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Francis Markham

@francismarkham.bsky.social

4.2K followers 2K following 640 posts

Geographer and public policy researcher and teacher at the Australian National University. Settler on stolen land. He/his. Opinions my own, not my employer's. I have never met with Brian Burke.

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Francis Markham @francismarkham.bsky.social · Sep 7

Australian universities are in a governance crisis. VC pay blowouts, scandals, mission drift — these aren’t random, they’re structural.

This new working paper with @marijataflaga.bsky.social & Keith Dowding digs into why the system is broken, and how to fix it.

doi.org/10.25911/MWW...

A thread:

Neither corporate nor government: Why university governance needs to be different, and better
Marija Taflaga, Francis Markham and Keith Dowding.

Preprint, 29 August 2025. https://doi.org/10.25911/MWW4-9781

Abstract
Australian universities face a governance crisis rooted in failures of accountability. Unlike parliaments and corporate boards, university councils lack effective mechanisms for principals to discipline agents. In parliaments, voters can replace elected representatives; in corporations, shareholders can vote out directors. Both systems close the delegation–accountability loop, ensuring alignment between principals and outcomes. University councils, however, are self-perpetuating bodies dominated by external appointees, and in recent decades they are typically from corporate backgrounds. As neither producers nor consumers of universities’ core product—knowledge creation and dissemination—they have minimal intrinsic stake in academic outcomes leaving councils detached from the university’s core mission. This misalignment fosters mission drift, weakens oversight, and contributes to repeated scandals. Because councils largely appoint their own successors, they remain insulated from meaningful scrutiny, unlike boards or parliaments where underperformance is sanctioned externally. Restoring accountability requires giving academic staff and students a renewed oversight role, alongside clear safeguards for the public interest. Because academics and students are both producers and consumers of knowledge, they have a direct and enduring stake in its quality. We recommend two mechanisms to do this are:
1. Academic Senates empowered to appoint and review council members, ensuring councils reflect the university’s purpose.
2. Robust Committee Systems that embed staff and student voices in decision-making, reduce information asymmetries, and align incentives with academic purposes.

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Francis Markham @francismarkham.bsky.social · 11h

*University governance crisis intensifies*

Careers in limbo after graduates discover university courses were never accredited

Students have been left with HECS debts and careers that are "non-existent" after completing degrees that were not accredited. Class actions have been launched against two Australian universities.

www.abc.net.au

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Francis Markham @francismarkham.bsky.social · 13h

That's why it's called Australia Post, it's for posters

Francis Markham @francismarkham.bsky.social · 13h

At the post office soon

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Francis Markham @francismarkham.bsky.social · 13h

It's methadone

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Francis Markham @francismarkham.bsky.social · 22h

Nostalgic for the days when Tony Blair at least felt obliged to pretend to stage a democratic transition after regime change.

The Guardian @theguardian.com · 13d

Washington backing plan for Tony Blair to head transitional Gaza authority

Proposal for international body to oversee Gaza for up to five years counters UN-backed plan for faster transition to Palestinian rule The White House is backing a plan under which the former British prime minister Tony Blair would head a temporary administration of the Gaza Strip, initially without the direct involvement of the Palestinian Authority (PA), according to reports in the Israeli media. Under the proposal, Blair would head a body called the Gaza International Transitional Authority, Gita, which would have a mandate to be Gaza’s “supreme political and legal authority” for as long as five years. Continue reading...

www.theguardian.com

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Reposted by Francis Markham

Our ANU @ouranu.bsky.social · 1d

VCs are “not interchangeable” with people who run banks or mining companies ... “Yet the current approach prices them as though they could walk into the C-suite of a listed company – a fiction that drives pay packages ever higher.”

@marijataflaga.bsky.social and @francismarkham.bsky.social

Times Higher Education (THE) @timeshighered.bsky.social · 2d

Institutional autonomy ‘not threatened’ by proposal to more than halve executive pay, Australian academics say, as universities insist councils should maintain control
https://www.timeshighereducation.com/news/regulate-inflated-v-c-salaries-australian-senators-told

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Francis Markham @francismarkham.bsky.social · 1d

Blocked and reported

Francis Markham @francismarkham.bsky.social · 1d

Yeah, not really a UBI in the sense that U stands for universal or unconditional

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Francis Markham @francismarkham.bsky.social · 1d

Worth remembering that SEAM was abandoned by the federal Coalition government not just because of human rights concerns.

But also the evaluations showed that it "didn't work" in terms of creating the outcomes that the government wanted to see.

This dead policy should not have been resurrected.

Michael Klapdor @mklapdor.bsky.social · 1d

NT to activate school attendance income management measure. While provided for in the legislation, I don't believe it's been used previously. There were other program which could suspend or cancel payments - e.g. SEAM in the NT which ended in 2017. nit.com.au/06-10-2025/2...

NT government to refer parents of truant children to income management

The Northern Territory Government will refer parents whose children do not attend school to income management, saying the measure is part of the CLP's plan to reduce crime and strengthen community saf...

nit.com.au

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Francis Markham @francismarkham.bsky.social · 1d

If it was properly designed it would not but clearly people will freak out about this

Francis Markham @francismarkham.bsky.social · 1d

If there was ever a source of random variation suitable for establishing casuality without experimental random assignment, surely the weather is it.

Francis Markham @francismarkham.bsky.social · 1d

Artists routinely write grant applications and occasionally fellowship applications. So pretty straightforward in practice.

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Reposted by Francis Markham

JW Mason @jwmason.bsky.social · 2d

If we are thinking about alternatives to intellectual property, Ireland's Basic Income for the Arts seems like a model worth considering. www.rte.ie/news/budget-...

Budget 2026: Basic income for artists to become permanent

The Basic Income for the Arts scheme will be put on a permanent footing in the Budget tomorrow.

www.rte.ie

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Reposted by Francis Markham

JW Mason @jwmason.bsky.social · 4d

The lesson we should be taking from LLMs is the immense social value there is in having all kinds of material - all kinds of products of human intellectual labor - freely available online. They should be reminding us of the early utopian promise of the web.

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Francis Markham @francismarkham.bsky.social · 3d

Wild

Francis Markham @francismarkham.bsky.social · 3d

What was Rudd's net popularity during that first half of 2008?

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Francis Markham @francismarkham.bsky.social · 3d

They have good taste

Reposted by Francis Markham

The Associated Press @apnews.com · 4d

Over 2 million people across Italy have rallied in more than 100 cities for a one-day general strike.

2 million rally in Italy for Gaza as general strike halts key services

Over 2 million people across Italy have rallied in more than 100 cities for a one-day general strike.

bit.ly

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Francis Markham @francismarkham.bsky.social · 4d

an elegant weapon for a more civilized age

Retro Tech Dreams @retrotechdreams.bsky.social · 6d

Hampster Dance

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Francis Markham @francismarkham.bsky.social · 4d

i'm shook

Francis Markham @francismarkham.bsky.social · 5d

Imagine staring straight into Australia’s mess of a tax and transfer system and deciding the solution is… higher EMTRs. Genius.

Francis Markham @francismarkham.bsky.social · 5d

RIP to one of the greats

Hertie School @hertieschool.bsky.social · 6d

The Hertie School mourns the passing of Prof. Dr Dr h.c. Claus Offe, Professor Emeritus of Political Sociology, an extraordinary scholar, teacher and colleague.

We extend our heartfelt condolences to his family, friends and all who had the privilege to know him.

Francis Markham @francismarkham.bsky.social · 6d

Is this about the income averaging validation leg or something different?

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Francis Markham @francismarkham.bsky.social · 7d

Have you heard that Andrew Hastie likes Shakespeare though Travis??

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