Quiet achiever honoured by Senate
6 June 2003
 |
Bruce Ross at No. 1 Oval with Denise Wee |
By Graham Croker
Bruce Ross, the man at the helm of one of the biggest sporting clubs in Australia, has been honoured for his contribution to Sydney University Sport with the conferral of an Honorary Fellowship of Senate.
Mr Ross was President of the Sydney University Sports Union for 12 years before becoming the inaugural President of Sydney University Sport at the beginning of 2003. The new body emerged when the Sports Union and the Sydney University Women's Sports Association came together under a new banner.
In recent years, sporting clubs and individuals from the University have achieved some remarkable successes on and off the field. Speaking at a recent Blues Dinner, Mr Ross said sport at the University was in a very healthy state. "The good news is the quality of athletes electing and aspiring to come to Sydney University is constantly rising," he said.
Mr Ross was first elected to the Sports Union Management Committee as a Senate representative in 1990. The following year he replaced Maurice Cunningham to become the 39th president of the Sports Union since its foundation in 1890.
A graduate of the University of New South Wales, where he majored in economics in an arts degree, Mr Ross came to Sydney University in 1973, working for 28 years as a lecturer and senior lecturer in economics. His principal research and teaching interests were in business enterprise and corporate strategy.
His initial involvement with sport at Sydney University was as coach of the Football Club's First Grade Colts team in 1989. He coached various colts and grade teams during the following four years and became a great supporter of the club. He can be seen at most home games, sitting quietly on the north-eastern hill with a thermos of coffee and shortbread biscuits.
As President of the Sports Union, Mr Ross has worked closely with the executive director of the Sports Union, Greg Harris, through a period of substantial growth and change in sport at the University. Among the major achievements of the Sports Union during this time has been the upgrading of its capital facilities, notably the $5 million redevelopment of the Noel Martin Recreation Centre. Other initiatives have included the enhanced provision of infrastructure and support services for high performance clubs, the development of links with outside sporting organisations and the creation of an extensive program of school holiday sports camps and physical education services for schools.
Mr Harris said the contribution Bruce Ross had made to University sport in an honorary capacity was immeasurable. "Over the past decade the sporting program at the University has recorded an imposing list of achievements and Bruce has been the instigator of much of the success," he said. "The reinvention of our proud sporting heritage and the introduction of new innovative strategies have been possible under the guidance and direction of Bruce Ross."
In 1991 Mr Ross proposed the introduction of a system of sports scholarships, the foundation of the Sports Union's comprehensive elite athlete program. Following a 1989 study tour with Mr Harris of athletics departments and sporting programs at major universities in the United States, he took on the role of academic counsellor to elite athletes. He now works in conjunction with the athlete services managers at Sydney University Sport, providing academic and career advice. He has taken a particular interest in encouraging past sporting scholars to maintain their involvement with the University and its sporting clubs.
Mr Ross said: "The greatest thing about the sports scholarship scheme is the success of the students on the academic side. They are collectively more successful academically than other students. And that's because the scholarship offers them academic counselling and time management skills. They develop a study culture and our academic results are now better than that of the overall student body."
Address any comments to:
media@publications.usyd.edu.au
Bruce Ross, the man at the helm of one of the biggest sporting clubs in Australia, has been honoured for his contribution to Sydney University Sport with the conferral of an Honorary Fellowship of Senate.
Mr Ross was President of the Sydney University Sports Union for 12 years before becoming the inaugural President of Sydney University Sport at the beginning of 2003. The new body emerged when the Sports Union and the Sydney University Women's Sports Association came together under a new banner.
In recent years, sporting clubs and individuals from the University have achieved some remarkable successes on and off the field. Speaking at a recent Blues Dinner, Mr Ross said sport at the University was in a very healthy state. "The good news is the quality of athletes electing and aspiring to come to Sydney University is constantly rising," he said.
Mr Ross was first elected to the Sports Union Management Committee as a Senate representative in 1990. The following year he replaced Maurice Cunningham to become the 39th president of the Sports Union since its foundation in 1890.
A graduate of the University of New South Wales, where he majored in economics in an arts degree, Mr Ross came to Sydney University in 1973, working for 28 years as a lecturer and senior lecturer in economics. His principal research and teaching interests were in business enterprise and corporate strategy.
His initial involvement with sport at Sydney University was as coach of the Football Club's First Grade Colts team in 1989. He coached various colts and grade teams during the following four years and became a great supporter of the club. He can be seen at most home games, sitting quietly on the north-eastern hill with a thermos of coffee and shortbread biscuits.
As President of the Sports Union, Mr Ross has worked closely with the executive director of the Sports Union, Greg Harris, through a period of substantial growth and change in sport at the University. Among the major achievements of the Sports Union during this time has been the upgrading of its capital facilities, notably the $5 million redevelopment of the Noel Martin Recreation Centre. Other initiatives have included the enhanced provision of infrastructure and support services for high performance clubs, the development of links with outside sporting organisations and the creation of an extensive program of school holiday sports camps and physical education services for schools.
Mr Harris said the contribution Bruce Ross had made to University sport in an honorary capacity was immeasurable. "Over the past decade the sporting program at the University has recorded an imposing list of achievements and Bruce has been the instigator of much of the success," he said. "The reinvention of our proud sporting heritage and the introduction of new innovative strategies have been possible under the guidance and direction of Bruce Ross."
In 1991 Mr Ross proposed the introduction of a system of sports scholarships, the foundation of the Sports Union's comprehensive elite athlete program. Following a 1989 study tour with Mr Harris of athletics departments and sporting programs at major universities in the United States, he took on the role of academic counsellor to elite athletes. He now works in conjunction with the athlete services managers at Sydney University Sport, providing academic and career advice. He has taken a particular interest in encouraging past sporting scholars to maintain their involvement with the University and its sporting clubs.
Mr Ross said: "The greatest thing about the sports scholarship scheme is the success of the students on the academic side. They are collectively more successful academically than other students. And that's because the scholarship offers them academic counselling and time management skills. They develop a study culture and our academic results are now better than that of the overall student body."
Address any comments to:
media@publications.usyd.edu.au