What Was Taken for Granted: A Record of Professional Contribution

“Facts do not cease to exist because they are ignored.” Aldous Huxley. 

The acceptance and reliance on an untested assertion, in the face of readily available contrary evidence, constitutes a failure to exercise statutory functions according to law and may amount to jurisdictional error.

For many years, I contributed to my university community with professionalism, initiative, and a deep commitment to supporting others.

I worked across teams, faculties, and disciplines — often in ways that were not formally recognised, but were consistently relied upon.

What follows is a record of contribution.

What was later said about me — and accepted without scrutiny — cannot be understood without first understanding what I actually did.

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Representing the Institution — Locally, Nationally, and Internationally

I contributed to the university’s external profile through active engagement in the sector.

This included:

• Delivering a joint workshop and presentation at an international conference on information literacy in Istanbul (2013)

• Presenting at a national professional conference, leading to an invitation to deliver a workshop at a major Australian university for librarians across universities and TAFE institutions

• Mentoring a colleague to co-present with an academic at a Learning and Teaching conference (2017) on open educational materials

• Supporting conference proposal development with multiple successful acceptances

• Assisting in workshop planning and presentation delivery

These contributions required subject expertise, preparation, and professional credibility.

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Scholarly Contribution and Academic Mentorship

My work extended into research, publishing, and enabling others to succeed:

• Publishing a peer-reviewed journal article in an international journal

• Co-authoring a book chapter

• Mentoring a colleague through academic publication to a successful outcome

• Progressing a substantial scoping review project

This work contributed directly to the university’s academic and research profile.

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Strengthening Academic Programs and Institutional Capability

I identified and created opportunities that strengthened academic programs:

• Initiating collaboration during a course review process that contributed to the development of a doctoral-level training program in Education

• Building strong working relationships with academic staff to integrate professional expertise into curriculum and program design

• Expanding understanding of professional roles as genuine academic partners

These outcomes required initiative, trust, and sustained effort.

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Representation at Senior Academic Levels

I contributed at senior levels within the institution:

• Participating in meetings with faculty leadership, including at Dean level

• Supporting course reviews with insights grounded in direct engagement with students, researchers, and academic staff

• Providing service data and professional expertise to inform decision-making

Alongside this, I supervised a team and managed operational responsibilities.

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Recognition in Academic and Professional Work

My contribution was acknowledged in formal and informal ways:

• Acknowledgement in a doctoral thesis and published work on governance

• Recognition by senior educational leaders for professional support provided during doctoral studies

• Ongoing acknowledgment from colleagues and academics

These acknowledgements remain part of the academic record.

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Leadership, Team Development, and Collaboration

I worked to strengthen teams and improve collaboration:

• Developing a vision to bring together teams across campuses to share workload and enhance contribution

• Leading through relationship-based management, grounded in trust and inclusion

• Supporting staff development through mentorship and professional guidance

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The Reality Behind the Work

This contribution occurred alongside:

• High workload demands

• Expanding and often unclear expectations

• A formal role that did not reflect the full scope of what was being delivered

Despite this, I continued to cooperate and contribute in good faith.

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The Record That Followed

Despite this documented history of contribution, a statement was later recorded within the workers’ compensation process by Catholic Church Insurance to the effect that I was “always unfit” for my role.

This was a serious assertion placed on record within a statutory system.

It directly contradicts:

• documented professional achievements

• academic contributions

• leadership responsibilities

• and sustained recognition over time

More concerningly, this assertion was not meaningfully interrogated or tested by Independent Review Office (IRO), despite its role in supporting injured workers and ensuring fairness.

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A Failure of Alignment: Conduct, Code, and Catholic Principles

Beyond the contradiction in the record, there is a deeper issue — one of alignment.

Universities grounded in faith-based traditions articulate clear expectations through:

• staff codes of conduct (integrity, fairness, respect, accountability)

• leadership obligations (ethical decision-making, procedural fairness, duty of care)

• Catholic social justice principles (human dignity, care for the vulnerable, justice, truth, and stewardship)

The conduct that followed — including:

• the minimisation of documented contribution

• the acceptance of untested and damaging assertions

• the absence of procedural fairness

• and the failure to safeguard a vulnerable worker

raises serious questions about whether those principles were upheld in practice.

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The Contradiction That Cannot Be Ignored

There is an irreconcilable contradiction between:

On one hand:

• international presentations

• national recognition and invited workshops

• peer-reviewed publications and academic contribution

• mentorship and demonstrated impact

• leadership and institutional engagement

And on the other:

• a recorded assertion that I was “always unfit” for my role

Both cannot be true.

Yet one was documented and accepted.

The other, supported by evidence, was not given equal weight.

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When Contribution Becomes Invisible

This is how professional contribution is erased:

Not by absence of evidence —

but by the acceptance of untested narratives.

Not by lack of work —

but by failures in systems meant to ensure fairness and accountability.

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Why This Record Matters

This is about:

• accuracy

• accountability

• and system integrity

When unsupported assertions are recorded and left unexamined, the consequences extend beyond one individual.

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Final Reflection

My contribution did not disappear.

It was documented.

It was recognised.

It had impact.

The issue is not whether the work existed.

The issue is how easily it was set aside —

and how readily a conflicting narrative was allowed to take its place.

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Call to Action

I respectfully call on the NSW State Insurance Regulatory Authority and relevant Members of Parliament to examine how such assertions are accepted without scrutiny, and to ensure that statutory systems operate with the fairness, evidence-based assessment, and accountability they are designed to uphold.

Source: contemporaneous record of events - Document 60

See also:

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8597-3113

https://acu-au.academia.edu/VickiBourbous 

https://vickiposts.tumblr.com/