AUCSO confirms retirement of Australasia Chair
James Thorpe
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The Association of University Chief Security Officers (AUCSO) has confirmed that Australasia Chair, Russell Gammie, will retire after 25 years of dedicated service.
As well as departing from AUCSO, Gammie will be retiring from his role at Monash University in Australia as Director of Global Security & Crisis Response.
Guidance and leadership
Gammie is known as the “Grandfather of the university security network in Australia”.
Having set up a small confederation of interested parties in 1999, by 2010, this had grown into the TERSEC Group (Tertiary Security) comprising of members from institutions in Victoria.
Mal Abley, Manager of Security Operations and Systems at Deakin University, Australia and Australasia Region Chair for AUCSO commented: “Russell knew that in order to further professionalise our industry, we needed to be able to tap into the knowledge base of our international colleagues.
“This insight led to Russell beginning his search for an established group we could partner with that would offer us a new perspective and provide the encouragement to grow in our profession. That organisation was AUCSO.
“On behalf of AUCSO I would like to say a huge thank you to Russell for all of his guidance, advice and leadership over the last 25 years.
“We will miss you, but we wish you a fabulous retirement and a very happy life in your new home in Thailand,” Abley added.
“An absolute privilege and pleasure”
“All good things come to an end and as much as I’ve really enjoyed this journey, it’s time for me to embark on another, a more relaxing one,” Gammie said.
“I can’t go without saying a very sincere thank you to everyone that has been part of the experience over the 20 plus years.
“It has been an absolute privilege and pleasure for me to work in such an important sector for so long and alongside such an experienced and dedicated group of people.
“The wonderful support and camaraderie I’ve been lucky to experience, as well as the real progress we’ve made together, has made my time enjoyable and rewarding.
“I’ll now continue to watch with interest from the sidelines.
“Keep on doing it, back each other and share the load!”
“We will miss him lots”
Julie Barker, COO, AUSCO added: “I had the pleasure of meeting Russ last year – he is a great guy and has been a superbly active and supportive Regional Chair for us.
“We will miss him lots, but we wish him and his wife a fantastic retirement.”
