU Covid Recovery Plan in 2020. We will be a smaller university, but remain distinctive, excellent, and with a strong sense of community. We will do less but we will do it better. All staff are encouraged to engage with this process. There will be Townhalls with each of the existing Colleges and Portfolios on the proposed changes between 3 October and 23 October. Information about each Townhall, the 2024 Change Plans, and the broader consultation process, will be uploaded to the Renew ANU microsite – so please check back regularly.
We understand that change can bring uncertainty, and we are committed to ensuring regular updates through the Renew ANU microsite and our weekly OnCampus newsletter. Your university leaders will also be able to speak about the proposed changes and I encourage you to reach out to them.
Support is available for all staff
A range of support services are available, including:
Counselling and mental health services.
Resources to help with adjusting to new roles or opportunities.
Career transition support, including assistance with redeployment within the University for affected staff
I would like to extend my heartfelt thanks to you all for your continued dedication and understanding during this challenging period. Your commitment to the University’s mission remains invaluable as we work together to build a stronger, more resilient ANU.
The rest of 2024 and 2025 will continue to be a period of transformation for ANU as we adapt to the modern expectations of universities in Australia.
It is both a responsibility and privilege to undertake this work on behalf of the University community, the nation and neighbouring region. We understand the gravity of this moment, but with your support, we are confident that ANU will continue to deliver the world-class education and research that defines us, while adapting to meet the needs of the future.
Thank you for your contributions and commitment to ANU.
Genevieve
Vice-Chancellor and President
