Professor Hilary Winchester is Pro Vice Chancellor and Vice President: Participation and Engagement at the University of South Australia. Her responsibilities as a member of the Senior Management Group include regional, industry and community engagement; developing and implementing a Participation Strategy for the University; managing two DEEWR funded projects, the University Aspirations Project ($3.9M) and Students in Free Enterprise ($1.9M); as well as line management of major service units: the Centre for Regional Engagement (CRE) and the Centre for Participation and Community Engagement (PACE), which includes the University’s Northern Adelaide Partnerships (UNAP). A human geographer, Professor Winchester completed a B.A. (Hons) and D. Phil. at Oxford University. Her geographical research has focused on key social issues such as urban disadvantage, population change and the construction of place identity.

Her background in social and cultural geography has translated into playing a leading role in university engagement in northern Adelaide and regional South Australia.

Hilary is an academic auditor for the Australian Universities Quality Agency (AUQA) and has chaired and participated in quality audits in Australia and overseas. She has been appointed as an Honorary Auditor for the Quality Assurance Council of Hong Kong and for the Quality Assurance Authority of the Kingdom of Bahrain and has chaired institutional audits in both countries. In 2009, Hilary conducted a http://www.auqa.edu.au/files/otherpublications/executive_summary_of_nsai_audit_reports_v03.pdf thematic review
of the AUQA audits of Non-Self Accrediting Institutions (NSAIs), and in 2010 is drafting Academic Governance Guidelines for NSAIs. Hilary has been a regular presenter at the Australian Universities Quality Forum and has been awarded both Best Presentation and http://www.unisa.edu.au/cha/mgmt and gov/winchester_presentation/Winchester%20AUQF%202007.pdf Best Paper . From 2004 to 2006, Hilary was Co-Convenor of the National Colloquium of Senior University Women (now Universities Australia Executive Women) for whom she led a research project published in 2005 as ‘The Great Barrier Myth: an investigation of promotions policy and practice in Australian universities’. She also led the development of Universities Australia Second Action Plan for Women Employed in Australian Universities 2006 – 2010. Professor Winchester is keen to promote an effective work-life balance for staff and to increase the number of women who hold leadership positions. This interest and positions she has held within the Australian Technology Network (ATN) Women's Executive Development group (WEXDEV) have led Professor Winchester to take on research, projects and seminars specifically related to women in universities. Responsibility for development of the University's premier community engagement unit dedicated to northern Adelaide, UNAP (now incorporated into PACE) and the CRE, led to Professor Winchester's involvement and continuing interest in engagement theory and organisational practice and joint presentation of papers at the Australian Universities Community Engagement Alliance 2005 Conference: http://www.unisa.edu.au/cha/mgmt and gov/winchester_presentation/Elliott,%20Winchester%20AUCEA%202005.doc The University of South Australia’s community engagement in a low socio-economic area to create significant and lasting change