Swinburne alumni make the 2021 Australia Day honours list

Performing arts, public service, education, medical health research and construction are just some of the areas where our Swinburne community have made an impact worthy of the 2021 Australia Day honours list.

Meet our award recipients.

Mr Lino Bresciani OAM

Swinburne alum Mr Lino Bresciani OAM was awarded a Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) for service to the performing arts, and to young singers and musicians.

Lino graduated from Swinburne in 1988 with a Graduate Diploma of Business Administration, shortly before he became a founding member, company secretary and treasurer of the Youth Music Foundation of Australia in 1992. His philanthropy has supported music awards, competitions and local chapters for many years. He is also a supporter of the Melba Opera Trust as a donor and twice as an event host.

Ms Anita Hawtin PSM

Ms Anita Hawtin PSM was awarded a Public Service Medal (PSM) for outstanding public service to the New South Wales Public Service Commission.

Anita is the Manager, Talent Acquisition at the NSW Public Service Commission. Her work on the redesign and expansion of the NSW government’s award-winning graduate program and the Public Service Commission’s talent pool program has been key to the NSW government becoming an employer of choice. In 2018 she accepted the Disability Confident Recruiter certificate for the NSW Public Service Commission. She graduated from Swinburne in 2014 with a Diploma of Human Resources Management. 

Mr Philip Holmes-Smith OAM

Former Swinburne staff member Mr Philip Holmes-Smith OAM was awarded a Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) for service to education, particularly to research and evaluation.

Philip is founder and director of the School Research Evaluation and Measurement Services, which supports schools through its Student Performance Analyser software allowing schools to manage and analyse their students’ performance data. He began his career as a biology, science and mathematics teacher in Victorian schools in the 1970s and 1980s. He went on to work for the Victorian Department of Education in research, evaluation and policy in the 1980s and 1990s. Philip is a facilitator of the NAPLAN Professional Development Program and he played a key role in establishing how schools are categorised by NAPLAN when it was created.

Dr Brenda Shanahan AO

Dr Brenda Shanahan AO was awarded an Officer of the Order of Australia (AO) for distinguished service to medical health research, to the business and finance sectors, to corporate governance and to philanthropy.

Brenda has enjoyed a long and distinguished career in business and finance, for which she was awarded a Swinburne Honorary Doctorate in 2017. Brenda was the first female member of the Australian Stock Exchange (ASX) and has held many director roles for ASX-listed companies. She was also a founding member of the Swinburne Industry Advisory Board, which provides strategic advice to the university in relation to industry engagement, technology, research, training and similar matters. She is chair of the Aikenhead Centre for Medical Discovery and has made significant contributions in philanthropy and governance in the not-for-profit sector, including as former chair of St Vincent’s Health Melbourne and St Vincent’s Institute of Medical Research. Brenda is also a director of Kimberley Foundation Australia, which researches and preserves ancient and significant Aboriginal rock art in the Kimberley region of Western Australia.

Dr Ron Webber AM

Swinburne alum Dr Ron Webber AM was awarded a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) for significant service to the building and construction sector.

Ron has served the Australian Institute of Building as chapter president, national councillor and senior national vice-president. He is currently chair of the Building’s Courses Assessment Committee, which develops and manages the course and accreditation requirements and systems for building management-related disciplines. He is an Australian Institute of Building Surveyors fellow and is currently Program Manager – Building at the Department of Justice and Community Safety. Ron graduated from Swinburne in 2008 with a Graduate Certificate of Business Management (Project Management).