Celebrating Excellence in Learning and Teaching at the ICMS Symposium 2025

ICMS is proud to recognise the outstanding contributions of staff who continuously enhance the learning and teaching experience for students. At the ICMS Symposium in August 2025, two staff members were honoured as recipients of the Learning and Teaching Excellence Awards Program 2025 (Tier 1).

ICMS Associate Dean (Scholarship) Associate Professor Betul Sekendiz explained that the awards program was restructured this year to better reflect sector-wide standards for identifying and recognising excellence in learning and teaching, and showcase ICMS`S unique scholarly approaches to advance student success.

“All our applicants have undertaken a rigorous training program over the past few months,” Associate Professor Sekendiz said. “They are also eligible to contribute to our best-practice case studies, where we’ll continue to share and celebrate our successes.”

Outstanding Student Experience and Learning (OSEL) Awards

Two OSEL Awards (Early Career) were presented, recognising innovative approaches that directly improve student engagement and outcomes.

Dora Kelaiditis, Lecturer at ISCA

Dora (pictured) was recognised for designing practical, industry-focused learning resources that bridge the gap between theory and practice in high-performance sport subjects. Her work particularly supports student-athletes studying at a diploma level.

“When I first started lecturing two years ago, it became abundantly obvious that there was a disconnect for students – the traditional theory-heavy content sometimes went over their heads when their main interest was sport,” Dora explained.

“Finding a way to break down the complex content into more practical, real-life content such as case studies became my focus.”

Dora thanked Associate Professor Betul Sekendiz for her ongoing mentorship, as well as the OSEL Awards committee for selecting her application.

Dona Paranawithana, Lecturer at ICMS

Dona was honoured for integrating game-based learning into her teaching, creating a learner-centred environment that has enhanced language acquisition and engagement among ELICOS students.

“I’m so happy to receive this award for my work with game-based teaching experiences,” she said. “A special thank you should be given to Linda Karlsson (English teacher at Aspire English and the Australian Foundation Program) for her mentorship, and to Associate Professor Betul Sekendiz for always supporting new ideas.

“I look forward to continuing to expand these practices and representing ICMS at future conferences.”

Scholarly Practice Grant

In addition to the OSEL Awards, a Scholarly Practice Grant was awarded to Dr Jae Won Kang (ICMS Program Manager, Sports and Property) and Darren Coughlan (ICMS Discipline Lead, Sports). This was to support their research by presenting at the 2025 Asian Association for Sport Management Conference in Taipei, Taiwan (22–23 August), covering:

• Leadership styles and team performance in professional sports organisations
• Data-driven decision making in non-profit sport organisations
• Expanding sports engagement in emerging markets through digital marketing strategies.

Associate Professor Sekendiz praised their work, noting:

“This activity demonstrates the importance of collaboration in achieving ICMS’s scholarship objectives. Thank you to both Dr Jae Won and Darren for your hard work – we look forward to seeing the impact of your projects.”

Learn more about ICMS’s academic scholarship and research activities.