UNE (Armidale Campus)

Our values, Madgwick's legacy

• Sir Robert Madgwick, UNE's first vice chancellor, knew intrinsically that education is critical to helping people adapt to workplaces and change. Education as key to empowerment is a theme that runs throughout his career.
• Madgwick listened and acted: As warden to the New England University College (NEUC) in Armidale, before UNE was formed, he listened to the region — its rural and farming communities — and expanded NEUC's curriculum to include rural science and agricultural economics.
• Madgwick was solution-driven: During the post-World War 2 baby boom it was evident Australia needed more teachers to cater to the growing population. Madgwick set up a distance-education teacher-training program from the New England University College in Armidale (Sydney University's rural outpost), for aspiring teachers otherwise restricted from tertiary study because or where they lived.
• He was a true champion of distance education for the purpose of empowering society — so everyone has the opportunity to adapt to the challenges of a changing world.

A positive influence on the lives of generations

• Sir Robert Madgwick- The first vice-chancellor of UNE, Sir Robert Madgwick, was a most remarkable man. His personal mission — to help ordinary people respond to a rapidly changing world — remains at the core of what drives the University of New England.