Director of Kulbardi Aboriginal Centre
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Professor Rhonda MarriottRN, RM, PhD Murd., MSc Nsg Curtin, Member CATSIN Room: Amen 2.051 |
Biography
Director, Kulbardi Aboriginal Centre at Murdoch University, Rhonda has held a number of senior positions within Murdoch University. She was the Inaugural Head of the School of Nursing and Midwifery and the first Indigenous Head of a University School of Nursing in Australia.
Rhonda is a professionally and academically qualified senior university leader with research expertise in clinical education and Aboriginal health and extensive experience in undergraduate and postgraduate curriculum and program development. Rhonda is a Director of the Board at the Telethon Institute for Child Health Research (TICHR) and Chair of the Aboriginal Collaboration Council for Applied Research and Evaluation at TICHR.
As an Indigenous Australian, Rhonda is also proud to be a member of the Congress of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Nurses and to have been awarded Indigenous Nurse/Midwife of the Year at the 2008 Western Australian Nursing & Midwifery Excellence Awards. Rhonda is also Patron of a named award sponsored by the Nursing and Midwifery Office recognising achievement and contribution in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander nursing and midwifery. The award is presented during NAIDOC week.
In the last seven years, Rhonda has been an investigator on number of successful applications and funded projects that have secured a total of $1,328,000 funding. Two key projects, for which she was the chief investigator, reached completion in 2009 and have particular significance for Aboriginal research. One, a Cross Sectoral Pathways Lighthouse Project was funded by DEST (Now DEEWR) for $199,000 and developed “Successful Pathways into Careers in Nursing for Indigenous Students in the South West of Western Australia”. The second, a SHRAC grant, was funded by HDWA for $189,000 and examined “Wound care in Indigenous communities in WA: A partnership with Indigenous communities to develop culturally inclusive approaches to prevention and management of complex wounds”.
There are urgent education and health priorities facing Aboriginal people. As an Aboriginal Australian in a senior university position, Rhonda is able to respond to issues of health inequalities between Aboriginal and non- Aboriginal populations and facilitate career pathways for Aboriginal early career academics and researchers. As one of nine Chief Investigators on a 5 year CRE grant, led by Professor Fiona Stanley Rhonda is working with other talented Aboriginal researchers. The team of senior scientists supervising the research includes internationally renowned researchers from the disciplines of child health, psychology and health economics. The key focus for Rhonda’s contribution is on promoting positive perinatal mental health, parenting, cultural and spiritual wellbeing, and resilience in young Aboriginal parents residing in two locations in Western Australia.
While Rhonda’s scholarly activities have included developing innovative community based collaborations designed to foster an active participation of community partners in the University, her prime focus continues to be on building the capacity of Aboriginal people who are largely underrepresented in higher education as students, academic staff or researchers.
