The Queensland Commitment

An image of student with cows at the dairy at UQ's Gatton campus.

When The University of Queensland was first established on 10 December 1909 as the state's first university, the premier of the day spoke of a university founded not by a king – as the universities like Oxford had been – but by the people.

“If a Queensland University is to be a gain to the State,” wrote The Brisbane Courier at the time, “it must be brought into close and intimate touch with the people, drawing strength and inspiration from the very endeavour to minister to their needs.”

An image of UQ graduates standing in front of the George Street campus in Brisbane in 1916.

UQ graduates at the George Street campus in Brisbane in 1916. Image: Fryer Library University of Queensland Photograph Collection

UQ graduates at the George Street campus in Brisbane in 1916. Image: Fryer Library University of Queensland Photograph Collection

More than a century later, UQ has become a leading global institution for teaching, learning and research. But the sense of responsibility to serve the people of Queensland remains at the heart of who we are and what we do every day.

This is a responsibility UQ is reaffirming with a new initiative called The Queensland Commitment.

The Queensland Commitment returns UQ to its roots as a university for and by the people. It re-emphasises that UQ is a place for everybody: no matter who you are, where you’re from, or what challenges you’ve faced, you can pursue your ambitions at UQ.

This begins with addressing the challenge that talent is distributed evenly, but opportunity is not.

Together, we want to work with our alumni, partners and communities to break down all personal, financial and geographical barriers facing Queensland students aspiring to study at UQ by 2032.

To celebrate the launch of The Queensland Commitment, Contact spoke to Queenslanders across all stages of their educational journey about what their education and their state means to them.

Judith Anderson OAM

Former General Manager of Queensland Ballet
(Bachelor of Arts ’66, Diploma of Journalism ’73)

Q: Growing up, did you always think you were going to study at University?

A: I didn't understand what going to university even meant until I got there! My father had to leave school at 14 during the Great Depression, so he was determined that I should have a good education, but the concept of pursuing a career was not common for girls in the 1950s, particularly in small regional towns where there weren't many role models.

Q: How did your studies help you achieve what you did across your career?

A: The Guidance Officer suggested I become a hospital almoner (a social worker) but eventually I enrolled in an arts degree because French and English had been my best subjects at school. Oddly, this proved to be the best choice because studying languages, history and philosophy gave me a very broad base, taught me to think, and opened up a world of possibilities.

An image of Judith Anderson standing with her father Ralph Brown and mother Amy in front of the family's FX Holden ute on holiday at Southport in the mid-1950s.

Judith Anderson (far right) with her father Ralph Brown and mother Amy on holiday at Southport in the mid-1950s. Image supplied

Judith Anderson (far right) with her father Ralph Brown and mother Amy on holiday at Southport in the mid-1950s. Image supplied

Q: What would you tell your ten-year-old self?

A: I would certainly tell her what going to university means! But I would also tell her to be confident of her own worth, to not be afraid to dream big dreams, and to take chances because you never know what might be just around the corner.

Q: What does Queensland mean to you?

A: I’m a dyed-in-the-wool Queenslander. This is where I was born and in my lifetime I’ve seen it gradually lose its inferiority complex and the chip on its shoulder and become the vibrant, confident state it is today.

An image of Former General Manager of Queensland Ballet Judith Anderson OAM.

Former General Manager of Queensland Ballet Judith Anderson OAM.

Former General Manager of Queensland Ballet Judith Anderson OAM.

An image of Judith Anderson as young child carrying a loaf of bread in front of her family's bakery wagon in Warwick.

Judith Anderson as young child in Warwick. Image supplied

Judith Anderson as young child in Warwick. Image supplied

An image of 2021 Distinguished Young Alumni Award recipient Mikhara Ramsing.

2021 Distinguished Young Alumni Award recipient Mikhara Ramsing.

2021 Distinguished Young Alumni Award recipient Mikhara Ramsing.

An image of 2021 Distinguished Young Alumni Award recipient Mikhara Ramsing.

2021 Distinguished Young Alumni Award recipient Mikhara Ramsing.

2021 Distinguished Young Alumni Award recipient Mikhara Ramsing.

Mikhara Ramsing

2021 Distinguished Young Alumni Award recipient
(Bachelor of Economics (Hons) '15, Bachelor of Laws (Hons) '14)

Q: Do you remember your first day at UQ? What was it like?

A: It was magical. I remember falling in love with those sandstone walls from the moment I toured UQ while in high school. To have actually got into my first-preference institution and then to meet my classmates – who were all so ambitious, humble and ready to change the world – was the greatest feeling. I sheepishly admit, it felt like I got into Hogwarts! I signed up to so many clubs and loved the diversity of activities that were on offer.

Q: What impact has studying at university had on you and your life?

A: It's given me the confidence and rigour of thought to problem-solve any challenge I may face in my life – career or personal. It also provided me with a network of friends and teachers who I call on to this day to navigate career progression or learn new skills. 

Q: What do you hope to achieve?

A: I hope to achieve a world of gender equality, from the workplace to the communities I am a part of, and to enable the social, political and economic participation of all people in achieving positive outcomes. I have been able to use my studies in both law and economics to deliver this through my social enterprises: Miks Chai, which sells ethically sourced, environmentally sustainable chai to fund suicide prevention, and Ethnic LGBT+, a national website for members of the culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) LGBTIQA+ community to share their stories.

An image of Mikhara Ramsing speaking to 800 youth at yLead Altitude Day, Brisbane City Hall.

Mikhara Ramsing speaking to 800 youth at yLead Altitude Day, Brisbane City Hall.

Mikhara Ramsing speaking to 800 youth at yLead Altitude Day, Brisbane City Hall.

Q: What’s your proudest achievement?

A: Creating a more inclusive Australia through my work with Ethnic LGBT+, including developing resources that the CALD LGBTIQA+ community could use – the same resources which help me create a home of love and understanding with the communities I am a part of. I am also really proud of my work with rural and regional Australia, where my partner and I have taken 1–6 months a year for the past five years to travel Australia. We've now taken our self-built tiny home trailer across a total of 70,000km (two times the circumference of the Earth). I love the stories we get to be a part of while on the road and the generosity of the people we meet.

Q: What does Queensland mean to you?

A: From the Bowen Mango Trees to the Daintree Rainforest, the bottle trees in Roma, and the gidgee of the Western Queensland Scrub along the highway to Hughendon, Queensland is home. I love its vast landscapes, its diversity of flora and fauna, its ancient soils and its thousands of years of culture. In fact, it was in Porcupine Gorge, amongst the knee-high feathery yellow grass, the endless starry sky, and upon seeing two bettongs that I proposed to my now wife, so inspired by the beauty that is Queensland.

Joshua Crow

Current Bachelor of Science student and Aspire Scholarship recipient

Q: Tell us about the place and the people where you grew up.

A: I lived in a few places around the Darling Downs, but spent most of high school in Warwick, about two hours southwest of Brisbane. Warwick is a big enough place for most things you need for fun as a kid, but small enough that you basically still know everyone. It’s close enough to access Brisbane easily, but far enough to make the 'big city trip' a significant event.

Q: Do you remember the moment you found out that your scholarship application had been accepted?

A: Moving to Brisbane is a whole other, and much more daunting, story. There were so many factors and so much to go wrong. I remember sitting in the UQ Central Library on a Wednesday, freaking out about still needing to find accommodation, and wondering how public transport worked and why textbooks were so expensive! I got the email that I’d received my scholarship while I was sitting in the library and it lifted a massive weight off my shoulders. With something to help ease the fear of moving hundreds of kilometres away with no parents and very little income, I could focus on the reason I was moving.

An image of Joshua Crow working.

Joshua Crow undertaking practical work as a student for the Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy.

Joshua Crow undertaking practical work as a student for the Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy.

Q: What do you hope to achieve with your education?

A: I have had the privilege of exploring my passion for geology and earth science with some really incredible and equally passionate lecturers. I hope to go into research and continue learning about the earth and all its marvels for some time, and I can’t really imagine anywhere better to accomplish this than in Queensland.

Q: What does Queensland mean to you?

A: In a lot of ways, I've found Queensland is like a big country town: such a massive state with so many different people, places and processes, yet everything seems to find a way to still be connected together. Queensland is where I grew up, learned and found my feet, and even though I may one day leave to bigger pastures, this will always be my home.

An image of Bachelor of Science/Bachelor of Arts student Joshua Crow.

Bachelor of Science/Bachelor of Arts student Joshua Crow.

Bachelor of Science/Bachelor of Arts student Joshua Crow.

An image of Joshua Crow as a child in the Darling Downs.

Joshua Crow as a child in the Darling Downs.

Joshua Crow as a child in the Darling Downs.

An image of InspireU participant and Year 10 student Stacey Ruthenberg.

InspireU participant and Year 10 student Stacey Ruthenberg.

InspireU participant and Year 10 student Stacey Ruthenberg.

Stacey Ruthenberg

Year 11 student, InspireU participant and proud Wiradjuri woman

Q: What's your hometown like?

A: My hometown is Bundaberg, Queensland. I’ve known Bundaberg as my home for most of my life. While small, Bundaberg is a nice balance between living by the beach and open agricultural properties. I personally really enjoy the middle ground between urban and rural living. 

Q: What is the InspireU program and how have you found it?

A: The InspireU program is run by the UQ Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies Unit and gives academically minded Indigenous youth the opportunity to get a feel for what university is like. The program also provides a chance for Indigenous youth to better understand what they do and don’t want to do in a comfortable and welcoming environment. I found out about the InspireU program through the pathways officers at my school, Shalom College. 

InspireU participant Stacey Ruthenberg on the water near her home in Bundaberg.

InspireU participant Stacey Ruthenberg on the water near her home in Bundaberg.

Q: What interests you and why? How would you want to use your studies to make a difference?

A: I am very interested in careers involving research science, whether that be within biomedical sciences or molecular biology. I think that study in these areas could progress knowledge of the human body in a way that can provide new, lifesaving opportunities. 

Q: What does Queensland mean to you?

A: To me, Queensland isn’t just the winning State of Origin team. Queensland has always been my family’s home, so it is and will always be a significant place to me. Queensland has never failed to provide amazing weather and an even better landscape. I, my mother and my mother's mother all grew up in Queensland and I wouldn’t have asked for it any other way.

Amias Krishna

'Class of 2032' student

Q: What do you want to be when you grow up and why?

A: I want to be a scientist, because you get to do a lot of experiments and test things, and I like trying new things.

Q: What’s your favourite subject at school and why?

A: Maths, because it's fun and I am very good at it.

Q: What do you think we need to change in the world?

A: Pollution, because it is destroying the environment.

Q: What do you think the world will look like in 2032?

A: The houses will have a lot more technology like TVs, laptops, phones and video games, and there will be more cars and planes around. 

Q: What does Queensland mean to you?

A: Queensland is my home, my family and where we will live.

An image of 'Class of 2032' student Amias Krishna.

'Class of 2032' student Amias Krishna.

'Class of 2032' student Amias Krishna.

Join The Queensland Commitment by getting involved, making a gift or becoming an ambassador