Council for the Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences

18 April 2007

CHASS today (Wednesday) welcomed the announcement of the Assessment Panel Chairs for the Research Quality Framework (RQF).

Professor Stuart Cunningham, President of CHASS (the Council for the Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences), applauded the appointment of Panel Chairs enjoying such a high profile in the research community.

"Our Members are most interested in the panels dealing exclusively or primarily with the humanities, arts and social sciences," he said. "These are the panels numbers nine to thirteen.

"In selecting Graeme Hugo, Ian Palmer, Hilary Charlesworth, Iain McCalman and Sue Rowley to chair these Panels, Minister Julie Bishop has reached straight for the top drawer."

He said the CHASS community broadly supported important principles underlying the RQF, even if there was a certain degree of skepticism about the practicalities.

"We want to make a constructive contribution to the RQF," Professor Cunningham said. "If this process can be made to work, it will be good for Australia and good for our sector.

"The appointment of dynamic and widely-respected Chairs is a promising start to the next phrase."

Professor Cunningham offered 'robust encouragement' to people in the sector to apply for positions on the panels.

Further details are on the DEST web site:

Nominations close on May 14.

For more information, please contact:

Toss Gascoigne

Executive Director

Council of the Humanties, Arts and Social Sciences

Phone: +61 2 6249 1995

director@chass.org.au